In my opinion, there are two kinds of flexibility important to us cyclists…physical flexibility, and being flexible to change things when necessary. I’ve posted about physical flexibility in the past, and still do four simple stretches to maintain my flexibility. You can check out my four cycling stretches right here. But if you have...
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Note from Darryl: We didn’t participate in this historic day of people blacking out their websites. To be honest, I haven’t even had a chance to see what all of this is about so I never had a chance to grab myself an opinion on it. I’m definitely one for free speech and individuality which...
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Our “Let’s Talk” series of posts looks to have caught on and it’s great to hear people’s comments and tips on the subjects we bring up in these posts. Once again, today’s post is all about you and we’re wanting you to add your comments below in the comment field as a way of...
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Ahhh, what a great ride! But ouch, my hips are so tight. What can I do to stretch my hips? Believe it or not, cycling and yoga go very nicely hand in hand. I’m excited to have Grace Wathen guest posting today with some great information for cyclists. Being a cyclist herself, Grace knows...
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A couple weeks ago we had a post with 4 Good Cycling Stretches. These are our picks for keeping those cycling legs of yours all loose and performing the way they should. Following the post, our Loving the Bike pal, @StevieDexter asked if we could suggest some post ride self massage tactics for the...
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One of our Loving the Bike friends, @myrnacgmibus recently suggested that we do a post on good cycling stretches. She told me that she doesn’t really know when to stretch or what stretches to do. So this post is for you, Myrna and I hope there are others out there that can benefit from...
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Question: Out of habit, I’ve always eaten cereal (granola) before my morning ride. For the last several weeks, I’ve been riding at 6am to avoid the heat, and eating at 5:30 am. I haven’t had any stomach issues, but I am not sure that this is the best pre-ride meal strategy. My legs have felt heavy since starting to ride earlier. My rides are 1.5-2 hours. Should I eat less, something different, or nothing at all? What do you think?
Kelli’s Answer: I think your pre-ride fuel strategy can be improved. The issue with eating a moderately high fiber breakfast within 30 minutes of beginning a ride is that it will likely take too long to digest, absorb, and metabolize to provide any energy to your muscles at all. And, what’s more, if the meal is setting in your stomach, you are increasing your risk of stomach cramps (but it sounds like you’ve been okay here) and a reduced bloodflow to your legs since your body is working at digesting.
Although many athletes feel like they need a full breakfast before a morning ride, I think you’ll have better result with less food, and ones that you can eat quickly and metabolize faster.
My first choice would be 2 Tablespoons organic honey + 0.5 – 1 Tbsp organic coconut oil (all straight off the spoon). Why? These are fast-acting, quick-metabolizing energy foods. The honey provides moderately fast carbs that act similarly to maltodextrin (moderately fast and longer lasting than glucose), natural enzymes to improve digestion, and antioxidants. The organic coconut oil provides fast-acting medium chain triglycerides which are used directly by the mitochondria of cells (energy producers) without the need for bile or slow digestion.
Another option would be a sports food with a moderate amount of protein – something like a Clif bar. Or, a smoothie with 1/4 cup yogurt, 1/2 banana, 1 Tbsp honey, and water. These foods will also digest quickly and provide energy during your ride.
And, don’t forget about 8 oz. of fluid.
During your ride, especially if high intensity and over 60 minutes, or moderate intensity and over 90 minutes, you’ll still need during-ride fuel as well. With all rides in heat, you’ll want fluids and lytes!
