Are the bike rides longer than your rowing training? I have no idea about rowing training, which is why I’m asking.
For fully liquid fuel, you may also find Hammer Nutrition’s Sustained Energy to be good. I’ve used that in the past, but I am apparently very picky when it comes to fueling and I’ve found liquid fuel just doesn’t work for me. Or, what about maple syrup or the SIS gels? Those are considerably less thick than most other gels, so the elastics shouldn’t interfere with swallowing them. Or if thickness/viscosity isn’t the problem, maybe I don’t understand the issue of the elastics?
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Yes a rowing training session is 1.5 h max. We may double up but then there’s a break in between. I’ve bonked on bike rides that have been 4-8 h.
The braces elastics attach vertically on my incisors and are so strong that I can barely open my mouth. I can’t rip open a gel with my teeth and I can’t really get a gel sachet in my mouth. It’s a total nightmare and will go on for at least two months.
Ah, yeah, the liver has enough to do 1.5 hrs no problem, but over 2 hrs needs fuel.
Sorry about the orthodontia pain. I went through that, but it was awhile ago. Have you tried putting the gel in a bottle or squeeze tube instead? Much easier to get the stuff out. Something like this:
Thank you! That’s a great idea. Seems to also avoid the general stickiness of gels
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I can say from multiple century rides (on road and gravel) that rides of those lengths require you to be constantly (or what feels like constantly!) eating and drinking, with more emphasis on the liquid calories (I use Skratch but have found the Gatorade ESSNTL Organic powder in mango works just as well and costs a lot less). Also knowing for those really long rides that by the end of the ride you won’t want to eat or drink much at all, and that’s where the gels/wafer bars and whatever else you can muster yourself to stomach come into play.
Fueling for long rides is it’s own challenge, and with another 240mi “Day across MN” race this August I’m already starting to practice on 50-70mi gravel routes.
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That is really helpful advice, thanks! I looked back at my Strava and Trainerroad calendars since October (i.e. when we re-started structured training indoors) and I think that combined with starting strength training and regular vinyasa yoga practice while drastically reducing my overall volume was really the culprit, not really a fan of those 2+ hour z2 training rides but if there isn’t snow again to get out on the nordic skis I guess we’ll have to be doing that instead… 
I wish my husband liked salads, as I mentioned I do my best to incorporate veggies into every meal and reach for fruit over sweet treats and desserts, but those yummy barrel aged stouts and treats like panettone bread pudding on Sundays are not helping things either I’m sure! 
I’m 36 years old, but used to be much heavier, back when my Garmin scale was starting to confuse my weight measurement with my husband’s (I’m 5’5", he’s 5’8") I knew I needed to shift things…that was back in 2016 and I’ve gone from 155lbs down to my lowest weight of 122lbs during racing season (but still at 21-22% bodyfat). I’ve been training and racing road and CX since 2017 and REALLY struggled at the end of 2019 with obsessing at staying at 126 NO MATTER WHAT, even with headaches/sluggishness/reduced performance on the bike AND on my nordic skis all while training for my 2nd Birkebeiner race…once the pandemic hit and racing wasn’t on the docket for the rest of 2020 I said screw it and stopped obsessing, so weight definitely crept back up to 132lbs (23-24% bf) but with the sheer volume of riding and how I was performing physically I didn’t care…as I said I went back to structured training last October but also added some basic strength training to my TR and with added stressors/pandemic fatigue, languishing, and frankly getting frustrated and demoralized by my training numbers (because I didn’t have a full season of road/CX racing to rely on!) has been hard, now I’m at 140lbs (~26% bodyfat boo) but with both doses of vaccine in my system I’ve been able to get back to spicy group rides (i.e. what got me into cycling in the first place!) and with the nicer weather back on the MTB trails (another new-er hobby that challenges me in SO many ways)! Hoping to keep upping volume and intensity over the summer so weight can drop and I’ll be ready and a contender for 1st place for my “A” race in August (Day Across MN: https://the-damn.com/).
Now if only I could figure out how to keep the pounds off without starving myself or spending 6 hours on the trainer in the off-season… Others have noted they LOST weight during the off-season and I don’t know how that can be, I do indulge a bit in the usual holiday treats but I guess as I’m getting closer to 40 I’ll have to be even MORE strict about portions and treats… 
Sorry that was probably more than y’all wanted to know, overall it’s been rewarding but just lately it’s been super frustrating and hard for me to sort out, after giving up being so restrictive and focusing on whole foods, intuitive eating and “listening to my body” I feel somewhat betrayed by it (if I was “overfueling” wouldn’t my body stop being hungry)? 
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Does anyone here also get very sudden drops in blood sugar when training a lot? I don’t mean during training itself but just generally throughout the day. It’s hugely annoying. I seem to just bypass feelings of hunger and go straight for a crash. Eg today: trained in the morning (and it’s true, I underfuelled and felt a bit rubbish by the end). Came home, had a pasta lunch and piece of cake, and then felt rubbish by 7 pm, shaky and hangry, with no real warning signs like actual hunger. About to have another big carby dinner., What’s the solution? More snacking throughout the day even if I don’t feel like it?
