Fasted Training: Does It Work & Should You Do It?
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- Опубліковано 28 чер 2024
- Cycling on an empty stomach is something we’ve all done but is it something we should be doing? Fasted training is seen by some as a good way to burn fat and lose weight, however this is controversial and there could be dangers involved. Conor goes mythbusting to see whether riding fasted is safe, if it works, and whether you should be doing it to get fit and become a better cyclist.
0:00 Intro
0:33 What is fasted training?
3:02 Does it actually work?
4:36 What are the risks?
5:39 But are there any benefits?
6:38 Summary
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Do you ever do fasted rides? 👇
Frequently
Nope
Always.
Always
Most of my rides are fasted. I go out first thing in the morning and ride without breakfast. I also limit my total daily carbohydrates to around 80g to 100g. I can easily ride 3 - 4 hours without any food. I keep my heart rate low and trade higher top speed for longer endurance. I have trained my body well enough to enjoy long adventures at the expense of top speed and bursts of high intensity.
Fasted rides are not meant to make you faster, it’s supposed to make you more efficient… It is ideal for morning z2 sessions, but forget it when you have high intensity intervals planned for the day
More "efficient" would translate to faster at some sort of distance - and then can be measured reliably by science.
So I guess its limited to few individual (sub-competitive) practical scenarios as the presenter mentioned.
Similarly the sci experiments with short term keto training for somehow get improved fat burning combined with re-added carbs didn't prove worth the suffering.
Agree. The purpose of zone two is Oxygen and Fat efficiency. Obviously higher intensity demands Carbohydrates. The video contradicts the purpose it started with!
That’s exactly what i have been doing. I am getting much faster
Poor cyclist here, riding a borrowed gt zr5000 with a crack in the seatpost 😅 I normally ride empty stomach but if I do luck up and grab a breakfast I feel unstoppable! Quad shot of espresso got me 38 miles on a single speed during a group ride
Depends on the type of training. Low intensity trainings such as long weekend rides or recovery rides are totally doable on empty stomach, I do it all the time. But high intensity trainings such as intervals, thresholds or hill repeats are different. You definitely need carbs to do these trainings and maximize the gains.
Yeah it's "doable" but there is no sensible reason to "do" it. (Unless you get uncomfortable exercising with food in your stomach and small intestines)
I do the same on zero calories for at least 18 hrs, but I’m finished in less than 1.5 hrs. I can do what I want and hard, never hungry before or after. I’m totally fat adapted so it works otherwise i would be in trouble. I have to refuel by a few hours, no longer. I’m not on a high carb diet. Longer than that I will eat light before and during, will most likely be very hungry afterwards as my cue to refuel big.
Yeah recovery ride fasted wooo haha it’s not recovery if you train fasted but flame me if you wish but I’ll just request your strava & Instagram
@@robertp7209 There's no such thing as "fat adapted".
@@donwinston do you know what it means? Ever heard of ketones?
It is amazing what the body can adapt to. When I was in my 20s, living in a small town, and few to none cycling mentors (or videos like this) I decided to build up to riding my 1st century/100 mile ride. I didn't know much about nutrition but as I slowly built up my training my body got used to doing longer and longer rides with few additional calories. While I didn't start the ride fasted I eventually completed a hilly 100 mile ride on a cool fall day and it took 5 1/2 hours (total time as I never fully stopped). I consumed only 2 large water bottles with water and a nature valley granola bar.
I’ve done quite a few fasted morning rides and have found the key to them being beneficial is to ensure a low intensity so that your body is able to fuel the ride on fat reserves (max 60% of max HR). I’ve always done it as a way of targeting a few kilos of fat stored up over winter. Totally get that it doesn’t work for everyone especially if someone isn’t used to skipping breakfast. I always keep the ride under an hour too, and get out for faster rides at evenings or weekend afternoons.
It sounds like you are approaching fasted training with real caution, this is great! It's not for everyone and shouldn't be taken lightly 🙌
I typically try to add in 1 fasted training day once a week at base tempo. For my ultra endurance training it’s come in handy sometimes in my races. Has taught my body to pull resources from other areas when I hit points in race when my stomach needs a break.
One thing that needs mentioning is that the body is a very intelligent machine. It can adapt to circumstances you present it with. Switching from high carb to high fat diet takes some time - maybe a couple of months. Generally this I feel is healthier as you avoid insulin spikes. Every time I go on my 20 mile commute into work it is in a fasting state and have not encountered any negative effects.
