Diet advice

Lancstony

Afternoon everyone,

I am currently winning the battle against the flab, down from 20st 8 lbs to currently 17st 7 lbs since mid March

Cycling has had a lot to do with this plus the changing of my diet, cutting out the kebabs, pizza's, takeaways and all that.

I haven't been able to get out on the bike for about 10 days now but regardless of that I am still feeling shattered and lethargic every day and my muscles, especially my legs, feel like they weigh a ton and ache quite a bit.

Now I am wondering whether this is because even though my diet is a hell of a lot better than it was before could it be better still?

Are there any specific books/websites people would recommend to help me put together a good diet that will help me for when I am not riding? I have only tended to think about it property before I go out riding, making sure I have taken enough on board and then once off the bike I tend to just eat normally, but I just wonder if this could be a cause of the current issues.

Tend to just drink water and the odd coffee and tea here and there, but mainly water and avoid fizzy pop completely, used to drink a lot of pop so whether I am purely experiencing my body getting used to the changes I don't know but at the moment it does make getting out on the bike feel a bit of a drag.

Any advice greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Tony

JayKosta

Lancstony wrote:

...
I haven't been able to get out on the bike for about 10 days now but regardless of that I am still feeling shattered and lethargic every day and my muscles, especially my legs, feel like they weigh a ton and ache quite a bit.
...

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I doubt that your diet is the problem, as long as it is a 'conventional good diet' of carbs, protein, and fruit & veg.

A possibility is that the amount of exercise has been too much, and that your 'accumulated fatigue' has reached a high level.
I suggest stopping strenuous exercise and doing easy stretching and walking - try this for several days. Also make sure to get adequate sleep.
Hopefully your energy level will improve.

There is a fine line between 'just right' amount of exercise and 'too much'. Unless there is adequate time for rest and recovery between exercise sessions, fatigue will continue to build - this is usually called 'over reaching'.

Jay Kosta
Endwell NY USA

Lancstony

Thanks for the reply, to be honest as I have been so focused on losing the weight I think you could be right there, will take it a little easy for a week, havent been on the bike for ten days but maybe bit more rest required and hopefully come back ready to go!!

Cheers.

trekvet

Jay is right and I too would advocate walking - go out (in the country?) three times a week walking briskly up hill and down dale to make you puff then have a glass of milk (add choc milkshake powder if you must) when you get back. Don't forget the muscle stretching. Robos tea (plain, not vanilla ) and melon are good at shifting antioxidants, add them to your diet.

Cyclum

There are hundreds of books but in my experience you would be better educating yourself about food and equipping yourself with the knowledge that enables you to make sensible choices that suit you. That's much easier to sustain than following someone else's perfect diet.

For me personally I avoid anything with the words "diet" or "sugar free". Firstly they take out natural foods and replace them with all sorts of awful chemicals (Google aspartame, it's in almost every diet drink), but aside from that when I have something specifically 'low calorie' it gives me a feeling that I can make up the shortfall with more, generally unhealthy, food which completely defeats the object.

My will power is awful so my cupboards are full of healthy foods. I do eat chocolate, but I tell myself I can only have it if I walk to the shop and back to get it, and then I will only buy one bar. Another 'rule' is not to eat unless I'm sat down and focusing on food. It's amazing how much you can put away without realising it. My little rules really help me to keep tabs on what I eat.

Good luck.