Protein, Carbs & Wine: Retro Vs Modern | The Evolution Of Cycling Nutrition

[@gcn]

What do you eat and drink to fuel your riding? Let us know👇

[@penrar]

The Classic GCN flapjack (wi peanut butter) recipe still works wonders y’know!

[@ElonMuckX]

Tequila!!! I'm serious! A little swig fights lactate acid and elevates the heart. It's known as the "Power Alcohol" because it gives you energy. And Dan just drinks boring beer. Think how far the Cervelo Test Team could have gone if they knew about Tequila..........

[@kstethespokes1051]

This really didn’t work on the turbo - almost choked on the steak and spilt the Claret. #askgcntech what’s the best way to clean red wine off carbon wheels (and my socks)?

[@SioLazer]

@@ElonMuckX on a power lifting podcast, the athletes were talking about how a shot of liquor is just enough to make you feel like a super hero so you can hit your one rep max. It's not completely unfounded to take a belt of tequila like you suggest. alcohol is another energy source!

[@SioLazer]

depends on the ride. I'm getting ready to do a gentle recovery ride so I'm having water and black coffee and that's it. But if I'm doing more, eggs and bacon with a fatty coffee. I like putting cream, butter and cacao butter in my coffee. If the ride requires prolonged bouts of high intensity I'll target those with carbs. Usually in the form of dates or Picky Bars. I'm in the states where I don't think we get Enervit. If it's a steady state ride, I fuel with fat bombs and nut butters.

[@Jules.C.]

I only smoke when I'm on fire ~ Ollie Bridgewood 2020

[@andrewmsmith1969]

But an ad right in the middle of the punchline?! :-(

[@jonwallacedesign2010]

Classico!

[@questgivercyradis8462]

I laughed out loud at that comment.

[@kiltymacbagpipe]

Ollie makes what would otherwise be a rather dull topic very enjoyable.

[@juliusandres1730]

"I only smoke when I'm on fire" cracked me up. 🤣

[@jamesrobert262]

Me too, Ollie has his moments 👌🏻😅😂

[@richards.4116]

Smoking cigarettes has been replaced by vaping, is England that far behind?

[@ViveSemelBeneVivere]

"Coffee wasn't widely drunk pre-race..." and probably everyone was drunk post-race.

[@kiowa21]

Wine and steak for breakfast, I am going to adopt this whether I am cycling or not.

[@yyyyuno]

😄😄

[@whatwelearned]

I wish your digestive system all the best

[@kiowa21]

@Martin Kelly thats exactly the sort of genius innovation that cycling needs 👍

[@debasishnayak8610]

@Martin Kelly that is the best.

[@mickaeldardaillon]

A challenge today would be to reduce the amount of plastics for food during a ride. Would be interesting to get ideas from gcn on that.

[@davidland8217]

‘Quinoa if you’re feeling particularly middle class’ - might be the funniest thing ever said on the channel

[@santiandres5177]

Which is weird, because in South America it's peasant food or pig feed... It's just clever marketing, like Lobster, Diamonds, Kale 🤷‍♂️

[@gcn]

@@santiandres5177 Is Kale posh?!

[@midorinchan]

I would have agreed, but then I got to the "I only smoke when I'm on fire" line 🤣

[@santiandres5177]

@@gcn Not posh, but now it's treated as some amazing SUPERFOOD

[@billincolumbia]

As a member of the middle class, I avoid quinoa, because it is too expensive. I found it amusing as well. Yes, kale is posh.

[@feedbackzaloop]

Clearly the retro gears were more demanding to muscular system rather than cardiovascular, hence the belief in high-protein diet. And wine? Just helps the digestion of steaks. Also would have appreciated Dr.Chem. Bridgewood get more into biochemestry of nicotine and how nicotinic acid (niacin) has become a vital part of energy drinks

[@Fa0404B]

Uni: You should really study for your courses My brain: Nah, let's watch Ollie Bridgewood eat cold steak with his hands while riding a bike. Me: Yeah sounds about right.

