Walk into any running shop or cycling expo and you'll find the shelves stacked with energy gels. They've dominated endurance sport nutrition for decades, and for good reason — they work. But energy chews have quietly grown in popularity, and plenty of experienced athletes are making the switch. So which is actually better: energy chews vs gels?
The honest answer is that both can be effective, but they differ meaningfully in texture, palatability, digestion speed, and practical usability during sport. The right choice often comes down to how your gut responds under sustained effort and what you can realistically eat at pace. Here's the side-by-side, then the detail.
Energy Chews vs Gels at a Glance
| Energy Chews | Energy Gels | |
|---|---|---|
| Carbs per serving | ~20–30g (portionable) | 20–25g (all-or-nothing) |
| Speed of absorption | Fast — chewing starts digestion in the mouth | Fast — felt within 10–15 minutes |
| Water needed? | Helpful, not essential | Usually essential to avoid GI distress |
| GI comfort late in a race | Generally better tolerated | Common cause of nausea after hour 2–3 |
| Flavour fatigue | Low — paced, less cloying | High — syrup texture wears thin |
| Dosing control | Precise — eat 1 or 5 | Whole sachet at once |
| Packaging on course | One resealable pouch | A wrapper per serving |
| Cost per gram of carbs | Low in bulk packs | High per sachet |
How Energy Gels Work
Energy gels are concentrated carbohydrate solutions, typically containing 20–25g of carbohydrate per sachet — usually a blend of maltodextrin and fructose. The semi-liquid consistency means they're absorbed relatively quickly through the gut wall, and most athletes feel the effects within 10–15 minutes of consumption.
Gels are designed to be swallowed with minimal chewing, which can be an advantage at high intensity when coordinating breathing and eating becomes complicated. The downside is that many athletes find gels cloying, too sweet, or genuinely difficult to stomach after hour two or three of a long effort. Flavour fatigue is a real phenomenon — the thick, syrupy texture that's unremarkable at kilometre five can feel repulsive at kilometre thirty.
There's also a hydration dependency that catches people out. Because of their concentrated carbohydrate density, most gels require water to aid absorption and prevent GI distress. Forgetting to wash down a gel — or being at a point in a race where water is scarce — is a reliable route to cramping and stomach trouble. In a long event with unpredictable feed stations, that dependency is worth factoring into your planning.
Energy Chews vs Gels: The Case for Chewing
Energy chews — sometimes called energy pastilles, chews, or blocks — deliver carbohydrates in solid or semi-solid form. A single serving typically provides a similar carbohydrate hit to a gel (around 20–25g), but the eating experience is entirely different.
Chewing stimulates salivary amylase, beginning carbohydrate breakdown in the mouth before anything reaches the stomach. It also naturally paces intake, which many athletes find easier on the digestive system during prolonged effort. There's increasing evidence that the act of chewing itself makes sustained fuelling more tolerable — athletes are less likely to skip a dose simply because they're dreading the next one.
Quality chews use a glucose-fructose blend to maximise absorption through dual intestinal transporters. Research published in the Journal of Sports Science has demonstrated that a roughly 1:1 glucose-to-fructose ratio can support carbohydrate oxidation rates of up to 90g per hour, compared to around 60g per hour from glucose alone. Chews formulated on this basis can match gel performance in terms of energy delivery, without the texture issues that derail so many gel users mid-race. (For the deeper science, see our guide to the glucose-fructose ratio in sports nutrition.)
Digestive Comfort: Where Athletes Actually Differ
GI distress is one of the most commonly cited causes of DNF in endurance events. Research on Ironman competitors has found that over 90% experience some form of gastrointestinal symptom during competition. Fuelling format plays a role here, and the individual variation between athletes is substantial enough that there's no single right answer.
Some athletes genuinely thrive on gels throughout a long event with zero problems. Others hit a wall — sometimes literal nausea — after three or four in a row. The concentrated sugar load, combined with reduced gut blood flow during high-intensity exercise, can trigger cramping and bloating in susceptible athletes.
