Training & Nutrition - Noob seeking general cycling advice, wisom, critiques

First off, I'm new to the forum and hope to find a wealth of information here and I've already learned some new things. I'm looking to get some advice and wisdom from those with a lot more experience than myself. That being said, I'd like to keep the thread constructive. I originally posted in the Road Bike section, but it was recommended to put this post in here instead.

I got my first road bike, an '08 Trek 1.2 (I know the negatives about the bike already), back in June or July and riding frequently since then. I tend to ride 3-5 times a week, but over the last couple of months I've been trying to ride 15-30 miles at a time. I do realize these are short rides, but I've been limited to time the sun is up once I get home from work. For whatever it's worth, my last ride was 20 miles with an average speed of 18.7 mph with small grades of 1-3%, but mostly flat and some oncoming wind. I tend to ride almost exclusively on the largest sprocket in the toughest gear I can while keeping a decent pace, with the exception of some larger hills and whatnot where I have to drop the gears down a little.

I'm really starting to feel serious about cycling because I think it's fun, I feel like I'm improving my body and since I've been riding I haven't been as much of a couch potato. I'm not really looking to get into racing or anything, but I wouldn't mind becoming and advanced casual rider at some point and be able to complete a century ride sometime in the near future. I would like to gain more muscle in my legs and have already seen a big difference in my calves and thighs, but I'm still a small guy. I'm almost 30 at 5'10" and 145 lbs +/- 2 lbs depending on the day. I'm not a stranger to people calling me skinny. I've been this way all my life and high metabolism at my age runs in my family. My doctor says despite the fact that I am not of average weight I'm not unhealthy and apparently my resting heart rate is really low, which I assume is due to the cycling. People always assume that because I'm thin that I don't eat anything. That's just not true. I eat plenty, but I'm wondering if maybe there is a certain type of diet or foods that would help me towards my goal better.

So, to those of you cycling gurus - what should I be doing to increase my leg muscles? How much can diet affect how much you improve and what sorts of things should I be eating?

Some people have suggested eat A LOT, keeping cadence between 90-120 rpm for best results, ride A LOT, etc.

Ask around for some groups you could ride with.
You local bike shops would be a good place to ask.
Don't be concerned about riding and your weight.
Your weight will adjust to the riding you do.
I eat for energy to ride.

I guess that's one of my questions too though is what to eat. I can generally eat just about anything and not have to worry about gaining a lot of weight from fat just because of my metabolism, but now that even more the case due to the increased frequency of exercise. I'm just wondering if there are any sort of foods or eating practices that would help muscle building.

Count your blessings.

You need to think this through. If you want to bulk up, that's body building.
Go hit the gym. I love gyms, don't get me wrong. But you need to decide what you want. Racers are skinny because Power to Weight ratio is king. They don't want to carry any more muscle than they have to.

A recreational cyclist can carry all the muscle he wants. If you're in great shape, you can go fast, and that is that.

Ironically, if you really want to bulk, you may have to limit aerobic exercise.

But again, it all depends on you. Of course, a lot of skinny guys aren't suited to getting really big. Unless you go on the juice, of course. It's genetics, most of us don't have the right mix to get big.

While I want a response, this is what I think....

Have fun.

I play outside when it's warm, and I play inside when it's cold. I don't get hugely serious about it, but I have been known to use periodised schedules
and such to get to a training goal. Goals can be fun.

I'm not really looking to bulk up per se or get "big". I definitely do not have any interest in "juicing" haha. I'll pass thanks. I guess when I talk about muscle I'm basing that off of looking at the pros and even avid cyclists who seem to have massive thighs and calves, etc. I realize that there is some seriously intense training going on here, which I'm not necessarily looking to get THAT deep into, but I wouldn't mind some improvements.

I guess it just sounds like it takes some time and persistance.

So, to those of you cycling gurus - what should I be doing to increase my leg muscles? How much can diet affect how much you improve and what sorts of things should I be eating?Riding high cadence is not the quickest way to add muscle, but it is a good way to get quick. Diet will play a huge part for building muscle mass...what you eat and when is very important, probably even more so with your metabolism. Like Late says though, it will be hard to bulk through an aerobic sport. You'll add muscle at first, simply because it's a new activity and requires muscles your not used to using, then you'll peak off and any gains will be very slow.

