[Piles]

Just had two months off the bike and have recently got back on. Ive been led to believe, in the past, that my power would be the first area i would notice that was lacking.
My problem arises at about 40 miles, my legs just turn off as though someone has flicked a switch and its at this point that i cant ride up the slightest of gradients and struggle to do more than 10mph. Up until this point i have no problems at all on hills and if anything i seem just as good as ever. This has occured on three rides in a row. Have i lost fitness in a particular area, if so what training should i do to regain my performance?
Or does this sound as though im bonking?

 

[SilasCL]

Sounds like a bonk, what are you eating and drinking on your rides?

Silas

 

[Piles]

On a ride i dont eat anything if its under 2.5 hours. Drink wise i take the usual, SIS or High five.

 

[Viva Mexico!]

i asm new at road biking but i have been a serious mtb for years...
i go on 2 hour/ 30 miles rides almost all the time with no food but a previous cereal or jelly sandwich.
But when i go for anything longer than 2 hours, no matter if its a 2:30 ride or a 3-4 hour ride i take food with me. i usually take two packs of all bran bars (2 bars each) with me and i try on eating at lesat one bar each hour. I like eating bananas but i dont feel lijke carrying one around.
I notice that after 2 hours of riding if i dont do this i feel weak, dizzy and heavy. Yeah, it doent matter if its 10-15 min after the 2 hour mark i resent it.
I have noticed that eating one bar per hour i can pedal harder and even do some hard efforts after the 3 hour mark.
Maybe it is a placebo effect but it worked on me.
Oh and another thing i learned is that energy drinks do work.
It might sound stupid but I have always been preety esceptic on them and i always carried water with me instead but on the last 4 hour ride i refilled one of my water bottes with a gatorade half the way of the ride and it gave me an awesome boost of energy that helped out a lot.

 

[SilasCL]

On a ride i dont eat anything if its under 2.5 hours. Drink wise i take the usual, SIS or High five.

I haven't heard of those drinks, but unless they are liquid glucose, you probably aren't getting enough energy into the system.

Eat something, preferably with lots of carbohydrates.

Silas

 

[Woofer]

On a ride i dont eat anything if its under 2.5 hours. Drink wise i take the usual, SIS or High five.

You really ought to experimenting with eating more on rides. Vary the time, interval, and amount of food. Every one has different needs for nutrition on bike rides depending on weight/intensity/etc.

 

[ari]

On a ride i dont eat anything if its under 2.5 hours. Drink wise i take the usual, SIS or High five.

Sounds like that'll do it ... I can't imagine riding 2.5 hours without any food. I'm no physiologist, but perhaps the layoff reduced your ability to store/utilize glycogen -- it seems like you had enough energy before, but you're bonking now. Solution: take on more energy by eating.

Cheers,
Ari

 

[Hardy Cyclamens]

"Flipped a switch" sounds like "bonking." Sounds like you're just plain out of fuel. One thing that proves the "bonk" status is that food will fix it in about ten minutes. A banana, apple, candy bar, energy bar. In about ten minutes you get the "switch flipped on" and you're able to get the pace back.

The best trick though is to have sufficient food in the system BEFORE the ride. Friel goes over this a lot. Food before and after riding, energy, glycogens, recovery.

Friel's book is worth the time and minor expense of owning and reading.

 

[Argentius]

That feeling sounds like a classic "bonk"

One thing to note: I have no idea how long this takes, but (at least, I'm pretty sure, don't have the book handy) trained athletes can store a lot more glycogen in their bloodstream than non-trained. You may have been able to ride 2.5 hours with the glycogen in your system, plus 100gm CHO from bottles, before, but if you've lost a portion of your glycogen storage capacity, maybe you'd need to eat more to not bonk over the same distance / intensity.

Simple way to find out: after being fully recovered, do it again, but eat more. See if it happens again.

 

[Piles]

Thanks for your replies. I was rather pleased with my effort after a long period off until this happened. But as you suggest, perhaps ive become less efficient with my glycogen stores with such a lay off. Thanks.

