While Clif SHOT Bloks and other "chew" products may be fun to
eat, we strongly recommend that you closely examine the ingredients and
nutritional facts of these products before using them in your training and
competition. These chew products are a lot like eating candy and it should
come as no surprise that there's not much difference. To demonstrate this
fact we have included Licorice and Gummy Bear candy in the comparison.
In short, like their candy counterparts, SHOT Bloks are extremely high in
sugar, virtually no electrolytes, no amino acids, no antioxidants or other
vitamins - pretty much no nutritional value at all. Oh, they do contain
oil and carnauba wax! So why would you want to eat these during your
training or competition??
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Carbohydrates
Maltodextrin is the preferred carbohydrate source for endurance athletes and
as such it is the primary ingredient in e-Gel as well as most other good
products on the market. Clif SHOT Bloks on the other hand use evaporated
cane juice and brown rice syrup. Both of these sound good on the label,
unfortunately, evaporated cane
juice is another name for sugar and brown
rice syrup is also very high in sugar. The danger of high sugar content products
such as Clif SHOT Bloks and candy is that they
can elevate your blood sugar level too far too fast which can lead to a
sugar crash (also known as bonking). Higher sugar content also raises the
osmolality of the product which can reduce energy delivery, delay fluid
absorption and promote dehydration.
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Electrolytes
e-Gel is the ONLY energy gel that is designed to provide complete and
balanced electrolyte replacement that is critical for proper hydration and
to avoid muscle cramping. e-Gel has approximately 4 times the amount of sodium and
potassium compared to Clif SHOT Bloks. The sodium and potassium levels in e-Gel are
designed to meet the American College of Sports Medicine's recommendation
for electrolyte replacement during intense athletic activity.
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Amino Acids
The amino acids in e-Gel are designed to reduce lactic acid
build up, maintain muscle protein and aid in recovery. Clif SHOT Bloks and most
other competitive products on
the market today fail to include amino acids because they are expensive
ingredients.
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Citrates
Citrates assist in the carbohydrate to energy conversion process as well as
reduce and slow the build-up of lactic acid in your muscles.
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Antioxidants
e-Gel is one of the few energy gels that contain antioxidant vitamins C and E
to help protect against tissue damage,
reduce soreness and aid in the recovery process.
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Vitamin B6
e-Gel is the only energy gel to include vitamin B6 which assists in the
energy conversion process.
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Caffeine
While caffeine may give a temporary mental boost, unfortunately it is a
diuretic, meaning that it causes your kidneys to produce more urine - thus
promoting dehydration. Proper hydration is critical to optimum performance,
and in our opinion caffeine should not be incorporated into your sports
nutrition program. Our recommendation has always been that if you feel that
you NEED caffeine, then only use a caffeinated product (there are plenty on
the market) near the end of your
competition when you need the psychological boost the most and there is
little time to cause dehydration. We strongly recommend against relying on a
caffeinated product for the duration of the competition.
* None of e-Gel's flavors contain caffeine. Clif SHOT Bloks have caffeine in
a few of their flavors
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Fats,
Oils and Carnauba Wax
These ingredients are used to make "gummy" candy products, not
serious sports nutrition products.
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Pricing
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At retail, a pack of Clif SHOT
Bloks cost about 33% more than a pack of e-Gel, however, each pack of e-Gel
contains more than 50% more energy than a pack of Clif SHOT Bloks (37 grams vs.
24 grams). On a cost per calorie basis
Clif SHOT Bloks are twice as expensive as e-Gel.
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Clif SHOT Bloks is a trademark of
Clif Bar, Inc.. The nutritional information shown above for Clif SHOT
Bloks is
for a single serving packet of their Orange flavor as published December
2008.
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