Road cyclist @inkalinka_on_the_bike shares her fuel plans for one of her typical 40-50 mile rides. (Spoiler - it includes a lot of honey!)
"Over the last couple of years I have become more of an adventure cyclist than the long distance or challenge cyclist I used to be. For me, pedalling is enjoyment, and my preferred distance is 40 to 50 miles.
I used to thrive on the physical exhaustion brought on by hard-core hill climbing or long distance cycling, or even both, ascent and distance combined. Now, I like riding and stopping to look at things that catch my eye: rivers, nature, castles, windmills... Not that I'm discounting going ‘hard-core’ again. Variety is the spice of life, as they say!
I have always been a big fan of natural ingredients. In my family home in Krakow, Poland, honey was always a staple food. My Great Uncle in the east of Poland had beehives and every time my Grandad went to visit, he brought big jars of Uncle’s honey back. We used honey as a treat, and as remedy. Breakfast was often toast with butter and honey or porridge sweetened with honey. Grandma often baked gingerbread cake sweetened by dried fruit pieces and honey. We drank hot milk with honey for coughs and colds and sometimes my Mom even added garlic to the mixture (which was not my preferred choice, but it worked miracles).
I have also been brought up to love and respect bees. We planted bee-friendly plants in the garden and were told to never harm a bee. We made sure bees had plenty to drink during hot and dry summers by placing a tray with water by the shed in the garden.
So, unsurprisingly, honey makes up a large part of my nutrition! And, you can guess that I was overjoyed to have discovered an energy gel for cyclists, which main ingredient is HONEY. It’s right up my street!
Here's my typical fuel plan for a 44 mile ride.
Dinner (the night before)
A balanced meal with plenty of carbs, usually something I know doesn’t upset my tummy. For example, pasta with homemade wild garlic pesto, tuna and a side salad.
Breakfast
I wake up to a pint glass of water. I drink tap water because we have tasty water in the Midlands, and I am conscious of plastic waste from bottled water, so I avoid buying it.
Porridge (40g of organic oats) cooked on the hob with water. I add a handful of nuts and dry fruit, and half a sliced banana and, of course, a spoonful (usually quite generous) of raw honey. I also have a milky coffee.
In my bottles
Water with electrolytes, plus a spoonful of raw honey. I don’t like my drink to be too sweet, so I use a small spoonful.
In my jersey pocket
1 banana and 4 Buzz Energy gels. I have my banana 50 minutes after I start riding and then a gel every 20 minutes.
Recovery food
A cheese and pickle sandwich, sometimes some crisps. I like salty plantain chips. I always crave savoury snacks after my ride.
One day, I would love to learn the art of beekeeping and have a hive or two. For the time BEE-ing, I will happily BUZZ along the country lanes, powered by Buzz Power's delicious gels.
PS: My favourite colour is YELLOW."
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Hannah Rand
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