[@gcn]

Hopefully, you are on a sports nutrition course Fabian!

[@Fa0404B]

​@@gcn no, it's Ollie's job to teach that ;)

[@danielhopkins2277]

@@Fa0404B I'm not sure if that's GCN's way of saying hopefully Ollie could help you with that in your courses... or that you shouldn't listen to Ollie, but people with the right knowledge.

[@ltrtg13]

Did Ollie have the idea to ride a €50 bike up a steep mountain after making this video?

[@stealfwayne]

I just smashed out 50 miles in the rain this morning. It's half one in th afternoon and now I have a glass of red in my hand, guilt free, Cheers GCN

[@biketrybe7071]

And have another - one for each leg.

[@jaimeisreal]

Cheers.

[@hotcakes1117]

Ironically im eating chips and drinking beer while watching this ..

[@gcn]

Luckily we have just started beer, chips and banter season! AKA Cyclocross season

[@Multipotentialitis]

Mtb year round = too much of all alcohol and lots of greasy foods

[@FlatSpinMan]

It’s called carb loading. You’re all good.

[@paulthoma4018]

I'm eating steak!

[@taufikabidin412]

Thanks for sanitation and water treatment, can understand why alcohol was choice as they were more sterile

[@cyclingnerddelux698]

Ok. All jokes and pithy comments aside. I love these history-based episodes. Keep up the great content Ollie!

[@RafaelFaenir]

Fascinating look into the history of cycling, good jokes and a presenter who is very happy to demonstrate the "hydration" habits of the past! Awesome video 😂😂👍🏼

[@scottbert9556]

A pint for breakfast is out these days. Sad.

[@stephenm8270]

eh !!!!!!! where do you live ??????

[@TomKroupa80]

My wife walked in front of our TV and heard a bit of Ollie's info about old school approach to the recovery:“ I am going for a run. And then I will recover like that pro, what was his name, Eddy Merckx, with red wine, that is a good approach!" :-)

[@PbFoot]

no mention of the radler? inconceivable!! i mean, the name literally translates into cyclist.

[@shannonayres9566]

He seems to say "oatmeal" with a Swedish accent, not an American one.

[@kati2426]

...I hope this doesn't change the nutritional value of it 😂

[@razzwilmz7970]

@@kati2426 Only bears eat "porridge".....everyone else eats oatmeal b4 their rides.....

[@zerocooljpn]

it sounds kinda Texan to me, you know, the guys from the south

[@jakobjarle4597]

Do you mean gröt? That‘s oatmeal in Swedish ;)

[@richards.4116]

Hey ya'll, in Texas we have rolled oats for breakfast. Bet Ollie doesn't know the plural of ya'll 🤠. Just kidding Oliver. Good video.

[@zzhughesd]

Ollie having a cold steak flapping on the bike, why is this the funniest video of the year

[@chrisdunn8215]

Ollie seems to be enjoying the wine further into the video you go.. I wonder why 🤪

[@brianbuday8639]

I have never been able to find a bike with a decent cigarette lighter 😎

[@brianbuday8639]

Crazy thing is the stages in the TDF were massively long back in day as well. Maybe good to allow give more digestive time 😝

[@tommyphillips8547]

Imagine the whole peloton being completely pissed these days, that would be so funny 😆

[@glenspringle7337]

I’ll bet technical decents were WAY MORE exciting with wine for “hydrating” during a ride...if not for the spectators, definitely the riders

[@janovpet]

On of the best GCN videos ever..actually cannot think of any better. Great job!

[@franzhans9217]

That is pretty much the lifestyle I like to live during the summer holidays. Going for a long ride, having a nice steak after, then drinking some wine and smoking a good tipless "Roth Händle" with my friends.

[@TooManyWilliams]

I cannot imaging getting SCHLOSHED on a bike ride! That sounds like a challenge made for a fraternity

[@jaspreetsidhu5708]

Me and my peloton do it yearly. Bar hopping on commuter bikes. So much fun man. Great memories with guys that are like family.

