Gaining weight after a long ride?

[ny biker]

How tall are you?

I always gain weight after a long ride, but it's water, so it's gone within a day or so.

My trainer told me to forget about the "fat burning zone" for cardio workouts. Interval training that gets you up to a higher heart rate is better. A lower percentage of the calories you burn might be fat, but you'll burn more calories overall, and as a result will burn a larger total number of fat calories.

[jobob]

MP's point is to get those calories in during or immediately after the ride.

Eating those exercise calories is important - but the timing is important as well. If you wait until later to ingest those calories, the benefits from all that exercise are going to diminish. Those are the calories that wind up on your gut or on your butt.

I'm in your same situation. I managed to gain about 6 pounds in the last few months but I've been falling into that "I burned thousands of calories today so I can eat whatever I want this evening" trap.

But by not eating enough during and immediately after the ride, what I've been doing is effectively putting my body into a short-term starvation mode, so that when I did pig out later in the day my metabolism did not burn those calories but instead converted them into fat.

As a result, I found out yesterday that my body fat percentage is 33.9. Gaaaahhhhhhhh.

So I'm going to take mp's advice and load up on the calories right before, during, and within about 30 minutes after my rides, and go easy on the pigouts thereafter.

Check out this article. While it's geared towards runners rather than cyclists, the concepts are similar.

http://www.enduranceptc.com/images//weightlossmd.pdf

[maillotpois]

Ah - Dixon's article. That does put it really well. The idea of breaking it into the fueling and nutrition windows really simplifies things. sadly, my nutrition window really needs to lose some wine and beer.

[tctrek]

Thanks for the article! I'm reading it now. I had my body fat tested last week where you go into the tank of water -- it's the gold standard for calculating body fat. I'm 5'2" and 140 pounds. My doctor tells me I'm 26% body fat, but this test says that I'm 34.8%.... There's 50 pounds of fat on me and it's all in my torso! I have lean, muscular legs, almost no hips or butt, muscular arms and big everything else!! Maddening. This all happened in menopause when I found out I was apple shaped. I've been a normal weight all my life and I just don't know what to do with this fat!

Anyway - just reading this makes perfect sense - I need to eat my calories closer to the actual exercise timeframe. I can't imagine this old body is burning fat for too long after exercise.

I'll let you know how if it works!

[indysteel]

Are you sure you're eating enough? I know that sounds counterintuitive, but if your're working out everyday and riding 120 miles a weekend, I have to wonder whether your 1300-1500 calories a day is enough. You may be unintentionally putting into "starvation" mode.

[tctrek]

Are you sure you're eating enough?

I've tried many combinations of daily caloric intake, exercise intensity, percentages of fat/carbs/protein... you name it, I've tried it. I've been pretty scientific about it keeping food and exercise daily journals. I tried 1600-1800 calories a day thinking I was in "starvation" mode. I gained about 8 pounds in 4 weeks. One think I've been strict about is keeping my daily fat intake at less than 25% of total calories.

I've had my RMR tested twice. The first time was with a machine and it came out at 1325. They told me if I ate 1100-1325 per day I would lose weight and not to try to compensate/eat the calories that I exercise unless I exercised for more than 1 hour.

The 2nd time I got my RMR was when I had my body fat water test. It came out at 1420. He basically said the same thing.

My exercise calories average 500 per day not including road rides.

So, is my body in starvation? Beats me. I am going to try the "fueling" suggestions just before/during/after exercise and restrict my calories more during the nutritional window and see how that works.

[DrBadger]

about 2 years ago I was in a similar situation... I am 5'3" and weighed about 150-155...was active, but then started really ramping up my workouts... at the gym 3-4 times/week and riding or running 2-3 times per week. I figured that I would lose weight, nothing. I was countinng calories and was trying to keep between 1300-1500 calories/day, which is what us took me to lose weight before. But nothing. I did an experiment and raised my calories to between 1700-1800/day (I didn't count what I ate while on the bike, that was what I needed to keep going on rides, but I did count what I ate afterwards). As soon as I upped my calories the weight melted off. I ended up losing almost 20 pounds this way. given the amount you are working out I wouldn't be surprised if you aren't getting enough calories. Spend a week journaling EVERYTHING you eat during the day, and how long you are working out. See where you sit, and then add ~200-300 calories a day (assuming you really are eating 1200-1500 calories/day) and see what happens.

