Cycling and Nutrition

[colorisnt]

I am going about 15-18 mph average. I take breaks to eat/drink (which is why it takes me 3-4 hours to do that much), but on average, I am easily between 15 and 18 mph. This last ride, I was around 15.2 mph average. On shorter rides, I have a higher average. I am calculating it on livestrong.

[marni]

I have to agree that that average sounds suspiciously high. The highest calorie burn I have ever done was on a cross country ride where I averaged 15 mph overal and climbed in the rockies. On the one 90 mile day of climbing and descent I topped out at 350 an hour for the 6 hours of the ride.

I wear a body bugg which measures sking galvanic response, skin temperature and heart rate. I am also 63 years old which means that my metabolism is some slower than younger riders, I weigh 137 pounds.

I tend to think that most of the generic charts are notoriously over on most things. Even on the machines in the gym, their perceived calorie count based on pulse rate as measured through the hand grips is about 50% too high for me.

Not sure how you can adjust other than just take your purported calorie burn, divide it in half and take that as the calories you can legally replace with food. Even on the body bugg, I aim for a 500 calorie daily deficit, just to accommodate perceptual differences.

Just wondering if you might be overestimating yourself. If you aren't trying to loose weight, it probably doesn't matter but......

marni

[colorisnt]

No, that makes me feel better because there is no way I am going to be able to eat that much!

I am trying to lose weight (slowly), but I am not trying to kill myself to get there. I have lost about 15 lbs in 6 weeks, which is healthy.

I know I need to eat something healthy when I am hungry, but I have never consistently ridden this many miles before and have no clue how to deal with it. I know I need to eat more when I get back and need to eat more carbs, but I need to be smart about it!

[marni]

buy some good quality protein meal replacement powder, mix the suggested amount with half milk and hal high protein greek yogurt, throw in a cup a fresh fruit, or a scoop of cocoa powder and some instant espresso coffee, mix in a blender and drink. Coffe and chocolate and milk are very restorative, fruit and greek yogurt are da bomb. Plus it is cold, refreshing and gives you a good start on liquid replacement as well.

marni

[OakLeaf]

Coffe and chocolate ... are very restorative

I did just read something that said that a bit of caffeine enhances glycogen being put down in the muscles. If you can do caffeine at the time of day your workout ends, that's not a bad idea.

I say keep it simple though. After the longest hardest workouts is when I most need a good recovery snack, and it's also when I'm least inclined to putter around the kitchen prepping fruit, messing around with multiple ingredients, and assembling a blender. If what you most want when you walk in the door is to jump into your ice bath, then put on your compression stockings and put your legs up for an hour, then pile up a 2-3 ingredient recovery snack onto a plate and take it to the couch with you.

[Catrin]

buy some good quality protein meal replacement powder, mix the suggested amount with half milk and hal high protein greek yogurt, throw in a cup a fresh fruit, or a scoop of cocoa powder and some instant espresso coffee, mix in a blender and drink. Coffe and chocolate and milk are very restorative, fruit and greek yogurt are da bomb. Plus it is cold, refreshing and gives you a good start on liquid replacement as well.

marni

hmmmmm, this sounds interesting. I've rarely done anything more complicated than chocolate milk and chips, or a banana or something. I need to start forcing myself to get out in hotter temps since this heatwave isn't going to end soon.

[colorisnt]

Marni and Oakleaf,

I am a huge espresso and chocolate milk fan! My sister said that chocolate milk is the best recovery drink (she hates milk, but does it anyway). And greek yogurt (chobani 2%) is ADDICTIVE. I eat at least one of them a day if not two - one as a "treat". Good to know there is some evidence there haha!

Oh how I love dairy. And since I am on a high protein diet and allergic to most legumes, I have to eat a great deal of it. I get plenty of calcium a day!

What I need to work on is a bit of carbs.

[spokewench]

I have been wondering about this as well. I keep coming off the bike and feeling tired and not wanting to eat but then waking up the next morning FEVERISHLY hungry! I don't eat a lot. I never have. I don't snack on anything unhealthy.

I am on a high protein, high fiber diet because of migraines and endometriosis with IBS. I just am having so much trouble right now eating enough to power my rides. I don't feel bad or even sore after rides, but I feel lethargic. People I am riding with are telling me I don't eat enough.

I can't have gu or most things because they have a lot of citric acid, which I am allergic to. My sister (the runner) says I need to eat a BIG meal in the 90 minutes post ride, but I just don't feel like it.