Do you find you have more energy on fueled rides?
@@gcn I'm not Minty but I really do feel "super" when I ride fueled, and most of my training is fasted. It did take more than a month being able to train as hard as before though. I think you can't have any conclusion if fasting works for you until the third month or so
@@Felipe_Luzuriaga interesting. if i wear a shoe with a stone in it, then remove said stone, no doubt i would feel super. as was mentioned in the video, personal preference is key. most of the studies seem to focus on performance improvement, whereas many just enjoy cycling and fasted or otherwise may not really affect that.
@@percyveer2355 Good point, but I do really feel (I know, no science on that) better than before IF. Anyway, I agree with you, I'm no pro, if I think it works for me, is fine. My point was that if you asked me in those two first months, I would have answered differently, but now I prefer to train fasted.
@@Felipe_Luzuriaga :D interesting. aside from feeling better and it now being preference, have you noticed any improvements or is your focus on enjoying the cycling. personally, i watch these videos with a desire to get fitter, stronger etc. however i find the ideal approaches to be less fun, than just riding my bike. i do lots of zwift cycling and zwift racing which doesnt really help me improve but find fun.
I love to train fasted and I do great :)
One tip as someone who enjoys fasted riding - it's not much fun in the winter when it's cold and you need to put in effort just to keep warm. A fasted zone 2 ride on a warm summer morning though is a wonderful thing.
I live in California and work East Coast hours. This gives me the opportunity to finish work early and go on long rides at least 4-5 days a week. After work I’m usually too anxious to get on my bike to get the most out of daylight to be able to ride longer. This sometimes comes with a price which is riding on a non well taken care of stomach. Those days I run out of power after about two hours of riding vs the days that I feed properly before a ride.
On another note, this video, by far is one of my most favorite ones about fueling. Kudos!!
I noticed a huge downside to my early Sunday morning fasted rides: I'm somewhat starved when I return so I eat to much breakfast...🤔
Body could actually be craving salt and/or water instead of food in that instance. They can feel similar to hunger
This definitely answered something that I’ve been struggling with !!! I’ve tried the empty stomach rides several of times and it has never worked for me, I feel weak, hangry, unmotivated, slower and always ended up with a headache, this video definitely helped me understand it’s not just me, I always thought it was just being too negative towards the idea and I wasn’t putting enough effort or been more consistent with it , it definitely doesn’t work for me, thank you Connor for shining some light into a controversial topic, well controversial for me at least…lol…because I always tried to improve myself and do or follow what riders with more experience do, but I knew from the beginning that it was doing more harm than good to my system so I decided to stop doing it and this video helped to reaffirm that I made the best decision for myself, thank you again 🙏🙏🙏
This just shows that you are metabolically inefficient and too reliant on exogenous carbohydrates. If you keep going down that path you could end up pre-diabetic.
I just started cycling 3 weeks ago. I lost 12 pounds in the first 3 rides. I rode on a empty stomach for 12 miles then 20 and 25 miles. I did hit a wall my 3rd time but still made it through a extra 5 miles. Tomorrow I’m gonna take some snacks with me and see what that does to my body. I love this channel. So much knowledge you all give us. Appreciate you all so much!!
Losing 12 pounds after 3 rides sounds deeply concerning.
Fascinating video and thanks for the scientific dive (& not Si this time amazing! ). Whilst I agree about not doing fasted training per se, for all of the very real dangers mentioned, I have had a lot of success with intermittent fasting (without training). I skip a breakfast after an early evening meal the night before and wait till dinner to eat. No riing during this time. Next day, normal eating and riding/training. My meals are Mediterranean diet style, with the carbs being complex carbs. All of this means fewer insulin spikes and decreased insulin resistance. A resting fasting day gives the whole body a break! Super content! Thanks gcn!
It's not just Si that looks good in a lab coat 🙌 Why do avoid training when fasting?
I have wondered about this for some time, excellent information as usual. As a mountain biker I find these videos are indispensable.
Glad we could help! Will you now be taking on fasted training? 👀
Can you look at the benefits of fasted training for weight loss in overweight people rather than amateur/pro athletes please.
