Eating for weight loss and energy

[MCAP]

I just bought my first road bike in July. I am totally in love with cycling! I'm actually training towards a life goal of a half ironman triathlon, but am enjoying the journey slowly and carefully.

Back in January of this year I weighed 198lbs. I really good weight for me is about 160. I worked out a lot in the beginning of the year and lost 20 pounds. Yay! Then, my enthusiasm dropped and I gained a few back. Now I'm hovering right around 182.

I've been working out quite a bit lately. I generally cycle 3 times a week minimum (15 miles minimum, so far 35 miles maximum), swim once a week, life weights once a week, and run once a week. Sometimes I do more.

I really want to get more weight off! I've been working out hard, but the scale isn't really moving. I've looked to my diet and know that I could have lost weight had I not eaten so many peanut butter m&ms . So now, I'm going to make a serious effort to keep junk to a special treat minimum and watch what and how much I eat. I like to eat whole fresh foods and stay away from processed foods. I try to keep my calorie count in check, but don't tend to count every calorie every day.

I want to keep my calories restricted somewhat to lose weight, but I need to have enough energy to ride and workout hard and lose weight and gain fitness. Where is the line? What should I be eating to fuel myself? I just don't know that much about it.

For example, here's what I've eaten so far today:

Breakfast- light multigrain english muffin toasted with 2 cooked egg whites
Lunch- about a cup of green grapes and 8 pieces of portabello ravioli with marinara sauce
Water, water, water. I don't drink soda or coffee.

Any thoughts?

[JennK13]

How are your clothes fitting? With your workout schedule, you're probably gaining muscle, too. I'm 5'6" and hover around 169 right now, and I average about 100 miles a week on the bike, as well as hiking and other sports. I'm pretty fit and strong, but my "ideal" weight is 155. Since I've been riding so much and racing (triathlons) I try not to worry too much about weight loss and focus more on training - I don't drop below 1500 calories a day so I can stay fueled and don't bonk.
If your focus is to lose weight, you have to burn more calories than you eat, and what you eat becomes a lot more important because you need to stay fueled in order to work out. When I'm trying to lose weight (like I'll be focusing on now that I've done my last tri for the season) I'll use a program like livestrong.com to track what I eat and what I burn. i'll cut about 200 calories a day from my diet, and increase my cardio to burn more calories, but watch my intensity. I'll cross train more to keep my body interested in what I'm doing, and this winter I plan on working more on my running.
Good luck! Triathlon is a blast!

[redrhodie]

I'd add something in between breakfast and lunch, at least a piece of fruit or some veggies. Try and get more calories early in the day to rev up your metabolism and for energy on the bike. A snack of a salad or soup feels like a meal, so you won't be starving when lunch time comes. I think it's good to try to never feel hungry, which probably seems contrary to they way you think you're supposed to feel to lose weight. I spent the better part of my youth starving to stay thin, and finally realized after getting into cycling that I was doing it all wrong.

Your plan looks great, and really healthy. Good luck!

[limewave]

I've found that timing meals is really important when trying to lose weight while doing endurance training. I try to eat a meal about 120-90 minutes prior to a workout and then eat a hearty snack/light meal within 30 minutes of finishing the workout. Taking in the appropriate amount of nutrition during the workout also helps at keeping that famished feeling at bay and energy levels high.

[OakLeaf]

My inexpert eyes are seeing two things:

* excessive calorie restriction (which puts your body in starvation mode) ... unless you're saving all your calories up for dinner time, which isn't such a great idea, either.

* inadequate fats (which your body needs for metabolism). Eat whole pasture-raised eggs, not egg whites; add a handful of nuts or nut or seed butter; have a tablespoonful of Udo's Oil.

[zoom-zoom]

My inexpert eyes are seeing two things:

* excessive calorie restriction (which puts your body in starvation mode) ... unless you're saving all your calories up for dinner time, which isn't such a great idea, either.

* inadequate fats (which your body needs for metabolism). Eat whole pasture-raised eggs, not egg whites; add a handful of nuts or nut or seed butter; have a tablespoonful of Udo's Oil.

Nearly any protein, either. 2 egg whites is a pretty paltry amount, unless you're planning on a solid helping of meat or high-protein vegetable for dinner. More muscles burn fat...but they require protein to heal and rebuild.

