Originally Posted by
Rowan
The accepted consumption in long-distance circles, and that used by Machka in her advice to people is 250 to 300 calories an hour is what you need to replenish on the bike. Your estimates might be a bit over the cards. All the energy estimators that we have come across have way overestimated the calories consumed for the exercise and intensity undertaken. You might use a bit more if you are on a hammerfest with the Cat 2 boys.
The 250-300 Cals/hr is based on what your body can process and isn't really an estimate of what you are burning. On a relatively easy 3 hr ride today I burned about 2,300 Cals over 85km (42 Cals/mile) according to my powermeter.
Bruce: Were your legs sore after the ride? One possible explanation could be inflammation and associated fluid retention.