Great video with good information and agree with most of what you said. I have seen the most improvement in my Ironman results because of Fasted training BUT it's included with my KETO diet. So I think it may be more the KETO diet that helped me with my nutrition during my training and especially race day. After moving to the KETO diet and Fasted training, I never ever felt like BONKING or feeling empty during my Ironman races. Also, my race results significantly improved!!!!
Thanks Conor. Really useful. I commute to work by bike and often don’t feel like eating so early so tend to have breakfast in the office. But I hadn’t been sure if that was actually detrimental, especially in terms of metabolism. I cycle for practical and environmental reasons and because I love it, not for performance as such. Losing a few pounds is likely to be my best route to improving my speed, especially now GCN has taught me how to care for my bike and ride clipless.
It's totally natural. Wake up, do your excersise (hunting), reap the awards (get to eat)
First of all, I really like the science based approach in this video. I was wondering if you may consider making a full video dedicated to relative energy deficiency in sports, mainly focusing on women cyclist? Most video's only list the risks but don't go in depth. Being a women cyclist myself, I know how hard this is and have been struggling with it quite a bit myself.
I did a 40 mile ride fasted, and I survived, but had no power for hills and sprints. Have never done it again.
I did a 100 mile ride last September having not eaten anything before. Just had some snacks at the rest stops every 25 miles or so.
Depends on the person. I figured out that for the races/training before noon, if they are 1h long (like CX), I get the best feeling and result if I’m fasted that day. But that’s me.
Living in Spain I don't normally eat my evening meal until 8.30/9 pm, so in the morning it's normal for me to go riding to burn off the night before's dinner.
Spot on! Fasted training is more about *lifestyle* than about *performance* as far as I can tell. I enjoy my easygoing +/- 90 min. predawn rides, followed by a healthy breakfast. I keep feeling perky and invigorated for the rest of the day.
Almost all of my training is fasted due to time constraints and not eating my main meals late. I rarely ride more than 2 hours though, but I do push it! My take is that I’ve always done this, so maybe we all thrive on different fuelling and exercise regimes?
Agreed - we all have different physiology and carbohydrate metabolism in our bodies - so what works well for one person might be extremely bad for another.
This deserves a qualification. Older riders are cautioned against pushing it on fasted rides. We (yes, I'm one of them) have to fight for every bit of muscle we gain from our workouts, and we're in danger of depleting muscles as a quick source of energy during an intense workout when there's no ready sugar around. The point of intervals is to increase or at least maintain strength, so we're at odds with our goals if we deplete them. I've decided it's worth having brekkie if I'm doing a workout. I only ride or run for recovery fasted--and it's wonderfully efficient!
@@reeltaiwan thank you, I need to think about that as I too am getting older! 56 but feel 36!
It's great that it has worked for you 🙌 Do you find you have more energy when riding with food?
It really comes down to adherence. If its not sustainable then you wont be able to stick to it.
Fasted ride for weight management...sometimes low intensity sometimes high intensity.....its how I feel on the day....but I do a good food recovery after...😎
Same. I've been doing 40km/day for a few weeks in zone 2 pace/effort. I have a break at 30km and eat a banana then ride home. I feel there's a psychological benefit, not to mention feeling better unbloated by food, that come into the equation too.
I do these 3 or 4 days a week as part of my zone two rides.. 2 to 3 hours each session. No breakfast.. just water until after ride or lunch
If your goal is to improve metabolic flexibility, ie burning fat, instead of glucose, it should work well. Good way to lose weight also. Performance output will obviously not be equal to riding fueled but fasted training can have it's uses. Be cautious either way you can easily overdo it.
This is not necessarily true, I’ve found that I perform better on rides under 2 hours when fasted for 10-14 hours leading up to. Obviously longer rides or longer fasting periods leading up can cause issues.
I should add that my anecdote is backed by over a decade of experimenting - it may vary person to person.
Caution is the way to approach these things! Taking it easy and not pushing too much 🙌
100% Correct.
@@patrickb840 Chart your blood lactate level at different intensities. When your blood lactate level is under 2 mnol/L , the body primarily uses fat, over 2 mnol/L the body begins to prioritize sugar. No exceptions.
If we put this in perspective, 30 years back coaches and trainers thought the same approach works for everyone. Now we know the training has to be tuned for the individual. The key is to listen to your body and adjust your training. The tough part is it takes years of practice to get good at listening to your body. For some people, having a coach helps shorten the learning curve.
Research papers are just tools to help people try out different ideas and see what works.
