As with any sport, to be the best possible, a cyclist has to know the best foods to eat. It may seem like an obvious fact, but the food a cyclist eats should go down easy and stay down.
Variety and moderation are two words to remember when racing or touring. Moderation means there are no good foods or bad foods, but rather healthy foods and not-so-healthy foods. Variety is important because nutrients are distributed in many foods. No one super-food contains everything you need.
A cyclist will burn more calories than a sedentary person, but that doesn't mean the cyclist has a license to eat anything they want. The correct eating plan will give you energy for an entire race or tour.
A diet of low fat and high carbohydrates will provide the needed energy. While a high carb diet is normally taboo for a normal dieter, they are not evil as many are taught to believe. Carbohydrates are actually the body's preferred source of energy.
Good sources of carbohydrates are fruits, vegetables, beans, whole grains, rice and pasta. Round out your diet with lean meat and small amounts of fat.
About an hour before you ride, fuel your body with a high carbohydrate snack or small meal. Some fruit and whole grain toast is a good idea or perhaps the athlete's friend: a bagel with peanut butter.
If you are going to be riding for more than an hour, replenish your carbs with a sports drink or energy bar during your ride.
It is equally important to eat within sixty minutes after a ride to replenish lost nutrients and to aid in muscle recovery.
Water is essential for hydration and maintaining fluid balance. To estimate your rate of fluid loss, weigh yourself nude before a race and then again after a ride. This is the amount of fluid you have lost during a race or a tour. Your rate of sweating can exceed a liter an hour in hot weather, so it is difficult to keep up. Drinking on a bike is always a good idea to keep up with fluid loss.
To ensure proper nutrition without overeating, a nutritional supplement is recommended for cyclists. Vibe is an great choice for an all natural nutritional supplement. This nutritional supplement is great tasting, convenient, and economical. It is a powerful way to get the balanced nutrition an active cyclist requires. More information about Vibe is available at Nutrition for Champions
Karen Vertigan Pope writes for Ciniva Systems, an award winning Virginia web design company. Ciniva specializes in web design and SEO. Ms. Vertigan Pope is the Project Support Manager of Ciniva Systems. Ciniva Systems is in charge of SEO for Nutrition for Champions.
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