Losing weight while maintaining energy for cycling

[Geonz]

I'm having some luck now with targeting one food or two... specifically, pop-tarts and beer. Every day I do without them, I put their cost in my little orange gatorade-powder tub. I started Oct 1 and the scale says 3 pounds less, tho' I fluctuate enough so I don't count on anything that doesn't hold for a month.
I've got 8 dollars towards that chiminea (or the helmet camera) that's utterly frivolous ... not counting the 11.46 from the aluminum cans I've picked up out in the country and recycled.
Right NOW I want them poptarts purty bad... and it's quiet enough I could step away... so I'm thinkin' about that nice little fire pit...

[aicabsolut]

I felt kind of stuck in a rut for a long time. Over the past year, however, I have gotten into some situations where it's been hard for me to keep weight on, and I don't cross train. This is totally new for me. I just get tired of eating every couple of hours after a 70 mi ride when my body tells me I'm hungry again. I slowly lost the first really stubborn 5 lbs, and then I was stuck in a rut for about a year when another 5 just disappeared. I probably ate MORE when I lost the last 5 than I had in many years. I haven't had to worry about doing anything special to maintain that either. I feel like I haven't had this kind of metabolism since I was an early teen. It has to be from just training hard for the past couple of years.

I think that in order to keep your energy up while trying to drop a few pounds, the off season time is the time to try to do it. Your performance will be hurt some if you have to cut back on calories. Eat your usual pre ride breakfast (or other pre-ride meal if you ride later in the day). Eat plenty while on the bike and be sure to eat something with some carbs and protein right after. Then for the rest of the day, you can cut some calories. Try not to skimp too much on dinner if you ride early in the morning, but you can cut back some throughout the day. You should then have the fuel to keep pushing yourself on the bike. You don't want to diet yourself into feeling overtrained. You may have to take more rest days to recover, depending on your current schedule. You can also do some shorter interval workouts for calorie burn on some days and really long rides on others to mix things up and spread out your calorie needs. A gel or two with a lot of water will get you through an hour or two of intervals on the trainer or on another flat loop one day. Then be sure to pack up a lot of snacks for a 50+ miles maybe 3x a week if you can schedule it. You don't need to worry about performance to the extent that you would if you were racing now, but don't diet too much or your lack of performance will hinder your diet.

In my experience, just working hard to get better at cycling (faster, a better climber, able to ride longer distances, whatever your goal is) will eventually impact your body composition for the better. It will take some time, and you might do better giving up unnecessary things like booze and extra helpings or dessert, but I don't think you need to worry too much about calorie counting if you are spending a lot of time in the saddle.

[Geonz]

I *do* have to be aware taht the day after a long ride, I have the appetite of a hummingbird -- I'm RAVENOUS and will eat all day. The "You rode 200KM - you can eat what you want" doesn't *really* hold true.

It's not nearly as acute *if* I have eaten during the long ride. My natural tendency is to work up a deficit. I can do 60 miles on a bagel and cheese and a bottle of gatorade (and a bunch of water), and finish strong and feel fine... but the next day I eat and eat and eat.

I'm thinking that I'm better off putting stuff between the lips sooner