Most cyclists have stood in front of a wall of energy gels, hydration powders, and recovery shakes, completely unsure which one to grab. The options stretch from floor to ceiling. Each package promises better performance, faster recovery, or more sustained energy. And somewhere between the third and fourth label comparison, the whole thing starts to feel exhausting.
The problem gets worse online. Search for cycling nutrition and you will find hundreds of products from dozens of brands, each with its own formula, flavor range, and marketing angle. Picking the right fuel for a long ride or a race becomes a research project. For riders who take their training seriously, this is a real obstacle. Nutrition matters. It affects how you feel at mile 80. It determines how fast you bounce back after a hard week. And getting it wrong can ruin a race you spent months preparing for.
This is where The Feed comes in. Based in Broomfield, Colorado, this online store has built a following among endurance athletes, particularly cyclists. The company stocks products from brands like Maurten, Skratch, GU, Clif Bar, Honey Stinger, Bonk Breaker, and Precision. Their catalog covers hydration mixes, protein supplements, recovery shakes, energy chews, gels, bars, bottles, and carrying packs.
But the product selection alone does not explain why serious riders keep coming back to this particular store.
Built by People Who Ran a Tour de France Team
The Feed was founded by Matt Johnson. Before starting the company, Johnson served as President of Slipstream Sports for about 10 years. Slipstream is the organization behind several professional cycling teams you might recognize: Garmin, Cannondale, and now EF Pro Cycling.
Running a World Tour team means managing athletes who depend on precise nutrition strategies. Johnson saw firsthand how riders who dialed in their fueling performed better in the final 20% of a race. During three-week stage races like the Tour de France, proper nutrition becomes the difference between holding on and falling apart. The athletes who got their intake right could push harder in the final week when everyone else was breaking down.
That observation led to The Feed. Johnson built the company to give regular endurance athletes access to the same products and strategies that professional cyclists rely on. Bryan Smith, who also worked at Slipstream Sports, helped develop the service alongside Johnson.
Chris Froome Uses It Too
Seven-time Grand Tour winner Chris Froome has joined The Feed as both an athlete and an investor. Froome started using products from The Feed while recovering from a high-speed crash that nearly ended his career. During his rehabilitation and return to competition, he worked with the company on his fueling and recovery needs.
Froome has been open about his involvement. He has called The Feed “a dream for endurance athletes” and pointed to the convenience of having a wide range of nutrition and performance products available in one place. His go-to products include SwissRX Total Recovery, SwissRX Collagen, and the Kyoku Athlete Breakfast shake.
Having a four-time Tour de France champion invest in and use the platform says something about its quality. Froome operates at the highest level of professional cycling, where small advantages in recovery and energy management translate directly into results.
Partnerships with USA Cycling and USA Triathlon
The Feed has established partnerships with cycling’s official governing bodies in the United States. USA Cycling members receive quarterly credit to spend at The Feed, free online nutrition support, access to educational webinars, and a personalized water bottle. The store carries over 250 brands, including USA Cycling’s official hydration partner, Skratch Labs.
The company also partners with USA Triathlon. Members who join receive an $80 credit to spend at The Feed, giving them access to products from more than 300 brands. This partnership started as a smaller collaboration in 2022 and expanded through 2025 based on positive feedback from members.
These official partnerships matter for athletes who want confidence that they are buying from a reputable source. When governing bodies put their name behind a store, it signals a level of trust and quality control.
Buying One Gel at a Time
One of the more practical features of The Feed is the option to buy single servings. If you have ever wanted to try a new gel flavor or test a different hydration mix, you know the frustration of committing to an entire box. That is 24 packets of something you might hate.
The Feed sells most products as single servings. This lets riders test different flavors and formulas without a large upfront investment. You can order one Maurten gel, one Skratch packet, and one GU chew in the same order. Then you find out what works for your stomach during hard efforts before buying in bulk.
Johnson designed this feature intentionally. He believes variety between flavors and products leads to better performance. Your body responds differently to various formulas, and your taste preferences change depending on temperature, effort level, and how far into a ride you are. Having options keeps nutrition from becoming a chore.
