6 Handy Nutritional Tips Every Cyclist Should Know By Heart

April 28, 2021

Cycling is an endurance sport that requires you to perform at a certain level for long periods.

6 Handy Nutritional Tips Every Cyclist Should Know By Heart

Unlike sprinting, you have to keep pushing for long durations while you’re cycling. The health benefits of cycling are numerous as it helps you control your weight and maintain a healthy body.

Cycling is also relatively easier on your knees and allows you to keep burning fat for an extended period.

But all cyclists need proper nutrition to balance it out and gain optimal results from their training. You can’t just sustain doing this endurance sport if you’re not focusing on feeding your body the right nutrients and macros.

Listed here are the 6 most important tips that every cyclist must know to obtain their best performance.

1. Carbs Are Your Friends

Contrary to what’s suggested by the fad diets promoted by many influencers and self-proclaimed fitness gurus, carbohydrates are an integral part of your diet.

Carbs help your muscles fuel themselves to churn out non-stop energy. If you skimp on your carbs, you cannot keep cycling for very long and your performance will take a hit

Most of the reputed sources of information about cycling will definitely recommend carb-rich foods like pasta, rice, baked potatoes, muesli, and much more. So stop worrying about the misinformation available on the internet and start eating healthy carbs.

2. Nutrients Are Vital

When an athlete engages in a high-energy sport like cycling, the impact on their bodies is relatively high. To help your body repair itself and function optimally, you must maintain a healthy intake of all the essential micronutrients.

Vegetables and fruits form an important part of your diet as a cyclist since these superfoods contain vitamins and minerals like potassium and phosphorus.

However, as a cyclist, the time you have at hand is much less. A cyclist constantly trains and improves, making shopping, preparing, and eating these superfoods a time-consuming affair. An innovative way to harness all the benefits without sacrificing your time would be green drink powders, made from all the superfoods mentioned above. If you’re short on time, then these superfoods available in powdered form will be your best bet.

3. Hydration Is Key

Since the human body comprises around 60% water, this one shouldn’t come as a surprise. If you’re not giving your body the proper hydration you’re seriously hampering your growth as well as recovery.

Even a little fluid loss in the form of sweating will significantly reduce your performance, and when you’re engaging in a sport as competitive as cycling, you need to juice out every ounce of performance from your body. So keep a bottle of water handy to recharge yourself at regular intervals.

4. Eat before You Go

A pre-cycling breakfast will ensure that you give the best performance possible. A decently sized breakfast of about 500-1000 calories should be consumed a couple of hours before the race or practice session.

This ensures that it is digested by the time you hit the track and provides a continuous and sustainable release of energy throughout your ride.

5. Re-energize While Riding

Consuming calorie-rich foods during the ride is as important as a pre-ride breakfast. Your body quickly depletes its glycogen reserves responsible for providing the juice to your muscles.

Eating an energy bar, energy gel, or energy drink is vital for maintaining your performance until the end. There’s a good reason why all the professional cyclists start with a supply of these foods to fuel themselves mid-race when the body craves more energy.

6. Don’t Forget Proteins & Fats

As much as carbs are important for your performance, your body also needs a good dose of proteins to recover. Proteins are the superfood that helps you when you’re not on the saddle but recovering at home.

After the intense and strenuous session you undergo, your body demands proteins to rebuild the muscle damage allowing your muscles to grow and increasing your performance. The same applies to fats. Healthy fats are essential as they help reduce inflammation and give your body the long-term energy source it needs.

man cycling

These were some of the most critical tips that every cyclist must know to give their best on the track. Many cyclists often overlook nutrition as they are too busy training, but both these things go hand-in-hand.

There are many more variables to the sport of cycling and can be discussed all day long. But these 6 points are the holy grail for any cyclist, and if you keep these points in mind and keep practicing, then maybe we’ll see you at the Tour de France too.

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