What do you eat

rlb

Well-Known Member
What do you eat before riding first thing in the morning? I've tried everything from a granola bar to porkroll egg and cheese on an everything bagel. I feel better when I eat less but I'm usually starving about 30 mins in. I tried a clif bar but it made me want to yak after a few miles.
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
1. What time are you waking up?
2. What time are you riding?
3. What's your experience level?
4. What's your intensity level?
 

jShort

2018 Fantasy Football Toilet Bowl Lead Technician
Team MTBNJ Halter's
a PB&J on a whole grain first thing in the morning goes down pretty easy.
I like to chase it with a red bull sometimes...
 

rlb

Well-Known Member
Walter, thanks for the links (I should have done that myself...)

Norm, I've been waking up around 7 and hitting the trails by 8:30 or so. About 45 mins of that is usually driving to the trails. I'm somewhere between a beginner and intermediate rider. Intensity....I usually average about 9 mph at 6 mile when I ride alone, and I tend to keep going until I absolutely need to breathe for a min.
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I tend to keep going until I absolutely need to breathe for a min.

Ok, so you're an advanced beginner or a low-intermediate, and more or less hammering yourself 90 minutes after you get up. Is that correct? There's no right/wrong answer, just trying to get an idea.

You're likely going harder than your body really wants to handle. Given that, you're going to need quick-acting carbs. Plains bagel (boring) or maybe something like a Carnation Instane Breakfast or 2. But know that nothing is going to support high-intensity after sleep. Your liver is empty of stored carbs so you wake up and need to replenish. 90 minutes isn't long enough.

But instead of changing your whole wake up & ride routine, I'd just try to keep the carbs as simple as possible. Also, take it easy the first 15 minutes or so and let your body warm up a bit.

It's also going to be an iterative process, in that the more you ride the differently your body will react. So it may turn out that a plain bagel works now, but in 6 months you need to drink 2 cups of coffee and eat a danish.

Keep us posted!
 

BiknBen

Well-Known Member
Walter, thanks for the links (I should have done that myself...)

Norm, I've been waking up around 7 and hitting the trails by 8:30 or so.

How long is the ride? What time are you eating the night before?

If eating early the night before you could be pretty drained in the morning. A bigger meal may be required. The sluggishness you feel when eating a larger meal may just be due to digestion.

When planning for an early ride, eat as soon as you wake and choose foods that are easy to digest. Then do any prepping and loading bikes, etc. You want to give your body as much time as possible to digest that meal before you begin the ride.
 

rlb

Well-Known Member
Thanks for the info. At this point I usually ride for about 1.5-2 hours. Dinner the night before (eating out Friday nights...) usually consists of something like sushi or thai food aroud 7 or 8. Not overly heavy meals w/ some rice, but not a whole ton of carbs. Its making sense now, I'll try to adjust my carbs the night before and for breakfast.
 

Stocky

Member
When I ride in the summer I'm up at 5am, I shower, get my shit in order and at about 5:20am I eat an apple with peanut butter. This is about 15 or so small scoops of PB on apple wedges.
We're riding by 6am.

The apple and PB was suggested over a cheese omlette by the guy at the nutrition store. Our rides are moderate but not hard pace about 2 hrs.

I have a hi protien meal replacement shake when I get home.

It works for me , I think everybodys body is different in how it reacts to stress and fatigue.
I'd also suggest extra water the night before as well as in the morning.
 

jimjo

New Member
you might want to consider energy gels as well (maybe every 1/2hour) it'll help fill the gaps while the solid food is getting broken down.

i like to drink concentrated gatorade(made from powder) its easier than gels and faster to absorb and does the same thing
 

Steve Vai

Endurance Guy: Tolerates most of us.
I think I need to get that book, everyone seems to suggest it. Is it filled with stuff you'd actually do or no? A guy that used to work at the shop was into it and ate all kinds of weird smelly healthy things:D

-Jim.
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I think I need to get that book, everyone seems to suggest it. Is it filled with stuff you'd actually do or no? A guy that used to work at the shop was into it and ate all kinds of weird smelly healthy things:D

-Jim.

I have the Monique Ryan book. I was actually thinking about picking it up again and breezing over it. I read it a few years ago. Good info, but nothing that you don't know if you don't use your head.

All food advice is more or less common sense. But human beings rarely default to common sense so we buy books to tell us what common sense means.
 

stb222

Love Drunk
Jerk Squad
Since I usually ride early, I find that bagels are too heavy but I will get up and be on the road bike within a half hour, not really enough time to digest much. If I ride the mtb, maybe 20 min longer til on the bike, still not enough to really digest anything heavy (bagel). I have been into the clif bars lately (wonder why) and if I ride for an hour, I eat half before the ride and half after, still probably overkill though. If I know I am riding 1.5 hours I might eat the whole bar first. If I ride 2 hours, full bar before and maybe another at 2 hours, depending on the intensity of the ride.

Also note that this is what I am doing right now. In the spring/summer/fall (when I am in better shape) I usually eat nothing before my rides.
 
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bonefishjake

Strong like bull, smart like tractor
Team MTBNJ Halter's
an egg mcmuffin is the answer. seriously. it contains carbs and protiens, is about 300 calories and will give you that "full w/o being full feeling". it's the perfect meal. well, sorta. i've been known to roll with granola and a pb&j.

my old go-to was a "low fat" blueberry muffin and medium french vanilla w/ milk and sugar.

mostly whatever doesn't make you puke is fine.
 

mattybfat

The Opinion Police
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I have the same thing every morning ride or not- blueberry or strawberry yogurt mixed with my favorite flakes and in the afternoon pre ride nothing beats pb&j on wheat bread.
 

rlb

Well-Known Member
an egg mcmuffin is the answer. seriously

I've been eating the wawa version after a 6 mile ride. I think I'd have problems if I ate one before haha

There are a lot of good suggestions here. I'll start mixing and matching until I find a good combo
 
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