The Best Fluffy Pancakes recipe you will fall in love with. Full of tips and tricks to help you make the best pancakes.
Look, we’ve all been there—pedaling along feeling like an absolute champion, and then suddenly… nothing. Your legs turn into concrete blocks, the hills that looked manageable now feel like Mount Everest, and you’re pretty sure you might actually cry. That’s bonking, my friend, and it’s brutal.
Here’s the thing though (and I learned this the hard way during a century ride back in ’23): what you stuff in your face before you clip in matters WAY more than most of us realize. I’m talking about the difference between crushing your ride and limping home with your tail between your legs, wondering why you even own a bike. The science backs this up too—properly fueled muscles store enough glycogen to keep you going for roughly 90-120 minutes of hard effort, while eating the wrong things? You’ll be dealing with stomach cramps that make you question every life decision.
And if you’re serious about taking this whole nutrition thing to the next level (without spending hours researching and meal-planning), the Cycling Fuel Recipes Ebook for Watchers is basically your shortcut—it’s got a 4-week structured plan, over 70+ recipes that actually taste good, and all the science stuff explained so you don’t have to become a nutritionist yourself. But first, let me tell you exactly what you should be eating before you roll out.
How Long Before a Bike Ride Should You Eat? Best Pre-Ride Meal Timing
Timing is everything—like, literally everything. Your gut needs time to process food and turn it into actual usable energy, but wait too long and you’ve burned through those precious stores before you even start pedaling. It’s this weird balancing act that honestly took me years to figure out.
Eating 3-4 Hours Before Cycling
So here’s how it breaks down: if you’re riding in 3-4 hours, you’ve got time for a proper meal. We’re talking 3-4 grams of carbs per kilogram of your body weight. For someone who weighs 70kg (that’s 154lbs), you’re looking at roughly 210-280 grams of carbohydrates. That’s substantial. Think big bowls of oatmeal with banana and honey drizzled on top, thick slices of whole grain toast slathered with peanut butter and jam, or maybe a rice bowl with some lean protein and veggies thrown in. This gives your body enough time to digest everything properly and max out those glycogen stores in your muscles.
When you’ve got 2-3 hours before riding, dial it back a bit to 2-3 grams per kilogram. A large bowl of cereal with milk and fruit works great here, or pancakes (the fluffy kind) with real maple syrup, or even a bagel with jam and a banana on the side. You’re still fueling up properly but not so much that you feel like you swallowed a brick. I remember this one time I ate a massive burrito 2 hours before a group ride and—let’s just say it wasn’t pretty. Learn from my mistakes.
Quick Fueling 1-2 Hours Before Your Ride
The 1-2 hour window is your quick-fuel zone. Aim for 1-2 grams of carbs per kilogram, but here’s where it gets tricky—you need stuff that digests fast. Lower fiber, less fat. Think:
• Smoothies blended with banana and oats
• Plain white toast with honey (sounds boring but it works)
• Small bowl of white rice with just a touch of protein
• Energy bars that don’t have tons of fiber in them
Your stomach’s gotta process this stuff quickly without making you feel bloated or crampy mid-ride. And honestly? White bread gets a bad rap nutritionally, but before a hard ride it’s actually your friend.
Last-Minute Fueling: Under 1 Hour Before Riding
For rides under an hour away, keep it super light—0.5-1 gram per kilogram. A banana does the trick, maybe some dates, a simple energy bar, or even just applesauce. Some people can handle coffee at this point (I can’t, gives me the jitters), but if that’s you, go for it. Just test it during training, never on race day… trust me on this one.
Early Morning Ride Nutrition Strategy
Morning rides are their own special nightmare because you’ve been fasting all night and your glycogen stores are depleted—like, up to 80% depleted. That’s why so many cyclists feel absolutely terrible on early morning rides. You need that combination of complex carbs for sustained release and simple sugars for immediate energy. Maybe throw in some protein to stabilize blood sugar. Oatmeal made with milk, topped with sliced banana and honey plus a handful of nuts is basically perfect here. Or try whole grain toast with almond butter and strawberries, with orange juice on the side (the vitamin C doesn’t hurt either).