[@guycalabrese4040]

This has to be one of your best videos ever! Informative, funny - it had everything!

[@loverofgod6176]

Lamp chops, steaks, brioche rolls...definitely my preferred diet for long distance rides, but admittedly hard to eat 😅

[@gamerN77]

Fantastic video! Love to learn more about the sport‘s history, particularly if made so hilariously!

[@davidtam1518]

I had to take a triple look at that "vintage" footage of Hank! Great job on the colour grading!!!!!

[@davidtam1518]

(And Mark)

[@MrTOON]

Ollie 2020: "i'm not going to smoke a pre-race cigaret because i only smoke... when i'm on fire". GENIUS!!!

[@Ystadcop]

One of the best, Ollie. However, I should point out that one of the greatest athletes of all time never bothered with any of this nonsense. Jocky Wilson is sadly missed.

[@Pen2paw]

How does his food bag remain staying at the back? My single strap bag will eventually shift to my front as if nature dictates it.

[@dermitdemkuchentanzt4026]

i am around 98kg, i have a mtb with 50mm tyres that is a bit to small for me , i am 186 cm and startet cycling like 6 month ago , last run was (35km 680 meters of climbing)1 banana , 1 nut bar, 500ml water 500ml tea ,500ml sprite , 1 pork tongue, 1 hot choloate with a espresso shot, 1 scoop of vanilla icecream and the thing i liked most was the PORK tongue ;D

[@frazergoodwin4945]

Alcohol and the bike allways makes me think back to the 2012 tour de France. French TV were following the Europcar team behind the scenes that year with a daily video diary. This meant that every day you could watch the team neck a load of red wine over diner. After Wigo had won he had an interview with France2 on the champs-élysées and they gave him a pint to celebrate - which he studiously didn't drink saying "thanks but no thanks, I've got a time trial to win in a couple of weeks time". Wonder why French cycling hasn't been succesful at the tour...

[@joelberman5981]

The best food video since the one about what not to eat on a bike with Simon and Matt!

[@petinka721]

Cyklists had more fun earlier. Dan Loyd had loved that time.

[@rabbidannyb]

thanks to GCN I eat so muchj more on my rides and never get the dreaded "bonk"anymore - I also find the post ride recovery drink for any ride over 90 mins an absolute life saver for my tired 42 yr old body!

[@oldanslo]

The morning cigarette has been replaced by Wake-and-Bake in the gravel community. Warms up the lungs.

[@888rogermoore]

Those miniature bottles of wine do fit in a small backpack well.

[@Realciderreviews]

Regular sized bottles of wine fit neatly in a bottle cage.

[@johnflynn4923]

Fried egg, couple of slices of toast with camembert and pickle and 2 coffees before a ride, good to go for at least 100km after that!

[@Sprocketboy1956]

At L'Eroica in Tuscany the food stop near Siena offered up red wine, as well as raw eggs, to get you into the spirit of the Good Old Days. I think that might have been authentic but the excellent ribollita white bean stew at the stop before the biggest climb of the day made that climb feel even bigger. And this is the second GCN video about cycling food where stroopwafels (aka Food of the Gods) are conspicuous by their absence.

[@truk64]

Awesome Ollie! Very entertaining and informative! Fascinating history!

[@m4punisher25]

When he said Oatmeal I was dying 😂

[@cnjlakes]

Ollie's 'American' accent reminds me of the 80's TV show Dallas.

[@jnk427]

They should bring back scavenging for food in cafes. I think that would be hilarious to watch in modern racing

[@jamesmann3556]

I’m a minute in and giving this video a like purely based on Ollie using a Denby Halo bowl to have his breakfast from. I’m a firm believer in fine crockery making a meal. Chapeau Ollie

[@AndrewJackson-rr9jk]

For the love of all watts, cut the steak into strips my man. They had knives.

