food after rides?

[Dragonfly5]

I know they say you should eat within 30-60 minutes after getting off the bike to refuel but right after a ride I'm not in the least bit hungry. (which is surprising to me because I'm ALWAYS hungry lol) Should I force myself to eat something or wait until later when my appetite has returned? I'd love to hear some examples of what you ladies eat after riding.

[ny biker]

I'd say it depends on how long the ride is. If it's just a short trip, then there's not much to recover from. For longer rides and very hard efforts, I think it's better to have something. I generally have orange juice right after a long ride, followed shortly by a sandwich. My short rides tend to be in the evening so I just follow up with a regular dinner.

I go with orange juice because it's got vitamins and minerals and is a quick way to get some calories, and it's always easy for me to drink. They say chocolate milk is a good post-workout drink, but it's not appealing to me on a hot day.

[shootingstar]

For myself, if I'm cycling steadily especially with a couple of hills, after 2 hrs., I need to eat something small and juice up.

If it's a long endurance ride ...on a trip with loaded panniers for 4-5 hrs., I most definitely need to eat something, even if small, within 1 hr. of stopping, at least twice during the ride. Then dinner or lunch afterwards within 1 hr. afterwards. Don't eat much then, if you're not hungry. But your body will be a max. burn after a steady, semi-difficult ride within 30 min. after stopping.

But most of my riding doesn't demand that type of full out eating. Just a snack.

[OakLeaf]

I have to force myself to eat after a long run or ride.

If I don't, I'll be ravenous for three or four days afterward, and my performance will be impaired.

I usually fix a quick shake of fruit and/or fruit juice and protein powder. Maybe a carrot or some greens or sprouts.

[Owlie]

If it's a short ride (15-20 miles or less), I might have a snack. A quick spin around the neighborhood doesn't merit anything beyond perhaps a cup of tea and toast (ie, what I'd eat anyway.) Longer rides, I'll make some kind of smoothie/shake thing (my favorite: generous serving of full-fat Greek yogurt, a banana, peanut butter, a scoop of chocolate whey powder, and a bit of cocoa powder), or (when I lived in Ohio and actually rode), I'd stop at Starbucks and pick up a latte or something. Rides longer than 40 miles? Anything that's not nailed down. (In all seriousness, I try to have an actual meal, since a long ride means that I didn't eat lunch as such.)

In hot weather, regardless of ride length, I will try to find something salty. I may or may not have kept a few bags of chips in my car for this reason...

[marni]

I can't handle smoothies or food right after a long ride but since I ride out from my home mostly, I do have the advantage of keeping stuff in the fridge. My # 1 favorite is chocolate almond milk as I walk around, cool down, check and prep my bike. It has chocolate and some nutrition from the almond milk plus it is not thick, and not too many calories. My # 2 go to is an iced latte made with espresso, coffee, honey and coconut water with a shot of soy or almond milk. I make this up in batches and just keep a quart jar opf it in the fridge. When I have cooled down, showered and changed then I can eatwithout being ravenous or thirsty.

[NatalieO]

Usually beet & apple juice (make it myself) and/or a fruit only smoothie. And then when I get hungry I usually eat rice with whatever veggies I have on hand.