Top Endurance Athletes Using Manuka Honey for Energy and Recovery
May 23, 2019
The month of May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month. With such a huge emphasis on health and fitness this month, many athletes are putting their routines up for everyone to see on social media to encourage them to not only get off their couches but to also give them some insight as to how these athletes achieve their level of fitness.
More Manuka Honey Please
There are obvious reasons to use Manuka honey. For instance, one of the lures of Manuka honey is the antioxidant properties of the honey. Some athletes claim the honey also helps them with anti-inflammatory benefits. This is key for muscle recovery, especially after heavy exercising.
Athletes are using honey in everything from their morning tea, to adding it to their breakfast, to scooping it right of the jar and gobbling it down. With something perceived to be this beneficial, however, it was only a matter of time before someone made the honey portable so it could be used not only before and after exercise but also during exercise.
Helping Endurance Athletes
Tom Buckley, who is the CEO of Manuka Sport, has gotten the jump on the competition in this market. The company has created energy drinks and gels that can be used during events to keep the energy levels of athletes consistently high to avoid bonking. The problem, though, is the actual cost of the products. Because Manuka honey is already so expensive, the costs of these products are several times that of the competition, but there is a way around this.
Products do not necessarily have to come from a company to be useful. As an endurance cyclist, I have used raw honey in homemade products, getting far more bang for my buck. While I have never been able to break the energy drink down to a powder form, I have instead made my own concentrate and carried it with me on the bike in a squeeze bottle to add to my water for a boost.
The same can be said for the food you eat on the bike. Energy gels work, there is little question about that, but they can also start to give you rotgut if you eat too many of them. Instead, I would make homemade rice balls with ingredients like raw honey, almond butter, and bacon. These could easily be made into single portions, wrapped in foil, then eaten without much effort on the bike.
The bottom line here is that you don’t have to buy into some super-expensive supplement in order to use the same types of products even the most elite athletes are using to excel. You may not be able to win a stage of the Tour de France but winning the sprint to the stop sign at the end of a 60-mile group ride is very doable!
If you are interested in learning more about Manuka honey or want to place an order, please click here. And, just so you know, ManukaHoneyUSA.com offers FREE shipping on all orders of $150 or more!
Photo By arthurhidden