Pre-ride and during-ride food

missmarple

Hi Chaps,

Just wondering, as winter is starting to set in. Does anybody have a specific meal before they go out riding, such as Spaghetti etc? And does anyone use energy bars such as ShotBlocks?

Just curious as in our MTBing club, riding seems to be centered on eating the correct meal beforehand and supplementing during the ride.

militiacore

Depends on how long the rides last for.

If it's no longer than 2 hours then you'd get a way with a higher GI carb source such as pasta but for longer rides I'd look more to a slower release carb source such as rice, especially brown Basmati.

If you get the chance and have the room to eat solid food on the go then flapjacks are a firm favourite as they give a constant release of energy. If it's liquid form then look to drinks/powders that offer a mix of both fast and slow releasing carbs so you don't simply burn out.

I would also look to try and include some form of protein with the pre ride meal and during to help keep valuable nutrients supplied to muscles.

weeksy59

missmarple wrote:

Just curious as in our MTBing club, riding seems to be centered on eating the correct meal beforehand and supplementing during the ride.

Shouldn't it be more about having fun ?

Unless you're racing MTBing shouldn't be a serious sport

Surf-Matt

Agreed - unless you are an Elite racer or above, it really doesn't make much difference (cue many wheezing cyclists claiming a certain gel makes all the difference).

Just don't drink too much booze the night before.

.blitz

missmarple wrote:

Does anybody have a specific meal before they go out riding, such as Spaghetti etc?

Loading up on pasta before you go out doesn't really do a great deal as your body can only metabolise something like 1g of carbs per kg of bodyweight per hour. Far more effective to graze for at least a couple of hours before you go out on fruit, nuts etc and top up while riding.

militiacore

If you're eating a good couple of hour before then there's nothing wrong with consuming the pasta. Forget about what you can metabolise as you want to liver and muscle glycogen stores topped up for optimum performance. Don't go mad obviously but 100g-150g pasta or other carb source is easily sufficient.

I would say fruit is an effective source of energy as it's mainly composed of fructose which is only used by the body to top up liver glycogen levels. The amount required will vary slightly between individuals but typically around 10g is about right. Over this amount will result in fructose being mnetabolised into fat as the body cannot break it down and use as an out right energy source. I'm not saying to stop eating fruit but eating alot of fruit before a ride isn't going to be of any real benefit and but would be beneficial on the fly as the fructose will help to top up liver glycogen levels.

Nuts are a decent energy source but as a cyclist you've got to figure out if fat will be the main energy source that the body will want to draw from while cycling. If you're ambling around or riding in a more HIIT style then yes. Otherwise if you're riding in a more Steady State style then you main energy source will initially be sugar based which can move towards fat and even protein depending on glycogen levels. So I would eat some nuts, yes, but again wouldn't rely on them with fruit as your only pre ride energy source.

What I would say is that if you have a healthy balanced diet then really you shouldn't have any major issue with specific pre ride nutrition as what what you eat a day or so before a ride will have a greater influence over what you eat a couple of hours before.

missmarple

Cheers for the replies, I mentioned ShotBlocks as I've tried them in the past and they do give you a real buzz. But yes my MTB club really is centered on the correct nutrition and a fair few riders do participate in the races - they're absolutely insane.

No need for me to worry about nutrition then.

bigmart

Soreen malt loaf, Mega, and 60p a loaf

weeksy59

bigmart wrote:

Soreen malt loaf, Mega, and 60p a loaf

20,000 cals per loaf though isn't it ?

kevindownie

GU Energy Gels are coming to the UK early in 2010. Watch this space...

http://www.guenergy.co.uk

www.guenergy.co.uk

missmarple

kevindownie wrote:

GU Energy Gels are coming to the UK early in 2010. Watch this space...

http://www.guenergy.co.uk

www.guenergy.co.uk

Will they be cheaper than ShotBlocks?

bigmart

weeksy59 wrote:

bigmart wrote:

Soreen malt loaf, Mega, and 60p a loaf

20,000 cals per loaf though isn't it ?

Calories are only a unit of energy though (prefer kilajoules myself though, need those SI units!) and thats what you want on a ride, plenty of energy

topmoxy

jelly babies , or real ones if jelly not available

mingmong

CNP bars. The banana ones. Fantastic

alexgomy

Loading up on pasta is good. But can you really eat a bowl of pasta at 8:30a.m on a saturday morning? cos i cant. Like someone said it all depends on the length of your ride. For all day epics (7 - 8 hours). I tend to have oats or muesli / 1 pint of skimmed milk / 3 eggs / 2 spoons honey all blended into a smoothy. Tastes good and its easy to have 1st thing in the morning. I'll also take banana / apple for mid ride. Then supplements as soon as i finish and a proper meal not too long after that.