Sport Beans vs. Gel

I’ve mentioned before in this blog that I like using Sport Beans for energy on long runs.  If I’m running over 90 minutes I usually eat 2-3 beans at 60 minutes.  For me they are easy to use and taste better than gel.  But I do wonder if they are absorbed as quickly as gel.  It difficult to judge if the beans really work better because I can’t really compare.  I guess I could try beans on one run and then try gel on the next run but there are many other factors that may make me feel better one day vs. another. 

I also must admit that I’ve only tried a few flavores of gel so it could be that I just haven’t found the right on for me.

If anyone has done a true comparison of beans vs. gel, I’d like to know.  For now I’ll stick to beans but I may try some gels later this summer as I increase my mileage more.  I’ll report here on the results.