Food Stops when Cycling

[Tom Nakashima]

I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement, or
one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and get a
quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place. However foods somehow
doesn't digest with me too well when jumping back on the bike. I prefer
places that serve soups, which is easy for me to consume, and I tend to stay
away from the burger and fries. Suggestions from other riders who ride long
distances and need to refuel by making a food stop. Medication to help
digest foods when cycling? Funny thing is, getting older the food is harder
to digest when cycling.
-tom

 

[Clive George]

"Tom Nakashima" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement, or
>one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and get a
>quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place. However foods somehow
>doesn't digest with me too well when jumping back on the bike. I prefer
>places that serve soups, which is easy for me to consume, and I tend to
>stay away from the burger and fries. Suggestions from other riders who
>ride long distances and need to refuel by making a food stop. Medication to
>help digest foods when cycling? Funny thing is, getting older the food is
>harder to digest when cycling.

I imagine there's a good reason the CTC is sometimes known as the "Cake and
Tea Club"...

(Beans on toast is another classic).

cheers,
clive

 

[sally]

"Tom Nakashima" <[email protected]> wrote in
news:[email protected]:
> I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement,
> or one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and
> get a quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place.

I like fresh baked pastries from bakeries.

 

[landotter]

On Sep 14, 9:50 am, "Tom Nakashima" <[email protected]> wrote:
> I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement, or
> one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and get a
> quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place.

Baked potato and a chili from Wendy's always does me right. Of course,
I'll take a local shack over a national chain if I can. I get about
twenty miles per pulled pork sandwich.

 

[[email protected]]

On Sep 14, 4:50 pm, "Tom Nakashima" <[email protected]> wrote:
> I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement, or
> one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and get a
> quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place. However foods somehow
> doesn't digest with me too well when jumping back on the bike. I prefer
> places that serve soups, which is easy for me to consume, and I tend to stay
> away from the burger and fries. Suggestions from other riders who ride long
> distances and need to refuel by making a food stop. Medication to help
> digest foods when cycling? Funny thing is, getting older the food is harder
> to digest when cycling.
> -tom

I like some protein on long rides. If I stop to buy food on a ride it
is almost invariably at a gas station (there is nothing else here in
Norway) and I usually get a kind of fruit yogurt with musli that can
be mixed in. I like to avoid sugary things like chocolate, and I've
never tried fast-food on a ride, but an egg mcmuffin sounds good if
they were available...

Joseph

 

[Peter Cole]

Tom Nakashima wrote:
> I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement, or
> one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and get a
> quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place. However foods somehow
> doesn't digest with me too well when jumping back on the bike. I prefer
> places that serve soups, which is easy for me to consume, and I tend to stay
> away from the burger and fries. Suggestions from other riders who ride long
> distances and need to refuel by making a food stop. Medication to help
> digest foods when cycling? Funny thing is, getting older the food is harder
> to digest when cycling.
> -tom
>
>

This is a real problem when doing very long distances like brevets.
Other aspects of it is just the limits of what's available at little
stores along the way and what's palatable.

I find I can't eat anything too fatty, nor too bulky, nor too sweet (for
any length of time), and, at the same time am always (especially in the
typical hot weather) trying to keep up on fluids and salt as much (or
more) as calories.

Some people do the liquid thing (ensure, etc.), some people live off the
road. I try to get real food when I can, which would be things like
non-fried carbs (rice, pasta, bread, baked spud, etc.) and lean meat
like poultry. At convenience stores, I like low/no-fat yogurts,
puddings, flavored milks (or Yoo-Hoo stuff) -- get fluids and calories
with some protein. Rather than soft drinks or energy drinks I prefer
diluted fruit juice. It's not atypical for me to stand in a convenience
store and feel surrounded by things I can't/don't want to eat in the
middle of a long event. Not an easy problem to solve. I remember reading
Sheldon Brown's wife's PBP report where she mentioned riding with a
cooked chicken in her handlebar bag -- sounded crazy until I had done a
few events. I've returned from many of those rides with almost as many
energy bars, Gu packets and energy drink concentrates as I left with.

