cycling nutrition help

Delboy007

Hi

so I am 39; 5 ft 8; and 80kg. cycling to work 22 km round trip for last two years. last year started going out on 50 km to 70km cycle. avg speed of around 28km per hr; one a Mt or so.

join cycling club and done 3 spin of 80km at about avg 26 km per hr.

I eat porridge and banna for breakfast about 40min before cycle and then a banna or two when out on cycle, and for drink have water with a berocca tablet in it.

alway felt fine after these spins.

on sunday I joined d racing group for a spin as what to do club racing this yea. so done 100km at avg 29km.

at about d 85km mark I started to feel it in my legs and was finding it hard to keep up, but kerp with them . but when I got home I was fecked, and so hungry. I was not fit for anything for d rest of d day.
mon cycle to work bit tired but ok today cycle to work but was so tired.

was was looking up what I should take high five etc but so much stuff out there.

If anyone could advise me what I should take that would help me would be great; links to were to buy them would be of great help.

Craig06

I use Skratch labs. I've tried most of the other stuff but I find when I drink a lot of it I feel bloated and sick. Skratch is definitely the best for me. No artificial colours and flavours etc.

Cee-Jay-Cee

It sounds like your blood sugars went low. For anything over 70km I always take a bar of chocolate (usually double decker or Mars) which keeps my sugar levels up sufficiently.

terrydel

Cee-Jay-Cee wrote: »

It sounds like your blood sugars went low. For anything over 70km I always take a bar of chocolate (usually double decker or Mars) which keeps my sugar levels up sufficiently.

Youve the same taste in bars as me!
I prefer them to spending loads on 'sports' bars as I find those taste awful, and are no better than a nice chocolate bar such as those youve mentioned.
The sports bars are just marketing gimmicks for me.

Notoldorwise

Found this out the hard way myself on Stephen Roche Atlantic Challenge last year. Legs went completely about 10 km from finish. A friend recommended Kelloggs nutrigrain bars. They are handy in that you can take a bite and set it between your lower teeth & cheek & slowly chew over 10km ( each bite ). No fatigue towards finish of cycle. Failing that, jelly beans........

Andalucia

a 3km hr increase in average pace is quite a lot, you would need to ensure you have plenty of base miles in the legs to be able to get around comfortably at 29km avg over 100km

look at your overall diet and ensure you take some vitamin supplements if required - I know this helped me, trick with eating is little and often, to ensure you don't get the hungry feeling which will leave you deflated

electrolytes in your water, few bananas, some bar that suits your taste and a few emergency jelly beans should see you fine

G1032

I make these flapjacks for longer spins. I put in a little more figs and apricots than the recipe says to.

http://timwiggins.blogspot.ie/2012/06/recipe-high-energy-flapjacks.html?m=1

I used to suffer badly myself hunger / energy wise on any spin over about 75 - 80 km. The biggest reason for this energy loss I discovered was dehydration. Now I'll keep much better hydrated both on and off the bike and don't suffer anymore. The flapjacks are nice though

Carawaystick

Sounds like you went harder than you were able to.
Next Sunday you should be able to go further before struggling.
That's why it's training
It's a significant step up to 100@29 from 80@26

Eat a high protein meal soon after your spin.

The pros save their energy too- they say don't stand if you ca sit,
don't sit if you can lie down

Macy0161

I wouldn't say it's nutrition to be honest - it was the step up in pace and distance.

My experience is that I've been out with our clubs top group (I'm normally the one below) a couple of times where every group below wimped out due to weather, and I've found the step up in speed hard going even without any extra distance. Not so much on the flat or hills, but on drags/ rolling roads I found it hard to keep pace. On a longer spin I started cramping up on the draggy stuff once I'd gone 80km plus (although that was with a lower base than I have now). There's just no let up/ easing up at all - even when they thought they were going easy on the couple of us that had stepped up!

Nutrition wise, I aim to eat every hour. I normally make the GCN energy bars (minus the peanut butter, as peanuts are gick and with butter instead of the oil) cut into 24's. So a couple of mouthfuls really every hour. A whole banana would be too much for me, and I don't believe in discarding the skin in a ditch anyway (they take a surprisingly long time to rot) and I don't like carrying the skin afterwards.

Hydration wise, our cycle coach reckons, and has set us a target in our training plan, of 2x750ml bottles per 75-80km spin too. Can be hard enough to do this time of year tbh.

CramCycle

Macy0161 wrote: »

Hydration wise, our cycle coach reckons, and has set us a target in our training plan, of 2x750ml bottles per 75-80km spin too. Can be hard enough to do this time of year tbh.

Hydration is where alot of people disagree, and where a coach should realise, whatever their beliefs, that everyone is different.

My own opinion is that in cooler weather that you will be drinking less if you are properly hydrated before the spin.

I used to abide by the rule that drink whenever you think about it but I am coming round more and more to the idea that your body will let you know, drink when you can if you feel like it but I am beginning to believe there is no benefit to forcing it down, there is a reason your body is not that interested.

Macy0161

CramCycle wrote: »

Hydration is where alot of people disagree, and where a coach should realise, whatever their beliefs, that everyone is different.

My own opinion is that in cooler weather that you will be drinking less if you are properly hydrated before the spin.

I used to abide by the rule that drink whenever you think about it but I am coming round more and more to the idea that your body will let you know, drink when you can if you feel like it but I am beginning to believe there is no benefit to forcing it down, there is a reason your body is not that interested.

