Tips For A Biker
When it comes to food, there’s a wealth of information available. Some of it can be confusing, conflicting or just plain complicated. If you are keen on cycling, you’re probably interested in your diet, health and weight as well — but if you find nutrition information dry, chewy, and a real headache, it’s time to go back to basics.
Calorie Calibration
The first thing to celebrate if you’ve just taken up cycling is that it increases your calorie requirement. Having said that, try not to abandon healthy food choices or to max out on portions. A good way to estimate your additional calorie need is to multiply the distance traveled in miles by 40-50 calories. Therefore, if you’ve been out for a 30-mile ride you can estimate an extra calorie need of between 1,200-1,500 calories erring towards the bottom end of this if you’re a slower or lighter rider and toward the top end if you’re faster or heavier.
Increase Protein Intake
Protein is often thought of as muscle food and not relevant to cyclists, but getting adequate protein into your diet will support your health, immune function, and recovery. Responsible for tissue maintenance in the body and playing a vital role in immune function, it follows that your recovery will be sub-optimal if you are accelerating muscle damage through training while not meeting your needs.
Hydrate
Drinking enough fluid will not only support better riding but will result in better energy levels while you’re going about your daily life. If you have experienced that foggy-head feeling after a long run it’s usually a sign to drink up. In addition to drinking 1.5-2 liters of water across the day, cyclists should ideally be drinking additional fluid to match any loss during riding.
