Nutrition qs...

[mass_biker]

Last week, after a 3+ hour ride into what felt like a block headwind - 50 miles @ 5000 feet of climbing - and suffering one of the worst hunger knocks in a LONG time (been riding since whenever - so call it ~40 years?) on the last 1/2 hour...like, lights-out, please-let-there-be-a-RoFo-or-Highs-or-Sheetz up ahead-why is my small ring only a 36?...this week I vowed to fuel up better ahead of time and fuel up more often on the (solo) ride.

Same deal but different route - 3ish hours, a lot colder, solo, hilly. But this time I ate fully (carbs, protein etc.) with 45 minutes before take off, and then vowed to eat a little every 1/2 hour (i.e. 1/2 a bar or so) even if I didn't feel super hungry/hangry when the clock got to the bottom or top of the hour...

And didn't you, know, it made all the difference. I got home not-wrecked, and without the caloric-deficit shakes.

For the PL hive mind - anyone experimented with other caloric sources during rides where the appetite isn't there but you know you have to keep the calories up? In normal "non riding" life, I am an inveterate grazer, so have to eat **a little** all the time, so wondering if there are changes I ought to do with my ride nutrition. Liquid? (I'm usually a H20 guy). Other go-tos and tips?

Thank you

m_b

[mass_biker]

Should go into General...thank you

[tellyho]

I'm lazy. I love Perpetuem. I already have water bottles, just dump it in and go. It's been fine for me for 5-6 hours.

[AngryScientist]

Moved for ya. For the situation you describe I like just regular snacky stuff. Jelly beans are great; fruit snacks, salted peanuts, trail mix etc. Anything tasty and easy to grab a small handful every 20 mins or so.

[Peter P.]

Your body can only store enough energy for roughly two hours of vigorous aerobic activity, then the bonk is chasing you and WILL catch you. If you're paying attention you'll know the exact moment the switch is thrown. For me that moment comes at 1 hour 50 minutes.

On rides lasting over two hours I'll start eating at 1.5 hours, and roughly every 30-45 minutes afterwards. I don't care for liquid calories because the sticky stuff can get on the bike and I hate cleaning bottles.

I'll pretty much eat anything solid that doesn't upset my stomach or give me an instant case of the Hershey Squirts.

[old_fat_and_slow]

Originally Posted by Peter P.

...snippage...

case of the Hershey Squirts.

Haven't heard that one before. Pretty funny "in a sophomoric way".

[Dired]

Big fan of everything sis, especially beta fuel and skratch superfuel for really sweaty days.

[Alistair]

I've tried liquid nutrition, but it doesn't do well in my gut. Thankfully not bowel issues - just lots of belching and feeling too full to keep ingesting on schedule.

And I'm also celiac, so lots of the bars don't work for me. And those that do are often dry and mealy and hard to gag down during exercise.

So, this year, I've vowed to make rice balls (from the Portables cook book) regularly. They don't require much chewing, I can make them bite-size, and sweetness can be kept low (later in rides, I don't like overly sweet).

And I'll use Skratch in my bottles to keep up hydration.

I've tried this on a few 4-5 hour rides this season with reasonable luck. Just took some experimentation to find the right number of rice balls/hour. Stomach seems happy and I don't feel too full to continue eating.

Croatan next weekend will be the real test.

When I'm bike-packing, at lower intensity, I can eat a broader range of foods - pretty much any gas station food will do.

[John H.]

It would be helpful to know more about you.
How much do you weigh? What kind of effort and/or average speed are these rides?
What is your training history? Is a 3 hour ride big for you? How many hours per week do you usually ride? Are you at "usual" level of fitness? Or a bit behind?
You mentioned you are a grazer. What do you eat? Do you stay away from carbs?
Do you make sure to eat carbs the night before or morning of a ride like this?

Knowing these things can help guide recommendations, but my main tip is to start eating and drinking early in a ride on schedule. It doesn't have to be bike specific food, energy bars, dried fruit, sandwiches (or parts of a sandwich). Same for drinking...
Try to bring a bit more food than you need. Don't fear stopping to fill bottles or get more food.

[Permanent socks]

Here is my chart for eating carbs per zone per hour. I eat roughly half of what I'm burning per hour and the stores of glycogen in my body fuels the rest. A solid meal after is also consumed that is high in carbs and protein.


Zone 1 low 60g high 120g
Zone 2 low 120 high 180g
Zone 3 low 180 high 240g
Zone 4 low 240 high 260g
Zone 5 260g+

Eat half of these carb grams per hour. The most that I can eat and keep my gut from rebelling is 120g /hour
Which for me is either 2 gets and a bottle of carbs. Carb mix is water, scoop of Gatorade (for flavor ) 30g of agave and 30g of maple syrup, add a pinch of salt.

For most rides in Zone 2 I use 2 fig bars that are 38g of carbs each, per hour with a bottle of water.

Your mileage may vary but this is a pretty good approximation for most people unless you have no ability to use fat for fuel.