Went on a 46 mile training ride yesterday to Palos Verdes and mostly just drank water and an electrolyte drink. Had a Banana for breakfast before the start and a trailmix/granola bar. Had a gel, and a shot block along the way. On the way back, i tried eating a power bar but the first bite almost made me throw up. Overall never felt dehydrated since i was always drinking and never really felt hungry.

The details:
We left at 8:30a and was back around 2ish. Temps were mid 70's/low 80s. Sunny, light breeze. I wore spf 30 sunscreen and post ride, didn't have any sunburn on face or body.
This was just a Charity training ride and not a race training session.
Average speeds were 16-20mph
My cadence average 88-95 during the flat sections.
I don't have a HRM.

Afterwards, when i got home, i definitely felt off, and got a screaming headache. Also, the top of my head felt hot (like heat exhaustion or sunburned the top of my head (which i hadn't).
Took a couple of tylenol and aleve and that helped a little but it wasn't until i really ate a meal that i felt back to normal. This was the longest ride i've been on and overall i felt pretty good during the ride, although my quads were a little tired from the hills.

Any thoughts? I am still trying to find the balance for diet and fueling the body. I really don't want to eat a big meal or a lot of food if i'm going to ride because i then feel full and would probably prefer to find a liquid diet but i don't think that's realistic. I don't have an understanding yet of how long the banana and trail mix bar should last me on the ride. (as in how long before i need to eat/consume again).

Thanks.

Stevo

I'm pretty sure I read your post correctly. If not, I apologize. If you rode 46 miles in 5.5 hours, first off your 16-20 mph average doesn't compute. Perhaps it does if you took numerous breaks. I wouldn't even consider taking a break on a 46 mile ride, but to each their own. Having said all that...

I think you need to concentrate on your training. It's important to dial in the fine points of hydration and food, but training trumps all of that. I'm sure you'll get plenty of good advise on hydration/nutrition here. My take is that you need to ride more. Good luck!

Steve

And training is what i'm looking forward to do more and more. And yes, we did take a number of breaks. A couple were longer than i personally liked - i felt like my muscles were starting to tighten up. And we also have many stop lights and stop signs in certain areas. I guess i was referring to the open stretches or places where we weren't constantly stopping.

Thanks!

stevo

This is what it feels like to do 50 miles when you are out of shape. Once you get more miles in your legs, you'll do that 50 with one bottle of water (at those temps)

"About to Bonk"...

That is a state that you will learn to recognize after you've bonked a few times. At least in my case. "Bonking" is more than just becoming tired, it's when you are suddenly and unequivacably told, by your body, that you're done putting out anything but 'survival' effort.

My body gives me a little warning. I began to feel like, though I am still turning the cranks respectably, I ain't getting anywhere (no power). At this point, if it's a race, I'm done..I screwed-up. If it happens on a training ride, I can usually salvage my self by notching way back on my effort for a short time and eating some quick energy substance of choice.

You don't 'ride through' a true bonk..but if you learn to recognize the symptoms in yourself, you can almost recover before you totally do bonk..The problem lies in that when you're working hard enough to be at risk of bonking, you usually aren't at your most attentive to how you are feeling, other than.."I hurt"

I've only really bonked a few times, but it is unmistakable when you do.."You be done"..not just tired, or out of steam, but really done in..Best to not let it happen in the first place.
Don Hanson

you didn't have enough food in your system.

one banana isn't enough for breakfast when you spend the morning sitting behind a desk. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. More so if you're doing any physical activity. Many people short change the meal in the goal of trimming a few pounds. It doesn't work this way at all. Eat a good, low fat, breakfast with low gylcemic carbs and protien. Do this a couple hours before excersize. During excersize, aim for around 200 Calories per hour. You'll have to experiment with what food you can eat on a bike. I have a heck of a time eating during races but the body needs.

Couple of additional things:

A banana and a trail mix bar wouldn't be enough for me to ride 46 miles on. I've found, through trial and error, that I need a good "base" meal for any ride more than a few hours. I've done the "banana and some Cytomax" rides before, and while I survived, I was pretty slow and weak..I eat some oatmeal, which sits ok, an hour before I saddle up and then start with the gels or food within 45 mins after I begin to ride..unless I am just dawdling on a pure social ride..

Also, within a short time of finishing, I 're-fuel' to avoid that headache-y crapped-out feeling. There is lots written about the need to have 'recovery' foods..
Don Hanson

Went on a 46 mile training ride yesterday to Palos Verdes and mostly just drank water and an electrolyte drink. Overall never felt dehydrated since i was always drinking and never really felt hungry.

The details:
We left at 8:30a and was back around 2ish. Temps were mid 70's/low 80s. Sunny, light breeze.

Afterwards, when i got home, i definitely felt off, and got a screaming headache. Also, the top of my head felt hot (like heat exhaustion or sunburned the top of my head (which i hadn't).


Sounds to me like you were more dehydrated than anything else. You were drinking while riding, but this was a 5.5 hour excursion. You should have at least had 4-5 bottles over that time period. At the very least, have a 32oz bottle of sports drink sitting in the fridge for when you get home. Drink the whole thing while you clean up from the ride.

I've experienced similar symptoms occasionally early in the season when the temps get high for the first day or two when I don't keep up with the hydration. A bottle of Gatorade later, I'm usually feeling fine.

find out what works best for your body. but your food intake prior to a 5 hr ride is pretty low my friend. you need to eat a solid base meal maybe an hour or 1.5 hrs before your activity to keep it down... I know a bowl of 'energy' cereal will only keep me alive for about an hour at any activity, for a ride up to 5 hrs I'd probably be loading up on pasta in the morning, or having some bread, stuff with lots of carbs. the snacks just keep you going, they are not meant for meal supplement, nor do they contain the energy equivalent to a meal. you also need to drink more, if you are drinking 2 or 3 bottles in 5 hours that is a deficiency in water intake.

Thanks for all the advice. I never felt thirsty, but i do see that a couple of bottle of fluid isn't really enough over a 5 hr. ride. And i'll work on eating more for breakfast. I've never been a breakfast person in general but will work on changing that.

Thank you.

stevo