the spark: innovation, not imitation

According to Willy Wonka, "Invention, my dear friends, is 93% perspiration, 6% electricity, 4% evaporation, and 2% butterscotch ripple" (Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, 1971).

Even though the numbers don’t add up to 105%, when I began experimenting how to make my own fuel, I tried to embrace the fun and whimsical side of Willy Wonka 100%. I wanted to embody the character but with a relentless competitive side. Each test I evaluated key aspects including the taste profile, thickness, viscosity, electrolyte levels, stomach discomfort, and the size of each serving. With a sensitive stomach myself, I knew I was a good candidate to make sure if this messed with me, I was not going to share it with anyone else. I wanted to create something that had a neutral taste that would not be distracting, but something that I needed to perform at my best. It had to consolidate carbohydrates and electrolytes in one system that streamline race day with no unnecessary ingredients. Pure racing fuel. 

Honest ingredients that actually worked. No trends or gimmicks. If I can’t create something better than the competition, I will scrap it. 

Let’s get technical on the background of The Generator 130 pouch design. What is on the market? Why do athletes have trouble with using them during exercise? How can this be improved?

Designed to fix what traditional energy gels got wrong - from messy packaging to poor absorption. Fast energy and clean handling around real athlete experiences.

Pliable pouches are known to hold a variety of liquids and have been designed in numerous shapes and sizes. Pouches are made by heat sealing two like materials together that create a compartment. One end is left unsealed for filling a liquid and is then sealed after the liquid is filled using a heat seal press. Pouches are designed with tear notches opposite of the filled end that indicate how to open the pouch. During continuous exercise activities, athletes aim to be at efficient as possible with their physical performance and with the gear and equipment they use during the event. For example, an advanced marathon runner may choose compression clothing with more pockets to keep pouch supplements from moving around rather than wearing shorts that allow the pouches to bounce freely. While these events are underway, many athletes do not prefer pouches that are too large or small when held, do not open properly, become slippery when sweating, weigh down clothing and are heavy, do not fit in clothing pockets, and are difficult to get the supplement out of the pouch. Considering if an athlete is pushing their physical and mental limits and are reaching a fatigued state, a pouch design that is not functional and inefficient will add unnecessary stress. Also, this drawback disrupts the momentum, flow, and focus during an activity. By choosing a user friendly delivery device, athletes are able to control one more variable in training and on race day. 

How was The Generator born?

I wanted to consolidate carrying so much nutrition and electrolytes on race day. I believed this could be something others were dealing with as well. There had to be a way to be more efficient, carry less nutrition, less weight, and decrease the stress of having to time when to consume.

 Even mainstream nutrition sites talk at lengths about how to mix and match carbs and electrolytes to make up for losses during prolonged exercise. For example, the sites discuss how to get the right amount of carbs from one gel and then recommend an electrolyte powder to go along with it. For anyone who has competed in endurance events, this is not feasible. The idea of slowing down to fill a water cup with a powdered electrolyte mix during a race I trained for was never going to happen. Also, taking another product that derives its calories mostly from 25 grams of sugar in each gel is a recipe for a bowel problem. From testing on my own gel, I found the more sugar I added for flavor and quick calories, the worse I felt during the run. After hundreds of tests, I found that by adding the right amount of sugar I could take advantage of the calories, flavor enhancement, and minimal GI disturbance.

What about other ingredients? What do other products have in them? Why do others include certain ingredients?

Numerous endurance hydration supplements contain unproven adaptogens that mislead consumers on performance benefits, contain harmful preservatives such as sodium benzoate that increase inflammation, includes many inactive ingredients such as artificial colorings that slow the absorption rate of the electrolytes, versions of electrolytes such as potassium citrate and magnesium citrate that can create digestive and gastrointestinal issues, include high amounts of sugar and processed syrups that spike blood glucose levels creating a crash on their system, unpalatable flavorings that can cause additional stomach and mental stress, and unpleasant texture profiles too thick or too viscous difficult to consume while exercising.

Sugar is cheap. High fructose corn syrup is cheap. Preservatives keep products on shelves longer. Certain forms of electrolytes are cheaper. Cutting corners increases the bottom line, but what about effectiveness?

Every ingredient in The Generator has a specific role. Steady energy release, no spikes.  

I dove deep into the ingredients and how they are sourced and made. They had to be the highest quality or I wasn’t even going to consider. For example, some agave sources are heated and processed heavily, whereas raw agave is minimally processed at low heat. The cost to include raw agave is significantly higher, but it has a lower GI index and retains more natural enzymes and vitamins. Using the natural sugars from agave, I was able to keep the added sugar content low, not sacrifice flavor, maintain a target glucose to fructose ratio to maximize carbohydrate content, and at the same time not send my stomach on a Wonka Tunnel of Terror boat ride. 

The goal was too solve these problems so I could just focus on the effort and not worry about about anything else. That is why I built The Generator, to work as hard you do.