Hungry all the time!

MessyLittlePanda
MessyLittlePanda Posts: 213 Member
edited December 2024 in Social Groups
OK...I need some sensible advice here. This seems to be the most sensible area to be on MFP, so hopefully someone can help.

I am stepping up my training for a mountain bike race in September. I have been riding 1 30 mile round trip on my road bike a week along a pretty hilly route (I live in Yorkshire UK, not many flat bits!) along with 1 BodyPump class lasting 60 minutes and a mountain bike ride between 8 and 20 miles at the weekend. My rest days I do Wii Fit stuff, mostly balance exercises, to help my balance and co-ordination on the bike, and I walk my dog for 30 mins to an hour at a moderate pace. It's rare I will do absolutely nothing, unless I am really knackered or the weather is just too awful.

I currently weigh 146lbs. I do want to lose some weight, I do have a bit of "jelly belly" to lose but not at the expense of muscle/strength on the bike as mountain biking is an intense sport and you need strength for it - not many female mountain bikers are thin. Athletic yes, thin no.

I'm on 1800 calories at the moment. I try and eat the exercise calories, but then I find that the next day I am if anything more hungry than the day I do the exercise. Macros are set to 40% carbs, 30% protein and 30% fat. I rarely go over protein and fat, sometimes I go over carbs though (usually at weekends when I'm less strict).

This week I upped my BodyPump weights and was much quicker on the bike. But I just seem to be wanting to eat all the time! The scale isn't moving really but my fitness is improving and my clothes are getting looser. I do try to eat low GI carbs, I am celiac though so that rules some things out.

I don't know if I am eating too much, too little, the wrong things, am I fuelling my body enough for what I am doing and what I want to do. The race I am training for is a 30 mile time trial style race in the Pennines so it's tough. My training still needs to ramp up more from where it is as well.

Any advice gratefully received!

Replies

  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,889 Member
    Well more protein would stave off the hunger somewhat. You need your carbs doing such an intense activity though, so my suggestion is either;
    a. Up your overall food intake slightly.
    b. Up protein to 35% and take fat down to 25%.
  • MessyLittlePanda
    MessyLittlePanda Posts: 213 Member
    Thanks. I do up my overall intake whenever training ramps up, I do plan on adding an extra ride next week so I'll probably up it then or I'll be even worse!
  • Hendrix7
    Hendrix7 Posts: 1,903 Member
    If you increase your activity then you should increase calorie intake to go along with that.
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