Endurance 360 Product Review
by Matt Wenger
Cramping and bloating suck! But there’s hope for the Electrolyte, essential mineral deprived. And after many diarrhea bouts after endurance racing, or riding in hot conditions, I know that not all supplements are created equal.
My go-to Electrolyte Replacement has always been Hammer Endurolytes. The last two years I added in with HDX Hydration Mix to my hydration plan. HDX Mix being light, and not super Carb/Sugar Heavy has made hydration easier on my stomach and performance than any other I’ve tried.
I love challenges. On the bike that means pushing myself to over-exertion. Over-exertion, has always meant tons of sweat and water loss. With that water loss, comes it’s ugly foe…cramps.
Right before I went into to ride the Stagecoach 400 event in March, I discovered Endurance360. A daily supplement designed to not only stave off cramps but also increase the efficient use of oxygen, recovery and protect against muscle cramps.
The 3 things I’ve found help delay the impact of muscle cramping are:
- Adequate training prep, for the task at hand.
- Proper Hydration
- Managed nutrition during race events. (including diet, mineral supplements, and potassium + sodium rich food )
Even with a system it’s impossible to create the perfect mix, for every event, in every circumstance. Bursty efforts during endurance exertion will notably open the window to cramping and seizing from quad, hamstring or quad “lock”.
The months leading up to my 400 mile 4 day event, I was riding approximately 400 miles a month, but not in one shot. Weekly on a 60 mile road ride, sometimes I was cramping with my 60 mile Tuesday morning group ride efforts, and sometimes I was not…no rhyme or reason. One Tuesday, I ran into Cameron Hoffman, founder of Endurance360. He was wearing the kit, and since I’m so chatty while riding, I asked about his team.
Turns out Cameron is an accomplished endurance athlete, and has developed a daily supplement formula. The idea is to allow your muscles and body be fed regularly, rather than just during exertion, so you build up a store of the essential minerals, amino acids, herbs and vitamins, to prep the body for efforts big and small. The other benefit to Endurance360, over the regular suspects (Hammer Endurolytes, Salt Stick, etc), is muscle oxygenation, which increases the body’s VO2 max and tolerances under exertion.
Sounded good to me…but would it really work? I used it, during the building/ training period of February and March, and even took 5 days supply with me on the Stagecoach 400 route, to keep my body “stoked” and fit for the effort. And it was hot, with a Lion’s effort. Sun pounded in the Anza Borrego Desert highways and sand, raising highway temperatures north of 102 F. The first day was 114 tough miles. 75 competitors started. 18 dropped out, by days end. For me: no cramps.
Day two was a 10,000 foot climb in similar blistering heats and rock marbled quasi fire roads, more accurately named jeep trails. Reaching the top of the Noble Canyon trail, I had run out of water, and was thirsty, but feeling 500% better than several of the sufferers, who had to grab quads and roll under the trees to attempt recovery, before descending down the trail.
Day 3 was another 115 mile day, through Mission Bay, and back up towards Warner Springs. We did a lot of it at night, and ended at 3am. Exhausted, done, fatigued, and still no Cramps.
Day 4 was again a hot and tedious one. I had a bruised and blistered bum, which was not faring as well as my hydration. We climbed 10,000 feet in 65 miles, to complete the event. I’m not sure if it’s completely true, but pretty sure I walked and pushed my bike for 5 hours of the 12 that final day of the Stagecoach 400. I wanted to be done, but my body did not quit, and I actually did not have any cramps on the final 1.5 mile hike-a-bike, before the 1,000 foot climb into town. Day 4 went down without cramps, as well.
So, of course at that point I’m an Endurance360 lifer, right? Not quite yet, it took this past month to convince me. I had ridden 79 miles during the combined months of April, May, and June compared to my 800 mile effort. So, while I stopped riding, I also stopped taking Endurance360, like I would any other supplement, when not training.
Vacation came June 25, and we headed to Washington and Hood River, OR, with the family and bikes.
I don’t typically ride on vacation, a ton, but I try to do an epic or two. Running into Nick Hardin, a pro mountain bike gravity racer, at his newly opened Kick Stand Coffee and Cafe, Hood River Oregon was an unexpected surprise.
I told Nick I wanted to do a 3-4 hour ride, that was fun and flowy, and did not mind climbing…so he sent me on a trail Dog River to Surveyor’s Ridge Trail (sidenote: amazing trails there, and I’ll look forward to hitting more the next time I’m through Hood River). Dog River trail climbs approx. 3000 feet in the first hour and 30 minutes, a continuous single-track ascent, in what was for me, granny gear. I took it easy, trying to minimize bursty efforts. I wrestled with staying consistent, with my missing training load.
Maxed, but hydrated, I got to the top of the 13 mile climb, snacked on some trail mix and continued on Surveyors Ridge, which typically would be a load of fun for me. No extended climbs, flowing ups and downs mostly Single Track…but at mile 16-24 hamstrings locked up. I didn’t have a fall off my bike, cramp-seizure, but I had not been cramping since February, and I had ridden hard during those months…only to get gassed after a moderate climb with a low threshold effort. Frustrated, I thought through the variables.
- I had gained 15 lbs since March.
- I had done my longest ride in four months, the week prior: riding 1.5 hours on Lopez Island’s Lopez Hill.
- I had been riding a little though, right?
- I had taken Hammer Gel’s, a couple of store bought Scratch tubes for hydration, since I’d not brought HDX Hydration Mix.
- Then it hit me…I had stopped taking Endurance360 in May, and had not been maintaining that same preventative nutrition that crushed my regular cramps back in March.
Yep, now I’m a believer…and so true for each of us: Our personal experience guides our personal convictions.
Seeing is believing! Give Endurance360 a try and see for yourself. A regular cramping epidemic for you, might just turn into a newfound secret weapon on those epic long days where everyone else is falling to pieces.
3 Comments
Check out Matt Wenger’s experience using Endurance360 during the Stage Coach 400 MTB event. This is one… http://t.co/LtNMxfvs9I
Check out this story from Matt Wenger of @overthehumpmtb and his experience eliminating cramps and riding strong. http://t.co/2bwfpE2XDx
Great article that backs up exactly how I feel about @Endurance360 check it out. http://t.co/KljYMfNSWG