Train to Eat!

Found my new road bike for next summer. The Trek 2000 with a ZR 9000 Alloy frame that is lighter then Titanium and stronger then steel. Carbon components and Bontrager wheels and race lite tires to reduce weight. It comes with a reasonable price tag of $1400 to 1600, depending on the shop you go to. Which is half of what it I paid for my mountain bike so it feels really cheap. And its black how can i go wrong?

Being Lance Armstrong and team discoveries bike -the Trek Madone- they make quality bikes. Where they differ from European bikes, that use to dominate the market, is that you get a lot of bike for a reduced price. European bikes are great but when you compare the two you are better off saving money for about the same performance.

Workout to eat. Might sound funny but when I am training really hard, especially for races, I eat a ton. And I love to eat good food so this works out really well. Days that I train in the gym, then run and then hike or bike are the best as I am looking at 3000+ cals of tasty and healthy foods for the day. Foods like; oat meal, granola bars, 5-7 fruits, raw veggies, salad, protein shakes(only tasty when strawberries are added) avocadoes, pasta, rice and meats of all kind and fish stir frys...and am allowed a small amount of sugar/week(gummie bears mostly) and beer as my treats.

I started working out and training for health and races bc that is my passion and hobby. But what I quickly learned as well was that working out provides you with a huge appitie allowing you to eat many extra calories that will not be stored as fat.

Since the tour begins tomorrow and talking about calories, I though that I would mention what the cyclists eat on the tour. Just before I get into this an average person should consume about 1 to 1.5 grams of protein and carbohydrates per pound of body weight with low acitivity. High activity, like my self, about 2 to 2.5 grams of protein and 2.0 to 3.0g of carbs/lb.

With this in mind the average cyclist on the tour will consume 2500 cals for breakfast. On a day that I do average training that is my cal intake for the whole day. They injest 6 to 8g of carbs/lb per day , or more then 1200 g of carbohydrates per day – a slice of bread is 15g. They burn on average 5000 to 8000 cals/day and to repair, replensh, rehydrate and be ready for the next day they will consume 8,000 to 10,000cals/day. During the TDF the riders will aim to gain close to 70 % of their energy from carbohydrates stored in the muscles and provided by food and energy drinks across the day. As well as fuel, the body will need adequate proteins, fats and vitamins to sustain both muscles and the riders’ general health. This level of exercise needs an immune system in top form.

Typically what Tour de France riders eat:

Breakfast
8.8 ounces (dry measure) rice or pasta
4 ounces muesli
4.4 ounce carton of yogurt or fromage blanc
1 to 2 slices whole grain bread
Homemade marmalade
Omelet made with 3 egg whites and one yolk (optional)
1 to 2 slices ham and/or cheese
Freshly squeezed orange juice
Coffee

Feed bags on the bike
4 cakes or bars (including rice cakes, almond cookies, and dried fruit bars)
Cut-up fruit: three chunks of pineapple, banana cut in three pieces, quartered apple
2 or 3 finger sandwiches filled with ham and cheese or preserves or chicken salad
3 or 4 protein bars
One .15 liter mini-can of Coke
Snack ( in hotel )
Small bowl rice pudding, served tepid
Sliced fruit

Dinner
1 to 2 slices prosciutto or other cured ham
8.8 ounces (dry measure) pasta with fresh tomato sauce
8.8 ounces beef tenderloin
Ratatouille (eggplant, zucchini, tomato stew)
Yogurt
Fresh fruit
Slice of cake (optional)
Water
Glass of beer, sometimes mixed with lemon soda or lemonade (optional)
Glass of wine (rarely)

Enjoy the tour, tomorrow is the first stage and is a solo time trial of 7.2 kms, can't wait for it to begin, the first big day is sunday with 203km of riding.