Vegans Need More Fuel Stops?
04-04-19, 06:46 PM
#1
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Vegans Need More Fuel Stops?
After following the Florida trip posts, which I truly enjoyed, it occurred to me that a vegan may need more fuel along the way than a carnivore. Is this the case, or do they take in enough calories with a meal to match that of us meat eaters?.
04-04-19, 10:07 PM
#2
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MEAT IS MURDER 
04-05-19, 03:54 AM
#4
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Yes of course vegans need more fuel stops than normal people. Not necessarily for fuel, but to tell more people that they are, in fact, vegan.
04-05-19, 05:16 AM
#5
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Most cyclist don't ride long enough or hard enough to have a nutritional issue. However, any ride longer than three hours should include continuous intake of between 150 and 300 calories per hour. Like many cyclist, I can burn 500 calories per hour, but I can't digest 500 calories per hour. Even if I were to eat a 500 calories serving and eat every hour, I'll run a calorie deficit. Since it's unusual for me ride more than 4 hours continuously, I almost never run out of fuel, because my body has several hours of reserves it will draw from.
However, when I'm running a long-term and intentional caloric deficit with the goal of weight loss, I'll make every effort to eat 250 calories per hour while on the bike. I'll also have a complete meal before and after a 3 or 4 hour ride. This not only helps me avoid depleting my meager reserves, it helps me to avoid grazing on low quality calories.
I'd follow these rules if I were a full time vegetarian. I'm currently a near-vegetarian when I'm eating at home, but I allow meat in my diet when I travel on business.
However, when I'm running a long-term and intentional caloric deficit with the goal of weight loss, I'll make every effort to eat 250 calories per hour while on the bike. I'll also have a complete meal before and after a 3 or 4 hour ride. This not only helps me avoid depleting my meager reserves, it helps me to avoid grazing on low quality calories.
I'd follow these rules if I were a full time vegetarian. I'm currently a near-vegetarian when I'm eating at home, but I allow meat in my diet when I travel on business.
Last edited by Barrettscv; 04-07-19 at 08:24 AM.
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04-05-19, 10:31 AM
#7
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Vegan....Plant based diet, soooooooo thankfully animals go poop poop and provide fertilizer for the plant edible protein. 
Just an observation.
Just an observation.
04-05-19, 11:30 AM
#8
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04-05-19, 11:37 AM
#9
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You plan on asking 'Them' ?
You could Graze out of your Handlebar bag as you rode along.. to not stop...
04-05-19, 12:10 PM
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There are vegans racing in the at the highest level in the pro ranks. Their biggest challenge is the fact that the racing world and much of the rest of the world has not yet caught on. Their biggest challenge is getting their food, not sustaining a racing effort while eating it. In fact, vegans may well get better recovery in really hard multiday events. (Digesting meat takes a lot of work, ie blood oxygen. That is oxygen that isn't going to muscle repair.)
I raced as an ovo-lacto vegetarian. (I don't know if the term vegan had been invented yet. 1977,) Probably 5 oz yogurt at breakfast and cheese in my sandwich at lunch. My body felt so clean. Slept well and recovered well Now that I have found foods like hummus and pesto, I know I could easily skip the ovo-lacto part and race at any level (that this body is capable of and if I wanted to live the routine I did gladly when I was 24).
Ben
I raced as an ovo-lacto vegetarian. (I don't know if the term vegan had been invented yet. 1977,) Probably 5 oz yogurt at breakfast and cheese in my sandwich at lunch. My body felt so clean. Slept well and recovered well Now that I have found foods like hummus and pesto, I know I could easily skip the ovo-lacto part and race at any level (that this body is capable of and if I wanted to live the routine I did gladly when I was 24).
Ben
04-05-19, 12:21 PM
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04-05-19, 12:23 PM
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The primary need for fueling during a ride relates to carbs, not protein, so whether someone is a vegan or not is irrelevant. I suppose if a really long ride is being performed some intake of protein would be beneficial, but the amount should easily be accounted for with energy bars w/protein and such.
04-05-19, 12:35 PM
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The primary need for fueling during a ride relates to carbs, not protein, so whether someone is a vegan or not is irrelevant. I suppose if a really long ride is being performed some intake of protein would be beneficial, but the amount should easily be accounted for with energy bars w/protein and such.
Ben
04-05-19, 01:25 PM
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I love the really sharp Vermont and Oregon cheddar cheeses. The non-dairy cheeses I've tried so far pale in comparison. The bland (Swiss, American, etc.) cheeses never did it for me. (The Forager yogurt I like is made from cashews and strikes me as pretty decent. Goes well with my granola.)
04-05-19, 01:36 PM
#16
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We had a snack mix that consisted of various nuts (including cashews), raisin and dark chocolate that I used to put in my PB&J sandwiches before or during rides. It was quite good and crunchy!