For afternoon rides though? You’ve got more flexibility since you’ve probably already eaten lunch and your stores are relatively full. If you’re riding 2-3 hours after lunch, just make sure that lunch had decent carbs—turkey sandwich on whole grain with fruit, grain bowl with quinoa, pasta salad with lean protein. Pretty straightforward, really.
What Not to Eat Before Cycling: Foods That Cause Stomach Problems & Bonking
Okay, so some foods are just… terrible before riding. Like, consistently terrible for almost everyone (though there are always those weird exceptions who can eat anything and feel fine—I hate those people).
High-Fiber Foods and Gas-Producing Vegetables
High-fiber foods? Nightmare fuel. Beans, lentils, bran cereals—anything with more than 5g of fiber per serving is asking for trouble. And cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts? They’re basically gas bombs waiting to explode in your stomach. Not fun when you’re 30 miles from home.
The pre-ride food blacklist:
• Beans and lentils (obviously)
• Broccoli, cauliflower, basically anything that smells like farts when you cook it
• Fried foods—the grease will haunt you
• Sugar alcohols and artificial sweeteners (they wreck some people’s guts)
• Fizzy drinks (carbonation = bloating = misery)
• Super spicy stuff (heartburn on a bike is a special kind of hell)
• Too much dairy (depends on the person but why risk it?)
Why Fat and Artificial Sweeteners Wreck Your Ride
Excessive fat slows everything down in your digestive system—keeps food sitting in your stomach when it should be in your bloodstream powering your legs. And artificial sweeteners, especially those sugar alcohols they put in “diet” products? Gastrointestinal disaster waiting to happen.
Common Pre-Ride Eating Mistakes That Kill Performance
Here’s a classic mistake: eating too much too close to ride time. That huge breakfast 30 minutes before your ride? It’s gonna sit there like a rock, pulling blood to your stomach instead of your muscles. But then… eating too little is just as bad. I see this all the time with cyclists trying to lose weight—they under-fuel their rides and then wonder why they feel like garbage and their performance tanks.
Never—and I mean NEVER—try new foods on event day. That’s amateur hour stuff. Similarly, loading up on more than 10g of fiber or 20g of fat the morning of a long ride is basically signing up for digestive problems hours into your effort. Your training partner might thrive on coffee and a bagel but that doesn’t mean your stomach will cooperate. Bodies are weird like that.
And dehydration? Even just 2% body weight loss from fluids will absolutely tank your performance. You’ll feel weaker, your power output drops, everything feels harder than it should.
Pre-Ride Hydration for Cyclists: How Much Water Before Riding
Hydration is one of those things people overlook until they’re suffering. You can’t just chug water right before you leave and expect everything to be fine—your body doesn’t work that way (unfortunately).
The 24-Hour Hydration Protocol
Start hydrating the day before if you’ve got a long or hard ride planned. Not the morning of, the day BEFORE. In the 2-3 hours leading up to your ride, drink 400-600ml (14-20oz) of water or a light electrolyte drink. But sip it gradually—don’t slam it all at once or you’ll feel sloshy and need to pee every five minutes.
Smart hydration timing:
• Night before: Drink consistently all day, check your pee color (pale yellow is good)
• Morning of: 300-500ml within 30 minutes of waking up
• 2-3 hours out: 400-600ml total, sipped slowly
• 30 minutes before: Just tiny sips if needed (50-100ml max)
Electrolytes vs Plain Water: When to Use What
For hot days or rides over two hours, skip plain water and go for something with electrolytes. Sodium helps your body actually retain fluid and prevents hyponatremia during really long efforts—aim for 300-500mg of sodium per hour when it’s hot. But for cooler weather or shorter rides under 90 minutes? Plain water works fine.
Finding Your Personal Fueling Formula
Everyone’s different though. What works for your riding buddy might make you cramp up after 20 minutes. I learned this the hard way trying to copy what faster riders were doing… ended up with stomach issues for months until I figured out my own system. Keep a simple log for a few weeks—write down what you ate, when you ate it, how you felt during the ride. Look for patterns. Did that whole grain toast make you bloated? Did the smoothie give you energy or make you feel sluggish? Or waiting three hours work better than two hours?
