Johnny is an old friend and customer of mine. I did a significant service on his bike for an upcoming 70.3 triathlon. In our casual conversation I thought to ask him about his nutrition on and off the bike. He said he has gone plant-based and he’s happy with how he’s been feeling. But then he confessed to me that he really doesn’t have handle on his on-the-bike nutrition.

It was at that point that I dug in a little deeper with questions such as:

1.How many calories/grams of carbs are you targeting per hour?

2. How are you accomplishing that?

3. How do you feel during?

4. How do you feel after?

Turns out he didn’t really have a good idea of how much he takes with him, how much he uses or a target calorie/grams of carbs. He was also drinking straight water in his bottles. I gave him some basic advice to start with. He weighs about 195 (88.5 kg) I suggested he start with 200 calories per hour or 50g carbs. On a two hour ride he can put 2 scoops of REV Energy in each 26 oz bottle (200 cal/50g carbs) and be good to go. On a 3 hour ride he can bring 2 gels with him and he’s golden.

My plan for him is to work on 200 calories/50g carbs and slowly bump him up over time to 300 calories/75g carbs per hour which is more appropriate for his weight and race intensity.

Attached you will find my follow up text conversation with him.