[@alblackman7985]

I love history while chugging red wine. Brilliant

[@andrewturchan6065]

I'm 68 , work /still/ as auto mechanic , heavy work . Few years back I realized that eating only once a day works for me . Everyone thinks I'm crazy . Tea with honey and milk in the morning , at work only water . When I get home , quarter of cabbage , 2 big potatoes . Throw it in pressure cooker . Piece of fish , or chicken on the side . Wash with almost a bottle of red ..... No I'm not kidding . Bunch of grapes and maybe 2 slices of all grain bread with some cheese . Same when riding /except the red/ however I did Cypress Mtn. in West Vancouver "juiced up" . I qualified for the World Championship Gran Fondo last year . From Vancouver to Whistler in 4 hours ... Met Simon in Whistler . Too bad not happening this year . But to be honest when I'm at work I could eat more than anybody else ..... But my brain is OK with my routine . I really enjoy my dinners because my gut is not full . When I sleep I do not need fuel . So what I ate last night fuels me for the next day . Oh and Vancouver to Whistler on one or 2 bottles of water . 2 only if it's hot .... Is that weird ? Feel GREAT .

[@chriswaters9267]

But Gatorade et al. say we need 500 /1000 ml of sugary drink per hour to keep our blood glucose level stable during excercise...

[@jaimeisreal]

Free form amino acids like BCAA's, l-citrulline malate and beta-alanine work amazingly, along with 20 grams or so of dextrose and/or a mix of HBCD (highly branched cyclic dextrin) even in lower than normal dosages. Tolerance mapping (learning your own dosage requirement for your own body) takes a lot of time to get right, too.

[@olamarvin]

When I'm on holiday I maintain a strict Eddie Merckx diet.

[@danteserrano3429]

I want to see the follow up were Hank and Ollie do a zwift race, to prevent drunk driving. Hank on the retro diet and Ollie on the modern one. It would be fun to see.

[@holgerheinisch3387]

Great show, thanks! I also very much enjoy a glass or two of wine for post-ride recovery, I am very sure I get lots of benefits from it. However, I very much doubt that the heroes of those days were drinking Chilean wine 🤣

[@secretbrad9259]

What a banger of a video! Brilliant

[@evangeloskapris9558]

I want to see a 100k GCN race one dream with retro diet and one with modern :D please do that

[@Kimberly_Sparkles]

How many bottles did it take to get this right? All of those shots of you drinking happily.

[@AlofAtlanta]

Eroica vintage bike rides celebrate the days of Coppi and Bartali. Food stops include delicious meats, cheeses, fruits, and, yes, wine. It seems to work for thousands of riders over demanding 150K courses. Perhaps not a race, but a very enjoyable way to experience a day on a steel bike, up and down mountains and over gravel sectors. At the finish? More of the same food and drink.

[@patthonsirilim5739]

The steak was more of physiological thing they think it works so they feel it works and regardless energy is still energy steak is still better then empty stomach plus wine and beer help distract them from pain protein and alcohol stupid and ridiculous as it may seem is still better then nothing.

[@DaveCM]

I had a buddy when I was in the Marines that always smoked before a run. He insisted that is opened up his lungs and helped him to breath better. LOL! I've seen him light up a cigarette while running a PFT. It was hilarious seeing him run along with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. Little did I know. He was just old school.

[@ishankelkar4347]

I only smoke when I'm on fire...that epic line .. perfect for any blockbuster motion picture 🔥😎

[@DaveM890]

Eddy Merckx on modern nutrition would have broken the sound barrier.

[@lokerola]

Keto before it was the new diet on the block! You had me at red wine!...

[@MicheleFerrariAX]

when i used to race in the middle 2000s i always ate at least 200 gr of pasta for breakfast before a race. worked beautifully

[@mrfuzz6744]

As an American Ollie's constant attempts at the American accent make me chuckle. Now I want J-Pow to break out his Brit-poke-fun accent

[@geospectrum]

When I was a junior (late 70’s) for some reason I decided I should eat liver, tomato’s and rice for breakfast. My poor Mum made it for me before a race. Did it help? Who knows but I did get enough points to go to second cat when I turned 18.