There are some good post ride recovery drinks out there - some are almost like a shake, with your dietary concerns you would have to look at all teh ingredients and make sure it will work for you, but this is an easy way to get calories in - and you drink it so it even if you don't feel like eating maybe you can deal with drinking your recovery immediately after your ride. If you can't find a recovery drink, try chocolate milk, or regular milk; with some nuts.

[colorisnt]

Spoke,

Yeah, I am thinking I will need to start making some shakes.

No nuts, though. I have recently developed some pretty serious nut allergies - esp. almonds, so I am trying to avoid all nuts (despite my love for hazelnuts!).

[TrekTheKaty]

I have been wondering about this as well. I keep coming off the bike and feeling tired and not wanting to eat but then waking up the next morning FEVERISHLY hungry! I don't eat a lot. I never have. I don't snack on anything unhealthy.

I am on a high protein, high fiber diet because of migraines and endometriosis with IBS. I just am having so much trouble right now eating enough to power my rides. I don't feel bad or even sore after rides, but I feel lethargic. People I am riding with are telling me I don't eat enough.

I can't have gu or most things because they have a lot of citric acid, which I am allergic to. My sister (the runner) says I need to eat a BIG meal in the 90 minutes post ride, but I just don't feel like it.

You might go over to celiac.org and check the symptoms. Many celiacs are misdiagnosed with IBS first.

[colorisnt]

Trek,

I've actually never thought about that, but since I went low carb, I haven't had so many issues. I guess I will ask my doctor about that when I go back.

[Ritamarie]

I think one can easily overestimate how many calories are needed and end up gaining, not losing.

I always bring one more bar than I think I need on every ride. The worst thing that can happen is to get caught out without enough fuel to get home. It doesn't mean I have to eat it. I almost always come home with the extra bar, but a few times it has saved my ride, or someone else's ride. I find I need about one 180 calorie bar for every 20 miles plus a light good quality sports drink in my bottle.... one bottle every 20 miles as well.

Within 30 minutes of completing my ride I drink a recovery drink... usually whey protein blended with milk and some frozen fruit and a couple of extra vitamins for good measure. This not only fuels my recovery, but keeps me from eating everything in sight. Cycling stimulates my appetite. Protein satisfies my cravings.

After the recovery drink, I return to normal eating habits. I reward myself in other ways... usually I sit down with a good book and a cup of hot coffee for a half hour.

[featuretile]

I think I was also overestimating what I needed to eat on a ride. I have been tweaking it constantly. I found that putting electrolytes in my water bottle kept me from tiring out with less food. It must be all the salt that we lose in sweat. I keep whole wheat pretzels as a small snack, and a granola bar or energy bar as emergency food. But the thing that works best for me is half a PBJ or peanut butter and banana on whole wheat. I eat that while everyone else is eating pie... at the break spot. It's a lot less calories than pie. But not as much fun.

For breakfast I eat oatmeal with fruit, flax seed and a little protein powder mixed in, with a little milk.

When I get home I eat yogurt (plain or Greek) with cut up fruit or a smoothie with similar ingredients plus ice.

If it is lunch time, I really prefer two eggs and a piece of toast and fruit. And a cup of coffee. My reading says you need some protein after a long ride of over 2 hours. These things seem to digest easily (for me) and don't have too many calories (or points).

[TrekTheKaty]

Also a fan of chocolate milk as a recovery drink. Smoothies are better, but I'm lazy. I buy those Horizon organic individual chocolate milk packages. If a shot of espresso falls in there, all the better

Tweeked my eating on the bike this summer. For rides less than an hour, nuun tablets to replace electrolytes, but no calories. Longer rides, cytomax in my bottles and one Kind bar--the perfect mix of protein (nuts) and sugar (quick energy) for me. I also swapped sharkies in place of jelly bellys and I'm using gels again. I also set an alarm to remind me to eat every 45 min (I used to eat every hour, but sometimes i would still bonk at the end of a long ride).

Last 40 mile ride was camelback and 2 bottles of cytomax. Gel after first 45 min, then Kind bar, then sharkies as we headed for the car. Chocolate milk was waiting in the cooler when I finished. For the first time, I wasn't famished the rest of the day. Of course, it was hot, and I have to wonder if that hadn't affected my appetite, so I will repeat again this weekend.

[hulagirl]

This number sounds pretty high to me. How fast are you going? How are you calculating this?

Agreed! I went back and looked up my Metric Century Ride to check. I wore a heart rate monitor and burned 1300 calories in 3.5 hours for 56 miles. Average speed was 16mph so not really race pace, but not slow either (for me). Average heart rate was 123 which is low for me but not sleepy.