Cycling is an energy sport. Eating on the bike is therefore essential if you want to ride fast or far. Eating on the bike is easy on your muscle stores and allows you to cover more distance. With the triad of body fat, muscle glycogen and supplied energy, you can move a lot. And that is necessary, because the energy turnover on a racing bike can be enormous. Example Ötztal Cycle Marathon. The mother of all road bike marathons over 238 kilometres and 5500 metres in altitude requires a huge energy expenditure of around 6000 kcal. That's more than twice what an office worker needs in a day. Professional cyclists burn even more. Mathieu van der Poel consumed Victory in the Tour of Flanders around 6800 kcal. Similar sales are possible for mountain stages in the Tour de France documented.
Nutrition planning with the EatMyRide app for a road bike marathon
100-120 grams of carbohydrates per hour is the maximum
Professionals satisfy their hunger for energy on the bike with all kinds of high-calorie foods: bars, rice cakes, gels and energy drinks. Van der Poel had a sticker on his stem that gave an overview of the route. The second column showed the planned race nutrition with pictograms; one entry per 20 kilometres. According to his performance manager Kristof de Kegel, van der Poel consumed 100 to 120 grams of carbohydrates per hour. This is the absolute upper limit of what can be digested and provides up to 514 kcal per hour, enough for 140 watts, half of what van der Poel pedalled on average.
App runs on smartphones or Garmin computers
The EatMyRide app by Dutchman Joram Kolf is the electronic version of the sticker on the stem. His app informs cyclists when they should eat something on the road and which products can provide this energy flow. The software runs on smartphones and also as a widget on the latest generation of Garmin computers. During the journey, it shows what to eat or drink and when. This requires a certain amount of pre-planning, but makes it clear that a bar for 100 kilometres is not enough. For Hobby athletes should eat 60 grams of carbohydrates per hour as easily digestible, even that is almost Two solid energy bars per hour.
Professionals also use the app. Wilco Keldermann from Team Bora-Hansgrohe reports that he uses it before races or training sessions to find out what he needs to eat to cover his requirements. "I can use the app to play through how my race nutrition changes if I choose a different product," explains the tour specialist. The Dutchman usually chooses dosed energy in liquid form for the extreme energy turnover on the road bike. Keldermann says that this even enables him to get through a Tour de France without losing weight - something that was previously considered impossible.
How many bars and gels do I need? Specific recommendations depending on the route
The basic version of the app is free and suitable for planning your race or training catering. Routes can be imported from Komoot or Strava. Alternatively, the route can also be created in the EatMyRide app according to the categories flat, undulating or mountainous with just a few clicks. The energy requirement is extrapolated from the personal data and the planned speed. This can be further refined using power meter data. This gives you a good idea in advance of the amount of energy required. The app then helps you to select suitable gels and drinks, makes recommendations and evaluates the choice of food. If your favourite bar is not stored in the database, you can create it yourself.
App helps to avoid hunger pangs
The paid version of the app (for iOS and Android) costs 59.99 euros per year and dynamises the nutrition planning - this adapts depending on the intensity of the training. It also makes it possible to adjust the diet more specifically to the type of ride and analyse it after the ride.
The app can open your eyes to how much energy you need to replenish on the road in order to train optimally. At least cyclists are likely to eat as much as the app advises when travelling. The software is therefore suitable for improving your energy supply and taking your training to a new level. Our advice: Try it out!
- Here you can find more Articles and tips on nutrition for cyclists
More information about the app: https://eatmyride.com/