Just go ride and have fun. Hit the gym with a good whole body workout and build your physique that way.

You've got me curious on the what and when to eat. I mean, are you supposed to eat a lot of red meat, carbs like pasta, chicken, etc. etc.

I've really never bothered trying to figure out how to eat in order to get gains in any sort of sport I've been involved in before. I just kind of eat whatever and probably more pasta than I should :)

Weightlifters, when trying to add mass, will focus on adding protein. I'm not certain on the details because I've never looked at it in depth, but generally this is in the form of a protein(powder) shake before and after workouts in addition to proper nutrition throughout the day.

For endurance athletes you want to think about replacing glycogen stores post long workout(PWO)... especially if you are doing back-to-back days. Generally, you are looking to ingest ~2g per kg bodyweight of carbs with a little protein within the first 30 mins PWO. Your body replaces those stores most efficiently in that time window. There is also a lot of recent discussion about a second window several hours later.

Get a good book on nutrition for sports. You'll learn a lot. IIRC, Carmichael's book has a decent section on nutrition that will give you some basics.

On eating, most people do not have a good idea of what their diet really is. Get a book of that gives you the calories, g. of carbohydrates, g. of fat, and g. of protein for common foods. Then keep a diet log for 1 week. Measure the food you consume or at least measure some of it and estimate the rest. People tend to way over estimate the size of a "serving".

Most people think their diet is healthier than it is. They think it has way fewer calories than it does. They also sabotage their diet by eating a number of things that are quite high in saturated fats and calories. If you learn to avoid the bad things in your diet, or at least limit them, then you can make a pretty significant change without much sacrifice.

The USA which I fondly call "the land of the big mac" has very high levels of heart attacks, diabetes and obesity. Most of this is caused by wretched diets. Of course, regular aerobic exercise is a good thing too.

Good luck to you.b

Well, I did a short 14 mile ride today around where I work. Lots and lots more hills than I'm used to. I took some screenshots of my GPS data so I'm curious to see what you guys have to say. I was doing my best to keep my cadence between 90-110 at all times. I did notice that at points it seemed like I was bouncing in my seat and my legs wanted to spin faster than the cranks and I'd get some kind of weird stuttering feeling on downstrokes (for lack of better terms). I could've switched to a tougher gear that would solve the "stuttering" problem, but then my cadence would drop.

Anyway, here is the ride data. One pic is of cadence, speed, grade and the general ride stats.

find some experienced people to ride with, either a club or a "shop ride". You are in CA, there are cyclists everywhere.

110 RPM is too high. Just because wonderboy does it doesn't mean you should. He makes at least 4x the power you do. Bouncing usually means your seat is too high. Find a place to get a good bike fit done. Again, in CA such places are all over.

As far as your height/weight goes, its about perfect for a cyclist. You'd fit right in in the pro peloton. Count your blessings that you can eat whatever you want. Be aware that at age thirty thats likely to change in the not too distant future.

What to eat? real food. Stuff that doesn't come in packages, or if it does has ingredients that you recognize as actual food, as opposed to things that sound like industrial chemicals (which is what they really are).

Damn... to only weight that much again...

Before long rides, I eat pasta or potatoes and throw in some fruit for the sugars. It is amazing how that stuff will keep you going.

As has been said you will build muscles that you need for the level that you are at. My legs are going to be much larger than yours because I carry another 80 pounds on my frame. It's coming off, but for now it is there. Just keep riding and improving.

As for bouncing in the seat, I find that as my pedal technique advances, the point at which I bounce increases. I used to bounce at 100 or so and now it is 115 and up. It just takes time to improve it.

Yeah, I've been noticing a little bounce at high cadences (for me anyway) of 110+. So far it seems like my most comfortable cadences right now tend to be floating between 90-100. Typically no bouncing until the higher cadences outside of my norm. I've been experimenting with my pedaling positions to see how I can get better, but I really can tell it's going to take some getting used to moving my feet in certain ways.