You might recall that I purchased a Clif Shot for my 10 mile race last month. I brought it along with me ‘just in case’. I didn’t end up using it because I found that the Gatorade did me just fine in that race.
I couldn’t really see myself buying these on a regular basis because they are quite over-priced for what it is. At running room, they work out to be about $2 for a single or $1.35 per for a box of 24.
After checking out the ingredients, I figured I could make a homemade version of the Clif Shot for much less.
Ingredients: Organic brown rice syrup, Cocoa powder, chocolate liquor, natural flavours, sea salt, potassium citrate, magnesium oxide.
Calories: 100
Here is what I mixed together for the homemade version:
Ingredients:
- Just less than 2 T Organic brown rice syrup
- 1 T carob powder
- Tiny pinch of sea salt
Calories: 110
Directions: Spoon a tablespoon of organic brown rice syrup into a plastic baggy. Next, spoon the carob powder and salt in. Zip the baggie closed and then take your fingers and kneed the ingredients so they blend.
To Use: Bite the corner off the bag and squeeze gel into your mouth. Easy as that!
Probably one of the least photogenic foods I have put on this site.
Bring it with you on any run or workout over 1 hour where you feel like you will need a boost. I had mine at mile 6 yesterday. It was the first time I have ever had any sort of energy gel, but I really loved the taste of this one. The carob powder is key- I felt like I was eating chocolate fudge or something. Now the only thing lacking in my homemade version is the potassium and the magnesium, but my guess is that if you properly fuel yourself before workouts this won’t be a major issue.
The best part of all is the cost of the homemade version. It works out to being just 50 cents per ‘shot’ vs. $1.35-2 for the Clif shot.
I was quite pleased to find that my stomach wasn’t upset after taking it either. I had a noticeable surge in energy after mile 6 that carried me another 3 miles. I will definitely be bringing this homemade gel with me on future long runs.
~~~~~
Yesterday was also quite a productive day on the business front! I got several Glo Bar orders done…
I also worked a lot on the Glo Bakery shopping cart. We are using Zen Cart for our shopping cart provider and I am really liking it so far. It is quite user-friendly once you figure out where everything is and the support forum is super helpful. Eric tells me that anytime a company makes their software open-source (no purchase required), you will find a huge network of people willing to help others out. Zen Cart = 2 thumbs up.
Check out the shopping cart homepage so far:
How fun is that?! I’m such a proud mama.
I can’t believe how close we are to shipping to the US!!!! It is finally coming together guys!
On that note, I am going to get to work this morning on it some more and package up my orders to be shipped out tomorrow.
Last night Eric and I had anniversary dinner #1 and it was fabulous (pics to come). I think we are going to Fresh today for lunch and it feels like Christmas. hahaha! Stay tuned for all the pics.
Enjoy your day!
Change does not necessarily assure progress, but progress implacably requires change. Education is essential to change, for education creates both new wants and the ability to satisfy them.
-Henry Steele Commager






August 30th, 2009 at 10:55 am
I can’t wait to buy Glo Bars!
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August 30th, 2009 at 11:31 am
I am SO excited for you to start shipping to the US! I can already tell that Glo Bars are going to become my new go-to snack and will be especially useful while at work.
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August 30th, 2009 at 11:32 am
AH! I want to dive into those Glo Bars and swim around! They look so amazing!!
Yay for making your own energy gel! That’s such a good idea!
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August 30th, 2009 at 11:37 am
Such a great idea to make your own shots!
I will definitely give these a try when I work up to some more mileage.
The Glo Bakery site is looking awesome!
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August 30th, 2009 at 11:46 am
I don’t like the taste of anything Clif-related, so these shots look like a great idea! can’t wait for US shipping to become active!
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August 30th, 2009 at 11:52 am
What an awesome idea – I’ll have to try that!
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August 30th, 2009 at 12:02 pm
I don’t understand . . . the gel you made cost you $.50? Is that because of the carob powder? I know carob is expensive. How did you determine the cost? Thanks!
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Angela (Oh She Glows) Reply:
September 1st, 2009 at 10:09 am
Nope it’s because of the organic brown rice syrup…its expensive- $8 CAD here.
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August 30th, 2009 at 12:20 pm
thank you for sharing your recipe! i’m spending a fortune on cliff products during my marathon training. so excited to know you’ll be shipping to the us. i can’t wait to try your glo bars!!
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August 30th, 2009 at 1:06 pm
Hey Angela!
I am a new reader, I found your blog from one of the many other food blogs I read
I love it so far, can’t wait to read up a little more.
I just started my own blog, so I hope you will stop by sometime! http://www.foodieinthecity.wordpress.com.
Enjoy your Sunday!
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August 30th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
ran my first race today (just a 5k), and about 10 min before it started i ate 2 honey taffy candies as my breakfast was wearing off. i think they definitely helped, because it was honestly the best run of my life. i was fast (for me), had a perfect rhythm, barely broke a sweat, and was smiling the whole time. i think any source of simple sugars is effective– all that matters is the ease of delivery! i can’t say i will ever be tempted to try these fancy goo packets. it just seems like a lot of money for pure sugar.
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August 30th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
Love your recipes, always!!
CAN’T WAIT UNTIL YOU CAN SHIP TO THE U.S.!!
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August 30th, 2009 at 1:35 pm
i just thought of this: what about honey packets? i am not ashamed to admit that i always take 2 at coffee shops when i only ever need one. they are self contained like individual ketchup & mustard packets, and would be easy to rip open during a run.
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August 30th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
That rocks that you made your own energy gel! In all my years of running, I’ve never thought to do that. I normally don’t do the gels and stuff, but this is a good tip to file away.