Great video, have been wondering about this topic a lot while training for a century and a marathon since you'll inevitably run out of glycogen in both events. If the benefit is to stimulate gluconeogenesis (which occurs after glycogen stores are depleted in ~80 mins), but the drawback is poor recovery, would it make sense to do the first half of a 4-hour ride fasted, then start fueling for the second half of the ride and not depriving yourself afterwards?
I recently rode the 110 mile Dartmoor Classic in a fasted state. It’s amazing what you can do once you are fat adapted and free from the cult of energy bars and gels. Just drank water with some sea salt in for electrolytes.
'Sea' salt is just marketing.
That’s a good ride. What your moving time and elapsed time?
@@elkellenhabla 8 hours 35 minutes. Average speed 12.7 miles per hour. I rode with my 16 year old daughter who is a bit slower than me so I would have been faster on my own.
Totally agree once you have adapted to fasting i find you can ride for hours including hard efforts . Feel most people do not fast long enough to allow for the adaptation of bodies energy systems.
How did you do? Do you think you would have preformed better when carbed up? 👀
#gcn video suggestion……. detrimental effects of endurance training on ‘power athletes’ eg track sprinters
I do it all the time. Usually I have the last meal not later than 3-4PM. In the morning I can easilly do 50-60kms with just one bottle of water with me. Of course no harsh sprints or racing. Works magic for weight (fat) loss, metabolic health, insulin resistance, mood and overall energy throughout the whole day. But this adaptation or change cannot and must not be overnight or the body will just give up on you. I started with keto and intermittent fasting more than year ago and it takes time for the body to adapt to fat burning.
Exactly the same, started with 3 months of a keto diet 2 years ago and since then I have been absolutely fine on any sub 90km rides without food/carbs
Agree with Igor and David. He problem with most of the studies is they take carb fuelled athletes and test them fasted when metabolically they can't efficiently burn fat. If you're fully fat adapted on a keto diet that's a totally different scenario and from where I sit works brilliantly with no downside.
Thanks for the vid. I love fasting for several non cycling related benefits. Now I am on my 50h fast and came here to see if I can go out for a ride tomorrow just before finishing the fasting. Seems like I can.
I regularly do fasted training, but all zone 2. However I have done some more intense tempo outdoor rides while fasted with no lack of energy.
Not long ago I fasted for 3 days, and on tjr second day I did a 40 mile ride. Mostly zone 2, but I did do one huge 750 watt 40 second sprint where I got a KOM. Then carried on riding for 30 miles, and fasting right through for another day.
Fasted training seems like it could be ok for zone 2 rides. Always keep a snack with you just in case though
I do my fasted training on my zone 2 ride and long ride. But during interval session. I carb up. It improves my perfomance in cycling a lot.
I would be interested to see if there are long-term benefits. When I started fasted, Fat Max, training rides a few years ago I managed two and half hours before bonking. Yesterday, I rode for 5.25 hours, 92 miles, while in a fasted state. Interestingly, the day before I rode fasted but did 16 minutes of VO2 at the beginning of the ride and then 30-second efforts during the last hour or so. I got to 3.25 hours and bonked. I had a great Safeway fuel-up stop before riding 45 minutes home. This showed how it's best to ride steadily in a fasted state, any hard efforts will use up glycogen stores and put a strain on the body. I really enjoy riding fasted. It's helping my body work as efficiently as possible. I don't have any scientific proof to back this up but I have seen my body's ability to ride further fasted improve.
Great that it's working for you 🙌 What would your tips be for someone trying to get into fasted riding?
I guess that's the biggest difference between PRO and Weekend Warrior. The pro can build his day around the training while the rest of us has to do it the other way round (or atleast should imho). For example i'm often doing a morning run/ride fasted before the rest of the family has awakened and am returning to sit down with my loved ones to enjoy a "brunch" and fuel up. Enjoy your life!
I've done it. It works. 2000 hours in just over two years. Now VO2 Max 80 plus, and 4 Watts/kg in HR Zone 2 for 100 minutes. 5 Watts/kg for over 20 minutes. The trick is to eat well and correctly hours before riding. Get the energy on board and in those muscles and liver first. Train 98% Zone 2. Don't wipe out the glycogen stores. You need those for the 2% overloading required for power adaptation. Takes three days of optimum ingestion to replace them if you do. If you bonk? make that ten days. Sleep on it. Go!
