What to eat before, during and after cycling

"Should I eat before training?" "What can be my post-ride meal" are very common questions we get asked by our cycling community.

You can eat before cycling, but, Beware! Before cycling you shouldn’t by no means eat foods high in fat that can be tougher to digest, that’s off-limits, and a big NO!

As mentioned we’ll be tackling the food you should go for before and after your ride.
But before getting to that, let’s give you a glimpse of what you should absolutely, avoid!

This might seem odd but one meal that you should not eat after a ride is a salad. Yes, you heard it right! As we all know by now that salad is part of a balanced diet, yet, it doesn’t contain the carbohydrates your body needs before a ride.

Another meal that you should be avoiding before a ride is pasta.
Now one may say that pasta contains carbohydrates, however, it is what comes with the pasta that can disrupt your digestion!

Don’t worry, we’ll get to this in another blog, now we bet you’re curious and you want to know about your best pre-ride and post-ride meals.
So without further ado, let’s get into it!

Your pre-ride meal

A meal that is high on carbohydrates is highly recommended, here are some examples:

Oatmeal

All cyclists should know by now that Oats are the go-to pre-ride meal, it has the power to fuel up your ride.

According to cyclist.co, Nigel Michell, head of nutrition at Team Sky, says ‘Porridge is quite simply a great breakfast for cyclists.

EGGS AND TOAST

Eggs and toast is your perfect pre-ride food for long rides! First, because you can’t go out without a dose of protein that will not only fuel up your body before cycling but it will help you build and repair muscle mass. It’s also the perfect combination because it provides you with the dose of carbohydrates needed.

Granola

You can never go wrong with a Granola as it is an essential nutrient, rich in carbohydrates. The cherry on top is that Granola can also be added to your meals, you can use it to bake into a cake or even an energy bar not only for the pre-ride but for during the ride too.

You heard it right, you can also have snacks, during your ride, it might be necessary if your ride exceeded one hour.

During your ride meal

ENERGY BARS!

It’s worth pointing out that energy bars are high in carbohydrates and they're every cyclist’s must if you want a meal during your ride.

The coolest thing about energy bars is that there are a lot of DIY easy recipes, have fun making them. If you’re lazy, you can always buy one, there are a variety of flavours that can suit your tastes!

But remember to aim for small quantities!

SMOOTHIE

Easy to make, delicious and healthy! The perfect combination for an effective performance. Smoothies are not only for before races but you can also prepare your fruit fresh smoothie with you to your ride.

Your post-ride meal

After going for a long ride, all you need to recover and replace lost fluids is a balanced meal

Chia seeds

A secret recipe that not all cyclists know about! It can be an energy booster!
It is flavorless but you can add it to your lunch or breakfast, salad or soup, Literally anything!

White rice

White rice is always a good idea!
It is not a surprise that all experts recommend white rice for recovery after a ride as it is an essential carbohydrate source and is considered an important part of every cyclist’s nutrition plan.
With complex carbs such as rice we suggest other meals such as chicken, tuna, salmon..

Salmon it is! Because it contains omega-3 which has the power to decrease your post-exercise muscle inflammation.

Salmon is a rich ingredient because it also has Vitamin D, Vitamin B6 that is the best energy booster, isn’t it a good recovery element?

All in all, all you need to do is to eat food elements that are rich with carbohydrates, just you need to control the amount. Don’t you eat too much!

But before hopping on your bike and going for a ride, don’t forget to pick up the perfect cycling apparel for you.
Head over to our website to check all our collections, you will then be ready to cycle and ride with style.