How awesome that you’re getting your zencart going! Wow creating a website and an e-commerce one at this is a total PITA! I am so impressed you are doing it by yourself!!!! I couldn’t even figure out wordpress properly and use blogger. The thing is, I actually have a couple degrees and consider myself fairly competent on a computer and am a super heave internet user, but anything related to code, programming, HTML, Style sheets, all that crap just really annoys me and I waste so much time and get so frustrated at it. Rock on for makin’ it happen!!!!!!
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August 30th, 2009 at 2:00 pm
Congrats Angie on all your new adventures!
Happy Dining!
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August 30th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
You ALWAYS have a trick up your sleeve – great idea for the homemade gu!
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August 30th, 2009 at 2:30 pm
I am so happy Zen cart has been a success for you! I can’t imagine how stressful that could be if it wasn’t! Love your home-made Clif goo
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August 30th, 2009 at 2:47 pm
Angela,
I am really loving your site now that I’ve been reading it daily for a couple of weeks! My favorite posts are when you develop some new raw experiment- like today’s energy gel, or the vegan chia pudding you had a while ago. I really love your ideas, and your site has become the first I check when I log in! Thanks!
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August 30th, 2009 at 3:31 pm
I cannot find the link to your bakery anymore is it just me are is it missing from the blog?
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August 30th, 2009 at 3:37 pm
wow i looove the homemade energy gel idea!! and congrats on being so close to shipping to the U.S. I know i personally can’t wait especially after trying one of your Glo Bars at the Healthy Living Summit! have a great day
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August 30th, 2009 at 4:29 pm
I can’t wait to buy some of your glo bars! They just look so amazing. And you are genius for creating your own shot blocks; so talented in the kitchen!!!
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August 30th, 2009 at 5:10 pm
Your Glo Bakery site is looking awesome! And thanks for sharing the energy gel recipe. Those things can start to add up
I use the Cliff Shot Blocks and like them a lot… do you have a recipe for those too?
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August 30th, 2009 at 5:37 pm
What a cool idea to make your own gels! That is such a super money saver! Where do you get brown rice syrup though?
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August 30th, 2009 at 6:30 pm
I love how you think of creating your own power shot! I would have never thought of that. And it actually sounds pretty tasty as well as effective. Great idea!
xxoo
Heather
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August 30th, 2009 at 6:31 pm
That is such a good idea!
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August 30th, 2009 at 6:38 pm
You are so smart! One question: where do you store the baggie with the gel in it?
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August 30th, 2009 at 8:13 pm
No kidding gels are expensive! What a great alternative!
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August 30th, 2009 at 8:36 pm
Ellen, I bet straight honey could be a good alternative, abnd certainly cheaper if you’re just grabbing an extra (nothing wrong with that, imo).
Angela doesn’t use honey in any of her glo recipes, though, to keep them vegan-friendly.
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August 30th, 2009 at 8:48 pm
Hahah I love that you made your own energy shots. Those packaged gel shots always seemed kind of weird to me but a homemade version definitely sounds like a good idea. Especially when it’s fudge-flavoured of course
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August 30th, 2009 at 10:54 pm
That energy shot recipe was immediately bookmarked and will be used on my next long run! Thanks for sharing!
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August 31st, 2009 at 3:12 pm
hmmm i think you used the wrong picture here for zen cart lol.
love the energy shot recipe! what a great idea!
-muffy
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August 31st, 2009 at 6:28 pm
LOL you sound like me – find a food/food place you love and keep repeating!!!
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August 31st, 2009 at 9:19 pm
You are totally going to need more people to help you bake your products…I CANNOT wait until you can ship to the US!!!! I literally want one of EVERY bar and muffin/bread that you make! I am in my final year of college and healthy snacks and foods are not the easiest to come by so I plan on you supplying me through my last year with healthy snacks!
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August 31st, 2009 at 10:02 pm
i love the CLIF products. i buy clif bars around $1.59 each and then those shots are about 99 cents are my local Whole Foods. So I gave them a try and I love them. I run around work like a bat out of hell so these come in handy when I don’t have time to make a coffee
my brother is a basketball player and he uses their “shot blocks” i heard these give you energy through the workout. they’re just gummy chews. i haven’t tried them yet but i think they’re a better choice over the “shots” price wise.
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September 2nd, 2009 at 7:31 pm
[...] Homemade Energy gel [...]
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:12 am
The last pic of the ’shopping cart’ shows up as the menu from Fresh. Just wanted to let you know!!
Sorry we had some wonky things happen after we switched domains!
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September 9th, 2009 at 4:34 pm
[...] run, but I would say it was still a decent run! I can’t really complain. I didn’t bring any homemade energy gel with me today because I wanted to do a little experiment and see how my body managed without any [...]
September 14th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
[...] stopped about 8 times to walk and rehydrate (for about 30-60 seconds each time. At mile 9 I had my Homemade energy gel and it gave me a nice boost of [...]
September 17th, 2009 at 2:20 pm
[...] stock my freezer. Fish goal is looking good! I also got the ingredients (just two!) to make this homemade energy gel that Angela at Oh She Glows posted last week. I had just started researching energy gels for my [...]
September 18th, 2009 at 9:52 am
Got the stuff on my trip to Whole Foods this week! Woo!!
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September 26th, 2009 at 8:32 am
[...] Quick shower, get dressed, put on moleskin, pack homemade energy gel etc [...]
October 4th, 2009 at 4:01 pm
[...] run. Eleven miles…NFA. Sigh. I had a standard breakfast, and then made the energy gel from this recipe on Oh She Glows. It took me three tries to get it right; my advice is mix it in a bowl with a spoon and then [...]
November 30th, 2009 at 11:08 am
[...] prefer something more natural (and cheaper), so it looks like I’ll be making Angela’s 50 Cent All Natural Homemade Energy Gel [...]