Hi! RD here (disclaimer: take this as general advice from an internet friend, not medical advice 
) A few things to try: Be proactive (fuel those rides! lots of snacks!). For some people, hunger signals may be less reliable with high training loads. Try eating a snack at a point where you aren’t experiencing actual hunger–you may find your appetite perk right up.
Also, consider protein intake. Pasta salad and cake are going to spike your blood sugar then send you through the floor really quickly. Carbs are excellent, but don’t forget to add in the the other stuff.
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Thanks for this! I find protein intake a real problem. I have a scoop of whey with my oats in the morning, but I often can’t find ways to include protein in other meals because I don’t eat a lot of meat. I try to eat a lot of vegetables (I have my box delivery to get through), but there just often isn’t enough protein.
I can definitely relate, and it can be challenging to get enough protein as an active person. I basically put Greek yogurt on everything, add in beans or lentils wherever I can, and eat lots of eggs. Lmk if you want any other suggestions
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Definitely agree with @EmilyS (btw, I’m NOT a RD, so I’d definitely listen to her). You definitely need protein. It sounds like you’re a vegetarian? I eat a lot of fish and yogurt. 100% agree with Emily about the greek yogurt and eggs. You also shouldn’t be super-scared of fats–they will help you with satiation as well.
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Thanks! I’m not a vegetarian, I just don’t eat a lot of meat, and just try to get through the vegetables that I get delivered once a fortnight which can be a bit of a chore. And no worries - I eat fat, haha. I love butter. Maybe we should share some easy high protein recipes? I can start. Big fan of Shakshuka Best Shakshuka Recipe (Easy & Traditional) | Downshiftology
I get a box of veggies delivered every other week, so I know what you mean. But I make sure I eat protein with it. I mix greens with my scrambled eggs every morning, and pile the eggs on top of more veggies along with some ground turkey. You could always throw some ground turkey into the shakshuka (not traditional, but an easy way to boost the protein. I’m a big fan of just having some cooked ground turkey because it’s easy to toss into things and is fairly neutral. I love salmon and just cook it in the oven or grill it with herbs. Recently I’ve been cooking it in the oven at a lower temperature (300-315F) because I like the texture I get better than the higher temps.
I do something similar to this one except I cook it at that lower temp because I found the higher temp just didn’t work for me.
I’ve found several recipes from the NYT that I really like… do these links work? Sometimes there’s a paywall…
(I don’t like the pith, so I normally zest and then cut the segments out.)
This is SUPER EASY and fabulous (I have done it with rockfish):
This one is also dead easy and delicious:
I also just roast boneless/skinless chicken thighs with a nice spice blend (I’ve really been into a mix of Penzey’s Sweet Curry and Garam Masala) to have in the fridge for tossing onto salads or as a post-ride protein boost…
These fish recipes are great! Thank you! I have a load of frozen fish in the freezer. Ground turkey however 
. I have an uneasy relationship with fowl and I’ve never seen ground turkey in the UK.
Ah, well, skip the ground turkey. But I like to prepare fish in larger batches and eat them over a few days. They are fine reheated, IMO. Last night I cooked a bunch of king salmon (just seasoned with some herbs), and tonight I’m making the coconut milk recipe with rockfish; together those will be plenty to last for the rest of the week. It makes life much easier to have it in the fridge and not need to prepare it for after rides. It takes a bit of planning, but far less headache overall.
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Love this! Making these fish recipes ASAP @dhellman!
I’ve got a few easy go-tos:
Kimchi-and-Kale Fried Rice Recipe - Rachel Yang (But double the eggs and kale, add shelled edamame and/or tofu)
30 Clove Pomodoro Sauce (Banza is the best chickpea pasta I have tried—and high in protein, add meat/ricotta cheese if you want to bump it up even more)
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One more salmon recipe that I make often and forgot about until I went back and leafed through my printouts (@Overratedcarbon) :
I actually don’t use maple syrup here–I use honey. I’ve used a variety of herbs and they’re all fantastic. This is a big favorite recipe, and the one that got me started baking it at a lower temperature.
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They might mean mince turkey?
I’ve started ordering from farm2fork who have free range, grass fed animals, if you’re looking for a UK based ethical, healthy source. They deliver, but it’s pricey if you don’t buy in bulk.
Yes absolutely. It’s a really good idea, Thanks!
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Just checking in here again. I did a 200 km audax/randonee today, and the good news is that I didn’t bonk like last time. However I had stomach pains (actually in my stomach not my intestines) and slight nausea the whole time. As I mentioned previously I can’t eat solids on the bike becuse of my braces, so I used Tailwind. I also had two stops where I ate a cheese toastie and some traybake on the second. The food actually settled my stomach a bit. It was clearly the Tailwind mixture that caused the pains. Please tell me that this will get better? In my current situation, liquid calories are the way to go and definitely kept my energy up. I could tell when I refilled my final bottle just with water, with 30 km to go, and I felt like I could have done with the extra sugar but I was tired of the nasty sensation.