Dave Longden

For a century, lactate was cycling's villain. Now the pros are drinking it. Here's what exogenous lactate gels actually are, whether the science holds up, and what it means for the rest of us. For as long as any of us have been riding, lactate has been the bad guy. It's the burn in your legs on the final ramp of a climb. The reason your quads scream and your pace falls apart. "I'm full of lactic acid" is cycling shorthand for I'm cooked. So here's the plot twist that's set the peloton alight...