Tadej Pogačar's Secretive Lactate Energy Gel Hits the Market – But There’s a Catch - Outside Magazine

(Photo: Alan Bucar Vuksic / Enervit)

Remember the mysterious lactate energy products Tadej Pogačar was trialing at the Tour de France?

They’re on sale for you to buy.

This week, the Enervit 2:1 Lactate Gel Mix hit the market via the brand’s website and its multinational distributor, The Feed.

Enervit is the long-time nutrition partner of UAE Emirates XRG, the team of Pogačar, Isaac del Toro, and world champion Brandon McNulty.

Sold as a thick gloop to be mixed with water, Enervit’s Gel Mix rivals lactate fueling products sold by the likes of ExoLactate and Flycarb.

The sales pitch of this next-gen sports nutrition?

Exogenous lactate provides muscles with a third energy source beyond the carbohydrates, glucose and fructose.

Because remember, lactate is not the bad guy. Lactate is a misunderstood, often demonized natural byproduct of metabolism.

When ingested as a form of nutrition, it’s absorbed totally separately from carbohydrates. It provides muscles with a powerful extra layer of energy when the gut is reaching max carb capacity. It may also help reduce the perception of fatigue.

We dove deep into how lactate works as a fuel in this explainer.

Velo extensively covered the arrival of lactate gels to the Tour de France this summer.

UAE Emirates was quietly trialing the Enervit mix. One other undisclosed team was guzzling ExoLactate.

Unlike any other team-approved product at the Tour de France, these new fuels were shrouded in mystery. Insiders were reluctant to talk about them or limited in what they could say.

Aitor Viribay, the brain behind ExoLactate energy gels, told Velo during the Tour that lactate fueling could be the future.

“The only way to keep pushing the limits of performance with fueling right now is with exogenous lactate. That’s for sure,” Viribay said.

Viribay formerly worked at Ineos Grenadiers. The nutrition science guru now works with the Salomon running team, and his “From Lab to Field” research group has been developing ExoLactate for years.

Viribay has skin in the game, so obviously, he would give the products hype.

But if the science behind lactate fueling can be brought to real-world competition, it could be as important as the high-carb “revolution.”

“So far, the anecdotal feedback is that riders are finding a lower rate of perceived exertion, and their durability is better,” Viribay told Velo in July. “And we’re only at the start of discovering its potential.”

The problem? If you want to be part of this fueling breakthrough, you gotta break the bank, too.

Enervit’s newly-listed products are being sold on The Feed’s U.S. site at $40 USD for four.

And yes, that’s more than twice the cost of even the most potent carbohydrate gel.

ExoLactate gels do not currently ship to the U.S. In Europe, they’re sold at €5 (close to $6 USD) per unit. Not as eye-watering as the Enervit product, but still painful.

Viribay told Velo when we spoke with him during the Tour de France that he’s working on distribution to the U.S.

Enervit’s Lactate Gel Mix contains a whopper 90 grams of carbohydrate and 10 grams of lactate in each $10 serving. A serve is around 500-750 ml of fluid, i.e., one bike bidon.

For comparison, an ExoLactate gel contains 40 grams of carb and five grams of lactate. So, half the dose for around half the price.

The Italian brand Enervit has been working on its lactate project since 2024.

Leading lactate scientist and Berkeley University professor, George A. Brooks is on the development team, as is Pogačar’s former coach, Dr. Iñigo San Millan.

Riders at UAE Emirates-XRG were a key part of a two-year beta-testing process.

Enervit recommends using the lactate mix when carbohydrate intake and exercise intensity are reaching their peak.

“The recommended timing of intake is the final phase (1–2 hours) of demanding endurance activities, when an increase in intensity is often required, and, more generally, any situation in which very high intensities must be sustained for prolonged periods,” it says.

The drink is only available in orange flavor. It’s gluten- and preservative-free.

Enervit’s Lactate Gel Mix went on sale Thursday.

A flashy Instagram reel featuring UAE Emirates-XRG’s world champion Brandon McNulty heralded the much-hyped arrival. Judging by the accompanying comments, the interest is high.

ExoLactate and Flycarb were available to limited markets ahead of Enervit’s launch.

In its launch email on Thursday, Enervit promised that “for you, the new era of sports nutrition starts now.”

The new era starts for you, if you’re willing to pay $10 USD for a taste of it.