N.B. The following is intended as guidance only and should be treated as such. Any actions you take are entirely at your own risk.
Introduction
Its quite common for your average club racing cyclist to be so wrapped up in training techniques, HRM's, zones, equipment and recovery they forget a fundamental part of their training regime which, with a few minor changes, could make them go even faster without training anymore or any harder. What is this? A new scientific way of training? No...its simply looking after your diet and attaining an optimum amount of body fat.
Why is a lean body good?
Well the maths speak for themselves. Here is an example. A cyclist weighs 65kg and has a body fat composition of 13%. In the eyes of a doctor this is absolutely fine, the rider doesn't even look fat and is pretty fit, regularly riding sub-1hr 25 mile time trials. A trained athlete of that calibre, any coach or sports scientist would say should be looking to reduce their body fat by 50%+ to something like 6% or 7%, for this example we will use 6%. So now the maths. 13% of 65kg = 8.45kg. 6% of 65kg = 3.9kg. 8.45kg - 3.9kg = 4.55kg (*2.2=10 lbs). A good measure of fitness is your Power to Weight ratio and this example shows, if the rider lost 4.55kgs (10 lbs) its going to push their P:W ratio up, hence go faster. Aside from the science stuff, imagine riding a bike 10 lbs lighter up hill, thats the difference it can make! So no need to get any fitter, lose the weight and you go faster. FACT.
How is the weight lost?
Effective weight loss is a combination of things. Training at a level which promotes Body Fat being used as a source of fuel, controlled intake of calories and a reduction in saturated fat intake (junk food, dairy products). Because every rider is different I can't prescribe a specific program for readers to use but I can give you some pointers.
- Start reading the labels, look at the fat content of your processed foods and keep them to a minimum.
- Keep dairy products to a minimum, skimmed or semi-skimmed milk and other reduced-fat products only
- Junk Food is out
- Keep off the beer
- Focus on carbs, pasta, rice, potatoes, bread and reduce saturated fat intake.
Its important you include as much training at Level 1/2 as possible. These are typically your aerobic training zones which will promote weight loss through burning body fat as a fuel source.
The other important things to note about any weight loss program you undertake are:
- Keep it progressive, short term, large weight loss is not good.
- At the extreme end of the scale, body fat below 3% is not advised and can be unhealthy.
Instead of spending money on your bike, spend it elsewhere which could have a greater effect on your performance in the long run. See a Sports Physiologist or Coach who specialise in Cycling. They have the proper skills, equipment and methods to identify your needs and can tailor plans, based on the concepts above, to achieve your weight loss aims. They could highlight other areas for improvement too and help.
Conclusion
Pay as much attention to your diet as the miles you do and you can be leaner, healthier and faster! The above example of a cyclist is actually me. I've had my body fat calculated and I've changed my diet slightly. Basically cutting out butter, cheese, beer and processed/junk food. I now eat more baked potatoes and more portions of fruit and veg a day. The result..7 lb weight loss in just over 2 weeks and I'm still going. Even the mrs has joined in and losing weight too!
Paul Prince
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