While not every long ride is going to be an all-out effort or a race day, long rides do require a lot of fuel if you’re going to perform well and recover fast. But most cyclists don’t consider carb-loading—eating significantly more simple carbs in the day ahead of their ride—anytime other than ahead of a race day. However, if you’re putting in big miles, you may want to consider a smart, healthy carbohydrate loading strategy so that you perform well in your Saturday long ride, and so that on race day, your gut can handle the carbohydrate load.
The great news: During a bike tour like one of inGamba’s classic Italy trips, you’ll have plenty of incredibly fresh, delicious pasta options at the end of long rides so that you’re ready for the next day of pedaling. So as you prepare for your next bike adventure with us, start your prep now (homemade pasta not required).
Why should I carb load ahead of a long ride instead of just for racing?
There are two major reasons you should prioritize a high-carb day of eating prior to a long ride. First, your body needs those carbohydrates on a long ride—even if it isn’t a race day. When you’re out for hours at a time, your body is using up its muscle glycogen stores. If those stores have been topped off thanks to a slightly higher carbohydrate day the day before your ride, you’ll have more fuel in the tank, and it will be easier to stave off the dreaded bonk.
Then, there’s the gut training element. We associate big pasta dinners and pizzas—carbohydrate loading—with the dinner you have before a big race. But if you haven’t been eating that kind of high carb meal ahead of big rides in the past, you won’t know how well you digest certain carbs, and how your body responds. It’s better to experiment with meal options ahead of race day so you know what works best for your body.
How much carbohydrate loading should I do ahead of my long ride?
You don’t need to go overboard and eat an entire pizza the night before your ride. The day ahead of your long ride, start prioritizing more simple carbohydrates. If you’re leery of a lot of white flour or rice, you can stick to whole wheat versions, but make sure that each meal the day before your long ride has a carbohydrate component.
Should I stop eating certain foods ahead of my long ride?
Fruits and vegetables are always a great idea—but the day before a long or hard ride, you may want to drop how much you consume, especially if you tend to eat a lot of raw, high-fiber vegetables like kale. Fiber is fantastic for digestion and your gut microbiome and is a critical part of your daily diet most of the time, but it won’t necessarily help you perform on race day.
However, Tour de France riders and other pro cyclists have said in recent years that they have started to include small amounts of vegetables during these longer stage races, because the benefits of fiber outweighed the potential for digestive upset. Rather than eliminating all fruits and vegetables, they simply lower the amount of vegetables that they eat, and they eat vegetables that have been prepared to be easier to digest. Steamed spinach will provide plenty of nutrients and fiber, for example, but will be a lot easier to digest compared to raw kale.
How many meals should I carb load for?
Common wisdom decades ago recommended that your pre-race dinner was high carb, and that you would eat a lot of whatever carbohydrates were on offer. Today, the best practice is still carb-focused, but tweaked slightly. It’s better to add extra carbohydrates to all of your meals the day before your ride, while dropping fat and fiber slightly, rather than just focusing on what you’re eating for dinner. This spreads out your carbohydrate intake and gives your body time to digest. It also helps you drop your fat and fiber content for the entire day, which can help make your gut less grumpy in the morning.
For example, here’s a typical day with regular eating, and then the high carb version:
- Breakfast: Two scrambled eggs with vegetables, small serving of potatoes
- High Carb Breakfast: Two scrambled eggs, three slices of whole wheat toast with jam or a bowl of oatmeal with berries
- Lunch: Salad with chicken
- High Carb Lunch: Bowl of rice with chicken
- Dinner: Salmon, steamed vegetables, roasted sweet potato
- High Carb Dinner: Salmon, smaller serving of steamed vegetables/sweet potato, side of rice or pasta
What do I do if I struggle to eat enough?
Sometimes, it can be hard to take in enough fuel the day before a big ride. If you’re on the go or simply struggle to eat enough during your busy Friday ahead of a Saturday long ride, you can add a recovery shake that combines protein with carbohydrates, like Enervit’s R2 Recovery Drink. Mix it into a smoothie with frozen bananas or berries for a tasty treat, or just sip it in a water bottle to give yourself the carbohydrate top-up that your muscles will thank you for three hours into your big ride!
