Food intake on a 200...

[andyoxon]

What's the minimum amount of food / non-fluid intake you normally need /reckon you could get away with on a 200km - non-AAA/ 'relaxed pace'? 

Reason for asking - I seem to be less able to digest much 'normal cafe meal' food on a 200km these days.

[Zed43]

Four cereal bars. YMMV.

[Frank9755]

When I was training for 12s and 24s I regularly did audaxes with only energy drink.  I certainly did quite a few 200s like that, probably a couple of 300s as well.

[jon.pavelin]

A few nairns chocolate oatcakes on my last 200km. However, i typically eat WAY more if I haven't been riding 5 hour + rides recently.

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[tonyh]

A litre of orange juice, some bread and a boiled egg, a few Ginger Nut biscuits.

[quixoticgeek]

Water and some coke.

I do not recommend it, you can do it, but it's not fun. This does rely on a surplus of Kummerspek tho...

J

[L CC]

I do not recommend it, you can do it, but it's not fun. This does rely on a surplus of Kummerspek tho...

Even skinny people carry 1000s of kcal of fat.

You can ride 200km on just water, but you need to train for it. That's what the keto for endurance thing is all about.

[Pingu]

I managed one on 2 cereal bars and a handful of jelly babies once because I'd forgotten my wallet. I wouldn't recommend it.

[Davef]

I do not recommend it, you can do it, but it's not fun. This does rely on a surplus of Kummerspek tho...

Even skinny people carry 1000s of kcal of fat.

You can ride 200km on just water, but you need to train for it. That's what the keto for endurance thing is all about.

That will limit your pace as typically you can only metabolise body fat at 400 cal per hour. Normally you want both that and food intake.


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[zigzag]

riding at my usual audax pace - 3-4 bananas and a bottle of energy drink.

riding slow(er) i could do it on couple of bottles of water, but i'd rather not.

[Greenbank]

First 200 I probably ate 3000kcal worth and was still ravenous at the end. I think I would have bonked somewhere between the 50km and 100km controls if I hadn't eaten a good meal at the 50km control.

Near the end of standard SR season I could do a 200 on a single bidon of water (again, not recommended).

Mileage certainly varies.

[Lightning Phil]

Depends on fitness, from just water to lots.

[T42]

Coffee & cake at 50 & 150 km, decent meal at 100: I like to enjoy my rides.  Oh, I have done a 200 on sports drink and a few bars, but it was no fun.

[CrazyEnglishTriathlete]

I usually like my cafe stops on 200km rides, so would normally stop twice.  But this year, I've been avoiding cafes even on my long rides and have found that 2 litres of energy drink + 3 or 4 Eat Natural bars (I can't do energy bars - the packaging is as digestible as the contents) is enough to get me round in a good state of mind.  However, it was still much more fun making sandwiches with home cooked ham, putting them in my saddlebag and having a packed lunch half-way round a 240km route.

[rob]

Decent breakfast plus 3 bars and 3 gels.   I'd probably have one shop/garage stop for a sandwich and crisps.

[freeflow]

Don't rely on energy drinks.  They just train your body to burn carbohydrate and not fat.  Try eating smaller amounts more frequently.  Make sure your glycogen levels are fully topped up before starting the ride.  Make sure you are fully hydrated before the ride (e.g. doing a 200km ride after 6 pints the night before is not a good idea - how do I know this ).  Later in the ride it helps to stop to drink and eat, even if only for 5 minutes.  Drink (just water is OK) as much as you can, then when you feel totally bloated drink some more, then when you finish that have even more.

[Wycombewheeler]

On a 200 at the beginning of lockdown,  I managed on a sandwich,  bag of crisps,  apple and satsuma that I carried with me. Also carried 4.5l of water.

No shops required.

Felt fine, unlike the 130km second section of a 400 where I had nothing as I left my cards at home,  that was tough.

[Ajax Bay]

Drink (just water is OK) as much as you can, then when you feel totally bloated drink some more, then when you finish that have even more.

Drink water steadily no more than 200ml at a time (ideally). Imo the rest of this recommendation should not be followed and harks back to the influence of similar bad advice in the 80s, which the sports drink industry unsurprisingly fosters (substituting their sugary brand for 'water'). Drink to thirst, and a bit more. But everyone's an individual and their needs vary widely.

[JonB]

I usually stop 3 times, sometimes 2 but eat a lot more than others on this thread.  I like some kind of breakfast meal for the first stop, maybe beans on toast + eggs but sometimes a full breakfast. Maybe a sandwich + crisps around midday and cake on the way back. Tea or coffee as well and water on the bike. Sometimes add a bit of squash to one of the bottles just for taste, don't think it adds any energy although have developed a taste for Sanpellegrino lemonade and have started emptying a can in a bottle for the last part of a ride.

[Cudzoziemiec]

My habits would be similar to JonB's; more food and less water than the other replies. Maybe it's a Bristolian thing?  (Jon's twice as fast as me though.) I definitely drink way less than some of the answers, in winter I can get round a 200 with only maybe half a bottle of water; but I will drink a couple of cups of tea at cafes.

[Frank9755]

I wouldn't do a long ride without taking in at least 100 calories per hour (eg 1 cereal bar or banana) as I don't want to lose muscle.

[freeflow]

Drink (just water is OK) as much as you can, then when you feel totally bloated drink some more, then when you finish that have even more.

Drink water steadily no more than 200ml at a time (ideally). Imo the rest of this recommendation should not be followed and harks back to the influence of similar bad advice in the 80s, which the sports drink industry unsurprisingly fosters (substituting their sugary brand for 'water'). Drink to thirst, and a bit more. But everyone's an individual and their needs vary widely.

I'm not advocating energy drinks.  My advice on drinking is based on weighing myself before and after rides.  What I've found is that I'm always a couple of kg lighter  (by 2-4 kg) at the end of a ride.  The advice I've followed for a long time is to drink before you are thirsty, if you get to feeling thirsty its too late.  I'll admit that I am a very heavy sweater.

[Frank9755]

Don't rely on energy drinks.  They just train your body to burn carbohydrate and not fat.  Try eating smaller amounts more frequently. 

How does your body know that you have got carbohydrates from a drink or from solid food? 
And how can you stop your body from burning fat when you do a long ride at moderate pace?
 

[T42]

Don't rely on energy drinks.  They just train your body to burn carbohydrate and not fat.  Try eating smaller amounts more frequently. 

How does your body know that you have got carbohydrates from a drink or from solid food? 

Drinks are absorbed much faster than solids.

[bairn again]

In warm enough conditions and with a big enough pre ride feed i have ridden a 200 on 2 bidons and a couple of bananas.

Id not recommend it.  Speed in the final 50km made it take longer than stopping and refuelling.  Dark piss is also a tell tale sign of non wisdom.