Nutrition on the road - What, How and Why?

Feed Zone Portables: A Cookbook of On-The-Go Food for Athletes:Amazon.co.uk:Books

This is a good tip, ta. Just ordered. Here also is a saner link with colours and stylesheets and ting (plus Kindle option):

Feed Zone Portables: Tips, Tools, and Training to Get You from Sign-Up to Finish Line (The Feed Zone Series) eBook: Thomas Biju, Taylor Phinney, Tim Johnson: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store

I'm working my way through the recipes - and testing how well they freeze.

The coconut rice with chocolate and blueberries, or mint and raspberry are good, if a little too wet in the ones i made.

The egg and ham, with a splash of chipotle Tabasco and gruyere (slightly off recipe) are amazeballs.

So much nicer to eat something that you can take pleasure in consuming, than to subscribe to some gcse level sports nutition science babbling bullshit, and suck sugar from a tube.

I'm looking at the recipes now and I'm impressed - they've obviously put a lot of work and thought into it. I had no idea that a big glob of rice with stuff mixed in could look so appetising. Almost tempted to make some now just for eating but they've already devoted a whole chapter to disapproving "can u not" over eating without earning.

On my recent holiday in France we had rice snack things provided, they were nice and I expect they were jolly nutritional but you got quite mucky eating them. Sugar from a tube means you don't stick to the shifters.

But dammit, this book also has PIES.

TWO-BITE PIES.

Pies.

I've been running on oats so simple bars with an energy gel in the back pocket for if I hit bonk.

This book looks awesome. Cereal bars get sickly and sports nutrition stuff is just expensive.

Pies and bacons and rice cakes look like the future...

I generally try to do like a 50 mile day on a weekend but it's usually like 3-4 rides with breaks so I will cycle like streatham to wood green and meet with a friend then cycle back down to camden and mooch about the market for a bit then into central or east and stop for a burger and eventually get home. Or similar with the st pauls rides and supermarket after to add a bunch of miles, the average mon-fri is like 6 miles/25min each way to work and back and then another 5-20miles on top for shops to get dinner and stuff slacking last week tho so near shops after work. Mostly a few oaty cereal bars in the way of sports food, decathlon ones mostly and sometimes flapjacks or a powerbar. Never had any gels or shot blocks but I'm feeling like they could help.

I was thinking a curry before which I tend to have more rice and bread anyways, would be the same order as normal. I'm guessing takeaway delivered will be better than cycling to the place to eat to give an hour or two gap.

After that the market for sports food is huge and I can't separate hype from help. I'm thinking a 3 pack of powerbars and some cola gels from decathlon then some chocolate flavour gels(ote? sis? someone?) and a pack of lucozade tablet things just incase. Sounds like lots but it's about what the triathlon/race packs include and won't take up much room in my bag. For drinks will have some sis tablets or nuun.

Will probably have some more regular food too like a chorizo, bag of crisps and a meaty bagel or something or just hope I see some warm food stops.

It was an issue in the past but I'm totally pissing clear like all the time now.
IMHO, none of that sounds particularly sustaining or able to provide slow-release energy. And it does sound like too much. Lots of artificial sugar shots and dense protein foods make me feel sick on rides. Expensive too.

I like the suggestions above - particularly MuleManning's - fruit and cereal ftw!

My advice would be (based on my experience and what others have told me doing DD over the years) feed up well the day before, avoid alcohol, keep fluids up throughout the ride, keep the food simple/natural/easy to chew, don't overeat but have a nibble often, look forward to the pub/cafe at the end!

I'm addicted to Nakd and Fruitus bars too. So. Damn. Good.

IMHO, none of that sounds particularly sustaining or able to provide slow-release energy. And it does sound like too much. Lots of artificial sugar shots and dense protein foods make me feel sick on rides. Expensive too.

I like the suggestions above - particularly MuleManning's - fruit and cereal ftw!

My advice would be (based on my experience and what others have told me doing DD over the years) feed up well the day before, avoid alcohol, keep fluids up throughout the ride, keep the food simple/natural/easy to chew, don't overeat but have a nibble often, look forward to the pub/cafe at the end!

I'm addicted to Nakd and Fruitus bars too. So. Damn. Good.

Tried some gel things while out riding today and they are the most ming things I have tasted in a long time, tasted like the weird replacement for proper sugar that's in diet coke in a condensed form so it just has an overloading amount of that weird taste, going to try another tomorrow dumping it into a bottle of water to see if that makes it work for me a bit more but going to have a read of the pack and see if I could have just made a rather expensive flat diet coke lol

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/energy-gel-cola-6x25g-id_8287274.html

Also got these which is what I normally munch on, doubt I will take all 3 packs probably just a couple of each. I could probably make them myself but convenient and stuff.

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/chocolate-rice-souffle-bar-4-pack-id_8289832.html
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/chocolate-praline-bar-5-pack-id_8289830.html
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/coconut-chocolate-bar-5-pack-id_8289827.html

Going to be reading lots of labels in the shops this week I think, will likely make no difference but I will justify all the food I was probably going to buy anyways with pointless numbers like gda this and kcal that.

the decathlon coke gels are the worst gels going. srsly give me the boak. their salted peanut caramel gels are nicer, more expensive tho

CNP & torq stuff is generally OK but you have to buy on deal for them not to be prohibitively expensive if you ride regularly

advice above is good. if I'm riding 100, I'll have a decent sized bowl of pasta the night before; a big flapjack or bowl of porridge & honey or toast & peanut butter pre-ride then on the ride I'll have a few slices of soreen coated in peanut butter, a banana, and will stash 1 sports energy bar (and a couple of gels just in case I need them in the last 30 miles)

the sky rice cakes look good but not tried them:
http://pages.rapha.cc/team/rice-cakes-a-recipe Rapha & Team Sky: The Little Things -- Rice Cakes - YouTube

Soreen works well for lots of people, but for me it feels like a brick in my stomach. Everyone is different. The right foods for you are things that you enjoy eating and that don't give you digestive troubles if you eat them when exercising.