I always bring antacids, and for very long/hot rides, salt capsules.

 

[Tim McNamara]

In article <[email protected]>,
"Tom Nakashima" <[email protected]> wrote:

> I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink
> enhancement, or one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to
> stop off and get a quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place.
> However foods somehow doesn't digest with me too well when jumping
> back on the bike. I prefer places that serve soups, which is easy
> for me to consume, and I tend to stay away from the burger and fries.
> Suggestions from other riders who ride long distances and need to
> refuel by making a food stop. Medication to help digest foods when
> cycling? Funny thing is, getting older the food is harder to digest
> when cycling.

On brevets I often have a bit of indigestion. Most of the checkpoints
are at convenience stores with the attendant nutritional options. I
find that milk sits very well with me and often buy "strawberry" milk (I
get migraines from chocolate and caffeine, so I skip foods with those
things in them). Bananas too. Fig Newtons are a staple and my guilty
pleasure is the Pearson's Salted Nut Roll (much like a PayDay).
Occasionally beef jerky. Sometimes an old-fashioned doughnut.

But that stuff just isn't satisfying on a very long ride and it gets
cloying fast. On a 400 km or 600 km brevet I will stop for a meal. I
tend to pick things with lots of complex carbs and relatively small
amounts of meat and such. Soups, subs or hoagies or grinders (depending
on where you live), pasta dishes, etc. I suspect that part of my
occasional stomach problems on brevets comes from simply eating more
food than I really need. I always carry a roll of Tums on a brevet for
indigestion and because the calcium helps prevent cramps. Our local RBA
carries Tums, Rolaids and Pepto-Bismol tablets because he finds that
sometimes one works better than the other.

My wife worked at a natural food cooperative and now runs a small
organic grass-fed dairy cooperative. Our diet tends to be organic whole
grain/whole food type stuff. I find that the highly processed stuff
available in "normal" stores makes me feel bad when I eat it. Blecch.
I do carry some of the "energy bar" type things available there. I
can't recall the name with confidence- Lara Bars, maybe?- which are raw
food energy bars. Those sit well but just like PowerBars or Clif bars
they get old fast.

Many of my fellow randonneurs have switched to mostly or all-liquid
diets on brevets. Some mix up their own formulas from maltodextrin and
soy protein powder and the like. Others buy mixes and put them into
bags to mix up en route, or buy "sport shakes" at the checkpoints. I
haven't been able to bring myself to do it. Psychologically at least, I
need to chew real food.

 

[Tim McNamara]

In article <[email protected]>,
sally <[email protected]> wrote:

> "Tom Nakashima" <[email protected]> wrote in
> news:[email protected]:
> > I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink
> > enhancement, or one energy bar. There were a few times when I had
> > to stop off and get a quick bite to eat at usually a fast food
> > place.
>
> I like fresh baked pastries from bakeries.

In France I did this a lot. In the US, the quality of the goods on
offer at bakeries is less reliable.

 

[Scott G.]

Peanutbutter & Honey sandwiches, mmmm good.
Honey is not as messy as jam.
Dried fruit, cashews, walnuts.

Small bar bag with munchies, restocked from the Carradice in back.
Nuun tablets to dope the water.

Scott G.

 

[Clive George]

"Tim McNamara" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

>> I like fresh baked pastries from bakeries.
>
> In France I did this a lot.

Mmmm, pains au chocolat...

cheers,
clive

 

[Mike Jacoubowsky]

>>> I like fresh baked pastries from bakeries.
>>
>> In France I did this a lot.
>
> Mmmm, pains au chocolat...

Better yet, those twistie things with a bit of custard & chocolate chips.

I'm not entirely convinced it's health food, and I do tend to gain a couple
pounds when I'm there...

