Recently I have discovered that eating a Chicken and Mushroom Pot Noodle and a big bag of Drumsticks Squashies an hour before a ride is not a good idea.
I've found drumstick squashies to literally be EPO. Ridiculously effective fuel, have had so many good rides while fuelling off them :) -- Can't speak for the pot noodle though, I feel the combination can't go down too well!
I trained for a 24 hour Paris ride and did a couple 100+ km rides. One fasting, the bonk set in after tackling Buckhurst Hill homeward bound and another eating which went better. Day of the real ride was beset with stoppages for photo opps and broken bikes, totally messed my eating and drinking up and was a wreck by Newhaven. Dieppe to Paris I got the ratios and timing right, it made such a difference and I felt strong for the whole distance, was a tough lesson to learn because eating that often while exercising just felt abnormal but now it’s just second nature.
I always train about 45/60 mins after waking up. What’s the best thing to have to fuel the harder/longer sessions. I’ve read it can take a few hours if eating porridge/oats so don’t know what’s best? Thanks 😀👍
something low in fibre and quick digesting - this will be your faster releasing, higher Glycemic index foods - something like rice crispies and/or toast with banana and honey would be ideal and possibly a glass of fruit juice on the side
I’m living as an expat in the Middle East and I have discovered that nature makes these convenient energy gels called dates. I did 200 km using sour cherry juice in water to drink and 100 g of dates every hour. I found them much easier on my stomach than most engineered sports drinks
You nailed it with this vlog! On Monday, I rode 67 miles, had packed just enough nutrition to make back. In the last few miles, I could see the "bonk" monster gaining on me, I made it back before he could catch me. I didn't eat an hour before the ride, I think it cost me some performance on the climbs coming back. I will save this vlog and watch it again before I attempt a century ride later this year. Ride on, my friend.
Interesting video, despite being acutely aware of this, I always struggle to eat enough on rides. Getting enough carbs is surprisingly hard and I've made the mistake of thinking i'm eating enough calorie wise, but picking random cereal bars which don't quite cut it as far as carbs are concerned (meaning you'd need about 5 an hour). I also feel I reach a point where I just can't get the fuel on board fast enough :P -- Tend to find sweets to be the most effective fuel, but sometimes a little awkward to eat while riding. Though on the flipside, I struggle to not eat too much outside of rides haha xD appetite constantly revved up to 200%. I don't overeat on training days, but do on rest days :S
After I watched this video, I went back and watched your other video featuring will - the "4 Bang for Buck cycling foods" video, and realised that the last few sportives I've been on, I've been seriously under-carbing. I don't like the thought of bars/gels, but would like something a bit more natural instead, so will look into what I can stomach for when I next do a sportive.
Did lots of fasted riding on short rides during our lockdown, then did a long ride and took on usual czrbs like gels etc and the GI tract really didn't appreciate it.
It’s worth thinking about cravings on long rides. When I did the Marmotte I craved cake, when I did my Everesting, I craved peanut butter or anything savoury. Something to consider, though it can just sneak up on you & you may not have those peanut butter sarnies to hand
Agreed cravings can suggest needs - but most likely simplified - cake = carbs, peanut butter = salt. Possibly a good way to listen to them and provide a solid choice in turn as nuts will be really slow digesting and won't actually provide any performance benefit, possibly opt for a carb based savoury option?
That craving thing is so true. I can remember wanting to cry on a food stop during a tough audax as there was nothing in the shop I wanted to eat! I've since worked on planning what can be bought in shops that I know will satisfy my cravings, but also work for me nutritionally. Apples are also an underappreciated bike food, as they're full of electrolytes, easy to digest and robust to carry (unlike bananas!).
My nurtrion for going long I mean really long 400-600k with 4.000->10.000k elevation, besides eating almost like a mad man on the side you have to eat constantly on the bike. What works really well for me are NUTS you can make them sweet with some raisins or dates or keep it salty with some salt. I also like to add curcuma sometimes cause I read it has anti infectious benefits (that would be one question for Will if you read this --> curcuma yay or ney?). In germany we say: "Ohne Mampf kein Dampf." which translates into if you don't eat you will not have to steam to put power down ;)
Despite knowing I don’t eat enough on long hard/high intensity rides I still struggle to take on enough mainly because it just feels wrong stuffing 9 gels in my pocket for a three hour ride (15 for a 5 hour ride).
Your body has enough carbs stored for the first 45 min - 1 hour of your session. Nutritionists and people who know their stuff suggest taking in gels after that period. I guess 6-7 gels for a hard 3h ride don't sound that daunting, maybe even less if you consider some ripe bananas as well.