Woe great tip! Sounds like you've really put the time into your fasted training. Why did you experiment with fasted training in the first place? 👀
Hard to believe! Impressive numbers for sure. What team do you ride for?
@@ronbell7920 Indeed! 4w/kg in hr 2? Must be Tadej 😂
3 days or more to replenish glycogen stores? how many grams of glycogen do you think the body has?
Are you a pro? and if not, why not? A VO2 Max of 80+. How did you test? Did you do blood lactate testing to get your true zone 2? I ask because the numbers you state are very very close to Pogi's numbers.
I ride to work everyday 23km one way and skip breakfast. No coffee, only a cup of water.
Fasted training has its advantages. Especially improving the viability of body mass. And usage of efficient and lasting fuel has positive affect over body performance.
All I could think of at 2:30 was Connor as Father Dougal from Father Ted!
I do it when rides the bike and when hit the gym , and feels very good
Durianrider carb the f🚑💪k up .. still rings true all these years later 😃👍
I did some but it‘s not the right thing for me. The key to burning as much fat as possible is duration at a low enough intensity. What really helps me is planing the average power target and sticking to it as close as possible. It also helps to plan with only 90% of the power your zones might suggest, so you will be safely within the desired range.
A few years (or more) back, I had let myself get out of shape due to living at work on intense projects. I decided to make a change and started running every morning fasted and after the run I fueled on a high protein, high fat, and very low carb diet. I added biking & kayaking on the weekends and keep my diet. This was all just before my 47th birthday and for my birthday I ran 6 6 minute miles in the hills above the river and Kayaked 21 miles in the same day. I had lost 30 lbs and was hard as a rock. I think for this type of fasted training to really work, it has to be a long lifestyle change. I think it can be very harmful to randomly jerk your diet around while training.
Agreed, much easier to get away with jerking it around when you're hard as a rock.
so long as you are staying in a low VO2 low intensity exercise you'll be burning fat primarily. Glucose is metabolised in the cytoplasm while fat is metabolised in the mitochondria. Fast twitch muscles primarily use glycolysis for their energy which is why you get a lactate build up quickly when you sprint compared to going for endurance.
SR did a vid recently all about zone 2 fasted rides improving your mitochondria, works for me being a diabetic on low carb/sugar diet . I'm 61 , 70kg & regularly use intermittent fasting.
Podgecar's doc/coach suggests 80% zone 2 !
Could you please let us know how to plan stops during long rides and what to do during those stops...e.g. how do you know how long to stop, what sort of stretching we should do or not do, whether to just lie down, etc. Also, what electrolytes do we need more during long rides.... sodium or potassium?
Conor covered some of this in a recent video 👉 ua-cam.com/video/03P6Nomt0dI/v-deo.html
I am always on fasted training low or high intensity doesnt feel anything bad even cycling for more than 2hrs. What i have during ride is my DIY hydration wc contains honey bcaa ORS top up with sports drink
|My early morning ride is always fasted if under an hour. Nice to get home with breakfast still to come.
Rode with a guy recently that hardly took a sip of water all ride, only had coffee before heading out & told me he had adapted to fat burning. I became dizzy mid-ride trying to keep up, but literally had to stop, drink & have an oatmeal bar. This guy also said he went out on all day rides, 200km without needing to eat. Absolute freak, worst cafe Ride partner ever you could say. Lol
My dearest mother (a biology teacher at high school) goes mad eveytime I have gcn does science on. She says, to quote: "Mitochondria are the site of respiration and release energy (as energy can be neither created or destroyed)." 😂😂😂
Once again the presenters at GCN love their gels and bars. Hopefully, their not being setup for diabetes down the road. They've never miss the chance to push cyclists to down those bars and gels! Good luck with that!
100%
Been doing fasted riding for a while now. So far so good. All my rides are mostly less than 2.5 hours... 50 miles at the most on flats. If I have to do bigger rides and or hills, I do eat.
Any bigger it would be safe to fuel 🙌 Do you find your better on those fueled rides than fasted?
I feel the same when I eat. It's just that I don't get hungry faster.
I currently had a big crashed, Am not able to ride hard or long. Cuz my hips hurts bad.
That's why I started do fasted training to get me the same effects as a long ride.
THE MITOCHONDRIA ARE THE POWERHOUSE OF THE CELL
HE SAID IT, WHAT A MAD LAD
Maybe it should be viewed situationally. If you feel fine before the ride and it's going to be short, then go for it. If on the other hand you're shaky or if it's a going to be a longer ride, then fuel first and delay the ride.