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

 

[Dennis P. Harris]

On Fri, 14 Sep 2007 07:50:16 -0700 in rec.bicycles.tech, "Tom
Nakashima" <[email protected]> wrote:

> Suggestions from other riders who ride long
> distances and need to refuel by making a food stop.

bananas. a small container of powered gator aid in case i can't
find a quick stop or supermarket with athletic drinks because i
get cramps if i don't get enough electrolytes. brownies. clif
bars, but the grittiness of the coconut is sometimes annoying
with my dental prosthesis. i always carry a toothpaste-type tube
of some kind of goo, not those foil packets that can leak sugary
goo inside a bike bag, to for bonking/hypothermia emergencies.

if it's an early morning ride, i like a bagel or sugar donut
before i really start the ride. if i stop for food, i prefer
pasta salads over pasta with acidic sauces. pasta tuna salad
from my local safeway's salad bar seems to bear well on the
stomach. i stay away from anything greasy, acid, or really spicy
until the ride is over and i've started to recover. then i'm
happy to dig into a hot curry, chili, or pizza.

for long distance touring, mostly in the rural west and alaska,
i've always carried bread & peanut butter, as well as rice and
pasta when i'm camping.

 

[[email protected]]

On Sep 14, 8:50 am, "Tom Nakashima" <[email protected]> wrote:
> I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement, or
> one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and get a
> quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place. However foods somehow
> doesn't digest with me too well when jumping back on the bike. I prefer
> places that serve soups, which is easy for me to consume, and I tend to stay
> away from the burger and fries. Suggestions from other riders who ride long
> distances and need to refuel by making a food stop. Medication to help
> digest foods when cycling? Funny thing is, getting older the food is harder
> to digest when cycling.
> -tom

I would stick with carbs, and especially avoid protein. I prefer to
eat while I am actually riding than stopping. While I am exercising,
the blood seems to stay in the muscles rather than go to my stomach
and cause stomach discomfort. when I stop and eat, it is harder for me
to get going again. I just read that some people carry tums, rollaids
and other antiacid stuff. you could also carry alka seltzer.

I think that sweet stuff like energy bars, granola bars, pastries,
bananas, gummy bears, etc are pretty easy to digest and don't cause
much discomfort. I do dislike gels because they are too sweet, and
while they don't make me sick they give me this yuck sensation.

If you stop to eat, I wouldn't stop too long. I would rather get a
pastry and eat it while cruising along.

Andres

 

[David James]

On Fri, 14 Sep 2007 07:50:16 -0700, "Tom Nakashima"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement, or
>one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and get a
>quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place. However foods somehow
>doesn't digest with me too well when jumping back on the bike. I prefer
>places that serve soups, which is easy for me to consume, and I tend to stay
>away from the burger and fries. Suggestions from other riders who ride long
>distances and need to refuel by making a food stop. Medication to help
>digest foods when cycling? Funny thing is, getting older the food is harder
>to digest when cycling.
>-tom
>


I too have struggled with this issue, especially on brevet's and have
tried many different approaches. What works for me doesn't always
work for other and vice versa. I look for a subway sandwich shop and
get a plain turkey sub on white bread. Digests easily for me. If
there are no sandwich shops and I need to rely on convenience store
food, almonds and a quart of chocolate milk. I wish you luck in
finding the right solution that works for you.
regards
David James

--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

 

[[email protected]]

On Sep 14, 9:50 am, "Tom Nakashima" <[email protected]> wrote:
> I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement, or
> one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and get a
> quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place. However foods somehow
> doesn't digest with me too well when jumping back on the bike. I prefer
> places that serve soups, which is easy for me to consume, and I tend to stay
> away from the burger and fries. Suggestions from other riders who ride long
> distances and need to refuel by making a food stop. Medication to help
> digest foods when cycling? Funny thing is, getting older the food is harder
> to digest when cycling.
> -tom

For long rides, above 200 kilometers, I try to stick with mainly a
fluid diet or softer foods. Constant exercise causes my stomach to
not tolerate solid food. Chocolate milk being the preferred food.
Lots of carbohydrates, protein, fat, etc. in a very tasty drink. I
can put two quarts into my Zefal water bottles and be rolling down the
road drinking them for the next half hour or so. 750 calories per
quart roughly. V8 juice is also great. And orange juice. Chocolate
milk and juices are always available at convenience stores in the US.
I use an energy type drink in lieu of chocolate milk when its not
available. I carry granola bars to eat along the way too. Ride
intensity also impacts my tolerance for solid food. Harder the
effort, less likely I can tolerate solid foods. Low intensity rides I
can and do eat whatever.

