Nutrition/Fitness Question

[mandm177]

So...not sure who's a health buff here, but I have a few questions...

A couple of things about me first:
I ride ~21 miles (hoping to up it to ~24-25 miles by next weekend) on my road bike 5-6 times a week.
If i'm not on my road bike, then i ride generally 10-15 miles on my mountain bike on a trail
My diet isnt the best...but it's not the worst:
Breakfast = Fruit & Yogurt Parfait
Lunch = Small, Spinach and Chicken Salad
Dinner = Usually whatever i feel like

I had a couple of days last week where my legs didnt feel like the recovered as fast as they usually do. Not sure if this was due to WHAT i ate or HOW MUCH i ate (or both), but i'm trying to prevent it from happening again. One of my riding buddies suggested that i look into "lean protein" which i think he basically means protein powder/shakes. What are people's experiences with shakes and supplements in general?

Im a newbie when it comes to nutrition and supplements, so i'm all ears....and yes, i'm plan on making my diet better....soonish..

[dr.occa]

Well, for what it's worth, I'm not a health food buff but my wife is a pilates instructor and also for knowledgeable about healthy eating.

The biggest thing you really want to stay away from if you can is high fructose corn syrup. If it's going to be sweet just go sugar or splenda.

The most important meals are breakfast and lunch. Dinner should not consist of carbs. If you can't resist then a small amount of carbs. Dinner really should be your smallest meal.

As far as your legs not recovering it could be that you're overtraining your legs. Break up your regime with some walking and upper & mid body regiments. Pilates is good for both men and women.

[mandm177]

Well, for what it's worth, I'm not a health food buff but my wife is a pilates instructor and also for knowledgeable about healthy eating.

She must be HOT! you need to bring her out to some of the state wide meets!

The biggest thing you really want to stay away from if you can is high fructose corn syrup. If it's going to be sweet just go sugar or splenda.

No problem there. I don't have much of a sweet tooth, and have cut out 99% of coke's from my diet. I do have the occasional, but it's not common for me at all. Beer on the other hand...

The most important meals are breakfast and lunch. Dinner should not consist of carbs. If you can't resist then a small amount of carbs. Dinner really should be your smallest meal.

Ive tried intermittent fasting before (skipping breakfast and lunch and eating a hearty dinner) and i didnt have much of a problem with that. I have heard that breakfast isnt as important as people claimed it used to be...BUT i have started at least eating the yogurt parfait in the mornings. Might supplement that with a protein shake mid-morning just to see what happens. And you forget...i AM japanese...so Rice at dinner is a must! well, when i have a meal that NEEDS rice at least....

As far as your legs not recovering it could be that you're overtraining your legs. Break up your regime with some walking and upper & mid body regiments. Pilates is good for both men and women.

This has actually been suggested as well...the overworking of the legs, not the pilates. It was weird, because it wasnt the first time i was on that ~21 mile ride. it was probably my...3-4th time doing that distance. I'm going to see how i feel after another 2-3 rides at that distance, and if it doesnt happen again, i'm going to take it as a fluke...but i still want to get my diet to a better place.

[GamblerZ]

The most important meals are breakfast and lunch. Dinner should not consist of carbs. If you can't resist then a small amount of carbs. Dinner really should be your smallest meal.

Ive tried intermittent fasting before (skipping breakfast and lunch and eating a hearty dinner) and i didnt have much of a problem with that. I have heard that breakfast isnt as important as people claimed it used to be...BUT i have started at least eating the yogurt parfait in the mornings. Might supplement that with a protein shake mid-morning just to see what happens. And you forget...i AM japanese...so Rice at dinner is a must! well, when i have a meal that NEEDS rice at least....

As far as your legs not recovering it could be that you're overtraining your legs. Break up your regime with some walking and upper & mid body regiments. Pilates is good for both men and women.

This has actually been suggested as well...the overworking of the legs, not the pilates. It was weird, because it wasnt the first time i was on that ~21 mile ride. it was probably my...3-4th time doing that distance. I'm going to see how i feel after another 2-3 rides at that distance, and if it doesnt happen again, i'm going to take it as a fluke...but i still want to get my diet to a better place.

Dinner should NOT be your largest meal of the day, and as already mentioned stay away from carbs at night. If anything, you should be eating an ample-sized breakfast and lunch.

It also sounds like you might be over-training. You need to give your muscles time to repair and rebuild. Biking every other day would accomplish this. If you can not stay off the bike then you should consider a protein drink after your workout to assist your muscles in recovery. Check out this website: http://www.livestrong.com/article/34507 ... an-muscle/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. Otherwise, you can try something like Muscle Milk.

[86boy]

Well, for what it's worth, I'm not a health food buff but my wife is a pilates instructor and also for knowledgeable about healthy eating.

