Caloric Intake
40
Member
1076 days
donegal1 posted 2 years ago.
Hi Becca!
First I need to point out that nutrition is highly individual. What would be a perfect menu for one athlete could be completely inappropriate for another.
To work out a nutritional plan, you first need to determine your ideal caloric intake, which is dependent on your weight and level of training. Next, determine a macronutrient breakdown (i.e. how much carb-protein-fat you need) - this is also dependent on your weight and level of training. This is really much easier than it sounds. I would recommend reading Monique Ryan's Sports Nutrition For Endurance Athletes. It will give you a great basis for planning your diet.
(Here's the link: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?userid=Lj0WfpsCSu&isbn=1931382158&itm=1 )
How and when you eat is important, too. Ideally your diet should consist of as much whole food as possible. Avoid overprocessed junk. As far as the "when", aim for a good complex-carb rich meal an hour+ before your planned workout. If needed (if it's a particularly high-intensity workout or whatnot) have a little snack 30 min. prior consisting mainly of simple carbohydrate. After your workout, try to have a recovery snack as soon as possible. Here, you want to aim for a 4:1 carb-protein ratio. How many calories are dependent on the workout. Good examples are 1/2 a protein bar, yogurt, toast or banana with PB ... etc. After particularly hard workouts (either in intensity or length) I like Endurox Rx, a recovery shake.
To give you an idea, though, here is an example of what I ate yesterday ... (I'm a 112lb female)
Breakfast: 1c coffee, 6oz light yogurt with pumpkin-flax granola
Workout1: Swim 3100M
Snack: 1/2 luna bar, water
Lunch: big chicken salad (lots of veggies and fat free italian dressing) and water
Snack: small banana, water
Workout2: Bike 2 hours with 3x10min TT (time trial)
Snack: other 1/2 luna bar, water
Dinner: white bean spread + a little diced chicken + tomato + sprinkle feta cheese on whole wheat flatbread (courtesy of my wonderful boyfriend!) and a baby spring mix salad with toasted walnuts and raspberry vinagrette
Dessert: 1 square of Dove dark chocolate (mmm)
Hope that helps!
806
Member
1379 days
thehitman posted 2 years ago.
Becca_Lee wrote:
:eek: I was wondering about how much everyone eats during the day. I am new to training for Triathlons and only train about 1.5hrs/day, but I feel like I'm always hungry! I am usually really good about what I eat, but I feel like I'm eating a lot. Can someone give me a sample menu? Thanks!
Becca,
Here's a pretty accurate way to figure out if you're eating too much --- are you gaining any weight? If not, you're not eating too much.
Snacking on fruit during the day is a great way to satisfy your hunger and get some fuel for your workouts --- not to mention all the vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. My favs --- bananas, apples and oranges. Smoothies are great, too (pineapple/banana being my usual).
thehitman
“Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest.” Mark Twain
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3354
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1401 days
RV posted 2 years ago.
I like using the book Food for Fitness by Chris Carmichael https://secure.trainright.com/storefront/detail.aspx?ID=525
as a guideline --- You have to see how your body reacts to the training and the intake. The book provides lots of information and sets up ranges for different times during your season. There are also food choices and even recommendations when you hit a fast food place. Again it is a guideline - adapt it to your needs.
RV
It takes a long time to get good. - Scott Molina
Slow is smooth; smooth is fast. - Rich Strauss
2866
Member
1302 days
bluebirdbiker posted 2 years ago.
Becca_Lee wrote:
:eek: I was wondering about how much everyone eats during the day. I am new to training for Triathlons and only train about 1.5hrs/day, but I feel like I'm always hungry! I am usually really good about what I eat, but I feel like I'm eating a lot. Can someone give me a sample menu? Thanks!
Becca, can I ask a question? Are you just interested in seeing WHAT people eat based on their training? Or are you getting the answers above that you seek? I only ask this because when I started out seriously I was the same as you. Never knowing how much or what to be eating; I guess relative to my peers. It helped me to view examples of what elite athletes and regular AGs ate and this helped me understand what I was and was not doing, apart from, of course reading the above type of recommended material. Just trying to clarify and help.
BBB
There are no excuses - so don't look for them. As a product of your own choices, you directly determine your life outcomes.
Don't think, just do.
My Blog
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1044 days
Becca_Lee posted 2 years ago.
Thanks I'll have to check out the above reading material. I just don't really want to count calories, I don't really have time an interest in doing this. So maybe reading some and getting an idea of what people eat on a daily basis will help. Thanks for the input!
2866
Member
1302 days
bluebirdbiker posted 2 years ago.
Try starting a post like the one that is up now for WDYD&ET (What did you do and eat today). There have been historical posts like this as well. Other than that google some triathletes, some post their food logs
BBB
There are no excuses - so don't look for them. As a product of your own choices, you directly determine your life outcomes.
Don't think, just do.
My Blog
:eek: I was wondering about how much everyone eats during the day. I am new to training for Triathlons and only train about 1.5hrs/day, but I feel like I'm always hungry! I am usually really good about what I eat, but I feel like I'm eating a lot. Can someone give me a sample menu? Thanks!