well the outcome af all the horrible tests has finally shown that i am coeliac and wil have to be gluten free for the rest of my life. Is anyone else coeliac, and what do you eat instead of cereal bars on rides. am i doomed to bananas and nothing else. i'm a bit worried abut not getting enough calories on rides.

and what shall i eat in the tea shop now

Aw poor treehugger! At least that means no more horrible tests and now you have  a definite diagnosis.

Cant remember the details of coeliacs but can you eat oats or are they out as well?  If you can Nairns oatcakes and fruity oat biscuits are glutten free and should be in the Free From section in Sainsburys.

What about energy gels or energy drinks ?  I started using gels when doing long runs as solid food was just a no no, I now prefer them to pretty much anything else, even energy drink as I get fed up with the constant sweetness of an energy drink ?

There have been threads on this on TeamEstrogen, here is a link to one I remember looking through (American spelling though):

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=12203&highlight=celiac

Hi treehugger,

i ride with a mate who is coeliac and I can check with him what he eats (apart from crisps and chocolate!) I know he's got some bars he can eat and he uses lots of gels and energy drinks on rides.

I've done some gluten free dinners and cakes for when he's been over for a party, check out:Santiago Almond Torte - tried and tested -YUM!!!

Treehugger don't panic - The Woodbine Cafe does Gluten Free goodies. The lady who runs it is coeliac and dairy intoerant too! I was talking to her only last weekend because I was so impressed that they do soya milk!

I've also just looked at the ingredients on a Torq bar - based on oats and rice, so if oats are OK, then Torq bars should be. Also Sports Beans look pretty OK for you too.

see  www.torq.ltd.uk

I'm guessing the hospital might have told you about the Coeliac Society

http://www.coeliac.co.uk - the website looks like it'll have useful help on it.

Also try soem health food shops - I know that Holland and Barrett (there's one in Sheffileld opposite Gap at Barker's Pool by John Lewis) do lots of health and sports supplements and might be able to advise on what's gluten free.

Boots also have a range of gluten free foods, including biscuits and things. 

thanks guys - so much knowledge! bought some of those eat natural bars - they're great but i do notice that a lot of the gluten free bars are full of invert sugar syrup etc. and have a load more sugar. however i just looked at the SiS Go Bar and they seem to be fine apart fromm Oat Gluten. I may be able to eat oats after i have seen dietician.

The Woodbine Cafe - well that's it then - all future Peak rides start and finish in Hope! Hi Alice - you seem to know a lot about this sort of stuff. Youve done very well if you've got a smile out of that lady!  not seen you for a while. WIsh you were coming to Spain.

Hi Dirt Diva, how's it going - are you settled in?

Great help all - thanks!

India - I'm a lactose intolerant veggie.   I've been reading labels for years.   Veggie came first, may not have chosen it if I knew lactose intolerance was looming on t'other side of glandular fever.

Mum's best friend and   best friend's mum are gluten intolerant.  One can eat oats, the other can't. Hope you can, it will make your life  easier and flapjacks will be a possibility.  Mum's friend cooks with corn flour and bicarbonate of soda (be sure that it's not "cut" with wheat flour) in place of flour. Her cakes and biscuits are a bit odd, but fine.  Groudn almonds in place of flour in cakes too.

Spain would be good, but too costly for a second summer hol and impractical at the moment. Post-flood work is reaching lunatic proportions. Adam on site in Cumbria. Hope to see you soon though.

Forgot to say that Sainsbury's (probably others) have a large range of "Free From" stuff.

I'd be grumpy too though if I couldn't eat wheat or dairy! Especially if I ran a cafe!  

Treehugger- What were the first signs, which eventually led you to having the horrid hospital visit?

My friend Carol who mtbs is on a gluten diet, and like Alice say's she gets loads of food from the special sections in the supermarkets.  Let us know what the dietician says. 

The symptoms I started presenting with were those associated with reflux disease - I was convinced it was an ulcer. I have had these symptoms for more than 20 years.

Abdominal pain around sternum, relieved by eating. A lot of frothing and gurgling acid (which the endoscopy showed to be bile, not acid), mild to moderate nausea over long periods of time, burning oesophagus e.g after drinking a cup of tea, severe heartburn immediately after eating, food sticking, difficulty swallowing etc. But I dont think these are classic symptoms. Some of my symptoms are a result of gastric surgery that I had as a baby. i also have that dermatitis hepatiformis on my hands.

DOes your friend have any of these?

Tree-hugger you poor thing.

I will try and find out how Carol got diagnosed, I've known her 10 years and she will have had it longer than that.

Good luck with the new diet. 

Hi treehugger. I too am Coeliac. It's not easy to change you diet at first, but it does get easier. I can't eat oats, which does make life a lot harder and rules out all the sports specific bars.

I try to eat as much carbs (usually plain rice and 4 scoops of neutral Torq in a drink) as I can before a long ride and then re-fuel fully as soon as I can after finishing.

On rides I get most of my carbs from my drinks. I also have Squeezy Gums on training rides and before races - they are more palatable than gels. I use gels in races though. Eat Natural bars are good and come in lots of flavours so they don't get too boring. I'd try to avoid the cereal bars you can find in the 'Free From' sections in supermarkets as they are really high in fat and sugar. Mrs Crimbles coconut macaroons are good, and there are also some good gluten free pretzls that are nice to eat as they are savoury.

I sometimes make my own bars. You can get cornflakes and puffed rice from Holland and Barret and supermarkets that are gluten free (Kellogs and standard cornflakes contain malt = gluten and have made me ill in the past).

If you want sandwiches, home-made gluten free bread is better than the shop stuff, which is only palatable toasted IMO.

The number of new products in the supermarkets in growing on a monthly basis, so it is getting easier.

Good luck!

Nadine, that is really helpful, thanks. I had noticed about the high fat and sugar in the shop stuff, and yes the bread is disgusting. I did try a wheat free diet a few years ago and used to make my own cornmeal muffins which were great. Dont do much racing, but plenty of long rides, so the I guess its just substituting rice for pasta the night before.

great - thanks again

Gluten free pasta is quite nice. There's a choice of rice, corn and vegetable pastas, which all taste different to add a bit of variety . Once they're covered in sauce you can't tell it from wheat pasta anyway!

Walkers Sensations, Roasted Chicken with Lemon and Thyme crisps are ok for you too according to the packet!

I though gluten free pasta was quite good too - it's less stodgy than normal pasta.