If you're worried, I'd suggest taking along a packet of dextrose tablets as a safety net. If you do have trouble and end up sitting by the roadside feeling nauseas, exhausted and grumpy then you may be glad of some very easily digested sugar.

If you've not had gels before try before the ride. High5 gels upset my gut but maxifuel is fine, whilst a mate of mine is the opposite.

Gels on the DD? It's a leisure ride. You should be able to digest solid food just fine.

Carbs, carbs, carbs. Low fat, low protein. Carbs. Hydrate and more carbs.

His bacon and egg rice bars are amazing. Very delicious and apparently really good nutrition. You can find the recipe with some googling. I made them last year much to the joy of people I rode with. A friend used them on his ironman recently and thought they were the dogs bollocks etc.

Bacon and egg during a race? Sounds like failure to understand nutritional requirements for endurance exercise. I hope it was a tiny amount for flavouring?

I'm planning on going big - none of this modern fuel gel stuff - lets go old school!

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2010/apr/07/how-to-make-shooters-sandwich

Steak, steak and bread, nom nom nom

So much nicer to eat something that you can take pleasure in consuming, than to subscribe to some gcse level sports nutition science babbling bullshit, and suck sugar from a tube.

Yeah because what would scientists know..

to be fair, you can still be scientific about what you eat whilst eating natural foods. I'm not against gels I just don't like them, they sit funny in stomach and don't stop the hunger even though their providing the nutrients. However, knowing what is contained in the food I eat and following the same guidelines as the gels in terms of what the body needs to replace is just as beneficial and works better for me. It's still just as scientific

I'm not saying you have to eat gels I'm just making the point that just because something tastes nice or the recipe book has a pro write a foreward doesn't make it 'the best thing' for endurance foods.

Yeah because what would scientists know..

Sports "scientists"...

What we need are sports scientologists.

I'm not saying you have to eat gels I'm just making the point that just because something tastes nice or the recipe book has a pro write a foreward doesn't make it 'the best thing' for endurance foods.

You once sat using a turbo trainer for 8 hours just for a laugh and you eat about 40 foil-wrapped packets of caffeinated sludge every time you go out on your bike. No normal human should be listening to your views on "long distance" cycling OR nutrition as you're not normal in either respect, you big freak.

the sky rice cakes look good but not tried them:
http://pages.rapha.cc/team/rice-cakes-a-recipe Rapha & Team Sky: The Little Things -- Rice Cakes - YouTube
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Rice cakes are brilliant

Rice cakes in general.. + Pumkin seeds and honey instead of sugar. once an hour. Yum.

Bacon and egg during a race? Sounds like failure to understand nutritional requirements for endurance exercise. I hope it was a tiny amount for flavouring?

Here's the recipe:
http://www.usatriathlon.org/about-multisport/multisport-zone/fuel-station/articles/feedzone-rice-cakes-071712.aspx

It's not a tiny amount of delicious fatty protein, but the rice is by far the largest component. From that site:
Energy 225 kcal • Fat 8 g • Sodium 321 mg • Carbs 30 g • Fiber 1 g • Protein 9 g

I think these are meant to be a foil to sweet majority of energy foods.

Rice cakes are great + pumpkin seeds and or chia + honey.
What are people's views on this man? He's got some opinions.

Durianrider Interview - The Fully Raw Truth - YouTube

Also is there like an optimum time for eating before?

No

I'm kinda hoping to have a lazy day with a sleep in the afternoon but make sure to drink plenty of water so when I start I'm well hydrated. Don't want to eat too late or too much or anything and give myself a crippling stitch or whatever the nice side effects could be.

On a ride like the DD, unless you're absolutely set on hammering to clock a really good time, you won't get a crippling stitch.

I've done 5 DDs and a handful of audax rides and have tried various eating strategies for them. In my experience you could have a decent size meal right before starting and not feel any ill effects save feeling a little uncomfortable trying hold onto some of the faster wheels. You might also suffer some burping and heartburn depending on what you eat.

Drinking plenty of water through the day isn't a great hydration strategy. Sure your water levels will be up but without some food mixed in to soak it up you'll just as likely end up interrupting that afternoon snooze with lots of peeing and washing out salts that you'll need later on.

Best thing I can advise is that in the three or four days leading up to the ride is to eat normally, drink a reasonable amount of fluids and avoid things that will dehydrate you such as getting pissed or doing lots of exercise.

Sports "scientists"...

Have you actually read any of the research? There's some great studies out there.

In fact the ECSS Amsterdam is on now. As is a conference in Leeds that Scherrit's at.

You once sat using a turbo trainer for 8 hours just for a laugh and you eat about 40 foil-wrapped packets of caffeinated sludge every time you go out on your bike. No normal human should be listening to your views on "long distance" cycling OR nutrition as you're not normal in either respect, you big freak.

Yeah but I'm not riding for 'fun' during these stupid rides. It's race-specific training and part of that involves training the gut to handle the fueling requirements of the event. Your body doesn't 'need' protein or fat during long rides - it needs carbs. Adding too much protein or fat to your gut just slows down your guts ability to get carbohydrate into your muscles which makes your job of pedaling harder/slower.