Nutrition for Cyclists: What I Learned After 20 Years in the Sport
I’ve spent most of my life on a bike.
I started racing as a kid, turned professional, and spent more than a decade racing at the highest level of the sport. I’ve eaten in team buses, hotel hallways, airports, service courses, and more roadside ditches than I care to remember. I’ve fuelled Grand Tours, one-hour criteriums, long base miles, and everything in between.
And if there’s one thing I know for sure about cycling nutrition, it’s this:
There is no secret.
No magic meal. No perfect plan. No universal diet that guarantees performance.
Good nutrition is about understanding what your body needs to ride well, recover properly, and stay healthy enough to keep showing up — whether you’re racing WorldTour events or riding with your local bunch on the weekend.
This guide isn’t about chasing trends. It’s about the fundamentals that actually work.
Experience Teaches You Simplicity
Early in my career, I believed nutrition had to be complicated. Everything was weighed, tracked, measured and timed. Some of that structure is useful at the elite level, but over time I learned that the best nutrition strategies were also the simplest.
The riders who lasted — physically and mentally — weren’t the ones obsessing over perfection. They were the ones who:
- Fuelled their training properly
- Ate enough to support their workload
- Recovered consistently
- Adapted as their bodies and lives changed
That applies just as much to recreational riders as it does to professionals.
There Is No “Cyclist Diet”
One of the biggest myths I still see is the idea that cyclists should all eat the same way.
In reality, nutrition depends on:
- How often and how hard you ride
- Your size and physiology
- Your work, stress and sleep
- What your body tolerates
- What food you actually enjoy
Two riders can do the same session and need completely different fuelling strategies. Copying someone else’s diet rarely works long term.
Learning what works for you does.
Carbohydrates Are Not the Enemy
Cycling is a carbohydrate-fuelled sport. Full stop.
If you want to ride with energy, push when it matters, and recover well enough to train again, carbohydrates need to be part of the picture. I’ve seen far too many riders under-fuel because they’re trying to be “good” rather than trying to ride well.
Under-fuelled riding usually looks like:
- Heavy legs
- Flat energy
- Poor concentration
- Riding harder than it should feel
Carbohydrates don’t need to be fancy. Rice, pasta, bread, oats, potatoes and fruit all do the job. The key is using them intentionally around your riding.
Fuel Before You Ride (Yes, Even Early)
One of the biggest performance gains most riders can make has nothing to do with training. It’s simply starting rides fuelled.
You don’t need a perfect pre-ride meal. You do need energy available.
If you’re riding easy for under an hour, a normal meal beforehand is often enough. If the ride is longer or harder, eating something carbohydrate-focused beforehand makes a noticeable difference.
I learned this the hard way early in my career. You don’t win races by seeing how little you can eat. You perform by fuelling what you ask your body to do.
Eating During Rides Isn’t “Cheating”
Fuel during rides is not a luxury reserved for elite athletes. It’s basic self-care if you’re riding for more than an hour.
Fueling during rides:
- Preserves energy
- Supports consistent output
- Improves post-ride recovery
- Makes riding more enjoyable
It doesn’t need to be expensive or complicated. Sports drink, gels, bananas, dates, rice-based snacks — the best option is the one you tolerate well and will actually use.
The goal is not perfection. It’s consistency.
Recovery Is Where Adaptation Happens
What you eat after riding matters more than many people realise. Recovery isn’t just about soreness the next day. It’s about how well your body adapts to the work you’ve done.
After riding, your body needs:
- Carbohydrates to restore energy
- Protein to repair muscle tissue
This doesn’t require a supplement or a strict window. A normal meal or snack with both components does the job.
Over the years, I learned that riders who recover well are the ones who can train consistently. Consistency is what actually improves performance.
Protein Supports Longevity in the Sport
Protein often gets overlooked in endurance sports, but it plays a key role in staying strong and injury-resistant over time.
Adequate protein helps:
- Repair muscle
- Maintain strength
- Support bone health
- Reduce persistent fatigue
Spreading protein intake across the day is far more effective than trying to make up for it in one meal.
Fats Have a Place Too
Fats aren’t fuel for high-intensity riding, but they are essential for overall health. Hormones, joints and long-term energy balance all rely on adequate dietary fat.
Healthy sources like nuts, seeds, olive oil, avocado and oily fish belong in a cyclist’s diet. Just not as your primary ride fuel.
Hydration Is Often the Limiting Factor
Hydration is one of the simplest things to get right, and one of the easiest to overlook.
Even mild dehydration affects performance and concentration. Arriving at rides already hydrated, and drinking consistently during longer sessions, makes a bigger difference than most people expect.
In hot conditions or long rides, electrolytes can help replace sodium lost through sweat and improve fluid absorption.
Nutrition Is a Skill You Build
The best riders I’ve worked with didn’t have perfect nutrition plans. They had good awareness.
They paid attention to:
- How food affected their energy
- How quickly they recovered
- What worked in different conditions
- What they could sustain long term
Use training rides to learn. Experiment, adjust, and build confidence in what works for you.
A Sustainable Approach Matters Most
Cycling nutrition should support your life, not complicate it.
The goal isn’t to eat like a professional cyclist. It’s to fuel in a way that lets you:
- Ride consistently
- Recover properly
- Stay healthy
- Enjoy the sport long term
After two decades in cycling, I can say this with confidence: the riders who last aren’t the ones chasing trends. They’re the ones who respect the basics and adapt them to their own lives.
Final Thoughts
There is no secret to nutrition for cyclists because there doesn’t need to be one.
Eat regularly.
Fuel your rides.
Recover well.
Hydrate consistently.
Pay attention to your body.
Get those right, and cycling becomes not only more effective, but far more enjoyable.
— Chloe and the Hosking Bikes Team