Chuffed

Having struggled to complete my first century I'm looking to ensure this coming weekend's is a little easier. I don't have an issue with rides around 60 miles.

Last time the evening before the ride I have a large bowl of pasta, breakfast was a large bowel of porridge with a tablespoon of honey, a glass of fresh orange juice, a muffin and a mug of freshly ground coffee.

During the ride I had 3 x 500ml of water, 500ml energy drink, a can of Pepsi, an energy bar, a banana and a further 2 muffins.

Did I struggle to complete the century because I need more/different food/drink or was it because it was my first 100miles?

daoswald

You didn't really explain in what way you struggled. Did you struggle under the weight of all the food you brought along? Did you bonk? Did you just get sore from "assuming the position" for so long?

I've found that if I ride reasonably hard for much beyond 40 or 50 miles I've got to be certain I'm replacing calories at a rate of 250-300 per hour, via either drinks, power bars, or both. If I don't, I'll hit that wall somewhere between 40 and 50. But if I'm careful about making sure I'm taking in calories throughout the ride, and consuming sufficient fluids, I can go on for a good long time.

Chuffed

I didn't bring all that food along :-) I had two stops to buy some of the drinks, a banana and a further 2 muffins. But I do think I bonked at about 60 miles....... having to dig real deep to get to the last muffins at 75 miles.

I was wondering if there are any other foods or combination of foods that might help?

Barese Rider

If you got anymore sugar in you youd probably bonk at mile 2. Lighten up on the simple starches and sugars and get some complex carbs in you . A good source is brown rice[the kind you get at the health food store] along with beans .Id eat that along with a fresh salad loaded with veges, a piece of fish and some fresh fruit the night before along with some dried fruit . Oatmeal is good the morning of along with fesh fruit, dried fruit, nut and seeds.. Eat some bananas along the way.

Id skip the muffins.

vdek

Try Cliff bars, they're pretty good and right at ~230 calories so you can eat one per hour.

I'd skip the muffins as well...

GP

You might have been dehydrated. 2350 ml of fluids seems low. Try to start hydrating a couple days before the ride and drink a bottle right before you leave. During the ride drink a bottle every 20 miles.

My current century diet is 2 Clif bars, 1-2 gels, a Snickers, a Mt. Dew and water.

aham23

everyone is different. yesterday i did a 100 miles solo. i consumed 5 bottles (16oz each) water, 1 bottle HEED (150 cals), 1 Cliff Bar (240 cals), 1 granola bar (190 cals), and 2 Hammer Gels (200 cals) near the end. i was fine. it was relatively flat and weather was perfect with temps in the 70s. later.

canam73

I agree that dehydration seems more likely than a lack of calories. But even your fluid intake doesn't sound too bad.

Are you a real big guy? Heavy sweater? Was it crazy hot or windy? Any of these things can tip the scales against you.

And yes, your struggles could easily be that you were just not used to riding over 60. As others have said, stay hydrated, mix some slower digesting foods in and pace your eating and drinking through out the ride. Once you get behind on either it is quite difficult to catch up.

palesaint

My vote is also that it wasn't a nutrition issue. Could have been dehydration, but you probably just pushed a little harder than you should have at the beginning and fatigue set in around mile 60. There is an old mantra of "drink before you're thirsty, eat before you're hungry" that might apply here also. If you didn't eat much the first few hours, it's difficult to catch up when your stomach starts eating itself.

Bacciagalupe

I'd say it was a combo of all the issues you listed.

• Water: You need to determine how much water you need per hour. 500-750ml per hour of cycling is typical, depends a lot on the individual and the temperature.
• Food / Fuel: Most people require about 250 calories, preferably carbs, per hour on the bike. Consistent intake is better. From what I know, you'd have to load up on carbs for a week to really max out your blood glucose level.
• If you jumped from 60 miles to 100 miles, for example, you nearly doubled your previous efforts as well as substantially increased your weekly mileage. Might've been too much in one shot.
• Cycling is almost as much mental as physical. If mentally you aren't ready to ride 100 miles, you're gonna suffer.

Sounds to me like you need to figure out how much water you need, tweak your ride nutrition, and do a bit of training.

kensuf

typical century food for me..

1 bowl of oatmeal for breakfast, cup of coffee
4 or 5 bottles of sports drink, probably will stop once to re-fill 2 bottles, maybe twice to re-fill if it's hot
1 clif bar
1 or 2 gu's (or other gels).