I found this article interesting. It’s about the other side of the equation. Essential it seems that our bodies adapt to higher energy expenditure through and reduce energy spent in other systems, so that total energy expenditure plateaus instead of increases.
To me this reinforces the importance of good nutrition and the statement that endurance athletes can eat what they want is probably wrong.
@Erik-KOS I wish I could remember the article or video where a pro cycling team was talking about this very topic. Basically the discussion was that when everyone was doing performance enhancing drugs it didn’t matter so much what riders ate but now that the sport has cleaned up there has been an intense focus on diet among other things to find advantages over other teams and riders. One key anecdote was that the team would provide a post race bag full of balanced recovery foods and the athletes would immediately drink the soda that was in the bag and ditch the rest of the stuff. So they changed the bag to include a drink that included a post race blended drink and dropped the soda. It is possible that it was one of the Inspiration videos.
Yes, I have seen and read similar studies and theories. The human body is incredibly “smart” in that it adapts very quickly and tries to regulate all of its systems to maintain homeostasis as best it can. And of course, every body is individual- some respond better or more quickly to an imposed change/demand, while others are a little more stubborn. And then there’s the mental component which complicates it even further. But yes, fundamentally, I think nutrition is such a key to performance, possibly even more so than training once you get to the highest levels where it gets harder and harder to make improvements.
When it comes down to it, some people are just genetically/physiologically able to perform better, even with a poor diet than others who eat well and train hard but just don’t have the genetic pre-disposition for endurance sports. I’m sure we all know people who eat quite poorly but still perform at high levels. It’s frustrating for those of us who eat really well and train right, and still can’t produce athletic results like them. It makes me wonder how well they could do if they did eat “properly” or would it not even matter?
At the end of the day, I would agree that “endurance athletes can eat anything they want” is not globally true…I think the old saying “You can’t out-train a bad diet” still holds true. And yes, there are many athletes who can eat candy and donuts all day without gaining an ounce and still run a 4 minute mile (I do actually know people like this!), are probably not doing themselves any favors in the performance department, or even more importantly, their long term health!
I recently heard the Fast Talk podcaste episode 173 on weight management, and found it very interesting. My primary take-away was how much sugar actually makes its way into our diet, and how it confuses our brain’s ability to manage energy intake. Another was to eat foods with a high nutrient density (not energy density).
This made me want to reduce my intake of carbohydrates I eat, specifically simple/refined/processed sugars (not sure which would be the correct term). I also noticed how Trevor Connor said he don’t eat grains, and that kind of baffled me. Coming from a place where bread is the back bone of both breakfast and lunch (and perhaps even an evening meal) I just wonder what to eat instead? Ok, could have a salad or something for lunch, but surely not for breakfast? Also, making a couple of slices of bread is a lot less effort and time than making a salad. I usually bake my own bread with a lot of wholemeal, grains and seeds, that can’t be too bad, right?
My W/kg could definitely benefit from losing a few kg’s, however, it seems my brain’s sugar addiction throws a stick in my wheel, so I guess the question is what to do when my brain get cravings
@Magnito Try adding more beans, chickpeas and lentils into your diet. You can add then to any meal - eggs and lentils or beans for breakfast, beans in a salad or as a hearty soup or as part of a larger meal for lunch or dinner. Chickpeas go well in a salad or as a hummus they can be spread right on your bread and you can add some onions, paprika and parsley. Beans can be prepared pretty quickly if coming from a can but if you want even more variety and to access some of the most delicious beans then you will probably need to get the dried variety and perhaps soak them overnight and then cook them depending on the type of bean. They last for a few days once prepared so you can have some ready for a quick meal. For lentils - try mixing beluga lentils, dried cherries, walnuts and parsley. It is pretty good and can be made in advance and eaten either cold or warm as a lunch and would go well with your bread.
Also check out whole grains. Oatmeal (especially groats, cracked and steel cut) are great as a porridge with fruit and nut butter and you can also add dark chocolate powder and spices such as cinnamon, cloves and allspice and nuts and seeds as well.
