WHY SPRING
Real rice.
Not rice syrup.
Spring makes real-food energy gels, snacks and drink mixes for endurance athletes who get GI problems — whole-food carbohydrate from rice, fruit and honey instead of maltodextrin or rice syrup.
Read the first ingredient.
Ingredients are listed by weight, so the first one tells you what you are actually eating. On Spring, it is food you would recognise in a kitchen.
Basmati rice, organic banana, strawberry, maple syrup, coconut water, coconut oil…
Raw honey, peaches, basmati rice, bananas, cashew butter, sea salt…
Orange juice, basmati rice, maple syrup, ginger juice, cinnamon.
Mango, basmati rice, organic banana, honey, coconut oil, coconut water…
Apple juice, basmati rice, apple sauce, maple syrup, MCT oil, avocado oil…
Basmati rice, lemon, honey, grapefruit powder, black salt, caffeine.
Not all "real food" is real food.
Most gels run on maltodextrin. A newer wave calls itself real food — then gets much of its carbohydrate from brown rice syrup, cane sugar or juice concentrate. Here is what the labels actually say.
| Maltodextrin gels | "Real-food" gels built on syrup | Spring | |
|---|---|---|---|
| First on the label | Maltodextrin — or water, then maltodextrin | Fruit purée or juice concentrate, with brown rice syrup or cane sugar in the top three | Basmati rice, oats, fruit, juice or raw honey |
| Where the carbs come from | Corn or tapioca starch broken down into glucose chains, usually plus fructose | Fruit purée plus rice syrup (rice starch broken down by enzymes) and refined sugar | Cooked whole rice, whole fruit, honey and maple syrup |
| Fat & protein | None | Little to noneSome add chia seed | Built in where it helpsNuts, coconut and avocado oil in the long-effort line |
| Preservatives & artificial sweeteners | Sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate are common; some add acesulfame K | Usually none | None |
| Carbs per pouch | 22–30 g | 21–25 g | 12–50 gPick by effort — see below |
Based on the published ingredient lists of widely sold energy gels, checked November 2026. Formulas change — always read the current label.
"Made with rice" isn't rice.
Brown rice syrup starts as rice and ends as a sugar syrup. By the time it reaches the pouch, the grain's fibre and most of its protein have been filtered out. Spring cooks the rice and puts the rice in.
Three kinds of fuel. Know which you're buying.
Carbohydrate per 100 kcal tells you what a pouch is for. For reference, most mainstream gels sit between 22 and 25.
Carb-dense
For hitting an hourly carb target in a marathon, half or race-pace effort.
- Lemon Power Snack25 g carbs
- Peach Cobbler Gel XL50 g carbs
- Açaí Power Snack23 g carbs
- Orange Power Snack21 g carbs
Carbs + a little fat
For four-plus hours on course, when straight sugar stops going down.
- Mango Mint20 g carbs
- Canaberry17 g carbs
- Awesome Sauce28 g carbs
- Long Haul19 g carbs
Fat-based
For all-day, low-intensity efforts — ultras, long hikes, the back half of a 100-miler. Not for hitting a carb target.
- Speednut12 g carbs · 250 kcal
- Blueberry Endurance Meal22 g carbs · 310 kcal
Tested by labs we don't own.
Nine Spring gels and Power Snacks were analysed by independent, accredited laboratories. We publish the measured numbers, the label numbers and every certificate — including the test date and the lab that ran it.
Measured calories versus label across the nine products. Where results differ, they differ toward more fuel, not less.
What athletes ask us.
Does Spring use maltodextrin or rice syrup?
No. No Spring gel, Power Snack or Endurance Meal contains maltodextrin, brown rice syrup or glucose syrup. Carbohydrate comes from basmati rice, fruit, fruit juice, honey, maple syrup and oats — the full ingredient list is on every product page.
What is the difference between basmati rice and brown rice syrup?
Basmati rice is the cooked grain. Brown rice syrup is made by breaking rice starch down with enzymes and filtering the result into a syrup of maltose and glucose; the fibre and most of the protein are removed on the way. Both start as rice, but only one is still rice when it reaches the pouch.
How many carbs are in a Spring gel?
Between 12 g and 50 g per pouch depending on the product. Carb-dense options — Lemon Power Snack (25 g), Orange Power Snack (21 g) and Peach Cobbler Gel XL (50 g) — are built for hitting an hourly target. Speednut (12 g carbs, 19 g fat) is for long, low-intensity days, not for a carb target.
Will Spring stop my stomach problems?
No fuel can promise that — gut tolerance depends on intensity, heat, hydration and how much you have practised fuelling. Spring is made for athletes whose stomach has turned on syrup-based gels. Test it in training at race intensity before you race on it.
Try it on your next long run.
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Source: Wardenaar FC et al. Nutrient intake by ultramarathon runners: can they meet recommendations? Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2015;25(4):375–86. doi:10.1123/ijsnem.2014-0199. Product data from current Spring labels.