 

[magnolialover]

At low intensity...

Thanks for your replies. I was rather pleased with my effort after a long period off until this happened. But as you suggest, perhaps ive become less efficient with my glycogen stores with such a lay off. Thanks.

At low intensity levels, which is what I assume that you're doing just getting back onto the bike after a couple of months layoff, you shouldn't have to eat during rides less than 4 hours, I know I don't, and don't bonk. I somtimes think that people eat and drink too much crap while they ride, thereby almost counteracting the calorie loss of the ride. If you're riding and drinking sports drink, at say, 400 calories per serving, and you've got 3 of those, that's 1200 additional calories. Add to that a clif bar or something similar for about a 300 calorie boost, now you're at like 1500 calories consumed during your 2.5 hour ride, and that leaves you to have burned, yeah, nothing. Roughly. Drink water. Eat a half of a clif bar/powerbar or a couple of fig newtons, and you should be all good over the course of 2.5 hours.

 

[Piles]

At low intensity levels, which is what I assume that you're doing just getting back onto the bike after a couple of months layoff, you shouldn't have to eat during rides less than 4 hours, I know I don't, and don't bonk. I somtimes think that people eat and drink too much crap while they ride, thereby almost counteracting the calorie loss of the ride. If you're riding and drinking sports drink, at say, 400 calories per serving, and you've got 3 of those, that's 1200 additional calories. Add to that a clif bar or something similar for about a 300 calorie boost, now you're at like 1500 calories consumed during your 2.5 hour ride, and that leaves you to have burned, yeah, nothing. Roughly. Drink water. Eat a half of a clif bar/powerbar or a couple of fig newtons, and you should be all good over the course of 2.5 hours.

This really doesnt apply, I can usually ride 2.5 - 4 hours without anything but a good sports drink, and im not cycling to loose weight, or at least i dont want to loose any weight.

 

[magnolialover]

How?

This really doesnt apply, I can usually ride 2.5 - 4 hours without anything but a good sports drink, and im not cycling to loose weight, or at least i dont want to loose any weight.

How does one "loose" weight anyway? I've yet to figure that one out.

 

[32and3cross]

Breakfast = coffee

How does one "loose" weight anyway? I've yet to figure that one out.

Then do the local hammer fest
Lunch equal BP& J
Now do yard work.

Dinner = Martini

I am kidding of course, well sort of, I do just have coffee for bfast usually

 

[Piles]

How does one "loose" weight anyway? I've yet to figure that one out.

What?

 

[Argentius]

It seems like about half of everyone misspells "lose" as "loose," and I won't even get started about "peddle," "pedel," and the like.

 

[Piles]

It seems like about half of everyone misspells "lose" as "loose," and I won't even get started about "peddle," "pedel," and the like.

Loosen up dude. Go pedle your correct speling regime elsewherr.

Joking, never sure about "lose loose" and wasnt sure when i typed it, just too lazy to look it up.

 

[Spunout]

Aim for 300 Cal. per hour after the first hour. You'll be happier when you get off the bike too (no binging in the fridge, better recovery, less chance of illness).

 

[TiBike]

Good point, Spunout

If I don't eat during rides of two hours or more (and sometimes even less) I ATTACK the fridge. I should probably eat much more during my rides.

 

[california]

just bonked

Aim for 300 Cal. per hour after the first hour. You'll be happier when you get off the bike too (no binging in the fridge, better recovery, less chance of illness).

This is all very intersting as I had a big bonk on a 3 hr solo ride Saturday. I always felt that people ate too much on rides as well. I usually bring one bar and I never drink energy drinks. This Saturday had a fair amount of climbing, 10 of the 50 miles or so. But other than that it was pretty ordinary. First time I have ever had those terrible cramps and almost fell over, etc.
How much does what you ate the night before contribute?
Do you mix up drinks from powder?
any information would be great.