Originally Posted by blueduckxx .
thanks a ton! I am definitely not trying to lose weight, dont want that at all.
I always have bobs red mill 8 grain cereal, soy milk, blueberries, some dates, some dried apricots, 1/2 tsp chia/1/2 tsp raw cacao nibs, red star nutritional yeast, for prerides.
also, sometimes after a hard push up a hill I get super dizzy, the road starts morphing...I assume it's prebonk symptoms.
I dont do any carb liquids, which might be why I get weary on some rides [not always, but it does definitely happen]. I just use the Hammer fizz tabs for my water.
I eat powerbar gel's every half hour [sometimes with dried dates too], and every hour an Luna energy bar [always more fat in the bar after the 2 hour mark].
I know its not rocket science, I just want to make sure I am getting efficient calories and carbs in.
I've struggled in the past with carbs in general, so its a break from the mind telling me carbs are bad, when in fact they are 100% necessary in cycling.
also, going from the weight lifting mindset "MORE PROTEIN!!!!!!" it's an interesting switch, too. Since I've been dominantly in that mind set as well.
sorry if i'm rambling! any tips for training on a bike trainer? [just got the CycleOps fluid pro]
I find that keeping things simple on the bike works best for me with regards to food/drink.
For rides under 1.5hrs I'll take water or in extreme heat watered down hammer heed.
For rides 1.5hrs to 2ish hours - hammer heed.
2+hours hammer perpetuem. (it has protein and goes down well)
4+ hours hammer perpetuem, not quite as strong as recommended but with solid food - maybe a banana, jam sandwich, raisins, hammer semi gooey cereal bar (those are really easy to chew - the anti-powerbar)
If a tempo ride ends up kicking my head in and i come back A little worse for wear I'll always have a recovery drink. If I'm doing threshold work I'll always take in some carbs to aid recovery. Not a massive amount, often less than recommended but something to kick start the recovery process and to hold me over to the next meal - which, if I'm looking to lose weight is normally right after the ride has finished.
As for indoor trainer tips:
A really big fan - forget the commonly found 14" ones - BIG fans! If you drip sweat your fan is too small. Excessive sweat doesn't mean your necessarily working hard - it just means you're too hot.
Try different training sessions indoors and work around your level of enthusiasm. If 2 hrs at a hard tempo pace turns out to be the equivalent of watching the lifetime channel whilst eating cold porridge then consider shorter, harder threshold efforts. A couple of 20 minutes efforts done just under best pace will work wonders. As fitness increases either throw in some shorter, faster efforts or do an extra 20 minutes or 25 minutes effort. If you can't mentally make it work for you the physical part ain't gonna happen.
Music - I find stuffing some Metallica or Pantera great for high end L3 or low L4 work but I find any music or tv distracting to the point that it makes a solid threshold effort extremely hard to do. L5+ and music... Not for me either. YMMV.
Towel and drinks. Stay dry-ish and don't forget to drink. If doing 90 minutes of threshold work it might make sense to take in some carbs. Drape your towel across the bars, stem and top tube and it'll keep sweat of the bike. Big plain towels, without the fancy pleats or edging (which invariably curls up and becomes annoying) rule.