Cycling Forums - View Single Post - On-bike nutrition advice sought

07-22-2004, 04:16 PM

Dave,
You did not eat enough for a 90 mile ride.

First, you can digest 3 grams of carbohydrates per pound of body
weight per hour, without slowing down peak athletic performance. Carbs
need to be matched to water best in a 6% to 8% ratio also to avoid
cramping, certainly thicker than 10% will slow you down.
The best way to do this is drink enough sports drink to get 3 grams
of carbs per hour per pound of body weight. There are lots of ways to
get carbs, but sports drinks are already in the optimum ratio and have
electrolytes.
Second, adding protein to a sport drink does increase endurance even
more:

http://my.webmd.com/content/article/90/100586.htm?lastselectedguid={5FE84E90-BC77-4056-A91C-9531713CA348}

If your 90 mile ride is not a competitive race, drink Endurox R4 for
lunch (rest for 45 minutes), and also right at the end of the ride.

Cheers,
Bruce Freeburger
www.BIKESonTV.com

Dave Stallard wrote:
> I did a 90 mile ride on Saturday. I finished pretty strongly, but hit
> the bonk in a couple of places in the middle - no power in my legs,
> feeling unequal to any gradient, etc. Strangely, the same places I did
> the last time, and not even steep hills.
>
> I take Clif bars and Powerade in my water bottle. I love the taste of
> Clif bars, but they don't sit well in my stomache while cycling. Towards
> the end of the ride, I'll step up to one of the caffeinated "Ice
> Series" Clif bars. I also use a GU gel pack for that one most difficult
> moment. Total for the ride: 2.5 Clif bars, one 100 calorie GU gel
> pack, and 40 ounces of Powerade, supplemented by probably 40-60 ounces
> of regular water.
>
> Questions: Am I eating enough?
>
> Are there more digestible bars than Clif? I really want something that
> digests and comes online as soon as possible. (I don't like the GUs too
> much).
>
> Does anybody use one of those "musette" bags for food? (I bet if food
> was easier to reach, in smaller bites, I would eat more regularly during
> the ride.)
>
> Dave

07-22-2004, 04:16 PM	#59 (permalink)
Bruce Freeburger Guest Posts: n/a	Re: On-bike nutrition advice sought Dave, You did not eat enough for a 90 mile ride. First, you can digest 3 grams of carbohydrates per pound of body weight per hour, without slowing down peak athletic performance. Carbs need to be matched to water best in a 6% to 8% ratio also to avoid cramping, certainly thicker than 10% will slow you down. The best way to do this is drink enough sports drink to get 3 grams of carbs per hour per pound of body weight. There are lots of ways to get carbs, but sports drinks are already in the optimum ratio and have electrolytes. Second, adding protein to a sport drink does increase endurance even more: http://my.webmd.com/content/article/90/100586.htm?lastselectedguid={5FE84E90-BC77-4056-A91C-9531713CA348} If your 90 mile ride is not a competitive race, drink Endurox R4 for lunch (rest for 45 minutes), and also right at the end of the ride. Cheers, Bruce Freeburger www.BIKESonTV.com Dave Stallard wrote: > I did a 90 mile ride on Saturday. I finished pretty strongly, but hit > the bonk in a couple of places in the middle - no power in my legs, > feeling unequal to any gradient, etc. Strangely, the same places I did > the last time, and not even steep hills. > > I take Clif bars and Powerade in my water bottle. I love the taste of > Clif bars, but they don't sit well in my stomache while cycling. Towards > the end of the ride, I'll step up to one of the caffeinated "Ice > Series" Clif bars. I also use a GU gel pack for that one most difficult > moment. Total for the ride: 2.5 Clif bars, one 100 calorie GU gel > pack, and 40 ounces of Powerade, supplemented by probably 40-60 ounces > of regular water. > > Questions: Am I eating enough? > > Are there more digestible bars than Clif? I really want something that > digests and comes online as soon as possible. (I don't like the GUs too > much). > > Does anybody use one of those "musette" bags for food? (I bet if food > was easier to reach, in smaller bites, I would eat more regularly during > the ride.) > > Dave