If you stick to whole grain foods and are doing rides where you are eating 3-4000 calories/day, getting enough protein is not an issue. So except for events like RAM, I see little need for protein bars. And on really long rides, real food is a blessing! For the head and sanity! I ate peanut butter, honey and cheese sandwiches on very long rides for decades. Now that I am dairy-free, I don't know yet what will take the place of the cheese but I know it can be done. Just PB and honey works pretty well. (Cashews spread over the PB? Just thinking with my fingertips but that sounds quite edible.)
Ben
Ben
04-05-19, 02:00 PM
#17
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My question is an honest question as it is a concern for me as meat is being pushed out of my diet.
"No, Vegans don’t need to stop any more frequently on average that non-vegans. There is also no need to insult them as a group."
Not sure where this came from, but no insult was implied. Please reread the question.
"No, Vegans don’t need to stop any more frequently on average that non-vegans. There is also no need to insult them as a group."
Not sure where this came from, but no insult was implied. Please reread the question.
04-05-19, 02:47 PM
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04-05-19, 03:15 PM
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Why would you think vegans need more stops? In many cases you are probably riding among some that you just wouldn't expect are vegan or some sort of vegetarian. Carbs are the only thing you really need while cycling though a little protein may help somewhat. And there are plenty of vegan acceptable choices for carbs and plenty for protein too.
04-05-19, 04:42 PM
#20
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Figured that a vegetable based diet has few calories because plants have fewer calories per pound than meat. I know nothing about it, but just seemed to make sense. What does one eat to get more carbs? Are vegans allowed to eat pasta and bread? As an athlete how do they get enough energy?
I don't cook, just eat whatever is placed before me. Sometimes that means nothing for a day!
Mitkraft, I did not realize you were responding to others in this thread. For that please accept my apology.
I don't cook, just eat whatever is placed before me. Sometimes that means nothing for a day!
Mitkraft, I did not realize you were responding to others in this thread. For that please accept my apology.
Last edited by TiHabanero; 04-05-19 at 04:46 PM.
04-05-19, 05:01 PM
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No one fuels their rides with meat. If people eat meat while riding it's for other reasons than fueling. You need carbs - sugar, fruit, grains etc. Meat takes way too long to digest to be useful.
04-05-19, 06:27 PM
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The nice thing about vegetables having fewer Calories is you can eat more vegetables and get 10 times the amount of nutrition than you would with an equal Caloric amount of your favorite cut of steak. In fact I consider most meat pretty devoid of nutrition. Other than a few excessive amounts of stuff you don't need a lot of at any one sitting. Of course there are plenty of vegetable that are lacking in nutrition too. So you have to know what is and what is not packed with lots of various nutrition.
Some vegans/vegetarians do make the mistake of eating too much pasta and stuff that is mostly just starch, like potatoes. But if you've gotten a decent amount of nutritious food, then there is no overwhelmingly bad reason not to use nutritionally empty carbs to replenish what you lost from hard work or exercise.
Fats, carb's and proteins in themselves are not nutrition. Just fuel and building blocks.
No, I'm not vegan...... I just don't eat a lot of meat anymore. Particularly not beef... though when I'm at a place known for exceptional prime rib, I do partake.
Some vegans/vegetarians do make the mistake of eating too much pasta and stuff that is mostly just starch, like potatoes. But if you've gotten a decent amount of nutritious food, then there is no overwhelmingly bad reason not to use nutritionally empty carbs to replenish what you lost from hard work or exercise.
Fats, carb's and proteins in themselves are not nutrition. Just fuel and building blocks.
No, I'm not vegan...... I just don't eat a lot of meat anymore. Particularly not beef... though when I'm at a place known for exceptional prime rib, I do partake.
04-05-19, 06:51 PM
#24
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Figured that a vegetable based diet has few calories because plants have fewer calories per pound than meat. I know nothing about it, but just seemed to make sense. What does one eat to get more carbs? Are vegans allowed to eat pasta and bread? As an athlete how do they get enough energy
I actually decided to get healthy a little over a year ago and have been eating salads every day for lunch. I used to be a proper meat eater and had to have a meat with pretty much all my meals. As my diet has evolved and my salads have become more complex and varied I’m more and more often not bothering to try and figure out some meat to take and eat with or in my salad. I also crave it less for dinner so I naturally eat less of it. Not sure if I’ll ever go full vegetarian though even though we have some in the family.
Last edited by Mitkraft; 04-05-19 at 10:36 PM.
04-05-19, 10:43 PM
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Rides over 90 minutes I eat Ritz cheese crackers because they do not melt in the S Texas heat. I guess I’m a calories in calories out believer. Anyways everyone have great rides 