GU Energy, Liquid Energy, Assorted Flavors - 12 Count

As far as the product offering, these were packaged and delivered perfectly. They do what they are designed and advertised to do, and the flavors are great! That said, I thought I wanted a more liquidy goo for my first IronBoy (70.3) because I had had some goos in a past marathon and remembered being a little confused by the eating while breathing process. Just a few weeks into my training I realized that you can tuck a normal goo in your cheek and breath just fine, so it was just a novice technique problem. Having refined this skill, I would now highly recommend normal goos over these because of the following observations: 1. To pack enough calories in these, they need to be physically larger, which makes A) storing them on your person or on your bike a little more cumbersome and B) drinking them a 2-squeeze operation for me, rather than a 1-squeeze operation for a traditional goo. These are basically the size of your palm+fingers, whereas a traditional goo is just the size of your palm. 2. I got stickier hands holding these while pumping my arms. These splash and run more than a traditional goo, which stays contained if you need to take a few strides between bites/sips, especially considering point #1. 3. When these are inevitably warm during a multi-hour race, it's kind of hard to tell if it's in your mouth or not, given the liquid has minimal weight and texture in your mouth. 4. They kind of spray to the back of your throat, which is annoying for the eating+breathing thing, compared to scraping a traditional goo with your teeth onto your tongue, flipping it to your cheek, and then breathing while your saliva gets working. There's probably more expert advice out there, but thought my experience might be helpful for other novices.

I like these as a fuel for long runs Easy on the stomach and goes give a boost of energy. The coffee flavor did not taste good at all. But the cola, lemon, and orange flavors are great.

I love the consistency of the gel/liquid. The packaging makes it easy to use while still maintaining pace. Love the flavors.

I really like the liquid GU’s over the gels. I find it a lot easier to take in while running. The variety pack was nice and a good value. They don’t have all the flavors locally (they have more gels- ew!) I tried coffee for the first time, and I’m not sure I would have chosen that flavor at the store even if they had it. It’s lovely- the flavor of a slightly sweet iced coffee! I’m normally caffeine-free in my daily life; I only use while distance running. It was plenty of caffeine to keep me going during the Seattle Half. Also worked for my daughter who has caffeine daily, so the level must be good.

Considering that you likely will be drinking them warm, some of the flavors are a little intriguing. The warm cola flavor is OK, but just seems a bit odd, like cola left out on the counter overnight. The espresso flavor also is a bit of a surprise at ambient temperature. They are definitely liquid, and I guess they don't want the contents to squirt out when you tear it open, so even once it is open, you have to squeeze the packet to get it flowing and suck and squeeze the contents. Even doing that, I almost always had some left in the packet. To really empty out a packet, I would have to use both hands to fold the packet up from the bottom to squeeze everything out. Might be ok for running, but not on a bike ride when you don't want to stop. Still, the liquid-gel is easy to swallow and doesn't make you feel like you need to wash it down with water. Knocked off a star on easy-to-swallow because of the difficulty getting it out of the pack. Compared to the energy gels, you get a bigger hit of energy, and quicker, too, but it doesn't last as long. Also, since there is more volume (for the same amount of calories, sodium and amino acids) than the gels, you can't carry as many on long bike rides. So, I've switched back to the gels. May be good for runners and shorter rides, or a quick burst of energy at strategic points, like just before a hill climb.

These are not the gel version despite the inaccurate name. They are larger packets of liquid. This was the most disappointing. I wasn't happy with any of the flavors either.

Works fast, and I personally feel like it lasts just as long as gels. Definitely goes down better than the gels too, even warm. The only flavors I wouldn’t buy again were the cola and the coffee —even cold I wanted to vomit after drinking these and the entire run afterwards. The orange is unexpectedly SO good! Tastes just like orange juice and very easy to take down during long runs/hard workouts.

I've been using gels for a while on my long run. I like them over many of the other products, but they can coat your throat and stick with you sometimes giving me heartburn. These, dont do any of that and are easy to get down as you go. I've only used them on 2 of my long runs, but so far I'm sold without the issues I have with gels. I did the multi pack trying to figure out what I prefer.

Easy to drink. No stomach issues