I have made some interesting discoveries..

The thing about not eating prior to cardio doesn't work if you do the cardio not right after getting dressed and out of bed.. and certainly not if your cardio is then too long.. Both applied to me as I often was up and about 1 hr before leaving for the gym by bicycle. That journey mostly takes between 35 and 45 mins.. more like 45 when I don't eat..
I would then take breakfast (a whey drink with maltodextrin) over there but it would take hrs before I'd feel better again.

Considering that, I have resumed taking a decent breakfast again.. the effect was miraculous. EVEN when I didn't do any carb up, I could ride MUCH faster.

Because of this, I thought to not add extra carbs to the whey drink, but to eat the sugary stuff separately..
I am not much of a candy lover anymore, but I still like licorice..and then the more salty kind..
Licorice has the added benefit of containing salts that you lose during a strenuous workout and the even more strenuous spinning lessons..

As I have a problem regarding portion control with licorice.. I will make mini-bags of them... about 20 grams in each bag I think..

What do you think?