What Do You Eat Before You Cycle. When Do You Eat It?

[slowmotion]

Porridge, banana, pasta etc. Mainly carbohydrates rather than a lot of protein. For some reason, eggs don't work very well for me although I love them at other times.

 

[Lovacott]

@Lovacott your situation is pretty unique since you only eat once a day - there's not many people who do that so what others do may be of little use to you.
Based on your threads you've undertaken a massive change in lifestyle since you took up cycling. Your body is still adjusting. It may take some time.
It's also (at least) your second thread on how miserable your commute to home is. There is also the possibility that it happens near the end of your waking/nutrition cycle and you're not a machine!

When I wake up in the morning, I'm all primed up for getting on my bike and hitting the road.

When it comes to home time, I wish I'd driven to work.

After I've cycled home, I'm glad that I did.

I admit that it sounds a bit farked arp, but that is genuinely how I feel.

 

[Landsurfer]

Pre ride, Banana, 1/2 pt milk blended together.
Post ride, 1 egg, microwave cup scrambled, 1 slice seeded batch loaf, toasted with butter and marmalade.

 

[Paulus]

maybe try making something fresh and avoiding so much processed food (especially meat?) No microwave ready breakfast (is that even a thing?!) is going to be made of high quality products. Think of your future bowel health 👍

Quality food Not that I have ever eaten this stuff. A mate at work used to tuck into one most days.

 

[Mburton1993]

View attachment 556919
Quality food Not that I have ever eaten this stuff. A mate at work used to tuck into one most days.

Or this one, it's slightly better, now with real meat!

 

[HobbesOnTour]

I admit that it sounds a bit farked arp, but that is genuinely how I feel.

It really doesn't sound farked up at all!

If I'm understanding properly, you last ate 21/22 hours before, you've cycled to work, done a work day and have to face into an hour + commute to get home - into a headwind these days. Plus it's November!
And you've gone from zero to where you are now since Covid?

Give yourself a break!

You're the only one who can see your "big picture".

Maybe taking the car one day a week will give the body a rest and make the other days more enjoyable.

The only thing I can suggest is to try not thinking about how bad it is and to focus on any of the small changes you can make to try to make the commute home better, if not more enjoyable. That could be physical - food, drink, pace or psychological - reducing "pressure", stopping to smell the roses. For some people, pushing themselves to beat yesterday is the way to go.

I'm of the opinion that the most important thing is to actually enjoy what you're doing most of the time. The danger is that a run of bad luck - weather, punctures, mechanicals, close passes - knocks the whole cycling thing on its head.

If you've been to the doctor before about your eating habits, maybe now is an interesting time to get back in touch since your body and exercise has changed a lot. Maybe a simple supplement can help.

Good luck!

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Generally I have nothing more than a cup of tea and a couple of biscuits in the morning, whether I'm getting up for work or it's a day off and I'm going to go for a ride. I really cant be arsed with getting food ready first thing in the morning as I'd have to get up even earlier Just like @Lovacott I will often work all day with nothing more than a cup of tea, then I eat my food in the evening when I get in, often eating at 9 or 10 o'clock. I'm used to going long periods without eating, doesn't bother me at all, and when I do get to eat I enjoy it all the more because I've had nothing all day.

 

[oreo_muncher]

I eat my dinner before cycling. Some examples:

-Pizza, yoghurt and granola with banana.
-Rice, beans with some veggies
-pasta

 

[Ming the Merciless]

I don’t eat especially before a ride. I’m usually just lunch and dinner during week then breakfast at weekend. So normal meal times and just cycle when it fits.

 

[Nebulous]

There’s two different things going on there - your unusual eating routine and fuelling for a ride. Usually a recommendation for people who want to improve their diet is to eat ‘little and often.’ I was recently reading one of the cycling gurus saying any more than 25 Grammes of protein is wasted, you simply don’t use it. He was recommending 25 grammes 4-5 times a day. That obviously conflicts with how you eat.

I used to have cornflakes with two slices of toast every morning, bought sandwiches, fizzy drinks and crisps at work and a big meal at night. My weight slowly increased for years until I decided to do something about it. I changed to porridge or muesli for breakfast, fruit for lunch and still a big meal at night, and lost 5 stone. I kept that up for 10 years until lockdown started.

