Protein + size loss + mountain training

dearbarbie

I'm training really hard for Macmillan's Escape to Africa (Kenya, Nairobi, high altitudes and evil climbs on dirt roads/MTB) in October and want to be as fit as I can be.

The fact that I work for a company who make a lot of sports nutrition products and them being less than half price in the office shop makes me wonder whether I should employ these into my regime? We're talking Maximuscle here and I know they have the Prodiet bars.

I eat reasonably well (lots of lean meat and veg), my vices being coffee and booze (beer mainly but switched to wine a lot more and drinking less too).

I'm out riding at weekends and hitting the gym 3-4 times a week for lots of weights and cardio sessions on the spin bike, training for hills as much as possible.
I also need to lose a bit of fat haha (I am a size 12-14 - if I say 75kg I sound huge but some must be muscle so I don't go by weight!)....wondering if lean protein supplements could be the way to go, particularly for recovery. I don't know much about these so am reading a lot online and don't want to read the company's biased marketing guff!

By the way, I'm 29 and female to add to the equation. Hope someone can help.

jgsi

Cut the booze ,
oh eat well and proper food.....
have you a discount code for the viper gels, I find them pretty good on the bike

ric/rstsport

dearbarbie wrote:

I'm training really hard for Macmillan's Escape to Africa (Kenya, Nairobi, high altitudes and evil climbs on dirt roads/MTB) in October and want to be as fit as I can be.

The fact that I work for a company who make a lot of sports nutrition products and them being less than half price in the office shop makes me wonder whether I should employ these into my regime? We're talking Maximuscle here and I know they have the Prodiet bars.

I eat reasonably well (lots of lean meat and veg), my vices being coffee and booze (beer mainly but switched to wine a lot more and drinking less too).

I'm out riding at weekends and hitting the gym 3-4 times a week for lots of weights and cardio sessions on the spin bike, training for hills as much as possible.
I also need to lose a bit of fat haha (I am a size 12-14 - if I say 75kg I sound huge but some must be muscle so I don't go by weight!)....wondering if lean protein supplements could be the way to go, particularly for recovery. I don't know much about these so am reading a lot online and don't want to read the company's biased marketing guff!

By the way, I'm 29 and female to add to the equation. Hope someone can help.

if you drink your coffee as just coffee (i.e., no milk, sugar, or anything else) then it's hardly a vice. if you have it with skim milk there's virtually no calories in it.

i tend to feel that other than e.g. a carbohydrate-electrolyte drink or a gel or energy bar (or real food alternative) you shouldn't really need supplements, unless your diet is "bizarre". it's unlikely you need a protein supplement - most people in the western world overconsume protein including elite endurance athletes. even if you're a vegetarian (as i am) it's easy to over eat protein.

in terms of being fit, i'd limit your weight training and up your cycling time.

ric

simon_e

Ric speaks sense (and I believe he has the knowledge to back it up).

Overdosing on protein powder is not going to make you fitter. It may well cause you carry more muscle, but it certainly won't make you ride any faster uphill. Sports nutrition is a shortcut, it can be convenient and useful during a race or some similar extreme endeavour e.g.
http://bikemagic.com/news/josh-ibbett-r ... crets.html

Real food and decent (bike-specific) training will get you a lot nearer your goal than weights and that gym stuff. If you want to get better at riding up hills there isn't really a substitute for riding up hills.

I wouldn't drink alcohol after a hard training session, it's counterproductive. The worst kind of empty calories. Are you dedicated enough to give it up or limit yourself to the odd pint/glass for this event?

ut_och_cykla

If you're looking at weight reduction lean protein drinks (especially slow release ones that have casien & not just whey) can play a role in feeling full/getting protein in without excess calories from fats that are often associated with real food. But the best way to go is real food - in part because the fancy stuff might not always be available during your event.

My suggestion would be to use your products as back ups/for the odd day when you can't eat optimally, or on lrides longer than 2 hours/concurrent harder daily rides.

Don't kid yourself that wine is better than beer... or that all your exercise is burning loads of calories that you need to make up(my mistake). On average a hard hour on the bike is probably burning no more than 600-800 kcal and a sweaty time with the barbell at the gym perhaps only burns 300kcal /hour at best.

Xommul

It might be worth looking at the sports recovery drinks so that whatever training you do you refuel your body after so that you can keep training.

After a workout your body needs feeding, if you dont have some ready prepared food to eat within 15 mins of a work out have a shake on hand or energy bar to bridge the gap.

At high altitudes there is less air, yuo will need a good aerobic base, its worth looking for some literature that can tell you what to expect, amazon.co.uk is your friend.

Good luck