Good luck! I know how frustrating it is when you are working out like mad and aren't losing the weight!

Ellen

[Karma007]

Ah - Dixon's article. That does put it really well. The idea of breaking it into the fueling and nutrition windows really simplifies things. sadly, my nutrition window really needs to lose some wine and beer.

I feel your pain! My recovery meal on Saturday was leftover pizza and a beer. You are not alone.

[katluvr]

Ah - Dixon's article. That does put it really well. The idea of breaking it into the fueling and nutrition windows really simplifies things. sadly, my nutrition window really needs to lose some wine and beer.

Yep, I agree about that. I made a mistake early in my introduction to a biking lifestyle and did a bike vacation. Everytime we got off the bike at the end of the day we went to the cooler and grabbed a beer. Now it is like Pavlov's dog...biking = beer!

I need to check out that article. I am also trying to read the Zone--since it appears elite atheletes do this one. Beginning of book is VERY dry!

[rocknrollgirl]

This is a very interesting discussion. The same thing happens to me. I had a major bonk yesterday on a ride. It has happened to me before, but not in ages. I felt so terrible, I just wanted them to leave me on the trail. It took every ounce of focus that I had to get through the last few miles.

After reading this, I came home and looked at the calories in my sports drink...total ingested 200. One gel 100. So I consumed 300 calories on a three hour ride. And it was the first warm day we have had in months. And it was a long week of training.

So if what you all, and the article are saying is true, I would need about 250 calories an hour. I am not getting nearly enough on the bike. And I wonder why my recovery is slow!!!

This has really helped me. Thanks to all of you.

[maillotpois]

After reading this, I came home and looked at the calories in my sports drink...total ingested 200. One gel 100. So I consumed 300 calories on a three hour ride. And it was the first warm day we have had in months. And it was a long week of training.

Wow - yeah nowhere near enough. I have started adding up everything before I leave the house. If I know I am doing a 3 hour ride, I will carry with me 900 calories (including sports drinks, etc.). (And I generally throw in an extra bar that I know I won't open just in case something happens and I am out later). Then I just have to work my way through it all (except the emergency reserve bar) as I ride, bit by bit.

Yesterday's 2 hour ride: 140 cal in sports drink, 1 bagel (250 cal), 1 pack of power bar gel blasts (200 cal). So right at 600 calories and the ride was great.

[rocknrollgirl]

Wow - yeah nowhere near enough. I have started adding up everything before I leave the house. If I know I am doing a 3 hour ride, I will carry with me 900 calories (including sports drinks, etc.). (And I generally throw in an extra bar that I know I won't open just in case something happens and I am out later). Then I just have to work my way through it all (except the emergency reserve bar) as I ride, bit by bit.

Yesterday's 2 hour ride: 140 cal in sports drink, 1 bagel (250 cal), 1 pack of power bar gel blasts (200 cal). So right at 600 calories and the ride was great.

Part of what makes it tough, is I am on a mt bike. Very hard to eat and ride and we generally do not stop. It makes it very tough. I am going to have to really work on it.

[katluvr]

I tell you it is VERY hard to balance taking in enough to train and to recover BUT not so much as to gain weight. Since I really need to lose weight.

I try logging, journaling etc. But not sure I know or understand enough to balance things. Then again I do reward or "fall off the wagon" easily. I just wish it wasn't so hard!

I do wonder adn think IF I fueled properly on the bike, would I be as starving and tend to over eat after? Of course I think it is more mental...I want the bad food and "rationalize" that I just rode for 3 hours.
Or I don't eat on the bike, so if I know we will go out and be social AFTER riding.

[maillotpois]

I hear you katluvr.

If I want to get better on the bike and get the most out of my training (which I do) I just have to suck it up and say that I am going to eat these thrilling athletically formulated calories on the bike - all of them that I need - and then I am just going to have to make a sacrifice at the social hour after the ride and NOT eat the junk food, nachos, whatever. I'll have something (and a beer), but I am not going to overindulge. Which I think is the only way I am going to accomplish the training goal AND the weight goal simultaneously. So far so good at least.