The Healing Cycle

HEALING CYCLE RIDE LINKS

Nutrition:

Just as heart rate training zones are specific to each individual, so to is nutrition, perhaps even more so. If you talked to 10 different cyclists about what to eat and drink on a century ride, you would no doubt get 10 different answers, ranging from nothing but water, to bagels, bananas and flat Pepsi!

For most of you, the nutrition plan for the day will fall somewhere in that range.

As individual as nutrition is, there are a few guidelines to keep in mind.

Hydration:

This is the number one most important element of your on-bike nutrition. The body's ability to produce energy, cool itself, keep heart rates under control and digest food are just some of the things that are directly linked to hydration levels. If you allow your body to become dehydrated, you are severely limiting your performance potential on that day. Dehydration will lead to low energy levels, higher than normal heart rates, an inability to digest food, and depending on environmental conditions on the day, hypothermia or heat stroke are possible. The average rider, working at a moderate exertion level in moderate temperatures should consume approximately 16oz each hour on the road.

It is important to understand that more than just water is necessary. The body sweats out a variety of minerals and electrolytes needed for proper functioning, and if these aren't replaced at regular intervals, performance will suffer. The most common symptom of low electrolyte levels is muscle cramps, sometimes severe enough to end your day quite painfully. The staff at Via Ciclante can guide you to a number of products on the market designed to replace these electrolytes in a tasty, easily digested drink mix powder.

It is important to keep in mind the effect your environment has on hydration. The hotter it gets, the more you sweat, the more water and electrolytes you will need to replace. The average Tour de France rider will consume between 30-40 16oz bottles of water and sports drink over the course of a hot 5-hour stage.

Your goal for each ride should be to have the same body weight at the end of the ride as you did at the start. If you've lost 1 or more pounds over the course of a ride, you did not replace all the fluids you sweated out during the ride, and are running the risk of reduced performance and recovery. In the Tour de France, Lance Armstrong allowed himself to become dehydrated during the time trial, and lost 3kg of body weight over 45km. It took him two days to get that body weight back, and his performance suffered for close to 4 days after.

Carbohydrate Replacement:

Again, very specific to each individual, but there are some common rules to follow here as well. Over the course of an hour on the bike, working at moderate heart rate levels, the average 170lb male will burn in the neighborhood of 500-700 calories. If you are only riding for an hour, you don't need to worry about replacing these calories during the ride; in fact, up to about 500 calories expended each day don't need to be replaced at all if you are looking to lose weight. However, if the ride is longer than an hour, the calorie expenditure continues to multiply, and the longer you ride, the more likely you are to run out of gas if you don't replace some or all of those calories. That average 170lb male should be looking to replace about 250-350 of those expended calories each hour for events of 2 hours or more. This should keep enough gas in the tank to keep you going to the end.

There are a variety of products on the market designed to be used for exercise nutrition. There are enough bars, gels and drink mixes on the market to dedicate entire stores to the sale of them. Again, the staff at Via Ciclante can utilize their own experiences with these products to help guide you in your selections.

One very important thing to understand with both hydration and carbohydrate replacement is that you must train with what you plan on using during the event. Never introduce something new and untested on the day you plan on completing your goal event. The digestive system needs to be trained the same way your muscular and cardiovascular systems need to be trained. Use your training rides to find out what works and what doesn't. It's okay to make some mistakes nutritionally during training. That is how you learn, so that everything goes smoothly for you on the big day.