someone, please help!

I'm just about fed up and ready to sell my bike!

At the weekend I went out and did a 3 hour ride. I kept my HR between 60-65% all the time. 2 hours prior to the ride I put in 500-600 calories and during the ride I ate a total of 530 calories and drunk about 70oz of water. Problem is, 30 minutes after the ride I felt crap and still feel that way (even though it is the morning after now!).

This is really getting to me and I am wondering why I feel so bad. Initially I though it was not eating enough, but surely 530 calories is plenty? When I got in i also ate a little bit.

Has ANYONE got any ideas what this could be and how to overcome it? My only other thought is BodyFat percentage. My Tanita scales (athelte mode) and my bodyfat calipers agree that I am about 2-3% BF.

Please, someone HELP! Surely this is not normal?

2-3% is really really low, and that could be a problem. How about hydration. Do you dring plenty of water normally, and did you drink plenty of water after your ride?

2-3% BF is more than low, it's beneath healthy limits. There's been some academic literature suggesting athletes tend to aim for unrealistic and unhealthy body types. The only question I'd have would be the accuracy of your measurement - I have a friend who is normally between 4% and 6% and even experienced caliper operators have a hard time getting the measurement right; I'm not familiar with tanita scales.

Other problems could be a grumbling viral infection, over or undertraining, or mental tiredness (have you been pushing hard for a long time - perhaps you need a break).

Most of these things can be pursued with an experienced sports medicine doctor and/or coach and/or nutritionist.

Good luck, don't sell your bike!

I'm going through a 'crap' phase at the moment too if it makes you feel better - 3 month long lingering viral infection. Yeesh.

First of all, the 2-3% measurement is almost certainly inaccurate. If you were truly at 2-3%, you would look like you were ready for a bodybuilding competition. In other words, you would look like a walking anatomical chart. Calipers are not an accurate means of bodyfat measurement.

Secondly, among the various health related issues that could cause this problem, you did not elaborate on just what you ate before you rode. Anything that slows down gastric emptying could create such a problem.

__________________
Originally Posted by Flyer:
It is a matter of reading comprehension that you challenged by.

I don't think it's your eating or fluid intake, but perhaps an infection that your body is fighting. If your weight and bodyfat are low, you may not be getting adequate carbs for the training level you're doing. Lack of carbs will of course compromise your recovery and the strength of your immune system.

I have a chronic infection which the doctor diagnosed as "allergic sinusitis". Symptoms are sinus and post-nasal congestion, redness in the eyes and an elevated morning HR, overall muscle aches in the lower back and glutes, plus overall low energy levels which may keep me off the bike for a couple of days. It seems to flare up on me about once a month, particularly a couple of days after a hard ride where I spend a lot of time at high HR.

Believe it's vital to pay attention to our overall health when training, and get adequate rest and recovery rather than trying to follow a strict schedule. If hard training was all it took to reach optimum fitness, we'd all be in great shape.

Good point dhk. Probabaly one we all over-look far too often. Most of us think that if we train harder/longer we are lining ourselves up for better performance.

I guess it is a combination of diet, training hours/intensity, sleep, mood, genetics that determines how well we do. Some of that we can control whereas some is man-made. Sounds like Calvinism to some extent!