Feb 04 2008
You ride how you eat…
We all have our favorite foods… some good for training… some not.
So, in another installment from Dr. Chris Eschbach… I aked him:
What’s your favorite training meal and how does it 
help?
Chris Eschbach, Ph.D., HFI
Director of the Human Performance Laboratory:
My favorite training dinner would be one that incorporates a large variety of food. I always try to eat a lot of everything during the main part of the training season with the main focus on nutritious carbohydrates (usually lower glycemic index carbs). I do continue eating, in what some would view as unhealthy, high glycemic foods like sherbet, sugary snacks, and fruit juices in the time immediately after exercise lasting for a few hours. This all helps to replenish and maintain your carbohydrate stores (glycogen) in order to train and recover efficiently. I do not go overboard on proteins. Proteins are needed especially when you are trying to go to a new level of fitness but unless you are a vegetarian your most likely getting enough in your diet, especially if you are eating enough total calories to support training.
What do you think about sport drinks or other fancy “after work-out” products.
I always thought it was very important to eat some protein SOON after a work-out.
thx for article
Hi Will…
Yes… me too on the protein thought. As I have written before, I always have a big glass of fat free chocolate milk with a scoop of protein after hard rides/training. It has really seemed to help me recover. I expect (Dr.) Chris will comment soon to let us know what he thinks.
Cheers,
Donald
What is your favorite pre-race, or long ride meal? I like to stick to pasta, and anything without meat.
I do feel that the Yoga has helped. I was having a lot of pain in my left knee, and I think it was from a lack of proper stretching. After I did the Yoga a few times, the pain has completely gone away.
Jeff, I believe there is another blog entry coming up with that exact same question, so stay tuned.
As for post exercise recovery drinks…for most of them they will not hurt you (except maybe your pocket). The key to recovering as quickly as possible post exercise is simple carbohydrate at a rate of between 0.8 and 1.5 g of carbs/kg body weight/hour for 1-3 hours post exercise. This is especially important if you have another bout of exercise within hours of the most recent session. Don’t forget that all of these Calories are included in the daily intake and can relatively easily put you over your “need”.
Whether additional protein will help or not is still up in the air. The original research showed increased insulin response (which would help “absorb” the carbohydrate better) but subsequent research has not supported this. Still, it will not hurt to have a 4:1 carb:protein ratio.
So, Donald the chocolate milk is a good thing, as previous research has reported. The popular recovery drinks on the market are convenient but no magic.
Hope this helps and if anything needs clarification just ask.
My favorite pre-ride mill is oatmill or Special K with a banana or some other fruit. Pre-ride I like yogurt and cheese or peanut butter.
I am with Chris on the oatmeal before a ride. As an alternative, oatbran is even better. I put on some raisins and cinammon and it is quite tasty and ridiculously fast.
Most weekdays I eat my Swiss-style muesli, which is quite filling and very tasty. It also makes a good snack.
I was interested to read that the jury is still out on post-workout protein. I often put a scoop of whey protein into a smoothie after a workout as I figure it cannot hurt. I am a vegetarian and think that I get enough protein from dairy and legumes but was under the impression that athletes need a bit more protein to aid in recovery.
Chris– Oatmeal for me too… and a banana. Peanut Butter is always in my diet as well.
Sprocketboy– yeah… as I’ve said before… I always have a glass of fat free chocolate milk with a scoop of whey protein after hard training. I also like the muesli… in fact I got a great recipe from somewhere on the internet … I’ll have to share that on a post and we can compare notes.
A recipe for muesli on the Internet? Can’t imagine where that could come from!
Returning to the subject of protein, a endurance athlete newsletter I get suggests taking a scoop of whey protein in water just before going to bed. Apparently this can assist the regenerative effects of your natural Human Growth Hormone (HGH) by up to 400 percent. As a vegetarian cyclist I figure that a little bit of extra protein can’t hurt but I have not heard about this before. By the way, whey protein with water tastes truly terrible but the article said not to mix it with fruit juice or anything as the carbs will interfere and reduce the effect.