I found fasted training just left me wrecked the next day. I find complex carbs ar least 1 hour before high intensity and glucose carbs during. That worls for me
just spotted a video I thought people might appreciate. not sure if you game but if you get tired of zwift for your virtual rides: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-bDpWEeetUMM.html XD Nutrition is good topic to cover especially as we enter the season where long important rides are often had and wow is it getting harder to catch your uploads before anyone else LOL.
I do fasted rides in the morning to the office. Pint of water and jump on the bike. I find this rides reasonable for pace and is 400 kcal burn. The afternoon i struggle so normally have a flapjack 30-40 minutes before packing up, but always more hills as i avoid the canal section. The return is normally 5-600 depending on the route.
Before I even clicked the video, I knew I was guilty of two of them, only because I hate fasting. I always eat a heavy meal, like right now before I hit the road. I’ll ride to the not so local to me bike shop two hours away and get two gels and they’ll fuel my return home. Wine or any other alcohol drink, can’t do it, nothing harder than trying balance on two wheels when you can’t even balance on two feet.
Not cycling, but trained really hard for the London Marathon, working for a sub 4. On Race day for some bizarre reason I chose to try an isotonic drink they were dishing out at drink stops ... huge mistake ... needless to say I f****d it up. Had to wait another 5 years before I got another place ... and finally crack the under 4 ... tough lesson learnt!
What goes in one end comes out the other . Common sense would dictate that one should try for a bowel movement and take a wee before heading off naturally after having a feed and a quick shower if need a dump . It's also a good idea to carry some toilet tissue in case of emergency . I carry some in a plastic bag I carry my phone in to use Strava and in case of a break down in my jersey pocket . Lidl have a good range of individual packet energy bar type stuff that's quite affordable but my favorite are Ma Baker cherry flapjacks from the health food shop . I prefer the idea of heavy brown bread and peanut butter wrapped in tin foil myself over all I like to stop for a test and a munch anyway . Maybe a few Panadol or nutrafin would be handy to carry too in case of a pain developing dehydration causes head aches so drink plenty .
Interesting video although disagree that better to eat more than less. If you eat more you can run the risk of gastric distress which can then take time to resolve. If you eat too little you can quickly rectify and take more gel or other carbs. Key is to always stay hydrated with electrolytes in balance as without that you cannot absorb carbs as well. I am speaking more from the endurance perspective.
I've alway pronounced it fragile but frigile sound good to. Fragile is a bit weird and if you say it like fragile then you need to take a good look at yourself.
Hi, is there any supplements you suggest for those early morning rides or sessions. Sometimes it's difficult to eat at that time.I started using pure carb supplements before and during the rides
I think mine were a bit different.... Firstly, 120 kgs ... mostly from wine and duck being in SW France Secondly ... end of ride routine including Armagnac ... not immediately but subsequently Third ... I’m rubbish at breakfast, fuelling etc though I do do it via drink stuff when having to move early (cycling and canoe portages). Having said that, I do learn if not listen, I’m unlikely to be a performance cyclist anytime soon while heading towards 60 yrs old but I like riding my bike On reflection, I doubt this vid was for me really overall ... just wanted to give Cade the comments and likes ... he needs the algorithm and cash first and above all Having said that, my daughter has been sent a link because she still has bits that work
thanks Mark! Yes these tips are really only if you want to maximize performance. Of course it's a sliding scale and taste/how your stomach feels/enjoyment/convenience/cost all comes in to real life too!
But if I'm eating before an hour ride I'm not losing weight. Power might not be 100% but after an hour I want to be killed. My fat reserves are being used at that time.
I feel like there's probably a video's worth of clips of James going utterly doolally by now... Also i've always appreciated Will to be a trustworthy and knowledgable chap on top of being generally very nice but seeing him in that office there makes me absolutely certain he's a true die hard academic.
your body converts fat to glucose so it can burn it as fuel, eating glucose (carbs) directly makes the energy much more readily available though, hence why we eat sugary stuff on the bike instead of fatty stuff. Fatty things also tend to be harder to digest and affect the absorption of carbs
Good point about fuelling for intensity. I put 6000+KMs on last year but have never really trained. Started a Sufferfest plan due to lockdown. Mostly doing sessions that start before 7:00. Just once did I try a 1 hour hard session on empty. I was amazed how badly that went (compared to minimal fuelling for an hour outside). At least a banana is needed to get me through pre-breakfast turbo sessions.
i don't use any protein powder - that shaker had whole blend in it (the Huel style stuff) which I sometimes take to work instead of making lunch ... LAZY!
What about the 1000+kcal of muscle glycogen storage? If you've had some carbs the night before you should be good for a 1 hour hardish turbo session in the morning or 2-3 hours zone 2. Use the extra carbs for races and long group rides, don't become dependent on carbs particularly sugars.
