I too am interested in this especially how Splash wrote in " with enough support". I have been really dieting hard to hit some body comp goals, and my bike performance has suffered a little which is fine. But Im facing a big hard training day tomorrow, with some good friends. Its gonna be a hard 4 or 5 hour day.
If I can get in the right mix of 100g carbs per hour while on the bike, do I really need to carb load?
Im particularly interested as I am having great success losing weight on a very restricted carb diet. Its not for everyone, but works wonders for me. I don’t want to ram down a bunch of carbs while not actively burning them.
I don’t think it’s the meals (lots of brown rice, beans, sweet potatoes, bread and tortillas) so much as the snacks (juice, Medjool dates, more juice, another tortilla, another tub of dates…).
It’s real! This is why body builders do it before a show. It measurably makes your muscles bigger.
I posted it sometime before, I think when I did Leadville. I don’t know where it is…I bet Chad McNeese has it in a spreadsheet :-D.
I do it a bit differently now. Mostly just cereal, fruit and rice. I do love some Thai food too before a race as part of the load but that usually has fat in it too.
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You can do the math in best bike split. I think rule of thumb is like 1lb is 1 watt at a 5% incline (I could be wrong though). But carb loading can be like +30 watts later in the race when it really matters.
When everyone else is running dry and starting to cramp you’re still feeling awesome! You just have to make sure that you don’t get dropped on those first hills.
And if it’s a TT event like Leadville then I don’t see the downside since you’ll also gain time on the descents with those extra few lbs.
When I carb load I mentally feel like I’m just putting on layers and layers of fat on my body. But then when I race I feel like Superman. Afterwards I do body comp measurements and I’m the same (as long as I actually get to race 
).
And yes, you’ll have more glycogen in your muscles than if you get the 100 grams of carbs power hour on the bike. You’re most likely burning more than that per hour in a tough 4-5 hour ride/race.
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I have a ~9hrs race tomorrow, as usual before such an event I’ve had my 11 g/kg today. Must say I do not have any trouble at all to meet this target. I could even eat more. I guess at least once my insatiable hunger is of an advantage
What sort of food do you eat?
Thanks Nate, put it that way it sounds great! 
I’d hate carrying more weight up the hills, but the point that you’re likely burning more than you can eat, even at 100g per hour, is also good.
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we are our own best experiment. I wont know till I try loading up, but it is mentally difficult. off to get some bagels…
I start the day with 750g potatoes baked with 2 eggs (actually in the micorwave).
And then I eat mainly this for the rest of the day:
I’d say 70% of my carbs. The remainder from other bread rolls, our bakeries have quite a diverse selection. Just have to make sure that they are low-fat. No spread or so.
Personally I would cut back on the high fat content foods and make sure you give yourself plenty of time to digest it before the start of your race.
All really interesting. Surprised though by the amount of bready things, can’t veg and fruit help just as well or just a taste preference? Note I have a gluten intolerance so my opinion is for sure biased.
Regarding the efficacy: last year I rode 520km nonstop, and have to say the carb loaded did appear to help. The day before, I hammered potatoes, rice et al and I felt it gave me something in those dark hours!
2018 Lost & Found Gravel Grinder, carb load (from FaceBook).
2018 Tahoe Trail 100km, race food (from FaceBook).
I need to dig a bit to find the Leadville info.
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So I wish I could do this, I tried a mini load yesterday before a hearty 4k Alp Ride today, and got bloated beyond belief. This is a real pain!
I have tried the 12-14 grams of carbs per kg body weight (= 800-940 grams/day) on several occassions, both prior to long distance races (Tour du Mont Blanc, Jotunheimen Rundt) and everesting attempts. You feel like an absolute pig during the process and add a couple of kg prior to the race, and colleagues/friends observing the process may think you’ve lost your mind… but it really works well. I have yet to have really bonked or gone empty during the events (I also replenish carbs with Maurten gels/drinks; 1-2 gels + 0.5 litres of drink per hour). The funny thing is that - so long as you actually get to ride for the time you eat for - your weight will be absolutely normal again very shortly afterwards.
As @Nate_Pearson points out, the trick is to stick to stuff that is as «pure» carbohydrates as possible, and stay away from fibres. The print screen below shows the eating plan I follow in the last 48 hours before the event. It is in Norwegian, but basically consists of bread with jam, oatmeals, bananas, fruit yoghurts, pasta, apple juice, bananas, sugary cereals, ice cream and chocolates.
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I’ve seen this a couple of times now, but why the chocolate and ice cream? Isn’t that mostly fat?
I am tempted to have bags of Haribo in my plan 
Also like sryke’s bread roll and pretzel plan, just wonder how that differs from my normal diet… 
The ice cream, Snickers, cinnamon rolls, etc. are there just because they’re my guilty pleasures. 
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To be honest this confuses me a bit. A lot fruit has fibre content too, @Nate_Pearson also mentions veg, this is not in line with what you’re mentioning in relation to the fibre, unless I’m missing something here. Also what was said with choc etc, lots of fats in those which would be something I’d tend to avoid.
I think you need a bit of fibre to keep your guts happy. Lots of people get bloating and, erm, “number 2” problems, with just simple carbs.
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