Most are ignoring it anyway! It's an aim/ encouragement in fairness to the coach. I generally only manage it as I cycle to and from the spin which ups the mileage a bit.

Not cycling specific, but I have read before that by they time you feel thirsty, you're already dehydrated, but I've no idea whether there's any science behind that or if it's one of those myths that's grown legs.

Enduro

Macy0161 wrote: »

Not cycling specific, but I have read before that by they time you feel thirsty, you're already dehydrated, but I've no idea whether there's any science behind that or if it's one of those myths that's grown legs.

There is science behind it. Generally that science was funded by the Gatorade insitute. Later more independany science contradicts it. "Waterlogged" by Tim Noakes is one of the more accessable pieces on the subject.

Hmmzis

In addition to what has already been mentioned here you should try to match your calorie intake with calorie expenditure on a daily basis. What most leasure cyclists and amateur racers do is undereat by a good margin on training/racing days and overeat (sometimes massively) on rest or easy days. In the long run this will stall your progress and your energy levels will suffer from it. On a hard training day you might burn off in the region of 3k kCal in addition to your base metabolic requirements (2100-2200 kCal ballpark for your body weight assuming a desk job). That's a lot of food to be eaten to compensate if you stick to proper food and not sugary crap and bigmacs.

For your morning porridge before a hard spin add a banana to it and take a couple banas with you on the road. They're better than any candy or sports bar for in-flight fueling.

Pawlie

CramCycle wrote: »

I am coming round more and more to the idea that your body will let you know, drink when you can if you feel like it but I am beginning to believe there is no benefit to forcing it down, there is a reason your body is not that interested.

Leaving it till your body tells you to drink is wrong unless you are actually training your body to adapt to it (ideally doing it in early winter and only when riding in zone 1 or 2), and this is were people fail, you have already starved your body of fluids and food to that moment when it says im thirsty or hungry and thus without knowing it you have depleted fluid & nutrition levels, this is when the damage to your muscles is in progress and if riding above zone 2 you will get the famous bonk and its very hard to fight it and recover, it is highly recommended to always sip during your ride and always nibble on some good food during the spin and stay constantly fueled, the amount of each consumed will always depend on the intensity of ride etc.

Koobcam

I find a pack of love hearts are perfect for when you run low on sugar on the bike. They are not very good for your teeth to be sure, but they are a perfect instant sugar hit. I'd generally keep a packet in my pocket as a sort of emergency stash for longer spins-basically something that will help me get to the nearest garage where I can get proper food. They are a lot cheaper than gels as well. I'd also try eating maybe two hours before a long spin-I find if I eat too close to the start of the spin I can get stomach cramps and other dodgy stuff basically because my body is still digesting the food while I am putting other physical demands on it.
For those group spins, I'd say try to make the most of your drafting time. Riding at 26kph on your own can be harder than 29kph in a group, but make sure you're not spending too much time doing your turns and don't be afraid to hand around down the back for a bit longer if you're feeling knackered.

martyc5674

Koobcam wrote: »

.......nearest garage where I can get proper food.

Garage with proper food...Cmon!!!

ford2600

"What a piece of work is a man! How noble in reason, how infinite in faculty! In form and moving how express and admirable! In action how like an Angel! in apprehension how like a god!"

By the jist of most posters here it looks like auld Willie got in wrong..... We are incredible fragile, unadaptable and need constant topping up with food and fluid to do a fairly average club ride..

Someone should have told those Africans lads running sub 2h20 min marathons without food or fluid in the 60's (not in north western Europe in winter with the huge hydration demands that entails!!!).... Gatorade saved the day though and now we know better...


OP going faster and for longer stresses your body; you are bound to feel wrecked. Rest well, your body will adapt and get stronger.
In meantime
*eat a diet in nutrient rich food with adequate protein for activity level
*sleep well(that's when protein does its work repairing tissue damage)
* will adjusting to new routine, cut short your turn at front, especially early on in ride(most lads won't mind while you adapt)
* Try and finish well
* If there is ever a time to have fast acting carbs it is after exercise to start recovery
* Use Monday as a recovery ride, grannies should be passing you out

jive

ford2600 wrote: »

Someone should have told those Africans lads running sub 2h20 min marathons without food or fluid in the 60's (not in north western Europe in winter with the huge hydration demands that entails!!!).... Gatorade saved the day though and now we know better...

While I agree to an extent (lads going out for a 50km spin sucking down gels etc!) this is hardly comparable beyond the fact we are human beings. A stocky 80kg Irishman with little training (relative to the marathoners running sub 2h20!) can't be compared to 55kg man who was born into a Kenyan tribe with the world's tiniest ankles and long limbs who run huge mileage all their life. Diets, lifestyles, climate, body composition and everything are all completely different.

It's most likely a combo of everything mentioned in this thread; nutrition, higher effort over a longer distance than normal and hydration.

OleRodrigo

CramCycle wrote: »

Hydration is where alot of people disagree, and where a coach should realise, whatever their beliefs, that everyone is different.

My own opinion is that in cooler weather that you will be drinking less if you are properly hydrated before the spin.

I used to abide by the rule that drink whenever you think about it but I am coming round more and more to the idea that your body will let you know, drink when you can if you feel like it but I am beginning to believe there is no benefit to forcing it down, there is a reason your body is not that interested.

I have to agree with this. Can't stand the thoughts of drinking water on a winter spin and rarely feel the need to. A coffee at around 80km seems to do me fine. Mind you, a policy of not hammering it during the colder months helps.