When trying to lose weight it's a good idea to not ingest calories on 60-90 minute rides. But if you're doing intervals it's better to ingest calories and get a high quality workout, after all no one in the history of cycling or triathlon has ever had a high enough FTP. EVER.

At some point if your training volume is high enough it's hard to maintain weight. At other points you may have to scale back eating to maintain weight.

It may be a good idea to have some caffeine (coffee/tea black no calories) prior to working out in the morning on your aerobic stuff then knock that out. Keep it aerobic though. Has been shown to burn a higher % fat as a substrate for that workout. On the other hand if you're biting the heads off your riding partners, maybe something before heading out the door is a good idea.

I'm of the mind that if ~ 80-85% of your diet is solid and you need some calories junk calories aren't necessarily a bad thing. You come in from a 3400 kJ ride where you've ingested 700 calories a coke > a beet. Have the coke walking in the door and the beet when you sit down to refuel. Quick calories now, real food after a shower.

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Brian Stover USAT LII
Accelerate3 Coaching
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