A few questions....

[Eden]

You need to eat and drink before, during, and after your ride. I don't know where you got the 90-minute refueling info, but that's plain wrong.

I've heard similar.... there have been a number of articles like this one http://nutritionwonderland.com/2009/...s-good-or-bad/ where the OP probably saw the 90 min info.

It is of course a *very* individual thing, but as a general rule of thumb we tell our new riders. Under an hour take at least water/water with electrolytes. 1-2 hours have at least fuel in your bottle - ie a sports drink with calories. 2+ hours fuel in your bottle and something more solid - bars, blocks etc. How well fueled you are before your ride and how hard you ride will of course have an effect too, as will a number of medical conditions. If you tend towards hypoglycemia or are diabetic you'll of course need to take more care and monitor you intake carefully.

Note we give minimums, we don't tell people to limit their intake - we certainly don't want bonks on our rides, but I think this advice is given because there is definitely a tendency for people to overestimate the number of calories that they burn and to not know the amount of calories in their drinks/foods. If I were to go on an hours easy ride, I'd probably burn about 300 calories. If I were to take a bottle of cytomax and eat a bar I'd eat about 340 calories worth of food. 100 extra calories/day is something like 1lb of weight a month I seem to remember.

[indysteel]

I've heard similar.... there have been a number of articles like this one http://nutritionwonderland.com/2009/...s-good-or-bad/ where the OP probably saw the 90 min info.

It is of course a *very* individual thing, but as a general rule of thumb we tell our new riders. Under an hour take at least water/water with electrolytes. 1-2 hours have at least fuel in your bottle - ie a sports drink with calories. 2+ hours fuel in your bottle and something more solid - bars, blocks etc. How well fueled you are before your ride and how hard you ride will of course have an effect too, as will a number of medical conditions. If you tend towards hypoglycemia or are diabetic you'll of course need to take more care and monitor you intake carefully.

Note we give minimums, we don't tell people to limit their intake - we certainly don't want bonks on our rides, but I think this advice is given because there is definitely a tendency for people to overestimate the number of calories that they burn and to not know the amount of calories in their drinks/foods. If I were to go on an hours easy ride, I'd probably burn about 300 calories. If I were to take a bottle of cytomax and eat a bar I'd eat about 340 calories worth of food. 100 extra calories/day is something like 1lb of weight a month I seem to remember.

I agree largely with this.

I'm not one to eat a whole lot during a ride, but I almost always carry food with me. You never know when you're going to get really hungry, get lost or otherwise delayed. I'd recommend the same for you, especially as you get to know your body's needs a bit better.

[Lesley_x]

Right, I have ready everyone's replies and I am very grateful for all your help!

I guess I will need to pay greater attention to my eating and drinking habits. I did not think at this stage I would need to! But it's clear that I need to start. Perhaps some form of sports drink is the way to go.

Here's a question though, I'm very annoyed that I haven't lost any weight since I started cycling (in fact, I'm gaining). So if I'm not losing weight, but I'm not fuelling enough, what do I do? Surely any extra calories I take in is going to result in a greater weight gain?

I have been thinking recently I need to cut down my calories to enable me to lose weight. How do I balance this with fuelling my rides?

I think the side stitch could be a result of not warming up. Now I think about it this problem has only occurred after I changed my route, which has a large hill right at the start. I guess I could be exerting myself too much too soon.

Another technical question, my bike feels very inefficient. I would like the change the tyres for skinner, slicker ones. This was always my plan. I currently have 700c x 40 tyres on there and they're really knobbly. They feel like hard work. Can anyone explain to me what size I could go down to (so 700c x 28 or whatever) and if slicks would be recommended on a hybrid? Every day I regret not getting a road bike lol I am constantly being overtaken by them!

[colorisnt]

First of all, good for you for getting out there and DO NOT worry about your time. There are days when just getting home in one piece is a triumph!

Second, you can put slicker tires on your bike. They do make slicker ones for bikes like yours. I don't know about how much you can change the width, though. I am still a newbie with that sort of thing!

Third, definitely drink and eat before a ride. Everyone is different. I love to eat a BIG meal before, but I don't want to eat a lot afterwards. If I will be riding for an hour or more, I bring a snack. If not, I probably won't.

Fourth, the weight question is one people ask a lot. I have lost weight, but gained a LOT more muscle while riding. You may not see weight loss and you may gain weight, after all as muscle weighs more. However, you will tone up and be healthier for doing so.

[HipGnosis6]

I have been thinking recently I need to cut down my calories to enable me to lose weight. How do I balance this with fuelling my rides?

Well, if you fuel your rides a little differently, you'll be able to ride much longer and stronger. Eating a 200 calorie snack along your route could enable you to ride for an extra hour - which burns FAR more calories than the food you took in! How on earth would that work?!? Simple - the fuel in your muscles needs replenishing, and it's a long slow process to do that by converting fat into fuel. Replenishing your fuel with food works quickly, though.

It's a tough balance - it's easy to eat too much without even realizing it. It takes some experimentation, but finding that perfect balance of just enough fuel and no extra is the key. As everyone else has said, it's extremely individual and will take some trial and error as to how much and what you'll need to eat and drink on your rides.