Campag4life

Thanks so much everybody. Appreciate all the great comments. Almost divided it seems on eating versus not for 30-50 milers....maybe bring a powerbar on a 50 miler and eat it half way if consuming nothing before a ride is solid advice for sure.

Also interesting what many eat in the morning. I have done the fruit + cereal thing for quite a while but recently switched to yogurt + blueberries + banana and cup of coffee before heading out the door. I don't feel hungry during my ride but know what hungry feels like on the bike for sure on longer rides if starting to bonk. I am an average rider and most of my group rides are B level and so I don't do 30 mph pulls but rather something less strenuous. Occasionally I will torture myself with the A group but I don't like to ride too hard when its hot because my HR gets up.

Thanks again.

lsberrios1 

My ideal breakfast is 1 banana (sugar and carbs), 3 servings of egg white (Protein), 100% whole wheat bread (carbs) with peanut butter (fat) and a triple espresso (caffeine). After that I can ride a century.

rpenmanparker 

After that I could ride the porcelain bus for about a century. LOL! just kidding with ya.

winston63 

I fully agree with this, particularly the bolded text. My wife is a runner, and for her early morning runs she'll have nothing but a glass of juice prior to heading out. And it works well for her.

I tried that before an early morning 30 mile ride and I almost died 2/3 of the way through - I've learned that I have to eat before I do anything like that. It doesn't have to be too much, a couple of slices of whole grain toast with peanut butter and a banana is enough for me to be comfortable on a ride like that, but I absolutely will not go out without eating!

lsberrios1 

lol! Believe me when I say I can't ride right after!.. a second procedure comes into place.

hueyhoolihan

50 miler this morning, starting at about 8:30. ate a half a PBJ at the 40 mile mark. i loafed the rest of the way home.

Campag4life

You loafed? Was PBJ with wonder bread?

xuwol7

I never eat breakfast, just coffee and water and always ride on an empty stomach, I do bring a few breakfast bars and gatorade in case I bonk, (rarely had to use them though).
Any food before a ride makes me sluggish and sleepy.

I ride better on an empty stomach and I have plenty of carbs in my liver etc and I am using my fat stores as fuel (and I am not fat...lol).

Some people really need to eat before they ride, probably because that is what their body is used to, but for me I am not a breakfast eater.

When I am done with my ride that is when I eat.

I guess it depends on what your body is used to, and you can actually ride a long ways and hammer it with no food, for me anyway.

chaadster

Sure everyone is different, but *no* endurance athlete peak performs without fuel. Everyone is not different in that regard.

furiousferret

If I'm doing a fast group ride there's no way I can go 40+ without food. Just an easy ride, I'm good for about 50.

The only time I ever go without breakfast is when I go on a food binge the night before and want to burn it off.

Leinster

I'd say I have a bigger reserve tank/more ballast to ditch than most serious endurance athletes though.

chaadster

Me too!

xuwol7

My morning rides are usually not hammer fests, it is more for logging the miles and keeping my body loose and supple.
I do my intervals, hill climbs etc. at night, 3hrs after a good meal, morning is mostly a recovery ride (with only a few sprints if I am feeling it).

on the path

I like breakfast. I usually have fruit, eggs, toast, juice, and coffee. I can go fairly hard for 40 to 50 miles on that. Or, I could load up the night before (pizza, maybe) and eat minimally in the morning and go pretty hard for quite a while. Or, after not eating beyond a light dinner the night before, I could eat light in the morning and fuel during the ride. But I like breakfast. I LIKE BREAKFAST!

totalnewbie

after bonking so many times riding w/o having breakfast, I have learned that my body needs that cereal bar in the morning, whether or not I have eaten well the night before.

escarpment

never eat breakfast, ride 12 miles to work which is 400ft higher than my house. Then eat huge meal at work, work day away, rinse, repeat.

hueyhoolihan

wry bread...

deacon mark

Riding and running many years no breakfast. Can easily ride 3 hours 55 miles no food hard if I have eat well the day befor to store glycogen. Can go and have century on no food but would not recommend this. Trying ride hard for more than 3 hours then performance suffers badly too. Funny thing in all my marathons I never eat a thing just took water. Granted this was 3:10 to 3:30 time but it was burning more fuel than cycling. I find with training the need for food riding gets less.

Atakuweh

My routine: I never eat breakfast whether I'm cycling that day or not. But when I'm planning to go for my usual 30-35 mile ride I always have a 12 oz glass of orange juice, followed by 2 mugs of strong coffee. During the 2nd mug of coffee I'll have a single Belvita soft-baked mixed berry biscuit, just to have something besides liquid in my stomach. Before I leave for the ride another 12 oz glass of water. I pack 4 fig newtons to take with me. Usually I only eat 2 of those after about 15 miles; more often than not the other 2 I bring back with me. I always take two 16 oz bottles of plain water with me on the ride and usually go through 1-1/2 of those. A light beer with a squirt of lime juice on my return. I'm 5' 10-1/2" and weigh 143 pounds, and I eat one well-balanced meal every day in the evening.

rpenmanparker 

...whether you need it or not?

FLvector

About the same for me. I need to eat before a morning ride or I'll be famished halfway through the 50-60 miles. I usually eat two packs of oatmeal and a cup of coffee about an hour before the ride and fill one bottle with Skratch Labs for additional carbs and one bottle of water. I sometimes carry a clif bar, but don't always eat it. After a shower and a little cool down I'm ready for a full lunch after the ride.

Reynolds 

+2

wallrat

I have to have a full breakfast. If you don't and take a 70 to 100 mile ride, you have the potential of riding through lunch without a real meal. You can only live and perform on Gu and bars so long.

StanSeven

Someone can't eat a lot and run. The pounding and jarring will make your stomach feel bad very quickly, especially if you push it. My usual breakfast before a morning marathon was a glass of juice, an energy bar, and coffee.

krobinson103

If I don't eat before and during a 80-150km ride I'll run out of gas fast. I eat a lot (and maintain constant weight) just dealing with my usual day. Cycling 20-50km a day just to get to work and back burns lots of energy before I even start the day. Tried the 40km before breakfast thing. Makes me feel really bad all day.