5 Nutrition Tips For Cyclists | Eat Better & Ride Faster With GCN

Having a healthy balanced diet is an essential part of any sport, but if you're looking for some cycling specific nutritional insights we've got our top 5. From staying hydrated on the ride, to maintaining a healthy balance between energy products and real food, Chris shares his advice which will help you.

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Have you ever kept a food diary?

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[susanwhitmer]

Homemade electrolyte drink: Squeeze a lemon or orange into a water bottle, add a shake of salt, teaspoon honey, fill bottle with filtered water. I call it natural Gatorade and it keeps me upright during long hot rides in the Texas heat.

[leebender]

I kept a food journal for nearly a year. it included hours slept, mood, exercises, miles ridden, resting heart rate (BPM upon waking up), food consumed and portions, fluids drank in ounces, weight twice daily at the same times in the same clothes. I took out as many variables as possible but also included utilizing different mental health exercises (meditation) and physical wellness besides physical work (breathing techniques cold water immersion) along the way. the insane amount of data points prompted me going back to school for holistic nutrition and wellness with an emphasis on sports med. "holistic" meaning preventing and reversing disease (I have MS, so this is very self-serving but with an intent to bring nutrition to skateboarding as thats my first love of 30+ years) with whole foods (diet) and lifestyle. cut booze, cut weed, added microdosing psilocybin for neurogenesis and neuroplasticity. theres so much more to nutrition than what is in this quick video. would be cool if GCN paid a visit to their old sports dr. friend I've seen on here a few times to do a deeper dive in supplements, nutrition, and more. Maybe a few interviews with other team nutritionists, doctors, etc. Its truly about quality of the products and food, not marketing dollars and a biased paid promotion. without knowing the product, maybe its great, but then again maybe its junk. regardless. through dr. Peter Attia's research, he's showing how incredibly individualized we all are when it comes to metabolization of different foods, macronutrients, micronutrients and more. 
For those interested in reading abut it, Dr. Marc Bubbs recently released a book called Peak. through Chelsea Green Publishing in Vermont about "the new science of athletic performance..." that has some phenomenal information based on current and modern studies and research. Bubbs is also the head coach for one of Canadas pro level basket ball teams and has a podcast with exceptional guests covering a wide range of topics. k enough from me. thanks for all the great content GCN.

[guitsynthcw]

My A1C was at a pre-diabetic level a couple of years ago due to an unhealthy over-emphasis on carbs. I lost weight on a 6 month low carb diet. My sports nutritionist suggested a better balance of protein and carbs. I think there is a risk of over emphasizing carbs so I just suggest being aware. Watch your weight and get your A1C checked as you get older.

[donball]

Good advice with a drink before ride, especially in the summer heat. So easy to get caught out. Two bidons for the ride and a spare tab to re-fill.

[manitoublack]

Live from the Australian summer. Nothing like smashing a cold beer (or more) after a 3+hour hills thrash.
Corbo loading

[sudduthjonathan]

You should fuel based on the activity and a lot can be done prior to riding. Most people probably eat or drink too much on the bike, but I’m glad you pointed out that it depends on the individual and conditions.

Assuming I’m hydrated and recently had a meal, my routine looks something like this. I prefer to eat my fuel and just carry water:

- 1 hr or less ride. Nothing.
- 1.5 hr ride. A gel at 45 minutes.
- 2 hr ride. A gel at 45 and 90 minutes.
- 2+ hrs...this is when I start having to eat real food with fat, like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches at around 90 minutes, in addition to gels. Still eating something every 45 minutes or so.

Each and every time, no matter the length, I eat a large snack (protein smoothie) or a meal right after I’m done.

[rm]

Whoa—- I haven’t seen a GCN vid in a while... the editing has stepped up tremendously! Nice work guys!

[drwhocrazed]

my rule of thumb for hydration is to always have a water bottle on hand, that way i tend to unconsciously sip it throughout the day, and when it's empty, i refill it.

[lwittrock]

The food diet is a really good idea, especially when you're starting out and trying to dial in your specific needs. It can really help you learn what work s for you, is it enough, etc. quickly.

[fatbloaterdave]

I've started keeping a food diary a couple of weeks ago, using My Fitness Pal to record calories, and help ballance Carbs/Fat/Protein. My biggest takeaway from this is when your counting calories and hungry you naturally switch over to fruit and veg for the low calorie desitity (Lots of food, not much callories). Then you get all the great nutrients to go with them!
Also a big takeaway, because gram per gram Fat has twice as many calories, it's really easy for a small amount of Fat to be a large amount of calories. The Table spoon of olive oil has the same amount of calories as the tray of roast vegtables it's covering.

[ccamire]

Very good review and advices well balanced. However I should add that there are 2 schools of nutrition that are developing: carb addicted or fat adapted. In my case i only eat home made products and MCT oil/ pacanes for energy during the 3-4 hrs ride. Being fat adapted, i dont have recovery issues like my carb friends

[bobbyhempel]

I just eat everything whenever I feel like eating and drink lots of water and a little bit of Dr.Pepper or ginger ale as well as electrolyte drinks and I'm 6'6, 165lbs and I ride a 35 pound hybrid bike at an average speed of 15mph on relatively flat ground but with a few short steep climbs with matching descents and several stop lights and signs. I do a ten Mile loop in 43min on average.

[chrisfawcett]

Yep agree with all those points having got nutrition right for the Marmotte !(planned meticulously) and then very wrong for the Etape (too casual). However since then I've changed to a more plant based diet (for cholesterol reasons) and found weight control much much easier! And after a few weeks I really didn't miss the meat in a meal! Win win .. saving me and the planet.

[gergoolle]

Food is not a fuel, is the indulgence

[timstendel]

The idea of thinking of food as fuel is my biggest takeaway from this video. Thank you and great job on the video!

[swapganges]

I like the push ups and reaching for food 😂

[mihalis]

I’m one of those people that can’t gain weight. I’m 184cm tall, and the most I have ever weighed was 81kg, because I was eating 5500 calories per day and going to the gym 6 days per week. Then I threw out my shoulder. Lost 10kg in 2 months because I wasn’t eating to for the gym. I never had an appetite until I started cycling. Now I’m hungry all the time, but burn enough calories cycling that I have trouble breaking past 70kg.

[benjaminbrewer]

What do you guys think of the lantern rouge channel ? Can you interview him or something?

[TheCatAteMyShoe]

I have to be careful and selective about what I eat. I had a gastric bypass (R-N-Y) in 2007. Even now, I'm still learning, usually the hard way, about what I can eat. For 100+ miles on the bike, I need to be very careful about the carbs, salts and sugars I consume. That stuff can cause more than a little stomach upset. I usually make my own food. It was only 3 years ago that meat was back on the menu. (Difficulty with eating meat is a common problem with this procedure.)

[atharvsingh]

Try riding in the himalayas sometime in leh or ladakh. Very scenic as well as pretty challenging.Will also do for a nice video about riding at extreme altitudes.