[@Tattersail]

You know, after watching the GCN video of the old Tour stage, ridden on retro bikes... that sort of explains the boozing.

[@Multipotentialitis]

We can't forget, after a ride or especially a race...our leg muscles will have been torn microscopically from the work we've done on them and to recover stronger, you want a high protein level meal to aid in rebuilding those muscle fibers. Carbs can be your second thought directly ride or race! Chocolate milk is great for a quick serving of protein!

[@hiddenrob6289]

Love from the east coast, love the cylcling videos just what I need to get it going the blood I love it. I always watch these before I go out and get my body moving. I always watch one of these, and then put up my heavy playlist like Delta Parole, Three Days Grace, System and then I just go haaaaard!!!! Tactic hasnt let me down yet.

[@AlejoValmont]

I didn't know that I'm a retro cyclist, because I still carry wine during some rides, to keep me hydrated... And fun.

[@zzhughesd]

Videos get no better than this. Thanks GCN. I’ll abstain from the cigarette. Thanks !!!!! Absinthe shot maybe. Get some extra power in. Meat definatey gives you power. 6 steaks for breakers.

[@HybrisParExcellence]

I wonder if Ollie's handle bar tape is still smelling like that steak he ate.

[@FBrodlie]

Loved watching Ollie get HAMMERED during this video. I bet he needed dozens of “takes” to get it just right! Brilliant video. 😂

[@joerossa1112]

Easy there Oliver Twist! Whether you call it Oatmeal or Porridge it’s still just gruel. And yes, you can have some more.

[@sebh670]

Brilliant Video idea!! Fun thing for a winter-solstice-ride ... or as a wager : can you ride like eddy merckx? - with 5 steaks and 2 bottles of red *lol* would be an hour record to keep that all in for an hour

[@ViveSemelBeneVivere]

Information + fun, the best combination. Ta again Ollie!

[@chrism8187]

Such a great video!! V v funny....ollie is quality!!!!

[@newttella1043]

That Barefoot wine Ollie is drinking is sometimes the only wine you can get at gas stations here in the US. It's the most God awful wine, but does pair appropriately with gas station pizza or a stale taquito.

[@tammystringer4044]

We needed to see Ollie interviewed after riding all day eating meat and drinking wine.

[@MrMeta410]

I love Shen you Say 'de rigueur' french in the texte ! Hope for you that wine was goog enough ! Phil from Paris

[@Jason-nc8hm]

Bring back the retro days!!!

[@valsani]

Great content! Loved the Paleo drunk diet :)

[@tibiolah]

Fantastic video. Well done

[@cosinus_square]

If we play the science card (in this scenario-bicycle racing, endurance sports) FAT is a more efficient fuel, readily available no side effects. on the other hand sugar is less efficient, not readily available and has many side effects. There's not much money in pushing fat though and of course GCN is pushing sponsors which sell sugars.

[@mameram1]

8 mins in - Ollie eating a steak in slow motion with some extra special snot sauce haha!...

[@Arlenz12345]

My breakfast is 5 dates, 3 slice oat bread with peanut, 1 bowl of green peas & black ketan, with cup of chocolate; & i ride for about 90's km without worried bonking. Last i dont trust syntetic or chemical suplemen. Organic still d'Best!