Bulgar, farro and barley and other grains can be added to soups and salads and prepared ahead of time in bulk so you have access to it all week. You can mix in fresh cut or cooked vegetables and spices and add some meat, fish, tofu, tempeh or seitan if you wish.
Check out mushrooms - there are tons of varieties. Mushrooms can be prepared raw, sautéed quickly or added to soups or be part of a larger meal and they have lots of beneficial properties.
All of the above food suggestions focus on complex carbs, many have higher protein levels and some beneficial fats so you get a good balance and also avoid lots of the processed foods and sugars that you were referencing in your post.
Most of the foods are also high in fiber. Plants don’t have bones so we often eat the part of the plant that holds them up. We don’t digest this part of the plant but it does contribute to our feeling of satiety and benefits our gut bacteria and often serves to lower the energy density of the food.
@Magnito,
I think it’s a good goal for all of us to try and limit our intake of processed/refined or simple sugars. Aside from activating the pleasure center of our brains to make us happy and giving us quick energy during a workout, there are no other benefits. And the more of them we eat, the more we potentially will store as unnecessary fat.
I’m not going to get into the topic of grains too much, or tell anyone whether or not they should be part of your diet. This is one of the most hotly debated topics in nutrition and people have different reasons for avoiding them, perhaps because they’re actually allergic to certain types, or because they want to keep body weight low or appear more lean (we know that storing carbohydrates or glycogen also results in storage of water within the body- so if you reduce your CHO intake, you also reduce the amount of water you store, making you look leaner). Whatever the reasons, those are personal.
From a coaching/performance perspective, avoiding grains may not be beneficial for endurance athletes, especially those who are training long or hard, or are heavy sweaters. The body utilizes water for SO many things, including but not limited to muscle contraction and relaxation, cooling, and transporting electrolytes- all very important processes that most of us don’t want to hinder because performance will suffer.
Like @JSampson suggested, there are a lot of very nutrient dense and less refined grains and carbohydrate sources out there, like lentils, beans, legumes, etc., which provide variety, nutrients and energy without unnecessary sugars. If you don’t have any necessary food restrictions, moderation and variety are always good principles to keep in mind when it comes to food and nutrition! And a lot of nutrition recommendations need to be taken with a grain of salt and some thoughtful consideration on whether its good advice for YOU!
Thanks for the good suggestions @JSampson and thanks @Coach.Suzie.S for putting it into perspective. Sometimes when listening to good arguments for a certain approach, one might despair a little and forget that there may be good arguments for other approaches as well.
I am not too worried about my diet really, I tend to mostly use fresh raw materials for cooking. And I really like beans and lentils, I am just not very good at using them. They require a bit of preparation which is easily forgotten during a hectic day.
To be perfectly honest, I guess my biggest challenge is portion control, as well as staying away from sweets and snacks when craving comes between meals and in the evenings. A little more self-discipline there, and I think a slow steady weight loss is assured. However, easier said than done of course
Yes, portion control is very important. I think eating more slowly helps with that. I think it also helps with the sweets and snacks because there is a delay between the satiation signal, and when you are actually satiated.
It is one of my MTP goals for this month to improve that.
I sometimes have fallen into a habit of being overly reliant on bread or tortillas simply as a vehicle to transport proteins into my stomach. I haven’t given up bread, but I have found that it’s easy enough to swap in various greens leaves as a wrap for proteins. (Some of the tougher ones like kale work best lightly steamed.) Of these, endive is my favorite. The leaves pull off in perfect cups and provide a satisfying crunch, and I eat everything in them: peanut or almond butter, sliced cheese or cottage cheese, tinned fish, lunch meats, hummus or other legumes, mashed avocado, dip the small leaves in salsa when fighting off a chips/crisps craving… they’re great. I wash a whole head(s) at once and wrap them in paper towels in a storage container in the refrigerator, where they last several days and I can just grab them when I need them.
Picked up a copy of Run Fast, Cook Fast, Eat Slow this weekend - already made the pickled onions, garlic guacamole, bonk burgers and bonk burger bowl (slightly modified) - pretty happy with the food so far. Looking forward to trying out a few more this week.
There are some good tips throughout such as using molasses over other sweeteners due to it being a good source of iron.