The biggest thing you really want to stay away from if you can is high fructose corn syrup. If it's going to be sweet just go sugar or splenda.

The most important meals are breakfast and lunch. Dinner should not consist of carbs. If you can't resist then a small amount of carbs. Dinner really should be your smallest meal.

As far as your legs not recovering it could be that you're overtraining your legs. Break up your regime with some walking and upper & mid body regiments. Pilates is good for both men and women.

Pics or Neg points will happen..... LOL

[dr.occa]

Well, for what it's worth, I'm not a health food buff but my wife is a pilates instructor and also for knowledgeable about healthy eating.

The biggest thing you really want to stay away from if you can is high fructose corn syrup. If it's going to be sweet just go sugar or splenda.

The most important meals are breakfast and lunch. Dinner should not consist of carbs. If you can't resist then a small amount of carbs. Dinner really should be your smallest meal.

As far as your legs not recovering it could be that you're overtraining your legs. Break up your regime with some walking and upper & mid body regiments. Pilates is good for both men and women.

Pics or Neg points will happen..... LOL

[mandm177]

Dinner should NOT be your largest meal of the day, and as already mentioned stay away from carbs at night. If anything, you should be eating an ample-sized breakfast and lunch.

As much as i want to follow that mantra...it's really hard for me. I'm sure it can be done with some discipline and some better time management, but i've yet to find something...a routine if you will...that will work for me. Intermittent Fasting on a 20/4 schedule worked for me because of my schedule, and i was able to maintain my weight without much physical activity.

It also sounds like you might be over-training. You need to give your muscles time to repair and rebuild. Biking every other day would accomplish this. If you can not stay off the bike then you should consider a protein drink after your workout to assist your muscles in recovery. Check out this website: http://www.livestrong.com/article/34507 ... an-muscle/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. Otherwise, you can try something like Muscle Milk.

Again, that's been considered. i'm hoping i'm NOT overworking my legs. it took me a while to get up to the point of going on a ride as much as i am, so i'm trying not to lose that. i'm probably going to try some protein shakes (not muscle milk...a bit too pricey) and see how that helps my recovery...if any.

Thanks for the tips!

[joel26]

So do u just eat three times a day..? Also u are doing all this work just to maintain weight or loose weight ?

[mandm177]

3 times a day? yea, i guess you could say that.

I enjoy riding, so it's not so much "work" to me. i think of it like this...i'm bike riding, and a positive side effect of it, is that i'm losing weight.

Rode ~21 miles yesterday, and legs feel fine. will ride another ~21 today and hopefully all will be good.

[GamblerZ]

I used to do Triathlons riding 20-30 miles everyday, jogging about 2 miles each day, and swimming about 2000 meters each evening. I was fasting too in order to stay lean, but what I found was that recoveries were taking longer each time and my body was beginning to shut down because it probably thought it is fending off starvation. It is your body's way of protecting itself. You need to maintain good nutrition if you intend to train, but your muscles need to rest after a rigorous workout too. The muscle develops "micro" tears that need to repair themselves and that can only be done with protein and rest intervals. If you continue to push then you can incur joint damage as your muscles may no longer be able to support the strain. This is a classic case of more is not better.

I had to give up triathlons as I destroyed my knees. Consequently I gained weight. Now I have modified my diet and lost 45lbs--back to my fighting weight. Good eating habits are the key to good health.

[mandm177]

Good eating habits are the key to good health.

This....
Ive heard of the 80-20 rule when it comes to diet and exercise. Trying harder to get the 80 part down.

[Manifesto]

i didnt read the replies, but OP there are a lot of factors to consider when talking about fatigue
1. diet
2. rest and recovery
3. lifestyle, stress, etc

with regard to supplements and especially whey protein. my experience is that theyre all shit when you have your diet in check. whey protein is made from the left overs of cheese production... get your macros in order, you may be lacking in the protein, since its principally used is in the repair/maintenance of muscle

you may just need more sleep. when im in a strong training cycle i simply need more sleep. another interesting idea is that your nervous system could be overtrained/stimulated. if you dont get enough rest. or live a stressful life w/o real downtime... you can fry you nervous system and youll feel exhausted, etc.

i dont know your life or your training, but maybe thisll give you some ideas

[joel26]

I am with this guy ^^^^^^^^^ on the whey protein.... I see if i can find a clip of a documentary that was done on hbo on a guy doing steroids that was talking about pill and powder protein and how they are made was scary... lol the crap they put in it...

[joel26]

Here is the vid i was talking about... Hope everyone enjoys it.... The ending is not to good but it cracks me up..

[mooreofit]

the key to longevety is eating whatever makes you happy.the key to not being fat is being active.im blessed to have a job right now that has me burning 6000 calories a day. but i eat a good 4-5000 calories a day.