Originally Posted by ScottCommutes

I pound free food. I finish my kids' meals. I eat pounds of raisins/peanuts/chocolate chips mixed together. I also eat a lot of frozen pizzas. I deep fry french fries for lunch and fry potatoes/onions for breakfasts. Also a lot of cheese. I've also taken up baking (usually from mix) cake, brownies, bread, and cornbread. I do eat fruits and veggies.

Any thoughts or advice?

Originally Posted by jadmt

henry rono was about the greatest runner of his time and he apparently lived on big macs and coke and was reputed to have drank a 5th of rum before some big races.

Originally Posted by tomato coupe

These anecdotes about cyclists and runners that competed successfully while eating at McDonalds are like stories of chain smokers that had a cancer-free life. It may have worked out okay for them, but it’s not a very good idea.

Originally Posted by PeteHski

It sounds like the fruit and veg is an afterthought. If so then I would change it around. Frozen pizza, deep fried potatoes and cakes do not make a very healthy diet.

My advice would be to take up healthy home cooking in place of baking bread and cakes. Drop the frozen pizza habit.

Originally Posted by jadmt

henry rono was about the greatest runner of his time and he apparently lived on big macs and coke and was reputed to have drank a 5th of rum before some big races. There is also a guy Don Gorske who has eaten a big mac every single day for over 50 years. Probably all about genetics.

Originally Posted by One Wheel

Red meat and, if you can handle lactose full-fat dairy, are as close to complete foods as you'll find. I buy expired Clif bars in bulk on ebay, 1 small or 1/2 large every 1/2 hour works for rides up to about 4 hours. I don'tgenerally eat differently off the bike when I ride vswhen I don't.

Originally Posted by RH Clark

Red meat IMHO is healthy as long as you are working enough to build muscle. there is a hormone, I think, called mTOR that helps build muscle but can help grow cancers if a person is more sedentary. I prefer to only consume red meat when I have worked hard enough to make muscles sore.

Originally Posted by One Wheel

Strictly anecdotal: my sister doesn't do a lot of exercise, aside from being a homeschooling mom of 3 young boys. She was having some health problems, I'm not sure exactly what, and got a recommendation to eat I think it was 180 grams of protein per day. I'm pretty sure that's coming largely from red meat, and she's never been healthier.

I've read that the studies looking at the health of red meat tend to not control for type of red meat: a burger with fries and a Coke counts as the same serving of red meat as a grass-fed steak.

Originally Posted by PeteHski

What does she weigh? Most recent studies suggest it's a waste of time eating more than approx 2g/kg bodyweight of protein per day. Maybe 2.2g/kg if you are doing a lot of endurance exercise, which it sounds like she isn't.

Originally Posted by ScottCommutes

I'm 49. I figure I'm eating an extra 10,000 calories a week on top of normal human eating to fuel my bike commuting. I already lost weight last year so now I am balancing my lifestyle. I feel like I get most of my nutrition covered by normal eating, so I think I'm just looking for cheap calories to burn that taste good and are not bad for me. I look at it like a substitute for buying gas for the car.

I pound free food. I finish my kids' meals. I eat pounds of raisins/peanuts/chocolate chips mixed together. I also eat a lot of frozen pizzas. I deep fry french fries for lunch and fry potatoes/onions for breakfasts. Also a lot of cheese. I've also taken up baking (usually from mix) cake, brownies, bread, and cornbread. I do eat fruits and veggies.

Any thoughts or advice?

Originally Posted by Bassmanbob

I've found that I cannot out-exercise what I put in my mouth. I can ride as many miles as I want and still put on weight if I don't watch what and how much I eat. Remember, what you put in your mouth is fuel. Good fuel in = better performance. Bad fuel in = worse performance.

Originally Posted by SpedFast

I like peanut butter. I only average 25 miles/day, but I can move my weight up and down by controlling my peanut butter intake. 75 years of age and still feel younger than most my age. I credit it to riding a bike.

Originally Posted by phughes

Interesting you mention that. On bike tours, I carry a jar of peanut butter, and flour tortillas for a snack during the day if I cannot find a place to eat. Easy to carry and gives me the fuel I need.

Originally Posted by ScottCommutes

This idea really checks a lot of boxes - easy to carry, easy to purchase, easy to make, easy to eat, affordable, reasonably healthy and delicious

Originally Posted by One Wheel

If I recall correctly she's mentioned being familiar with that research, but it works better for her to set her goal much higher, in the range of 3-4 g/kg. She's lost some weight on the high protein diet: I would say maybe the higher end of healthy to the lower end; she's never been obese or emaciated.

Originally Posted by PeteHski

Maybe the extra protein and associated fats just keeps her carb intake in check, regardless of whether or not she can actually use all that protein (the science suggests that she can’t). I’m currently discovering how combining carbs with fats and protein may help to flatten our blood glucose response. That could be the benefit to metabolic health here.

Originally Posted by terrymorse

I'd be wary of maintaining a high protein diet long term. Protein overconsumption is associated with several health risks.