by: Robert Panzera

Learning to carry and consume food while training may improve performance (and mood). The off-season is a good time to learn how much to consume and how often you need to consume proper calories to ensure you are maximizing your training potential.

Glycogen Depletion On-The-Go

Your body needs muscle glycogen to function properly through the entire exercise period. This graph depicts how various fuels are used to attain 100 percent of your energy when exercising:

As you can see muscle glycogen (yellow) starts off providing nearly 50 percent of your fuel at time zero and is almost depleted after four hours. It is important to note that the exercise bout depicted is 70 percent of VO2 Max, which many of us would consider a “recovery” pace. Note that you can substitute the energy loss from depleted glycogen with carbohydrate ingestion (red).

Cyclists can fend off a “bonk” (i.e., a severe depletion in available energy stores, which adversely affects performances) by simply cruising and eating. This may be more difficult at high intensities, or when out for more than four hours of endurance. In these instances, you have to “train yourself to eat” before exercise, during exercise and after exercise.

The following are tips to ensure you are consuming the proper calories at the proper times. Adhering to these tips require commitment, foresight, and a willingness to experiment and learn.

Breakfast

Ensure you are getting plenty of carbohydrates to fuel your daily rides. Aim for 500 to 1,000 calories for breakfast on medium to long training days. Many cyclists choose a whole grain source such as plain oatmeal because it is a high-carbohydrate and moderate-protein food, which in most cases is easy to digest. Fruits and vegetables are also a good choice.

Get enough protein. Protein satiates your morning hunger and provides nutrition to rebuild your muscles and maintain enzymatic pathways. Many cyclists choose nonfat milk or eggs.

Drink plenty of water. Water, or even include small amounts of juice or sports drink, provides calories, hydration, and electrolytes.

Try not to load up on fat. Fat takes longer to digest and requires more water to help with absorption. Please note that restricting too much fat is also not a good idea, because fat is necessary for normal bodily and hormonal function.

On the Bike

Consume 200 to 300 calories per hour. Energy bars consumed with energy drinks will usually provide a complete nutrition profile—carbohydrates, proteins, electrolytes and even a little fat. I believe “real” food is always a better choice, though.

Eat “real” food. Bring along sandwiches—e.g., PB&J or ham and cheese—and healthy, savory cookies, like Fig Newman’s (i.e., Paul Newman’s brand, which are wheat- and dairy-free, moist, and delicious).

Eat a little at a time. Drink water to help dissolve and digest small amounts of food. In this manner, it is more palatable and leaves one feeling less heavy.

Ensure you are obtaining an adequate amount of salt. Cyclists can sweat out between one to three quarts of sweat per hour depending on their physiology, ambient temperature, and humidity. Each quart of sweat may contain up to 1,000 milligrams of salt. It is recommended that 250 to 500 milligrams of salt are ingested per hour, unless you are directed by a medical professional to consume a low salt diet.

Choose a sports drink. Pick one that is palatable, provides adequate electrolytes, and does not cause gastric distress. A good choice is 150 to 300 calories of maltodextrin (glucose polymer) with 250 to 500 mg of table salt added.

Lunch

Don’t eat very little while you ride, then sit down at lunch and gorge yourself. Your body will not be able to properly process a large amount of food to adequately replace your glycogen stores and initiate recovery.

Eat slowly at lunch. If you are still hungry when you have finished your meal, wait five minutes before hurrying to order more food. Your stomach may be slightly upset from riding, and eating quickly usually increases discomfort.

Don’t restrict calories. Avoid choices that will leave you feeling heavy and bloated—i.e., fatty and processed. Bad choices might be heavily fried food, prepackaged foods, corn syrupy sodas, and large amounts of processed bread.

Eat lunch. This may seem like a no-brainer, but sometimes the brain tells the body after exercise, “Don’t eat.” That’s just a nervous system response. Don’t avoid lunch because you may not be feeling very hungry—you will pay the price later on down the road when you run out of fuel.

Post-Ride Recovery
Eat about 300 calories upon finishing a training ride. Choose a well-balanced snack (i.e., mostly carbohydrates and a little protein).

Drink plenty of water. A general guideline is 1 liter of fluid per pound of body weight lost while riding.

Eat on the return journey home. Choose an extremely easy pace for the last few miles to allow your body to settle and relax. Start recovery eating at this time before you return home and become distracted by showering, changing clothes, e-mailing, talking on the phone, etc.

Snack (again). Eat about another 300 calories, one hour after you eat your immediate post-ride snack.

Dinner
Eat dinner and eat well. Choose lean meats, fruits, and vegetables for dinner. Whole grains can be good choices too, but the majority of your carbohydrates should come from fruits and vegetables.
Observe. If you feel as though you need to have a dinner with portions that are larger than usual, then it might be an indication that you did not consume enough calories during breakfast, on-the-ride, lunch, or post ride. Adjust your nutrition accordingly to avoid sitting down to huge meals at the end of the day.

Conclusion
The off-season is a good time to learn how much to consume and how often you need to consume proper calories to ensure you are maximizing your training potential. Proper riding nutrition (breakfast, lunch, on-the-ride, post-ride, and dinner) will help avoid a bonk by ensuring you have proper blood glucose to maintain exercise during glycogen shortage.

References

Baker, A. (2006). ACE training for cyclists—altitude, climbing, and endurance. 9th edition. San Diego, CA: Argo Publishing.
Coyle, E.F., Coggan, A.R., Hemmert, M.K., & Ivy, J.L. (1986). Muscle glycogen utilization during prolonged strenuous exercise when fed carbohydrate. Journal of  Applied Physiology, 61, 165-172.
Israel, D. Nutrition. (2001). In ACSM’s Resource Manual for Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, 4th Edition. Jeffrey L. Roitman, Senior Editor. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Robert Panzera is a Level 2 USA Cycling Coach and owner and operator of Cycling Camp San Diego (CCSD). CCSD is designed to provide value-driven venues of training miles and coaching in the United States and Europe for serious touring and elite racing cyclists. For more information about Robert Panzera and CCSD, visit www.cyclingcampsandiego.com or contact him at robert@cyclingcampsandiego.com. Find him on Twitter at twitter.com/ccsdcycling or Facebook.