Question:
I enjoy long distance bicycling,
a typical workout consists of at
least a 40 mile ride and when time
allows at least 60. I am preparing
for a very long ride, across the
US but I find that after pushing
myself for over 60 miles or three
hours at 20 mph, my digestive system
gets very upset.
I've tried
different foods both before, during
and after the ride and although
I've
found that during the rides I feel
fine, a couple hours afterwards
my head starts pounding and my stomach
gets upset. I try to stay up on
liquids, and on any ride over two
hours I take food, first I tried
Granola bars, then some of the different
"power" bars and am now
trying bananas and oranges. The
muscle groups used to propel the
bike feel fine, it's my head and
stomach that are killing the chances
of a successful cross country, I
would greatly appreciate any (serious)
advice or recommendations.
Answer:
get your nutritional info from an
RD. They are the only people trained
to give nutritional advice. Look
for one with experience or extra
training in sports nutrition!
An upset stomach
sometimes means your body is thinking
of getting rid of some acid, the
kidneys are an important organ in
maintaining the body's acid/base
balance. If you are not urinating
in that third hour perhaps you are
not keeping up with your with your
body's fluid and electolyte needs
in spite of your good intentions.
The kidney sheds acid by catabolizing
an amino acid, the muscle is the
ultimate storage depot for amino
acids and is being catabolized during
this activity.
Maybe also, your body, might be
one of the unfortunate few that
is not very good at digesting food
during the third hour of a 20mph
pace.