But you have to figure out what works for you by trying different
things on long rides.

 

[Tom Nakashima]

"David James" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Fri, 14 Sep 2007 07:50:16 -0700, "Tom Nakashima"
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement,
>>or
>>one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and get a
>>quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place. However foods somehow
>>doesn't digest with me too well when jumping back on the bike. I prefer
>>places that serve soups, which is easy for me to consume, and I tend to
>>stay
>>away from the burger and fries. Suggestions from other riders who ride
>>long
>>distances and need to refuel by making a food stop. Medication to help
>>digest foods when cycling? Funny thing is, getting older the food is
>>harder
>>to digest when cycling.
>>-tom
>>
>
>
> I too have struggled with this issue, especially on brevet's and have
> tried many different approaches. What works for me doesn't always
> work for other and vice versa. I look for a subway sandwich shop and
> get a plain turkey sub on white bread. Digests easily for me. If
> there are no sandwich shops and I need to rely on convenience store
> food, almonds and a quart of chocolate milk. I wish you luck in
> finding the right solution that works for you.
> regards
> David James
>
> --
> Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com
>

Funny that you mention turkey on white, that also works for me.
Togo's
-tom

 

[Matt O'Toole]

On Fri, 14 Sep 2007 07:50:16 -0700, Tom Nakashima wrote:

> I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement, or
> one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and get a
> quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place. However foods somehow
> doesn't digest with me too well when jumping back on the bike. I prefer
> places that serve soups, which is easy for me to consume, and I tend to stay
> away from the burger and fries. Suggestions from other riders who ride long
> distances and need to refuel by making a food stop. Medication to help
> digest foods when cycling? Funny thing is, getting older the food is harder
> to digest when cycling.
> -tom

One of our bike club members, a PhD nutritionist and athlete, did some
research on this. She found the ultimate mid-ride "power food" to be
boiled potatoes with salt. They digest easily, get into the bloodstream
quickly, etc. We've had them at rest stops on our organized rides
since, and people seem to like them a lot.

If you must eat fast food, which is all that's available in some places,
try bean burritos from various places, or baked potatoes from
Wendy's.

Matt O.

 

[Michael Press]

In article
<[email protected]>,
Matt O'Toole <[email protected]> wrote:

> On Fri, 14 Sep 2007 07:50:16 -0700, Tom Nakashima wrote:
>
> > I don't like to carry foods when cycling other than a drink enhancement, or
> > one energy bar. There were a few times when I had to stop off and get a
> > quick bite to eat at usually a fast food place. However foods somehow
> > doesn't digest with me too well when jumping back on the bike. I prefer
> > places that serve soups, which is easy for me to consume, and I tend to stay
> > away from the burger and fries. Suggestions from other riders who ride long
> > distances and need to refuel by making a food stop. Medication to help
> > digest foods when cycling? Funny thing is, getting older the food is harder
> > to digest when cycling.
> > -tom
>
> One of our bike club members, a PhD nutritionist and athlete, did some
> research on this. She found the ultimate mid-ride "power food" to be
> boiled potatoes with salt. They digest easily, get into the bloodstream
> quickly, etc. We've had them at rest stops on our organized rides
> since, and people seem to like them a lot.

Great. I will try this.

Rather than boil potatoes, steam them over water at the
lowest flame that boils the water. Also potatoes should
be peeled and pared scrupulouly. They are wonderful
food, but do not eat the solanine.

> If you must eat fast food, which is all that's available in some places,
> try bean burritos from various places, or baked potatoes from
> Wendy's.

--
Michael Press