Hey Richard. So, let's break this down. The muscle glygocen stores you have are dependent on many things - have you had a maximal amount of carbs the day before, have you exercised that day, the choice of carbs (Gi). After an overnight fast your liver glycogen stores are depleted. These are directly responsible for maintaining blood glucose levels so you will still under perform if you don't have a pre-ride meal the morning of carb load or not. I haven't advocated "carb dependency" I suggest mixing in fasted sessions with fed sessions to maximise enzyme production for both carbhoydrate and fat. But also appreciate that new and novice riders are massively in-effcient machines and are less able to use fat so would be unable to complete what you're suggesting. Further the enjoyment of riding can be reduced and beginners possibly even stopping if they find it too difficult. They don't need to do anything fasted for a while. Saving carbs just for race day with decrease your ability to perform early morning intense sessions, lower carbohydrate efficiency. Sugars are also not bad dependent on context - consuming hi Gi carbs during exercise is imperitive to maintaining blood glucose levels,
@@WillGirling It's just what works for me, I actually perform worse sometimes if I eat before hand, after all we are designed to 'hunt' and catch prey on an empty stomach. I also find a lot of people bonk BECAUSE they are so carb dependant. Part of training is to become more efficient, it just takes time, a new cyclist will find it hard at first whether they are fed or not, a new cyclist also should NOT be doing hard sessions, even experienced cyclist only go hard 1-2 times a week in training.
Hmm... That surprised me... The is so little content on RU-vid on lens selection for the UK other than road vs trail.. I ll have to try a pair of clears. Thanks for the tip.
I'm lucky in that I don't seem to have much trouble with eating on the bike, I generally don't need much and I can eat anything. What I have a problem with is the ravenous hunger that comes on post ride where I have to stop myself from completely emptying the cupboards and fridge. No matter what I try I can't stave it off.
after i start eating on a ride I'm continuously hungry. I wasn't (very) hungry before I started eating. Interested if others experience this? what is it? why is it ? Cheers - love the channel
same rules apply - for my double Everest I mostly drank my calories in smoothie form aiming for 80g carbs an hour. Gels were also really useful and easier to get down because it was hot. Bagels are quite good, lots of calories. Steer away from stuff that will bloat you, i.e fatty greasy stuff.
Can you do a similar video on touring nutrion, I am riding solo unsupported across America ( should be 3 weeks in to the ride if it was no for the travel ban) soon and any advice would help. Might help you with you race across America plans too😁😂😂
i documented this challenge right at the start of my cycling youtube life!: attacus.cc/blogs/stories/cyclist-chris-hall-completes-107-for-107-challenge
Just recalled, when I was at the national level and these new power-bars etc. became thing (before that was flat coke, really dating myself now), coaches would tell us, you might as well eat a candy bar (think they were probably just being sarcastic), but it got me into the habit of treating myself every now and then to an Eat-more. Dark toffee, peanuts, and chocolate. Bit goey in the summer, and rock hard in the winter. 😋
there's a few different ways of doing it - we'll make a video about a DIY mix at some point. You can buy maltodextrin quite cheap instead of using branded powders
I have a great video on this on my page - it's my first video I mate so bear with the intro and bits haha ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-26iHPFugRAE.html
Similar to francis - you only need protein every 3-4 hours so if you're riding longer than 4 hours and your last bit of protein was a while before your session then yes
80 grams of carbs per hour really, 3 gels, I have about 2 gels per year on average! So what you are saying is, for my 30 to 70 km off road MTB rides I must eat 2 snickers per hour, or 4 bananas or 3 gels??? Francis I would need to carry a bucket with me on every ride to be sick in! So all that on top of my porridge with fruit and nuts, and scrambled eggs on toast breakfast ! On these rides, because off road is far harder and more labour intensive than road riding, I would say I average between 18 and 21 kph, do I really need all this food? Baring in mind my rides are all in zone 1 2 and 3
@@Cade_Media ok thanks, then maybe Im not as tired as i think I am at the end of some rides? Maybe its just down to not eating enough! Ok Francis, its time for some experiments me thinks🚲👓🔬💊📚🔮📑📆
The breakfast you mentioned is PLENTY for that riding, just make sure it's at least 3 hours before. Adding 3 gels an hour will just make you gain weight.
@@richardmiddleton7770 ok thanks for info, i always thought it was enough, I'm no pro doing 150km at 40 kph! A 3 hour mtb ride like today with a full breakfast, snickers and two bananas is all i will take and two bottles, one isotonic and one water!
Was watching vids that say people don’t loose weight because they eat too much thinking they are expending what they consume! Guess this is performance focused! Good to know.
Great video Francis & Will. It all makes total sense when you tell it like that. BUT, then there's 3 things to remember about fluids, the 5 things about speed, power, hills, drafting, etc, etc,,! Sometimes I just don't want to think too hard and just enjoy the ride! But I guess one comes from the other. Thanks