[MCAP]

This is exactly the type of information that I need. Thank you so much.


So yesterday, here's what I ate:

Breakfast- multigrain english muffin with 2 egg whites (cooked with a bit of real butter in the pan). I don't particularly like the yolk so that's why I take it out. About 8:30 am

1 1/2 liters of water in between (approximately)

Lunch- grapes and portabello ravioli with marinara. The ravioli was made with white flour (I bought them frozen and uncooked- I wonder if they make a whole wheat variety) About 11:30 am. water.

Snack- Chobani peach greek yogurt. About 4:00pm. More water.

6:30-7:30 bike ride. 17 miles of rolling hills in super windy conditions. Average speed 17mph. I felt fantastic and super strong on this ride. Water and 3 or 4 jelly belly sport beans.

8:00- One small piece of brownie and water.

Dinner- 2 links of all natural italian style chicken sausage cooked with green peppers and onions in a bit of olive oil. About 8:30 pm. water.

10:00 pm- feed horses

11:00 pm- lay down to go to sleep


How does that look? That's a fairly typical day. Sometimes I eat more than that. I generally eat the same thing in the morning because it is quick and I can eat it on my way to work and I like the way it tastes. It keeps me full for a long time too. I didn't ever really feel hungry yesterday at all.

*excessive calorie restriction* Really? I don't feel like i'm restricting myself. Perhaps I am and I don't even know it.

*not enough protein* Really? Does the rest of the day change that at all? I got protein from the chicken sausage, the greek yogurt, and the egg whites. I thought that would be enough, but perhaps not.

I did put all of my food from yesterday into caloriecount.com and attached the nutritional analysis for you all to see. It says that I was too low in fiber, vitamin a, calcium, iron, and potassium. Should I be taking a multivitamin?

It also says that my food was only 1200 calories for yesterday. That does not include the butter I used to cook the egg whites or the olive oil I used to cook the sausage and veggies for dinner, but that does seem low. I didn't feel hungry all day though. I don't know what to make of that.

So, what I'm getting from you all is that I should perhaps eat more earlier in the day, eat more protein, eat more whole grains...

What would be good snacks? Right now I'll go to things like a cheese stick, or crackers and hummus, or grapes.

Thank you for your help. I don't know where else to turn for good information. It seems like everywhere I look the information is totally different.

[ny biker]

This book will help you:

http://www.nancyclarkrd.com/books/sportsnutrition.asp

[limewave]

Murienn -- Sounds like we have very similar nutrition plans. I eat approximately the same amount of calories and take in 120 calories for 60 minutes of exercise as well. I have found this to be a good for keeping up energy levels for interval and endurance workouts.

I keep track of my food on Fitday.com. My daily balance of fats/protein/carbs usually looks like this:
Fat:25-30%
Protein: 20-25%
Carbs: 50-55%

[redrhodie]

MCAP, I'd try to make that 4 pm snack more substantial, and then put more emphasis on veggies and complex carbs for dinner, since you eat so late. I'd eat several more pieces of fruit, too. I'd probably eat the whole brownie, but I wouldn't do it every day, and not at all if it was from a mix.

[azfiddle]

I definitely like the Nancy Clark books on general nutrition and cycling nutrition.

I used weightwatchers, and then added in cycling, to lose about 38 pounds since Jan 2009. My points on WW probably come out to about 1000 calories per day, plus the extra points for the week (which I never use up).

When I started cycling regularly, 25-35 miles per week, 10-15 mile maximum on most rides, I didn't need to eat during my rides, but needed to add in extra snacks once or twice a day (+/-100 calories). When I started riding longer distances, I needed to eat on the rides and allow myself more food per day.

The between meal snacks really make a big difference for me.

Typical meals:
Breakfast 6:30 (about 200-250 calories) - oatmeal with dried fruit or fresh fruit or 1/2 bagel with light cream cheese and lox, or nonfat cottage cheese and fruit with a little cereal sprinkled on top and a cup of tea with honey and milk

Snack 10 am- about 100 calories, for example: ounce of pretzels, handful of almonds, a piece of fruit, or 1/2 Luna bar

Lunch 11:30 am - about 250-300 calories- main items such as soup or salad w/ chicken or other protein, a turkey sandwich on "sandwich thins" light bread, or leftovers, plus a piece of fruit and usually one other snack

Afternoon snack- 100 calories fruit, pretzels, nuts, nutri-grain type bar etc.

