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@clubman
[QUOTE=MrSmyth;1198606]"I couldn't do more than a couple of hours without feeling starving"
I think perhaps the most interesting thing here is that when a rider is suffering from 'bonk' they usually don't feel hungry - they just feel knackered and have to be ordered to eat.
Conversely the overweight, who certainly don't need to eat (they actually need to stop eating) will often state they are extremely hungry, and will believe they have symptoms of near starvation.
So I suggest 'feeling hungry' is a poor guide to one's nutritional state.
In the past I've spent quite a bit of time reading about feeding theories in connection with cycling. My mind wants me to be able to excel at 100's and 12's, but my body has never agreed with it, and complains bitterly after 50 miles of anything resembling racing speed.
For several years, after absorbing the opinions of a number of 'experts', I went in fear of 'glycogen crash' caused by eating sugar. I suffered a number of devastating attacks of hunger knock through various policies of only taking weird concoctions while riding; the worst of these was when, miles from anywhere, my 'nutritional' drink froze in the bottle.
Now I eat as much sugar as possible, not forgetting to add in a substantial dose of caffeine. I don't buy commercial energy bars, I use supermarket marzipan cut up into suitable sized lumps and wrapped in kitchen foil. This has proved to be the best strategy I've tried so far.
All the above only applies to riders in a hurry. If you've plenty of time, you can eat and drink whatever you fancy.