2:21 now that's peak editing right here 👌
Regarding topics and nutrition. A “retro” nutrition episode would be nice topic. Recently watched “A Sunday in Hell” and wondered if modern racers still chowed down on platters of steak and eggs like in the film (I’m guessing not). Certainly the science of nutrition has evolved since those days and might be an interesting topic.
I am so happy that Colin seems so much more comfortable in front of the camera. I really enjoy the content he creates and puts out there.
When I started road biking at the beginning of the pandemic, I dropped from 180lbs to 155lbs in 2 months. I was not fueling or hydrating properly. I'm leveled at 170lbs now, (6'1" and 60 years old). I eat and hydrate now!
Great to hear you've got into cycling 🙌Do you find your results are better now you are properly fueling?
Hey Mitch! I am 64 and the weight is not coming off very easily this time around. Keep up the good work!
I do it and follow the "1 or 2 X 3" system. once or twice a week, for one or two hours, workout in zone 1 and 2. have a good breakfast afterwards and go about my day. I don't have a dataset to work with but I'm always getting stronger.
you are getting stronger because you are riding your bike, that's all I am afraid
@@gygabytes well I certainly dont expect not eating to make me stronger . . . obviously exercising the muscles is what makes them bigger but thanks
So questions about fasted training with low and high intensity and short and long duration should be put to Inigo San Milan right?
I do have a bike and gonna start cycling again soon, I ride on a simple concrete trail, but I'm also lifting weights currently to get stronger muscles. How can I include cycling into the routine? One week of fasting cycling then next week weight lifting? Or like do fasting cycling only a couple times a week and lifting weights the rest?
As a diabetic, I have a very hard time with my training. I always have to get some fast working carbohydrates in to prevent my body from breaking down my own reserves. This might sound very nice if you try to loose weight, but for me it means feeling bad for at least half a day. When I don't fuel up before a ride, it is sometimes like eating half a cake, not just a piece, spread over a long period.
I can actually stop that process by eating something. Weird, isn't it?
I know my situation is (gladly) not the norm, but it might be interesting to hear how professional cyclists with diabetes handle things like fueling. They are very "hands-on" with many processes in their body. And cycling is a very good sport for those who suffer from diabetes, especially because one can choose between aerobic and anaerobic training, which both have very pronounced effects that they can measure.
I would be very interested in a video like that, and I am sure many people who want to know more about their body will value it as well.
Great comment. There is a whole spectrum of folks whose ability to process fuel lies outside the norms. They would certainly profit from more (some...any!!!) attention given to best training practices for them.
type 1 or type 2? Dr. Jason Fung wrote a great book on Type 2
My friend fainted and fell off the bike during cycling class the other day. The first thing our trainer asked. Did you have breakfast ？ This has happened on different people so many times ! Our trainer will ask the people without breakfast to leave the classroom in the future.
That's because these guys were NOT fat adapted. It may take a few months to get fat adapted if properly trained
Definitely hard training whilst fasted without the time given for energy adaptations will cause problems. Personally I have now trained fasted for over 18 months and have no problems with either intense or long duration training sessions. The key is definitely allowing for energy adaptation to kick in that can take months of fasting
I have never seen a "sprint" class were the instructor wasn't bats#@t crazy! It is definitely a high intensity workout, my wife loves them!
I've read countless peer reviewed clinical trial studies on fasted training. Yes you can mobilize and utilize fats for fuel but it comes at the cost of carb burning rates when you need it at high intensities. So if you're a competitive person and are looking for an edge it's simply not worth it. If you're trying to lose weight it stands to reason that it could be used as an option but intensity is paramount. It slightly differs for each person (think bell curve) but once you hit your lactate treashold 1 or 75% vo2max/ftp whatever you want to call it, you start to burn more carbs than fat for fuel. Glycogen in the muscles and liver range from 2000-2500kcal (400 -425g) and it is nearly impossible to revert back to purely fat burning once you cross over said threshold. Read about respiratory expiration ratio (rer) to understand more.
Great comment!
