Nutrition

by Jenny Hegmann Jenny Hegmann, MS, RD, is co-author of The Cyclist's Food Guide: Fueling for Distance ((c) 2005 Sports Nutrition Publishers) with Nancy Clark, MS, RD. Hegmann is a sports nutritionist and long-distance cyclist. She lives and works in the greater Boston area. Glycemic Index* and Glycemic Load All foods are from the US or Canada unless otherwise specified. Glycemic index is based on a 50-gram carbohydrate portion. Glycemic load is based on selected portion sizes (indicated in the last column). Low GI <40 Moderate GI 40 - 70 High GI >70 Low GI (<40) Food Glycemic Index Glycemic [...]

Common Questions about Sugars and the Glycemic Index by Jenny Hegmann Jenny Hegmann, MS, RD, is co-author of The Cyclist's Food Guide: Fueling for Distance (© 2005 Sports Nutrition Publishers) with Nancy Clark, MS, RD. Hegmann is a sports nutritionist and long-distance cyclist. She lives and works in the greater Boston area. What type of carbohydrate is best for health and for riding? The quality of a carbohydrate used to be judged by whether it was complex or simple. Complex carbohydrates (potato, bread) were considered "slow," providing a steady, longer-lasting supply of glucose to the body. Simple carbohydrates (sweets, sugar) [...]

by Janice Tower Janice Tower is a licensed USA Cycling Level 2 coach and coaches professionally for Carmichael Training Systems. She is the director of Mighty Bikes, a mountain biking program for children ages 8 to 18. For more information on developing junior riders, contact Janice at jtower @ alaska.com or visit www.mightybikes.org. Introduction Leslie, an effervescent lady in her middle years, spun smoothly in the Ronsse Velogarage one frigid Alaska day. Leslie unwittingly rode about two thirds of an indoor century. She cheerfully dismounted when her allotted time was up, tucked her bike under one arm, trainer under the [...]

On a long ride your overall goals should be to maintain fluid and energy balance on a day-to-day basis. by Susan I. Barr, Ph.D., RDN and John Hughes Susan Barr, is a Professor of Nutrition, University of British Columbia. She is a veteran of the Rocky Mountain 1200, Paris-Brest-Paris, Team Furnace Creek 508, Pacific Crest and PAC Tours. John Hughes is a former director of the WUCA, has been certified by the NSCA as a personal trainer and by USA Cycling as a coach. Learn about Hughes’ coaching at www.coach-hughes.com. Introduction On a long ride such as a double century, [...]

Ten Mistakes Endurance Athletes Make and How You Can Avoid Them by Steve Born Steve Born is a technical advisor for E-CAPS with over a decade of involvement in the health food industry. He is a three-time RAAM finisher, the 1994 Furnace Creek 508 Champion and 1999 runner-up, and is the holder of two WUCA records. Visit hammergel.com   Over Hydrating Too many times endurance athletes fall for the "if a little is good, a lot is better" myth. Nowhere is this truer than when it comes to hydration. All it takes is one race where you've had to DNF [...]