Dinner- often fish or chicken with pasta or rice, with salad or vegies or corn tortilla quesadillas- usually about 300 calories

Evening snack: Skinny cow ice cream for example (100 calories or a little more).

Adds up to about 1100-1200 total.

When I started riding longer distances (20-35 miles), I added in snacks during my ride, like dried fruit and nuts, a Luna bar, shot blocks etc, and a snack after the ride- sometimes an iced mocha would be enough, or a smoothie. If I ride over 40 miles, I really need to have more food on the ride and more snacks or larger meals when I get back or I am ravenous later and the next day.

It was easiest to lose weight when my rides were more moderate in length- 15-40 miles. When I ride longer, I have a harder time balancing the calorie deficit with the exercise. Or maybe I'm just so close to my goal weight it's just hard to lose any more now and I should stop worrying about it.

[azfiddle]

I appreciate the compliments- and I should say that I am not usually on such a low calorie diet now. WW doesn't count vegetables, so I might be underestimating there. I am also only 5'1" and currently weigh 112, down from 150.

For now, I am maintaining my weight- and on non-riding days, I am estimate that I'm eating around 1200-1300 calories. On a 40-55 mile ride day, my intake goes up substantially, by 500 to 1000 calories or more. My Garmin reports I burn 2000 + calories on those rides, and usually end up adding in about 75% of those calories.

[moonfroggy]

a few years ago i was 60 pounds overweight and i am 4'10 so that is really very overweight for me much more so than someone of average height. anyhow i mostly followed the advice in the book called eat to live by dr fuhrman and i lost 55 pounds. i'm certain if i followed his advice completely i would lose the rest. i always hesitate to mention it because i think i come off sounding to excited or something but since i followed the advice i have ore energy than i have ever had i feel better my skin looks better and what i love about it is how much sense it makes and how scientific it is. his advice about nutrition is just very rational and logical and he himself was a athlete he did figure skating and was in the Olympics. he has two books that are newer and sold together eat for life and eat for health and i like those books better they make the dietary changes less sudden and easier to manage and get the philosophy of having a diet that is nutrient dense across really well.

[MCAP]

I do think that I've been eating the wrong things for so long that my body and my metabolism are all messed up.

I want to lose about 20-25 more lbs, but I want to do it right and maintain an active and healthy lifestyle.

I'm hoping that I did a bit better food wise yesterday, but I don't know.

Breakfast- light multigrain english muffin with 2 egg whites 8:00
Early Lunch- chicken and wild rice casserole with tons of veggies, salad with balsalmic dressing, and 1/2 of a napoleon dessert 11:00
Snack- Mozzarella cheese stick 2:00
Snack- strawberry greek yogurt 4:00
Bike ride- Easy 12 miles in 45 minutes 6:30-7:15 (wanted a longer ride, but husband's hamstring was acting up so I went home with him. Did not feel as strong as yesterday)
Dinner- spinach and garlic tortilla wrap with grilled chicken, fat free sour cream, green onion, cheese with some soy sauce as a condiment 8:00


My calories were probably a lot higher than Monday, but I'm still not sure I ate the right things. I'm going to go to the grocery store after I swim this evening and stock up on a few better choices for snacks- fruit, whole grain crackers, hummus, veggies, greek yogurt.

I've eaten with a small (or none at all growing up) meal in the morning, a medium sized lunch, and a large dinner my whole life. I need to rearrange.

I'll check out some of the books you've recommended and start tracking what I eat so I can analyze the amounts of carb, fat, and protein and see how i'm doing. I'm definitely eating better than I have in the past and I no longer drink diet coke so that's a great thing. I have a lot to learn though.

Thank you so much. This has been really informative for me.

[redrhodie]

The red flags that I'm seeing are the "light" english muffin, and the "fat free" sour cream. Usually, the fat and calories in those kind of products are replaced with chemicals. I'm convinced eating less of those is way better for you, and I'm unconvinced any "fat free" version of cream will help you lose weight. I eat regular Daisy sour cream, but their light version, which I've bought by mistake, tastes good and doesn't have anything weird in it.