Chews tend to produce a slightly slower, smoother carbohydrate release, and the chewing process creates a more controlled intake pace. For athletes with sensitive stomachs, or anyone who has learned the hard way that gels and hard efforts don't mix, chews are worth a serious trial in training before deciding which format to race with. The golden rule in endurance sport is never try anything new on race day — so if you're curious about chews, build them into your long training sessions over several weeks first.
Practicality on the Course
Gels are compact and easy to stash, but the empty sachet problem is a real one — particularly on a bike where you're managing multiple wrappers mid-descent or in crosswinds. Some athletes end up cramming used sachets back into pockets, others drop them on the road. Neither is ideal.
Chews in resealable pouches handle this more cleanly. You open the pack once, take what you need, reseal, and the packaging stays manageable throughout. A 1kg bulk bag at home also makes training considerably more economical than burning through individual gel sachets every session — particularly relevant for high-volume blocks where fuelling costs add up quickly week on week.
For events, small zip-lock bags pre-portioned with 60–80g of chews work well. They're easy to open with cold or wet hands, survive sweat and rain, and you can refill at checkpoints without hunting for a display. It's a simple system that takes two minutes to prepare the night before a long ride or race.
What We Use at FTP Endurance Fuel
At FTP Endurance Fuel, we came down firmly on the side of chews after years of trialling gels across long training rides and events. The issue was never performance — gels work. It was the sustainability of intake across 4–6 hour efforts and the genuine taste fatigue that crept in after the third or fourth gel of the day.
Our Tart Cherry Energy Pastilles and Mixed Fruit Pastilles use a glucose-fructose blend that supports high carbohydrate absorption rates, and the flavour stays palatable late in a long effort when everything starts tasting the same. The tart cherry variant also delivers anthocyanins — plant compounds that reduce oxidative stress and support recovery — which is a meaningful bonus you simply don't get from a standard gel.
We carry them in pre-portioned bags on long rides and runs, aiming for 60–80g of carbohydrate per hour during efforts over 90 minutes. The 1kg format makes them significantly more cost-effective than single-serve gels for athletes in regular training. If you want to try them before committing to a full bag, the Taster Pack is a low-commitment way to test them in a training session first.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do energy chews work faster than energy gels?
Gels have a slight edge in raw speed — 10–15 minutes to felt effect — because there's no chewing involved. Chews are only marginally behind, and because chewing begins carbohydrate breakdown in the mouth, the practical difference over a long event is negligible. Consistency of intake matters far more than a five-minute difference in onset.
Are chews or gels better for running specifically?
Runners suffer more GI distress than cyclists (the repeated impact jostles the gut), which is why many marathoners who tolerate gels on the bike struggle with them on the run. Chews' smaller, paced doses are generally the safer bet for sensitive stomachs at running intensity. See our guide on how many gels (or chews) a marathon actually takes.
How do FTP Pastilles compare to Clif Bloks or GU Chews?
The formats are similar — solid carbohydrate chews. The main differences are FTP's 1:1 glucose-fructose ratio for higher absorption ceilings, real tart cherry (anthocyanins for recovery), and bulk 1kg packs that cut cost per gram dramatically versus single-serve sleeves.
Can I mix chews and gels in the same race?
Absolutely — many athletes use gels for high-intensity moments (a climb, the final 10K) and chews for steady-state fuelling. What matters is total carbohydrate per hour: see how many carbs per hour you actually need.
Conclusion
The energy chews vs gels debate doesn't have a universal answer, but the performance gap between the two formats is smaller than many gel-loyal athletes assume — and the practical and palatability advantages of chews are real. If you've been reaching for gels out of habit rather than preference, or if you've been quietly dreading your fourth gel of a long ride, it's worth spending a few training weeks with chews to see how your gut responds. The format you'll consistently take on schedule, all the way to the finish, is the one that wins.