[@jankowalsky7325]

My father was pro cyclist in Spain just after the second world war. In those days 40s & 50s in Spain (after civil war) was hard to found some products but a lot of spanish cyclist too drinked COFFE !!!! and Chocolate. (liquid chocolate is today one of the most popular hot drinks in Spain, actually Spanish conquerors discovered Cacao in Mexico with no sugar added and there was a energetic drink for the warriors!!!!) Actually strong expresso coffe with milk (café con leche) then and today is a MUST every morning in Spain. And the 30s 40s 50s 60s 70s 80s menu: - Spanish traditional "bocadillo de tortilla" (potatoes ommelette sandwich with baguette bread) and "bocadillo de carne asada" (roasted steak sandwich with those mediterranean big breads) and cheese with "membrillo" (some kind of jelly fruit) and of course BANANAS (from Canary islands) This was very popular cyclist menu until the 80s. Steak of course was the main menú, with eggs and chickeen. You forgot to mention 3 very important things: The "PASTA", the HONEY and the SUGAR !!!! They used this a lot- (A dinner the night before with a lot of italian pasta and bread .... and next morning a breakfast with pasta again (cold Spaghetti with jelly-jam in the summer for example ) was a MUST! - I trained at the end of 80s and the things were pretty the same with exception of some horrible "glucosa" and vitamin complements added. Perico Delgado winner of Tour de France , used this kind of menú- In the end of 80s started all this Science Diet and the world of sport changed a lot with all the new products , information and investigations (And a whole new culture of pro and amateur sport trying to make a strong relation between sport, health and planification) but for example the God Miguel Indurain ate a lot of "barra de pan" (baguette) every day in the tour!!!!! (I think he consumed 7.000 calories every day!!!!) -My point is that Coffee, Chocolate and Wine was drinked in south Europe not because some scientyst said bla,bla,bla about coffeine... they drinked coffee (REAL STRONG COFFEE) because it was CULTURAL tradition in Spain and Italy... some less in France. In the winter, a hot strong spanish or italian coffee with some drops of brandy was very popular among all cyclist, other sports, and workers... -Did you renember those guys riding heavy bikes on roads in very bad condition hundreds and hundreds of kilometers ? (with the help of just 52/42 x max... 23!! on gear) No much help for cyclist on those ancient days with long etapes every day, rain or snow with no goretex, no water proof jackets, ....and in the end of spring until the autumn riding under the heavy sun of south Europe with no modern fresh and cool cyclist wear, with no Gps or Strava or cell phone, no carbon fiber, no spatial era sunglasses, no bike friendly roads, etc, etc... and .....after this...who could refuse a french, spanish or italian wine ????

[@TRDPaul]

You should have done the same cycle twice 1 week apart, once with all the old fashion foods and drinks and once with the modern to see how much difference it makes

[@pauldeaks1212]

How many takes 🎥 did Ollie make this film have 🍷🍷🍷🍷 ha ha , taxi for Ollie

[@ciclomass]

bring eddy to the show, it would be super to see him talking abount those things

[@raynersaggers]

There's an older video with king Kelly and Matt Stephens talking steak for breakfast in the archive.... Cooked by Hannah Grant iirc

[@greg_loper]

I am sure that the video was great but I was fully focused on the poster in the background wondering what wrestling André Greipel would be like.

[@armandsaccomanno5420]

I still refuel post-ride with a pint of heavy, rich, dark stout 😋!

[@chrisscott6140]

Ahh yes....dark beers not just for breakfast anymore!👍

[@smefour]

Serious question: Much of what appears to be eaten "back in the day" could be part of a Ketogenic meal plan which includes lots of fats and very low in carbs (less than 5%), all to put people into ketosis to produce ketones instead of glycogen as a primary energy source Any research done on how Ketosis is used for long distance cycling, any examples of this being done?

[@glynnbuxton3349]

Coppi was just about to revolutionise sports nutrition 50 years ahead of its time, then came along Eddy Merckx and his 6x steaks a day and blew that idea out of the water for another 30!

[@davidkeddle4192]

Excellent story Olli!!

[@durianriders]

I bet a mate $500 who also races Div 1 to race me on meat only diet. We did a 150km loop of climbing. He bonked so hard 50km in he had to get me to go ride off course to get him a few cans of coke lol. This was back in 2006. I wish we had it on film. PS: This video was great because it only features rim brakes and proves the importance of a high carb diet.

[@jasonlimah]

That was so much fun to watch.

[@clintnieves]

We should see more of GCN with wine 😎👌