I was exactly 165 miles into the Dirty Kanza 200 three years ago—which, for me that year, turned out to be 213.5 miles—when the refreshing aluminum cans popped into my mind. All I could think about was Coke. If I could just have a Coke, I’d be fine.
The distance is relevant here: I had timed my nutrition and hydration to a T, a T that did not include an 8-mile shank off-course over hot, dusty, windswept gravel. (Figure out how you can ride longer with our Century Training Plan). Kanza is entirely self-supported, so I was pretty much out of everything, including the will to live.
As I slogged along, my mind worried the thought of Coke bare, like a river stone tumbling in tumultuous waters. Then, in the “you can’t make this sh*t up” category of life, I spied a fresh-faced Kansas mom unloading a liter of the bubbly elixir out of her roadside Suburban. The woman, who I’m now sure was a blond-ponytailed angel, filled my bottle with the come-back-to-life juice. I was instantly revived and (this is true) I haven’t had a Coke since. Why? Because I never do. But in that moment, there’s nothing I wanted more.
That, my friends, is not just a superfood, but a stuperfood, a cleverly cloaked, oft-snubbed item of “junk” food that can be stupidly effective in times of need.
RELATED: How Much Do You Really Know About Calories?
“It’s often a matter of calorie-density,” says professional sport nutrition consultant and researcher Mayur K. Ranchordas, PhD, of Sheffield Hallam University, who recently published a study showing that ultra-endurance athletes can burn through up to 750 calories an hour for hours and hours on end. But these foods also have other qualities that make them irresistible when we’re at our limit.
Here Ranchordas sheds light on some of our favorites, why they taste so amazing in the moment, and the magic energy they provide.
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