My main interest for cycling is long distance endurance stuff. Availability of food is variable, and there is some advantage in not stopping for food. As a result I train for that, often training fasted. I can do 50 miles on nothing, and often do, water only. I’ve become more efficient at burning fat, like your morning ride, however I have limits, and wouldn’t try that after 18 hours without food.

If you don’t have carbs there is a distinct limit to what you can do on fat only. 12mph is sometimes quoted as a top limit. You need to find some way of getting a quickly available energy source, whether that is fruit, sweets, a sports drink, gels or sports bars.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

If you don’t have carbs there is a distinct limit to what you can do on fat only. 12mph is sometimes quoted as a top limit.

That might explain why I can pretty much have a cuppa in the morning and still get through my whole day without bothering to eat. Although I'm doing physical activity most of the time at work, I'm doing so at a fairly low intensity and when I go out for a ride I will generally average between 11.5 and 12 mph if I'm on a hybrid (a bit less on a MTB with knobbly tyres) I've also lost a few pounds in fat weight over the last six months.
The issue the OP seems to have is they are trying to do a high intensity activity (riding hard into the wind on a hilly route) at the end of the day, when they have not eaten for a considerable time. Maybe if the intensity was reduced and more time allowed, the energy requirement would be more within the body's ability to sustain it without excessive fatigue?

 

[Nebulous]

That might explain why I can pretty much have a cuppa in the morning and still get through my whole day without bothering to eat. Although I'm doing physical activity most of the time at work, I'm doing so at a fairly low intensity and when I go out for a ride I will generally average between 11.5 and 12 mph if I'm on a hybrid (a bit less on a MTB with knobbly tyres) I've also lost a few pounds in fat weight over the last six months.
The issue the OP seems to have is they are trying to do a high intensity activity (riding hard into the wind on a hilly route) at the end of the day, when they have not eaten for a considerable time. Maybe if the intensity was reduced and more time allowed, the energy requirement would be more within the body's ability to sustain it without excessive fatigue?

I’m not an expert - but you need both, carbs and fat. Our carbs are in much more limited supply and our body hoards them carefully. In practical terms we have a more or less unlimited supply of energy from fat. You can alter the balance, become better at fat-burning and use less from from carbs, but you still need some of them.

I think his struggles on his way home could be because he is extremely low on carbs and his best answer would be to top up with some carbs prior to setting out to go home.

 

[Lovacott]

There’s two different things going on there - your unusual eating routine and fuelling for a ride.

I started cycling on the third day of the first lockdown to control my weight and give me something to fill part of the day.

The first two days, I watched a box set, ate fry ups and drank loads of beer.

I put on half a stone in 48 hours. So I decided to do something physical and set about fixing up my old Apollo.

I rode the local estuary cycle path for ten or fifteen miles every day (the one where James May raced the electric model train set).

I was slow to start with and every joint ached, but over the coming weeks, I got quicker and it got easier.

The ride across country to work was a mad pipe dream. I didn't believe that I could do it. I tried it the week before we went back to work and it nearly killed me. But I stuck with it and it gradually got a bit easier.

I've got faster on the commute due to improved fitness, better use of my gears and by gradually learning when to go hard and when to take it easy.

I've more than lost my early lockdown weight and I'm now the same weight as I was 20 years ago. My leg muscles are ripped, my joints no longer creak and I don't get puffed out walking up the hill to the newsagents.

But still, the ride home every day seems like too much hard work.

I've tried a few different foods at different times to see what I can eat and when to boost my energy levels.

If I eat too early, I spend the last hour at work trying to fight off sleep. If I eat too late, I get cramps in my calves on the hills.

I did eat a Mr Kipling Bakewell Tart at about 4.30pm a couple of weeks ago and it seemed to make a difference. No sickie feeling in my legs, no cramps, quick commute time.

I'm reluctant to go down the sugar hit route though. I very rarely eat sweet stuff. I'd rather eat a bit of cheese than a lump of chocolate.

 

[Landsurfer]

I try to avoid the sugar hit if at all possible. On my LEJOG i learnt after the first day that gels, sugar, protein bars are not a patch on real food.
If you want a kick before setting off for home have a chicken sandwich or a banana ... leave the buns alone ...

 

[Lovacott]

I try to avoid the sugar hit if at all possible. On my LEJOG i learnt after the first day that gels, sugar, protein bars are not a patch on real food.
If you want a kick before setting off for home have a chicken sandwich or a banana ... leave the buns alone ...

My experiment next week will be a banana at different times before I leave for home.