misterha

Whenever I go on 2hr+ rides about an hr in my stomachs starts growling...usually I have to rush to a gas station and grab something to eat. I usually eat a breakfast 30 minutes before like a bowl of oatmeal. I also bring 2 bottles of sport drinks, but still getting that growling stomach. Last thing I want is to bonk during the ride. Any suggestion anyone?

1nterceptor

There are plenty of energy/protein/granola bars/gels
on the market you can carry with you so you don't have
to stop. Keep them in your pocket, the when you're
hungry open them w/ your teeth and start munching;
you don't even have to get off you bike

Machka 

If your stomach starts growling, you don't need to rush to eat ... it's when you start feeling a little bit light headed or irritable that eating becomes very important.

So ... carry food with you.

Go to your local grocery store and see what you might be able to carry with you, and eat while riding.

misterha

thanks for the tip, I'd figure 100 calorie per bottle would be enough, but I guess my body wants something more solid

kevrider

same for me, liquid calories don't get it done, i need food after 20 miles. energy bars, granola, fruit&nut, anything solid. eat up.

Paul01

Obviously, you need to eat. We like Cliff Bars, bananas, dried dates, dried mango slices and dried papaya chunks but there are lots of options to keep you fueled.

Paramount1973 

Sounds like your blood sugar is hitting a low. Your oatmeal ain't cutting it, you need something a little more substantial. You might spoon some peanut butter or the like into your oatmeal, you may need some lipids to balance out the carbs.

Some recent research indicates that liquids may not provide as much satiety as solid food, for the ride you may want to switch to water and then carrying energy bars as others have suggested.
https://www.livestrong.com/article/41...olid-calories/

gregf83 

As your fitness improves you shouldn't have any problem making it through 2-3 hr rides without eating. Are you eating enough the day before your ride?

Try riding without stopping for food and only eat if you start feeling weak. You might be able to go farther than you think.

travelerman

I have found - during my initial foray into cycling 20+ years ago, and my recent re-entry - that I am good for about 35 miles (2 - 2 1/2 hours) before I start to run out of stored energy. This is with two bottles of G2 (formerly just "Gatorade"), with a slightly watered down second bottle. Anything further requires an energy bar, which I start to eat very early - within the first 15 minutes. When the weather turned and I lost daylight in the late fall, I was up to around 43 miles, with 2 1/2 bottles plus two bars necessary to make it to the end.

As alway, YMMV, but I would not follow the advice to "eat when you're hungry" any more than I would "drink when you're thirsty"... in both instances, you will have waited too long. You need to stay ahead of dehydration by drinking early, and eat high-carb energy bar/gel/whatever-keeps-you-going soon enough so that it is digested and ready when your body runs out of what it has stored from eating earlier in the day or the previous day.

BHOFM

Fig Newtons!

Aldi's are better, but you know what I am talking about!

I take raisins and FN's most of the time.

travelerman

I would add to this advice a more specific suggestion about what you are eating; I try to eat a bar higher in carbs early, and switch to one with a little more protein towards the end, to aid in recovery of lost muscle mass - what a large portion of the populace does not understand is that using muscles - not only with high intensity, but also for long periods of time - is destructive. The "building" takes place after the exertion, so you need to be sure to make available to your body the raw material for rebuilding the muscle tissue you have broken down.

Your level of fitness will help determine your body's ability and efficiency in converting food to more energy and muscle mass - but you need to make sure to give it what it needs, with a good balance of carbs, proteins, and minerals to aid your metabolism. And water - lots of water... my enthusiasm for cycling and fitness in just the past 5 months has reduced my carbonated beverage intake by two-thirds, and I find myself craving water, and feel way better when I'm hydrating to the point that I have to get up at least once or twice during the night to pee...

rekmeyata

Fitness has nothing to do with this problem, and drinking more doesn't help, it's your metabolism that's effecting this, your's is cranked up like mine. I use to race bikes back in the late 70's to mid 80's and I away's had to eat something or I would bonk and knew guys who didn't have to eat and I could beat them...some of time anyways. Even now that I'm 58 I still need to start eating about 2 hours into a ride, so I've found meal replacement bars to be the best, and Walmart has a good selection including my favorite Met-Rx Big 100 Colossal bars. If I ride over 100 miles I have to either carry more stuff to eat in my handle bar bag (which I only take on rides over 100 miles) or stop at a store to refuel.

You should eat a good meal about 45 minutes before departing on your ride that helps a little. Then to prevent the bonk eat a meal bar about 2 hours into a ride or just before you start getting hungry. And actually this bonking stuff is quite common in triathlons with the contestants.

From the mid 70's until now my weight has only increased by 10 pounds, and I can eat whatever I want and never gain weight; my wife is a different story. I still keep in contact with a couple of the guys I use to race with and they didn't have to eat on long rides like I had, but they gained 50 pounds over the years and one still rides bikes as much as I do if not more.

Here's a site that can help you to understand and take steps to reduce the bonk: https://tunedintocycling.wordpress.co...tion-the-bonk/ Please read this carefully, it even states that Lance Armstrong bonks...there goes the post about being in fit will prevent bonks!!

gregf83 

Waiting until your hungry is a good method of determining how much fuel you need for a particular distance.

How much glycogen you burn vs fats is primarily a function of exercise intensity. At this time of year if you are doing long endurance zone rides the majority of your energy should be coming from stored fats. If you really need to eat two bars and 2 bottles (>700 Cals?) for a 43 mile ride you are either eating more than you need or you are riding at a high intensity relative to your current fitness level.

For a test, last year I rode 100 miles (approx 6 hrs) with just water. I was hungry at the end but didn't bonk. For me that told me I can comfortably go on long 3-4 hr endurance rides with little extra food (I usually take 3-4 dates in case I get hungry).

Feeling hungry is not the same as bonking. Eating carbs with a high glycemic index when you start to get hungry should quickly replenish the glycogen in your blood. Most of the glycogen you burn on a ride is already stored in your muscles. Fitter athletes tend to be better at maintaining blood glucose levels so it's a not a bad idea to experiment a little to see how your body reacts.

Garfield Cat

There's no rule that says you have keep riding when eating. Stop when you like and eat while you're at a stop. Just don't stop eating because you feel that you have to keep riding.