Maurten Gel 100 has the best texture of any gel I’ve tested

Maurten Gel 100 has 25g carbs in each sachet and offers one of the more pleasant energy ingesting experiences.

When you’re out there chasing PBs, choosing the best running gel to aid your efforts is almost as important as making sure you’ve got the right running shoes. Each gel delivers its energy boost in slightly different ways, and they vary greatly in terms of taste and prep too. Maurten Gel 100 comes with some stardom attached in the world of long-distance running, so we laced up and put it to the test. Is it worth the hype? Let’s find out.

Maurten hit the headlines when superhuman runner Eliud Kipchoge used its carbohydrate drinks mix en route to smashing all kinds of marathon records. However, because us regular athletes don’t get Kipchoge’s mid-race bottle service, Maurten made a gel too. 

The Gel 100 gels use the same delivery ‘technology’ to get energy into the system fast without tummy troubles. But while the 160 and 320 mix carbohydrate drinks turn to gel in the stomach, the hydro gel in these compact, lightweight and easy-to-handle packs is already formed.  

Maurten Gel 100 taste and texture

The soft jelly texture is surprisingly pleasant. I wasn’t sure what to make of the idea at first, but after trying them first-hand, I can confidently say that the texture is actually my favorite of all the gels we included in our big group test.

Like Precision Fuel & Hydration’s PF30 gel, it has a completely neutral flavor to help avoid taste overload, which undoubtedly helps it to rank so highly in my estimation. The packs are easily stashable and relatively easy to open on the move. The carb jelly slips down easy without leaving too much of an unpleasant residue – or aftertaste – in the mouth. So you can take these without water, though they’re better followed by a few gulps.  

Energy release

The energy comes from a blend of fructose and glucose (with a ratio of 0.8:1). The result is a pretty smooth power-up that’s largely crash-free. The regular Gel 100 packs 25g carbs per 40g gel. But if you want a bigger hit of carbs in the same single-serve sachet, Maurten Gel 160 now offers 40g carbohydrate in larger 65g gel servings.

That’s not quite as portable but then you need to carry fewer gels to hit your hourly energy needs. The downside: once you’ve opened the 65g gel, you’ve got to get it all down. There’s no resealable option and the packs won’t hold gel once they’re open.   

I’ve used Maurten Gel 100 a lot in recent years and I’ve found the packs aren’t quite as robust as some. On occasion, if I’ve been a bit careless about where I put them in my bag or suitcase, I’ve found the packets can split. However, for on-the-go energy boosters, I can’t really fault the Gel 100, though they are one of the more expensive options.

What other running gels should I consider?

The aforementioned Performance Fuel & Nutrition PF30 Gel is top of my list of alternatives – in fact, I’d go as far as to say that PF30 gel just about takes top spot in the market, with Maurten Gel 100 a close runner-up.

The only other running gel that I’d consider putting in the same bracket is Vala Energy gel. Vala gels consist of purely natural ingredients, meaning that there’s no synthetic element to the taste, and they’re generally easier to digest too. In fact, I personally found them to be among the most enjoyable, to the point where I looked forward to my runs even more because I knew there was Vala gel waiting for me. That said, you do need to be content with the flavor of dates to get the most out of them. As far as energy goes, you get 24g of carbs per Vala sachet, and the energy release is nice and steady.

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