.dav

since ive increased the amount of time on the saddle (going on more rides around the city) ive noticed that i feel the need to eat more during a meal. i know that it is normal but curious what people concentrate more on carbs or protein? im also curious what people eat since most people here are generally healthy because of the active lifestyle.

envane

I have definitely been eating more since I started commuting. I don't really pay attention to what I eat though. I have a wide enough taste in food that I'll get everything I need to be getting.

crhilton

Carbs. Protein diets are for silly rich people. I also eat more fatty foods than I would normally, although I do try to limit animal fats (excluding fish, fish is too expensive in nebraska anyway).

I eat a lot of junk too. Mmm junk. I probably make up quite a bit of my cycling in milk.

Machka 

Lately I've been eating a lot of fruit, veggies, whole grains, and low-fat, low-cal yogurt. Oh, and chicken way too much chicken.

Industrial

At least one banana a day. 1 or 2 protein shakes a day. Tons of whole grain breads, pastas and brown rice. I try to mix my meats up but most of the time I just skip them all together lately.

DataJunkie

Anything I can get my hands on this week. Big ride on Saturday.
Usually whole grains, veggies, fruit, and a variety of high carb foods. A bit of nuts thrown in. Since I do not eat a lot of meat, protein supplements occasionally. Plus, a reasonable amount of junk thrown in. Otherwise, I will crave it more and more until I binge. My current favorite is butterfinger crisp bars.

I am still finalizing my plan but I think starting in October I will drop my remaining 10-15 lbs I want to loose.
With the rides I have been doing lately trying to loose weight is a bad idea IMHO. I would rather finish my rides nice and strong.

charles vail

Pizza (tonight), wine, light beer in the summer, spaghetti & meatballs, turkey sandwiches, salads with real lettuce and spinach greens, chicken (baked) and fish the same, not a bunch of red meat unless its wild game or organic local grown beef, most any vegetable (except turnips and brussel sprouts) all fruits, brown rice, potatoes, eggs, oatmeal, sausage, coffee every morning, water, water and more water, Mexican style food, any Asian style cooking mostly the more mild Thai stuff and Chinese though, home made cookies, lately anything gluten free that my wife makes for herself, food is good, I eat too much of it.

KZBrian

Heavier on the fruit, whole grains, salads & yogurt. Lighter on the meaty/greasy foods. Too many sweets & treats.
I drink coffee, water and little else. One thing I have learned from bike commuting and packing my own lunch, fruit is heavy!

Junkdad

I was bad today. Al pastor tacos for breakfast, burger for lunch and tex-mex for dinner.

Your extra calories for cycling should probably come from whole grain complex carbs like brown rice, etc. Your protein intake could probably stay about the same as before.

alexanderaf

I eat cheap but healthy. Actually, I try to keep myself under $25/wk with groceries. Here's what I typically buy...

- Quaker Simple Harvest Oatmeal (has a $1.00 off coupon in the box...runs about $2.69 for 8 packets)
- Microwaveable Sweet Potatoes ($1.00 per potato, really fills you up!)
- Whole Grain Pasta, Tomato Sauce (although by whole grain...it's actually only 50% whole grain I found out???)
- Eggs
- Grape Juice or Apple Juice
- Soy Milk
- Bananas
- Red Wine

On top of this, I usually get a coffee at Starbucks every morning and use my free wi-fi ($1.65 for coffee), then sometimes for lunch I'll splurge and pick up a salad.

However...

When I visit my parents, the first thing I do is open up the fridge and eat their chocolate ice cream...making me a health hypocrite...

alexanderaf

Oh...and 93 octane gas. It takes some getting used to to stomach!

bipedfred

Kashi Go-Lean Crunch whole grain cereal, yogurt home made from organic whole milk. Brown rice + veggies + some kind of lean high value protien. And I'm not even a hippy.

wez312

Spaghetti, Pizza, Macaroni and Cheese, Cereal, water and beer are pretty much the only things I eat and drink. Gotta love college

Big_e

I'm trying to eat healthy and stick to rice and vegetarian dishes with steamed rice at the chinese buffets during work. Since I'm bicycling, I'll eat alot! After work I go the the chinese restaurants near the house and order something with chicken. I avoid meat and stick to chicken or seafood. I'm not a healthfood junkie by any means. If I'm eating with family and friends, I'll go ahead and order a steak and splurge with the fried stuff. I do try to eat healthy whenever I can.
Ernest

