Originally Posted by
pepperbelly
I am 65 and eating very low carb in order to lose weight. I am basically starting to train but it has been hit and miss. I have a trail nearby that is paved and goes around a small lake. The trail is about 6 miles in length. Yesterday I did 2 laps but my arms and quads were getting sore. This isn’t a flat trail. The climbs aren’t really bad but they sap my speed-down to about 5 mph in my lowest gear.
Would eating 2-3 eggs a couple of hours before riding help give me some energy?
If I do need a carb I need something that will be used immediately so I don’t mess up my weight loss. A banana?
IMO, you don't need any energy. You apparently have body fat to lose. Plain and simple, that's stored energy. You got plenty. What you need is to be better at burning that energy. You need to be riding in Zone 2. Doing so may seem like you aren't working hard enough, but its the way to shift your metabolism to get better at burning fat. If you go too hard, your body will try to burn muscle glycogen and you don't really want that right now. Zone 2 is a level of effort where you could still have a conversation with someone, but it would be mildly uncomfortable to do so. You shouldn't be huffing and puffing. Your breathing should be only slightly heavier than normal.
Getting sore is what exercise does. Soreness is normal. That said, I don't know if you are overdoing it right now or not. You should be able to go for hours and hours in Zone 2. You'd just be going slowly. At this effort level, you shouldn't be needing any extra fuel. If you are arriving home heavily fatigued and out of breath, then you are probably going too hard for now.
When you get home, have a regular breakfast (assuming you haven't eaten yet) with at least about 30+ grams of protein. That's important for us older folk (I'm 64) to help prevent muscle loss. At your age, it's important for you to exercise and eat extra protein as you lose weight in order to avoid muscle loss - and maybe actually gain muscle.
Later on when you are riding longer and on some days, harder, you can consider eating/drinking extra as part of the recovery process - or even as pre-fuel. But for now, fuel is probably not your issue. You just need to build some fitness.