Endurance Query

[mogwaiboi]

Howdy

For some reason lately on longer rides (100-150km) I have been starting off feeling somewhat sluggish and not finding my legs until around 60km or so into the ride. It does take me a little while to warm up normally but not usually this long. I haven't changed my routine at all as I usually try and have a carb focused meal the night before and drink plenty of fluids. Breakfast is usually porridge and quinoa mixed with a banana, a gel and some caffeine and this has worked well for me in the past. Just wondering if anyone has any ideas as to what could be causing the initial lack of energy?

[Sith1]

How soon before a ride do you eat .... too soon and your digestive system is weigh down. .. then once you are hitting 60 km mark its in your system to be drawn from.
Are you hydrated enough the day before your ride .... The digestive system needs fluids to process whatever you have eaten the next morning before your ride .

[Tim]

I have the same trouble. Very slow warm up. In my case up to 20Km's (or more) before I feel good.
I'm just getting old/er.

[macca33]

I've found a similar thing in that it can take 10-20km to get into it. When I race locally I try to ride out there where I can - time permitting - and find that doing 15+km prior to racing helps a lot.

sent from a MacGalaxy far, far away. ..

[ball bearing]

I never get a chance to warm up when riding from home. I live on the side of a mountain. Even if I want to head downhill the road goes uphill before the descent. I usually head up and over.

I ride well with an empty stomach which seems to involve less initial sluggishness. Longer rides see me eating an hour or so before heading out.

[singlespeedscott]

I usually find it better to eat an hour into a longer ride rather than eat before hand. If a ride is under 3hrs I usually don't eat a thing.

[abr89]

I find anything over three hours and its best to refuel on the ride itself. Eating before a ride always seems to slow me down and make me feel sluggish for a little while.

[briztoon]

I have the same trouble. Very slow warm up. In my case up to 20Km's (or more) before I feel good.
I'm just getting old/er.

That's about where am (was) at.

[durianrider]

Howdy

For some reason lately on longer rides (100-150km) I have been starting off feeling somewhat sluggish and not finding my legs until around 60km or so into the ride. It does take me a little while to warm up normally but not usually this long. I haven't changed my routine at all as I usually try and have a carb focused meal the night before and drink plenty of fluids. Breakfast is usually porridge and quinoa mixed with a banana, a gel and some caffeine and this has worked well for me in the past. Just wondering if anyone has any ideas as to what could be causing the initial lack of energy?

Try just eating dates for your breakfast and during the ride. You will be smashing it. Minimal blood in the digestive tract means more in the working muscles that matter.

If I was going to do a 100km ride tomorrow, I would blend 10 dates in about 500ml of water, knock that back, then head out the door with 4-5 large dates per hour, stuffed into the jersey. This is about 1g of carbs per kg of bodyweight per hour. (4-5large dates about 65g of pure carbs).

Try it and you will be ready to hit high watts per kg from the get go. Try and eat early dinner the night before. Aim for 10g of carbs per kg of bodyweight per day if you want to be race weight all year long. I base my diet on foods that keep my overall insulin levels low so I stay light for the climbs. Eat like a kenyan to have low insulin levels hence be more like a greyhound than a pug.

I love my food too much to eat less of it lol! Just eat right and climb tight.

Oh yeah, get a power meter too if you want to improve on climbing. Its made me one of the best climbers in oz now on the really steep stuff.

[Toolish]

This is about 1kg of carbs per kg of bodyweight per hour. (4-5large dates about 65g of pure carbs).

...

Oh yeah, get a power meter too if you want to improve on climbing. Its made me one of the best climbers in oz now on the really steep stuff.

I assume you mean 1g carb per kg of bodyweight?

Any facts to back up that last claim?

[durianrider]

Looks like I didnt eat enough carbs today cos my spelling is out. Correct, 1g of carbs per kg of bodyweight per hour. 10g of carbs per kg of bodyweight per day. (obviously if one is obese, not physically possible to stomach that much volume of carbs but do your best, every obese person I know that eats this way gets slim.)

I got this from Cadel Evans when he was sitting in the team car at the 1999 TDU after a stage drinking some brown sludge mix. He gave me the low down. Johnathon Vaughters also backed it up the next year when we were riding with CA down Anzac Hwy. Dr Ferrari also promotes 10g of carbs per kg of bodyweight per day for athletes wishing to stay away from the greasy stuff and have enough sugars to fuel peak red blood cell formation and function. When carb intake drops, fat and protein intake increases and as a result, stamina and recovery go down. The reason I could ride 6190km in Jan with not a mg of caffeine etc is due to sufficient daily carb intake.

IMPOSSIBLE to be properly hydrated if carb intake is not sufficient.