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Hi guys, do you have any handy tips for long rides regarding keeping hydrated and food for energy?
Im going to be biking the west highland way over 3 days but its 40 mile, 47 mile and the last few miles on the last day.
Im not what you would call super fit, i biked 42 the last week and my back was killing me and i was knackered so i was out today making sure i drank more fluids, ate more food in the form of fruisley bars and fruit.
When i was biking i made a concious effort to keep my lower spine concaved and when i stopped to eat i done some light stretching for the back.
Seemed alot better but i done 10 miles less so that migh have somehtig to do with it.
Any advice would be great thanks
scott
Make sure you're hydrated before you leave and when riding eat and drink little and often.
As a rule, eat before you're hungry and drink before you're thirsty.
an often quoted phrase to remember (cos it's true) is 'you eat for tomorrow' so as mulletus says, don't get leathered the night before and drink water the night before
nuun or zero tablets are good because the minerals help the gut to assimilate the water. protein after a ride helps also
most of all listen to your hunger needs, if you want to eat, eat - if you wanna drink then drink
When are you planning to do the [i]long [/i]rides though?
cool, cheers guys.
druidh - im currently doing 30-40 milers just now but will have the WHW trip in early May so it will be 3 days in a row, dont want to jigger my self the first day through poor body maintenance. I dont really drink alchohol these days as i get terrible hangovers so defonately not going to be drinking on the trip.
cheers
scott
^^What they said -
I like porridge for breakfast on 'ride' days, decent sports drinks throughout the day, and munch little and often on the right things.
If you're already doing those sorts of distances then I seriously don't think you need to do anything special. Drink water, nibble, have a decent breakfast and slap up meal at night 🙂supafly1982 - Member
druidh - im currently doing 30-40 milers just now but will have the WHW trip in early May so it will be 3 days in a row,
I try and eat every hour when riding, usully something like Soreen Friut Loaf which suits me. I tend to use 1 water bottle for about a 3 hr ride on the road, but i tend to drink much more off road. Probably 3 or 4 times for some reason.
Energy/isotonic drink in the camelbak instead of water.
Lucozade do some nice carbohydrate jelly beans, which are a night ride staple for me.
Take some normal food too as gels, bars etc are a bit brutal on the gut if that's all you're having.
I find jam or peanut butter sarnies are fairly pack safe (they don't go sweaty like cheese or ham) and don't take crisps! For that length of off-road ride I'd have a 20minute lunch break for the sarnies somewhere scenic.
Porridge for breakfast also a good call but make sure you've had an hour to digest it before you pedal off. Nice with dates in and a little golden syrup 🙂
Another nod for the porridge - not that many calories, but slow release carbs are essential. Thinking about it, I've only ever 'hit the wall' on a non-porridge day. Combine that with little-and-often sugary treats like jelly babies and dates and you'll be fine. Enjoy the trip!
cheers for the input guys 🙂
Soreen Malt loaf compressed to about 1" thick is the way to go . I would take a normal one and a bananna one . Grab a small bag of salted Cashews as the salt will help if you suffer cramps , or its unusually hot .
Maybe some homemade Flapjacks? I make mine with mixed spice and cinnamon.
Protein and Carbs in the evening , large portions.
Whizz a High 5 Zero into your camalbak bladder , and maybe a gel or 2 .
This way as you drink you also load a few carbs in too.
Fig rolls are nice and fairly dence .
Bag of Jelly Babies , a sachet of bum cream , chewing gum and an MP3 player .
Porridge and wheat germ blend for breakie , wheat germ has a tiny bit more protein in it .
enjoy
On a 30 miler today I had a good meal from the carvery last night, a bacon and sausage sarnie this morning and stopped for a twix half way through.
I had some SIS GO electrolyte stuff in my water and it did a good job of stopping the muscle ache setting in 🙂
Supafly, try to find some gels and energy drinks that you can stomach...i find the Torq unflavoured powder great as i simply stick squash in to my liking, and the GU gels are the best ive ever tasted, almost nice in fact. Otherwise i dare variety is the best thing for 3 days solid riding..bananas, malt loaf, flapjack, sweets, etc, a bit of allsorts so you arent simply eating the same things over and over.
cool, cheers guys, ive also ordered some nunn to try and ive got some high 5. will have plenty fruit and nuts for the trails with some sweet treats, will look into flapjacks 🙂
1 500ml Powerade or equivalent mixed into a 2 or 3 litre camelbak, a nice wholemeal sandwich for lunch and a snickers, maybe a some emergency food if you're off the beaten track.
I find the best way is to keep an eye on the time and make conscious effort to have a mouthful of drink every 10-15 minutes, and eat a piece of cereal bar every 20-30 minutes. A mate has a timer on his garmin to remind him.