Foofy

Beer.

robinthehippie

Lots of carbs in the form of whole grains and brown rice; whatever fruits and vegetables are in season (read:cheap); trail mix, bananas and peanut butter sandwiches as protein snacks; lots of water. Coffee and donuts thrown in for good measure.

legato

I eat:

Veggies
Fruit
Lean (ish) protein (I Love Steak)
Carbs : Like whole grain bread, brown rice, etc
Wine and some Light Beer
Occasional treats

I don't really do sweets so much. This diet keeps me at a healthy weight for 26 year old girl who is 90% bike only.

Rober

That stuff is good! I'm not a hippy either.

recumelectric

When I'm in the commuting routine, I eat lots and lots of food. Just about any type. I'm not a model and I'm not training for the Iron-Man, so I don't pay much attention to the diet.

...I have found, however, that I tend to crave more protein and whole grains. The whole grains help with feeling full and they burn more slowly, so I feel full longer. Without those, I might start cannibalizing my co-workers. I can get really hungry.

starla

I take granola bars, fruit bars, bananas, or a whole grain bagel with whipped cream cheese for breakfast, usually instant oatmeal for lunch (that comes out to like 30¢ a day for lunch, which allows me to eat out once every one or two weeks in which I basically eat whatever I want), a snack of nuts or something similar (except every once in a while I'll do jellybeans, which I love). I usually have yogurt with some fresh fruit and wheat germ when I get home from my commute, and then whatever I have on hand for dinner. I usually only get meat on the weekends, when I'm usually at my mom's. It's not a conscious choice not to eat meat, but it is getting expensive.

Oh, dinner is sometimes a bowl of Life cereal with vanilla soy milk. Yummy.

TalkingHead

not the best. I eat to many TV dinners and hot pockets! But also make steak dinner with greens etc. I try to eat fish and broil my own as much as possible, but stll eat to much junk. Although i rarely eat sweets of any kind, maybe once a month. Not big on chips really, except tostitos with salsa. Make lot of lean turkey sandwichs on wheat during the week. Dunno not really a diet, i just eat whatever normally

been getting port of subs for lunch lately, good stuff. And sometimes go to sushi factory, i love sush of all kinds, but that's getting way out of hand expensive all of a sudden like everything.

i need to lay off the beer

charles vail

The problem I am seeing in these responses is way too much carb consumption in the form of grains whether complex or refined. A more balanced diet of complete protein of any kind, veggies, nuts and fruit would be way healthier.

Unless you are exercising at high intensity for more than two hours a day you don't need excessive carbs and in fact, it would be better to slow down the pace of cycling/exercise and burn fat instead of over fueling with carbs. Carbs are like jet fuel and the more you eat the more insulin your body produces to manage it. That may lead to adult onset diabetes. Extreme long distance aerobic exercise isn't good for you if you are talking about health. Our bodies can adapt to extreme endurance, aerobic exercise but it is dependent on fueling with carbohydrates, whereas slower paced riding, hiking, walking burns fat as fuel.
I've been looking into this since I read an article on the subject recently. I've seen the effects of carb loading in my own diet and always wondered why I had trouble losing weight even though I was riding so much.

sumguy

Typically pizza once a week, fast food once or twice a week. One or more instant breakfast mix every day. At work, soda and candy bar. Need to cut back on the junk especially ice cream when its hot. Trying to go more whole grains with my carbs and really need to work on more greens, fruits and vegetables.

TalkingHead

also alot of the artificial surgars and corn syrup is what put's weight on people. Soda pop used to be better for you in the old days my parents told me, REAL surage, not synthetic. Not that it was great for you then health wise, but better then the stuff thy have nowdays.

Anyway You are on to something and know more then me anyway, i drink to much beer which has alot of carbs..hence i cant drop from 175 down to the 160 i want to be..which i was at for many years up until i hit around 25..then it just poured on.

Schwinnrider

I was thinking the same thing. There are posters in this thread who are seemingly consuming 80% of their calories in the form of carbohydrates. That's not good for recovery or muscle growth. My commute is 40 miles round trip, and I consume far less carbohydrate than that. Protein and healthy fat are essential.