I tried to gain mass by adding protein but it is really hard to bring a lot of kcal with protein since it is really nourishing compared to fat (olive oil, peanut butter, eggs, …).
I ride 14h/ 450km a week so it is difficult to eat a lot more than what I burn
You’re also 18 years old with a metabolism running at mach 5. I wouldn’t worry as much about macros as long as you eating healthily.
I pay a big attention to what I eat (macro, quality and quantity), and I really like everything related to nutrition, that’s why I thought eating more (but well) could help me without being too difficult for me, and without costing me a lot
Yo! These are some great numbers! 
Things like nutrition and body composition are so specific to the individual, and can take a couple of seasons to really take effect, but the overarching theme is: focus on where you’d like to be in terms of performance rather than composition. That definitely might look like fueling more, or just differently!
There is a really good podcast that discusses this and is definitely worth a listen: ‘Cycling Nutrition Tips to Reach Optimal Body Composition’, and a great blog post regarding ‘Timing Nutrition with Training’ that may help you maximize the benefits of what you’re eating, and when.
Something else to consider as one distinct upside of a season without events: a lack of consequences for an unconventional approach! It might be a good season to try something new and work on a weakness you’ve neglected, such as going into a Short Power Build Phase to build upon your short-power numbers, or incorporating a more significant strength and mobility training program.
Even if a new approach turns out to be sub-optimal, you’ll learn something about your capabilities, and any training is ‘money in the bank’ for long-term progression!
Hello !
Thanks for your answer !!
I watched the podcast and read the article, I will apply those things asap.
Thanks to the advices given by all of you, I plan to eat a little bit more to see if gaining 1/2kg can help me without doing anything special apart from that.
In 5 days, I went from 52.5 to 53.8 and I felt a big improvement (350 to 365w in my cp5/ 6.67 → 6.75w/kg)
I don’t think that this is just a hazard, because I also felt better on the flat (more torque) and feel like I recover much better between effort, and that I don’t need to fuel as much as before between my effort)
As you said, I think I should experiment that, without focusing too much on that !!
This is counter to pretty much all of the advice that’s been given here…
These two things are likely unrelated. You certainly haven’t just magically gained 15w by putting on 1kg. And you also haven’t suddenly gained extra muscle that has facilitated that extra power. If that power increase isn’t totally coincidental then it might be that the extra food has simply fuelled you better…or it’s the placebo effect
It’s also been mentioned in the podcast that the overwhelming majority of riders are not anywhere near their genetic potential.
Yes, there are genetic limiters but very few of use are hampered by those. In fact, I see a lot of people on the forum using this, seemingly, as an excuse. I like that the OP isn’t making excuses and is looking at what needs to be done to address his concerns.
What if being at 54kg instead of 52.5 is a condition for my body to be fueled correctly. I mean, it is possible that I was at 52.5 because I never succeed in fueling my body correctly or compensating what I burned during my training.
I agree that gaining 1.5kg did not bring me extra muscles, but the extra watts are probably coming from the fact that I had more energy during my 5min effort, which is not likely to be the case when I am at 52.5.
EDIT :
Just to give more details, I used to be at 58 when I was doing triathlon, and moved to 56 when I started doing only cycling. I was at 52 only since when I started to do 450km/week
What is very true sorry ?
Yep, I already mentioned that in my reply.
I said:
I came here because I know that you can all give me tips to progress. Of course I am taking into account what everyone told me, but I also need to experiment on my own.
To reply to onemanpeloton, I am not going counter to what has been said in this topic. I retained from some of you that trying to gain mass is probably not going to give me more watts because I probably already have the weight that suits the best with the effort I am used to produce. However, I also reatained that having some more kg could help me to have more energy, and maybe to build more muscles if I add strengh session to my training.
Since some of the answers I got are kind of opposite sometimes, I think the best I can do is to take into account everything and to do my experiment. This topic has not been useless because now I am aware of everything that could happened and I will be able to react easier and faster to the change that I will observe !!!
Btw, sorry for my english,
Cheers from france !
you have awesome numbers, domestic pro level stuff. Now the watts are only half the battle, but if you can get some craft, you’ll be a great racer!!
Don’t just get fat, but get into the gym. Lift heavy in a responsible way; hire a lifting coach.
and if you’re 18, that’s awesome!!!
Good luck crushing it!!!