Subscriptions for the Consistent Rider
For athletes who know what they like and want regular deliveries, The Feed offers subscription options. You can set up recurring orders and receive fresh products every 4 weeks. The company keeps only a few weeks of inventory on hand, so subscriptions ensure you are getting products before they sit on a shelf for months.
Alternatively, you can make large one-time orders if you prefer to stock up. The flexibility works for different types of athletes. Some riders like knowing their nutrition arrives automatically. Others prefer to order in bulk before a training block or race season.
Free Coaching from People Who Know the Science
The Feed provides free nutrition coaching to its customers. You can email the team, share what sport you do, what event you are training for, and your flavor preferences. Their coaches will help you put together a nutrition plan.
This service sets the store apart from retailers who sell products without any guidance. Sports nutrition is confusing. Knowing when to take a gel, how much sodium you need per hour, or which recovery shake fits your dietary restrictions requires some understanding of exercise physiology. Most athletes do not have that background.
The Feed assigns coaches to subscribers and makes them available to answer questions. Johnson has emphasized that this service is not limited to professional or high-intensity athletes. Recreational riders who want to improve their training can benefit from the same guidance.
A Team of Sponsored Athletes
The Feed sponsors a roster of professional athletes across cycling, running, triathlon, ski mountaineering, and sailing. The 2025 High Performance Team includes national champions, world champions, and world record holders. The idea behind this program is to connect everyday athletes with top performers who can share their knowledge about training, nutrition, racing, and recovery.
One notable addition is Taylor Knibb, a two-time Ironman 70.3 World Champion and 2020 Olympian. Knibb qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics and uses The Feed as her exclusive nutrition sponsor. Her preferred product is Science in Sport Isotonic Gels, which The Feed sells exclusively in North America.
These sponsorships give the company access to real-world feedback from athletes competing at the highest level. When a sponsored rider finds a product that works, that information gets shared with customers.
Connections to Gravel Cycling
Gravel cycling has grown rapidly in the United States, and The Feed has strong ties to that community. Gravel events often blur the line between amateur and professional racing. Everyone shares the same start line, and community plays a central role in the discipline.
The Feed’s approach fits well with this culture. Their emphasis on accessibility, coaching, and variety appeals to gravel riders who may not have professional support teams but still want to take their performance seriously. The single-serving option is particularly useful for gravel events, where riders often experiment with different nutrition strategies for races that can last 8 hours or more.
Quality Control and Taste Testing
Every product sold on The Feed goes through taste testing before it appears on the site. The company eliminates bars that taste like cardboard and protein powders with chalky textures. They also conduct real-world testing during their own workouts to check if products deliver on their promises.
The Feed leans toward natural products and keeps inventory turnover high so everything stays fresh. Over 8 years, the team has refined its selection based on feedback from more than 200,000 athletes. They have tested over 400 brands and currently stock products from around 150 of them.
This curation process saves customers time. Instead of sorting through hundreds of options and hoping for the best, you can trust that the products on The Feed have already passed a filter for quality and taste.
Integration with Training Platforms
The Feed partners with TrainingPeaks, one of the most popular training software platforms among endurance athletes. TrainingPeaks Nutrition Club members can claim $40 of annual credit to spend at The Feed on hydration products, gels, chews, and recovery supplements.
This integration makes sense for athletes who already track their workouts on TrainingPeaks. Connecting your training data with your nutrition strategy helps you see patterns and adjust your fueling based on actual performance metrics.
Why Serious Cyclists Keep Coming Back
The Feed was built by people who understand what endurance athletes need. The company’s roots in professional cycling, combined with endorsements from riders like Chris Froome and partnerships with USA Cycling, give it credibility that generic retailers cannot match.
The practical features matter too. Buying single servings removes the risk of committing to products you have never tried. Free coaching helps riders make informed decisions about their nutrition. And a curated selection of over 150 brands means you do not have to wade through low-quality options.
For cyclists who are serious about performance, nutrition is part of the equation. It affects how you feel during training and how quickly you recover afterward. The Feed gives riders a reliable place to find products that work, guidance on how to use them, and the flexibility to experiment without wasting money on boxes of things they will never finish.
