Gravel nutrition with numbers: 60–90 g of carbs per hour, drinking right, replacing sodium and timing caffeine smartly – so you never bonk again.
"Why do I fall apart on the final kilometers every time?" – the honest answer: you eat too little, too late. On long gravel rides your carbohydrate intake decides the finale. Plan 30–60 g of carbohydrate per hour for rides of one to two hours and build up to as much as 90 g/h for anything over 2.5–3 hours – but only with a mix of glucose and fructose in a roughly 2:1 ratio. On top of that, drink regularly and replace sodium, because from just 2 % fluid loss your endurance measurably slows down.
The reason is physiology: a single type of sugar is absorbed via the gut transporter SGLT1, which is saturated at around 60 g per hour. Combine glucose and fructose and you use a second transporter (GLUT5), delivering more energy into the blood – up to 90 g/h, which the UCI nutrition consensus confirms for long endurance events like gravel too. The problem: most riders take in far too little. In real bike races the average intake is only about 53 g/h – exactly where the bonk starts.
Two to three hours before the start, eat a carbohydrate-focused meal (e.g. oats, rice, bread). In the heat, hydrate well in advance too – preventing beats catching up.
Do not wait for hunger. For one to two hours, 30–60 g/h is enough; from 2.5–3 hours build up to 60–90 g/h with mixed carbohydrates. In practice: a small portion every 20–30 minutes, spread evenly across the hour.
Drink regularly in small sips. A loss above 2 % of body weight impairs endurance performance, and heat and humidity make it worse. A gravel field study found nearly half of riders moderately and 17.5 % severely dehydrated after the race – drinking is massively underestimated under load. Replace sodium via an electrolyte drink or salty snacks.
3–6 mg per kg of body weight improve endurance performance by around 2–3 %; even 3 mg/kg works similarly to higher doses. For 70 kg that is about 210 mg – well timed before a hard section or the finale.
Promptly replace carbohydrate plus some protein (roughly a 3:1 ratio) and fluid and sodium to refill glycogen stores and kick-start muscle repair. Weigh yourself before and after long rides: each kilogram of body weight lost roughly equals a liter of fluid to replace over the following hours. Sleep and a solid evening meal are the underrated part of your recovery – without them, even the best race nutrition goes to waste.
Test every new sports food in training first to rule out gastrointestinal problems in competition – serious GI symptoms mostly hit riders with a corresponding history. In extreme heat, adjust pace and goals and watch for warning signs (dizziness, goosebumps, stopping of sweating). Do not push past 90 g/h untested – your gut has to learn it first.
Train your gut like a muscle: eating deliberately carbohydrate-rich for about four weeks (around 6.5 g per kg of body weight per day) and practicing higher amounts in long training increases how much you can tolerate and use on the bike. That turns 90 g/h from a stomach risk into a competitive advantage.
For rides of one to two hours, 30–60 g/h is enough. From 2.5–3 hours build up to 60–90 g/h, but only with a mix of glucose and fructose (about 2:1), because a single sugar type saturates the gut at around 60 g/h. The UCI nutrition consensus confirms up to 90 g/h for long endurance events.
Prevent rather than repair: fuel early and regularly instead of waiting for hunger. The bonk happens when glycogen stores are empty – and many ride on only ~53 g/h, far too little. Top up your stores before the ride, eat small portions from the first hour, and combine glucose with fructose for more usable energy.
On long or hot rides you should replace sodium. A fluid loss over 2 % of body weight slows your endurance, even more so in the heat. In a gravel study nearly half the riders were moderately dehydrated after the race. Use an electrolyte drink or salty snacks – water alone is not enough with prolonged sweating.
3–6 mg per kg of body weight improve endurance performance by about 2–3 %, and even 3 mg/kg works similarly to higher doses. For 70 kg that is around 210 mg. Timing beats quantity: take it 30–60 minutes before a hard section or the finale – and test tolerance beforehand in training.
Gravel-Biking: Strategy and Tactics