PowerBar and Gel Benefits?

[RobRollin]

Week 2 into a 13 week training program and my legs are feeling it. When your muscles need to repair and regenerate, does eating protein Powerbars and Gels actually benefit your recuperation? I know PowerBars help with replacing carbs but what about protein to re build muscle?

Is there specific nutrients/supplements that you eat to help re build and replenish? Some PowerBars are carbos and some are for protein, the protein bars actually help in anyways physiologically?

Thanks

[sogood]

Powerbar and gels are only good for fast energy delivery during exercise. You are far better to eat healthy normal food during recovery. You'll get all the protein you'll need from a good steak and glasses of milk. Supplement it with a good supply of vegi and fruits. In other words, don't waste money on those things.

[RobRollin]

I hear ya! I've started taking a bar on a 2 hour ride only to keep my carb levels up during a ride. Especially as most of my rides are 40k+ this week. I'm defintely not into protein shakes etc, Musashi Whey powder or Creatine.

[snedden9485]

Try doing some stretching. This may help with the soreness and facilitate recovery better.

[j13]

As sogood said; powerbar (I assume you're talking about the energizer and performance type) and gels are only for a fast hit of carbs when you are riding. Eating them as part of a normal diet is a terrible idea as many ingredients in them are high GI (cane syrup, fructose etc.), meaning that if your body doesn't require glucose straight away it readily converts it into fat for storage.

As for protein intake: the normal daily requirement is 1-2g per kg of body weight. As an endurance athlete anywhere from 1-1.5g/kg BW is ideal, whereas for resistance training (bodybuilding etc.) 1.5-2g/kg is necessary for sustained growth. A healthy diet should include an adequate amount of protein for a recreational athlete so protein supplements are usually unnecessary.

It's worth noting that having a huge serving of protein (ie. a massive steak) is not a healthy way to achieve your daily protein intake as the body is incapable of digesting more than around 40g of protein per meal, and as such will just excrete it. Spreading out your protein intake throughout the day is optimal. For example; an 80kg male exercising regularly should aim for 20-30g of protein per meal for 4-6 meals per day.

Rather than take protein supplements such as whey powder or soy isolate, it's enough just to eat high protein foods such as yoghurt, milk, wholemeal pasta, nuts, legumes etc.

Finally, if your feeling it in your legs every day you should take some time off the bike to allow your muscles and joints to recover. Continuing training while in this state will have very little benefit for your leg muscles, only for your cardiovascular fitness. Ensure your getting plenty of sleep too.

[toolonglegs]

Nice post J.

[Crawf]

I hear ya! I've started taking a bar on a 2 hour ride only to keep my carb levels up during a ride. Especially as most of my rides are 40k+ this week. I'm defintely not into protein shakes etc, Musashi Whey powder or Creatine.

As mentioned, along with a good intake of steak, chicken, fish, veggies etc. A bag of whey protein is definately a good idea for those times when you're on the run.

[Hroethbert]

Week 2 into a 13 week training program and my legs are feeling it. When your muscles need to repair and regenerate, does eating protein Powerbars and Gels actually benefit your recuperation?

Try taking some BCAA's immediately after your training sessions and then a protein shake on retiring for the night.
You can usually buy a 750-900g pack of whey protien concentrate from the healthfood section of most supermarkets, the cost of which would be about the same as four or five protein bars and will last you much longer. Do the experiment and see how you go.
I used to realy suffer from sore legs when training hard, this regime works an absolute treat for me.

[heliage]

Dont forget eggs.

Sleep

As J said, sleep is really important, lets your body recover, also helps your technique , watched a good show on discovery where our brain processes the movements we make during the day. So everytime you pedal well, your brain can automatically do it.

[CoffsGal]

Some interesting info on supplements from the AIS

Emma

[Ant.]

Or realise that we are training cyclists, not training body builders. Being sore after hard training is a part of it, not a green light for protein shakes and branched chain amino acids.
We have a higher caloric requirement (obviously), which should be mostly carbohydrates. Unless plain rice is your favourite meal of all time, chances are you are getting sufficient protein in your food just from eating carb rich sources (as an example; my breakfast - 4 weetbix, milk and jam on a muffin came to ~ 25g of protein).
You can eat more protein than you need, but unless you want to put on weight, chances are you're not eating enough carbs (hindering your recovery).

[casual_cyclist]

...chances are you are getting sufficient protein in your food just from eating carb rich sources (as an example; my breakfast - 4 weetbix, milk and jam on a muffin came to ~ 25g of protein).

Depends on what you are eating. I am veg and found that I used to be hungry all the time and craving sweet foods. I read somewhere that people with my body type (tending towards endomorph) should eat more protein if they are craving sugar. I wasn't being very careful about what I ate, so have upped my protein - legumes, banana smoothies, nuts and wholegrains. I have found the cravings for sugar have gone and my body fat levels are dropping (in combination with cycling of course!).
To answer the OP question, I don't think that PowerBar and Gels have benefit in recovering from rides. The only thing I do special after a really long ride is an isotonic drink, carbs and plenty of water.

[Alex Simmons/RST]

Some recovery guidelines:

http://www.cyclecoach.com/index.php?opt ... Itemid=111