Fasting is not to be done when racing or for high-intensity training. It does give you some metabolic flexibility. Fasting during endurance exercise has been shown to help lose weight. Once your blood lactate level goes above 2mnol/Lt (zone 2) the body starts to use greater amounts of sugar. It takes the average endurance athlete about 30 minutes to get back down below 2mnol/L. Chris Froome experimented with fasting and keto. Most of his training rides were done in fasted states. However, when the intensities increased, such as during a mountain stage he would take gels. This would act as rocket fuel. Team Sky also experimented with exogenous ketones that were made by a leading scientist at Cambridge. Tasted awful and was very expensive.
I wonder if being low carb (keto adapted) makes faster rides more productive ? About 10 years ago I was into silly long distance audax rides , and I did a 600 km ride in 37 hours entirely fasted from24 hrs before the ride started until the end of the ride . I was strict keto at the time , and suffered no I’ll effects . Started in Margate and rode to Penzance entirely fasted .
I tend to work out fasted because I get nauseous if I've eaten too recently. I'll bring an apple or a snack on longer rides, but I am not a performance athlete and work a sedentary job. Aside from sleep, recovery is decidedly not an issue for me.
For me, a fasted workout simply results in fewer joules in and more joules out and there's really no downside. I have plenty of joules to spare and honestly the biggest benefit to my performance on the bike would likely come from weight loss rather than increased strength if I started training more seriously.
Thank you Conor for another thoughtfully produced evidence-based video, keep them coming! You have made reference to REDS on a few occasions and I would love some more insight on what I think is a poorly understood and seldom discussed topic. Keep up the great work!
I think it depends on the person and the upcoming ride/training. Perhaps periodization is a better method.
It's certainly not for everyone 🙌
For endurance I don't think it's important to focus neither on eating or fasting. Rather on doing the training and if possible, also to enjoy doing it. The body is great at adapting and becoming stronger as long as you are willing to keep moving. Training fully fueled and training on fumes will both still train your body to good results. So keep training my friends!
I usually ride fasted but I'm not necessarily training for anything. My rides are about 1.5 hours and not high intensity but high effort. I initially did this to lose weight plus I didn't like to eat a meal before riding, but after the ride I'd usually have a headache most of the day. I more contribute that to being dehydrated as I don't drink well while exercising or in general. I did find that I didn't have as much energy as when I fuel even though I may have carbo-loaded the night before. So, now I have a small bowl of cereal, granola bar, or banana before I go just to have some fuel going into it. I make sure to eat and drink during and usually my headaches don't appear. Plus, I'm taking it a lot easier these days. I'm sure everyone is different.
This is what i do when i'm shedding lbs. water intake only. I normally go for about 50kms before i feel my body needing hydration. Its good for building endurance, but no power gains. I do think this is dangerous for people who like to push their limits and havent hit it yet.
I do 1-2 fasted rides a week, 20-25mi at Zone2. I have found a real benefit on Sunday club rides, when you’re all out Zone3/4. My energy levels remain higher for longer before I need to grab a gel.
I have been on low carb diet since 2015. So i can say I'm fat adapted. I can go on empty stomach for 3 hours of moderate to high intensity ride....
I don't carbo load anymore. Doesn't need to.
But u don't go from carb burning to fat burning overnight... Realistically, will need 3 months for the body to get fully adapted...
From an article years ago, before it had a name. If I am going out for a 1 1/2 ride, I don't eat. Over the time limit I eat. Works great for me.
I do fasted rides when commuting to work as it's a 45-50 minutes window for me to get work. And then I just wait to eat till it lunch. I feel pretty good doing it that way but I'll never fast if I'm planning on a big day out on the bike.
I am definitely with you. It is good to just jump out of bed and do an hour rather than wait for food to go down. But also put off the hard sessions until your breakfast has gone down.
Fasted…sort of, but not bc of advertised benefits. I prefer to ride when my stomach feels less full. I feel lighter, fitter, and mentally more ready to workout in said state. I don’t keep track of when I last ate but rather I just make sure not to eat much several hours before riding.
Yes I ride In a 100% fasted state always. Works for me . I’ll occasionally eat first but no matter how long I wait to digest , even if only a small amount of food , it comes back up on me. Fasted for me.
Take a look at the studies done by Dr Peter Attia. He reviews the benefits of fasting as well as effects when training. He was heavily involved in the recent documentary series that followed Chris Hemsworth. However, he has been involved with athletes / athletics for many years.
Great video, thank you.
