Energy Low--Can't identify the problem

[mimitabby]

how much do you weigh? how much are you eating? you said you eat meat and veggies, but you need carbs too.

you can do some calculations based on how far you are going and how hard you are working and figure out how many calories you need.
and hey, are you pregnant that sure slows some of us down.

[KnottedYet]

Are you pregnant?

Not eating enough?

Thyroid issues?

[maillotpois]

Meat and veggies aren't going to fuel you for the sorts of miles you are aiming to ride. You need complex carbs - pasta, potatoes, bread, cereal, beans, rice, etc. And a good quality energy drink may prove essential for longer rides (over 30 miles). I say "may" because everyone is different, and this is your big chance to experiment and see what works for you and what does not.

Take the next month or so and experiment with adding different foods to your diet and trying diffreent food and drink on the bike. How do you feel that day? The next day?

Sleep is critical over the long haul, so if necessary maybe experiment with an OTC aid like tylenol PM or something to ensure you get a solid night sleep every once in a while. Go to bed early and get up early. Get yourself into a schedule that will facilitate the sort of training you want to do. Staying up or out all night won't work. (I don't know if you do that but I just thought I would throw it in.)

Also, how quickly have you increased your mileage? Perhaps the tiredness is overtraining? Perhaps it is something else. Try taking a few days off and see how you feel.

Recovery is HUGE. You are not going to get better, faster, longer if you don't give yourself time to recover. Be sure to take at least 1 - 2 days a week completely off the bike. Have a day or two thrown in there where you ride at a recovery pace. You get stronger during the periods when your body is recovering.

Finally, if nothing else seems to work do check with your doctor and see if there may be some other issue such as a thyroid disorder going on.

Good luck - let us know how it goes.

[greasycassette]

Thanks so much for all of this help.

I think the first thing I'll try is some Tylenol PM, start there, and keep a food diary in the next month to identify trends with when I ride/what did I eat the few hours before.

I also bought several different kinds of meal bars yesterday that I'll be trying out during rides in the coming week.

I am most likely not pregnant, but that is a good suggestion. I've had this problem for several months now, so this is likely not the problem.

I will also check in with a doctor as soon as my health insurrance kicks in in July--It's very unsettling to have to wait this long but I'll keep you updated.

Thanks for the well wishes and advice!!

[Eden]

I'm probably repeating a lot of what Malliotpois said but,
It does sound like you are having some over reaching / over training problems. Take a few days off - maybe even a week. Rest up and eat well. Then get back on your bike and see how you feel.
Make sure that you eat and drink on the bike and make sure that you eat within a half hour of getting off the bike. You don't have to use a recovery drink, but if it is difficult to decide what to eat or make something they can be great for getting the right balance of carbs and protein in quickly.
When you are training make sure that you aren't doing hard workouts every day of the week. Take at least one day completely off the bike and make sure that several days on the bike are recovery days (hr zones 1-2 only!). Make every 4 weeks or so a recovery week - take more than one day completely off and make all the other days easy.
If you don't have one purchase a hr monitor. One of the signs you are overtraining is an elevated resting hr, so start taking your resting hr and keeping a log.
oh - and just food for thought - I have a coach and none of my training is tracked by mileage, its all tracked by time.