Originally Posted by noglider

[MENTION=413859]base2[/MENTION], 26 to 30 miles one way? That is a big distance! You have to expect that your appetite will be much bigger than most people's. It takes a lot of energy to go that far.

I mused over this a few years ago: fossil fuel is like simultaneously borrowing from our ancestors (because the fuel was formed over millennia without them using it) and borrowing from our descendents because we are depleting the supply and leaving them less. That is why it is grossly underpriced. If we paid the true cost, it would cost a lot more. A gallon of gas has 31,000 calories in it. As of today, it costs is $2.29 here in the US. That's insane. Even at its historic highs a few years ago, it was still under priced. How much does 31,000 calories of food cost? Of course, you can't put gas in your stomach for fuel. And cars consume more calories per mile than cyclists do because the vehicle is so big and heavy and we tend to drive them much faster. Still, this has been fuel for thought for me. When I resumed bike commuting a few years ago, I saw my food costs go up more than my gas costs went down.

I do eat a lot for someone my size. I weigh about 155 pounds (70 kg). I make a lot of body heat. I guess I'm just an inefficient engine.

In endurance events, athletes eat a lot of starch and sugar. I've found that when I take a long bike ride, this helps, and it's probably not as bad for you as it is when you're not doing endurance work. And your commute might be considered such an event. Do you really travel 52 to 60 miles a day, every day?