mudman22

There is one aspect of cycling that is starting to break the bank. The more I ride, the more I have to spend just to keep up. It is starting to get refreddingiculous.

I'm talking about food.

Gotta have it. Still losing weight, even when I can eat a large pizza, two chicken-curry combos from Curry in A Hurry, burritos, and other assorted items in one day. I've never been able to put on much weight, but cycling just makes me hungry all the time.

Excuse me, I need to run to the store again for a snack . . .

Help

DropDeadFred

are you like...under 23? itll change

FactVord

Keep hydrated/full with water (zero calories).

hooligancyclist

As time goes by your body will become more efficient and you will need to eat less for the same amount of work. As a temporary solution I found part-time work with free room + board (all the food I can eat and more) and a stipend. It's just supporting my addiction.

Shuke

I spend a huge proportion of my extra money on food, eating things, and drinking things. At 143 pounds I can't add a single pound and I regularly eat amounts that would suffice for about 4 normal people.

tardman91

Wish I had that problem. I still need to lose 30lbs.

ilovecycling

That's a major reason why I love cycling so much. Being a Greek, I am a natural born glutton. The more I ride the more I get to eat. It's a win-win for me.

It's the other real hidden costs of cycling that does get to be annoying. All the little things required to make it enjoyable really add up over time. It's all good though. It's a small price to pay for happiness.

twobadfish

Food is hardly a cost for me. I can starve myself and gain weight. I think I might absorb nutrients via osmosis.

mudman22

Somebody told me that over 20 years ago. "Yeah once you hit 40, everything will slow down." Still waiting . .
.

Part of the problem might be that I watched Hell's Kitchen followed by Master Chef tonight. For some reason, I was even more hungry than usual.

zonatandem

Am 78 years old, weight 135 lbs and still pedal 100+ miles a week; have bicycled over 300,000 miles (yes correct amount of zeroes).
I certainly am not a glutton and do not eat the type of food you seem to crave.

dsprehe89

Same here, I am highly active, I rock climb 3 days a week for about 1 1/2 hours and bike close to 100 miles a week and am still around 50 lbs over weight

eja_ bottecchia

True that. In my 30s I used to ride and run a lot. I ate like there was no tomorrow and still managed to tip the scales at just 145#.

Now I ride even more, eat less, but I can't seen to be able to go lower than 185#.

ricebowl

I eat the same kind of food in the same quantities. I just feel less guilty about it .

gregf83 

Not really. Trained athletes run between 18-24% efficiency. Training allows you to put out more power for longer but it still needs to be fueled. Tour riders are eating up to 6000 Cals/day. Your efficiency doesn't improve with training.

prathmann

When is that supposed to happen? At 60 I haven't noticed any trend yet in that direction. I've already noticed that putting out the same amount of work is becoming a little harder, but no increase in efficiency.

spock

In the first 2 years of riding about 100 miles a week I was eating like a horse and then my cravings gradually died down a bit. I was riding the same but I wasn't eating as much.
I guess there is a time period when your body adjusts to its very demanding activity and eventually it becomes more efficient at calorie burning and usage amongst other things.
Since everyone is different, this may not be the case for someone else.

Some time ago I made a very similar thread.

mudman22

This is awesome! My goal this year was to hit 1000 miles by the end of summer. I got hooked and might even be able to hit 2000 by the end of August. But my hat is off to you.

WHOOOSSHHH...

As you get older, all you will have to do is look at food to get fat.....that will start saving you money

oaba09

You're one lucky guy!

rollin

It's been said before but it bears repeating, road cycling is just one big, expensive eating disorder

jmX

I was actually doing the math earlier today and figured out that paying for gas to get to work is cheaper than paying for the extra food I'd need to bike to work. This if of course assuming I'd have the sunk cost of car insurance/registration either way (which of course I would, living in such a large city).

Wear and tear costs then come in to play, but many on here claim their bike is costlier than their car so that too could go either way.

dykim90

before a ride i drink a protein shake that has one scoop then after the ride i drink a shake with 2 scoops. the container can last me a month or more and it prevents me from eating too much. i weigh 140 at most and i can eat a lot.

try it.

dave1442397

My wife was happy when I quit drinking Diet Coke and she didn't have to buy four 12-packs every week. Now that I'm cycling she says she spends more on apples than she did on soda.

cyclezealot

You must be one hot dog cyclist to eat like that and not gain weight.. Instead of eating pizza how about bananas and apples. Besides healthier I think they are cheaper.

big chainring 

Peanut butter. Spread it on bread with your peanut butter wrench. Breakfast, lunch and dinner of champions.