Test everything during training rides, never during races or important group rides. Test when the stakes are low and you can afford to make mistakes. Some people can eat 45 minutes before riding and feel amazing—others need a full two hours even for a small snack. There’s no one-size-fits-all answer here, just what works for YOUR body.
Cycling Nutrition Ebook: Complete Meal Plans & Recipes for Cyclists
So look—understanding what to eat before a ride is great and all, but it’s just one piece of this whole performance puzzle, right? Most cyclists struggle with the bigger picture: what comes after rides for recovery, how to fuel during multi-day events, how your nutrition should change during different training phases, and honestly… how to make food that’s both good for performance AND doesn’t taste like cardboard.
Your Complete 4-Week Nutrition System
That’s literally why I created the Cycling Fuel Recipes Ebook for Watchers. It’s a complete system that removes all the guesswork from cycling nutrition (because who has time to figure all this out from scratch?). You get a 4-Week Structured Nutrition Plan that moves through Base, Build, Peak, Taper, and Recovery phases—perfectly synced with how you should be training. No more wondering what you’re supposed to eat during different periods of your season.
Inside there’s 70+ Cyclist-Specific Recipes with actual good photos (not those terrible food blog pics) and complete nutritional breakdowns. Every single recipe is designed specifically for riders, focusing on the perfect macro balance for performance and recovery. And here’s the kicker—most recipes are done in under 30 minutes because let’s be real, you’re training and living your life, not spending three hours in the kitchen every night.
Why this ebook is a game-changer:
✅ 4-Week Structured Nutrition Plan – All training phases covered
✅ 70+ Cyclist-Specific Recipes – With photos and nutrition info
✅ 4 Weekly Grocery Lists – No more wandering the store aimlessly
✅ Science-Based Fueling Strategies – Carb-loading, recovery timing, electrolytes explained
✅ Pre & Post-Ride Meal Guidance – Exact protocols for different ride types
✅ Quick Prep Recipes – Under 30 minutes for most meals
✅ Lifestyle Tracking Tools – Customize for weight loss, endurance, or muscle gain
What Makes This Ebook Different
The 4 Weekly Grocery Lists make shopping so much easier—everything’s organized, you just grab what’s on the list and you’re done. The Science-Based Fueling Strategies section covers carb-loading protocols (the right way, not the pasta-binge way), recovery windows, electrolyte balance, hydration strategies. You’ll understand not just WHAT to eat but WHY and WHEN.
You get Complete Pre and Post-Ride Meal Guidance showing exactly what to eat before and after different ride types—short intense sessions, long endurance rides, recovery spins, whatever. Takes all the guesswork out of portions and timing. And the Lifestyle Tracking Tools let you adapt everything for your specific goals—whether you’re trying to drop weight, build endurance, or pack on muscle. The plan meets you where you are.
Customized for Your Cycling Goals
For weight loss, you’ll learn how to fuel rides properly while maintaining a deficit during other meals—prevents muscle loss and keeps training quality high. For building muscle, the plan focuses on 20-30 grams of quality protein alongside carbs in pre-ride meals, providing amino acids for muscle synthesis and preventing breakdown during long efforts.
Whether you’re prepping for your first century, trying to hang with faster group rides, or just want to feel stronger on every ride… proper nutrition is honestly your secret weapon. The Cycling Fuel Recipes Ebook for Watchers gives you everything you need to fuel like a pro, even on an amateur budget and schedule.
Stop guessing and bonking halfway through rides. Stop settling for mediocre performance because you don’t know how to fuel properly. Get your copy today and transform your cycling through proper nutrition.
Pre-ride nutrition is foundational but it doesn’t have to be complicated. Start with basics: carb-rich, easily digestible foods 2-3 hours before longer rides, scale back for shorter efforts, avoid gut-wrecking foods, stay hydrated starting the day before. Build a consistent routine and you’ll stop wondering why some rides feel great and others feel terrible. The difference between good rides and great rides often comes down to choices you made hours before touching your bike. Invest in your nutrition strategy with the complete system in the Cycling Fuel Recipes Ebook for Watchers, and you’ll see results in every pedal stroke. Now get out there, fuel smart, ride strong.