Dr. Attia's main reason for fasting is not for performance. It is on lifespan and healthspan. He regularly eats breakfast 4-5 days a week, does a 24-hour fast once a month and does a 5-day fast once a year He also no longer eats Keto. Too restrictive and unclear of the long-term effects of a high-fat diet.
@@ffskierdune6226 agreed. I was simply adding the info as a comparison or addition of information. There are benefits to fasting just as there are to ensuring proper nutrition.
Jan Ulrich used to do this, or ride on a single apple.
Suggest you listen to Professor Tim Noakes, he wrote the book on sports nutrition, then tore it up!
I suggest them many times. Seems that they don't want or their sponsors won't allowed.
I only ride on a fasted stomach. I am not doing it for performance but since I bike early mornings always I invariably do it on a fasted stomach. I find it better to bike first and have my breakfast after the ride on my usual rides that are 40-50kms on average.
biking 26km to work in the mornin with no breakfast and then home with to meals down, same same
During the work week, I get up ride for about an hour then shower and eat breakfast and off to work. Done this for years. If I am planning on a long and/or intense ride on the weekend i will eat first
The idea of fasted cardio isn't new; I was reading about getting a treadmill run in before eating years and years ago. The context wasn't long-term changes to your metabolism, though. The idea was that by doing this before breakfast, you were forcing your body to burn more fat during the workout than it would if you ran later in the day when you'd eaten one or more meals. It's easy to overdo this though--last year, I did two 40-50+ mile rides with minimal food, and boy were those ever mistakes. I was so pale and nauseous after one of them that it took a couple of hours before I could eat anything.
Take it easy, fasted training is best practiced on shorter and lower intensity rides. Are you now doing longer rides with fuel or still experimenting with fasted rides?
@Global Cycling Network DEFINITELY fueling now! After that 56-mile ride that left me feeling sick, I sought some advice and got schooled. When I did a 65-mile ride later, I brought plenty of food, and I felt great after the ride. Nothing fancy, either: fruit, granola, and Uncrustables (a frozen, prepared peanut butter & jelly sandwich that thaws out by lunch time). Totally different experience.
Intermittent fasting and keto diet will boost the performance. But will take time the body to adopt, approx 2-3 weeks. Also in Ramadan, it's harder to do exercises or rides (purely my experience), because water or liquid also prohibited to consume till dusk, but the body totally restarts/refreshes itself, killing all "bad cells"...
No evidence that IF and Keto will boost performance. At high intensities, anything over a blood lactate level of 2mnol/L and the body prioritizes sugar. Fat cannot provide this. It took Dr. Peter Attia MD 18 months of very strict Keto for his performance on the bike and in the water to improve. Just so you know, he no longer eats this way.
@@ffskierdune6226 thanks for your reply, and does it mean (no evidence) that no any research/s has/ve been made before on this topic?!
Everyone's body is different also. I do alot of Fasted training but if I'm going to do fast group rides I fuel up well. Human body is magnificent and will adapt.
I ride 7 miles as fast as I can to work fasting 3 to 4 times a week for over 3 year. It just works for me. My times to work have improved over the years as a result. As well as, my longer rides.
4:45 it's a fasted endurance ride. you still eat a recovery meal after, and plenty more throughout the rest of the day to meet calorie needs.
I feel sluggish when my tummy is full, I prefer to cycle on empty stomach. Coffee and 2 dry dates are an awesome fuel for morning ride
Does this also work for people with Type 1 diabetes?
That clip @ 2:00 mins in --- LOL
A really interested video, thanks Connor. I've just started a 12 week fasting programme, where I eat between 10am - 6pm and train after 7pm week day evenings and weekends I will try to head out early in the morning so that I get back around 10am. Rubbish part of this programme is that I'm only on week 1 😥
I’ve always done fasted rides, partly because they were the ‘in’ training fad when I was riding more seriously, and partly because I hardly ever eat breakfast. Like lots of others I’ve found it’s fine for steady rides for mostly zone 2 stuff ……. I tried to do a Zwift race fasted last week (not in the name of science, I’d overslept 😂) and I blew up spectacularly after the first 10km 😮
Did you do the Zwift race fasted? 👀
@@gcn yes, it didn’t go well and no amount of emergency quaffing of energy gels saved me….
I wish I didn't notice Connor's "naughty bits" sticking out... 5:12 Now I don't even remember what the whole video was about.
I used to ride fasted when I rode at 5am. These days I ride around 9:30am, a few hours after breakfast.