I know in w/kg matter if you want to be fast but there is definitely also a certain amount of weight one should have for health and power. The last year i’ve been on a plan to gain a decent amount mainly for health reasons but also muscle to be a more powerful rider.
Unfortunately, i’ve solely failed. I’ve had increases of 1-1.5kg but ultimately dropped back down again. Weirdly every time i seem to drop back down again i feel way better, more energy, more pop, and go and way less lathargic.
Has anyone experienced this and any tips or thoughts as to why and or strategies to maintain feeling good while still forcing a gain? I do wonder if the excess of food makes me feel worse but unsure though that goes again having excess energy intake should be overall more energy in the day.
I am not a nutritionist nor a doctor, so I can only share my personal experiences.
I do believe our bodies are quite good at figuring out at what weight they should be. This of course only works if you’re eating clean and healthy. In my experience, when I’m am really paying attention to what I am eating (over a longer period of time), a side effect is that I’m usually getting very close to my optimal weight.
With that said, I think not all weight is created equal? Maybe you were unintentionally raising your body fat disproportionately to your muscle mass. So you ended up with less lean mass and then you eventually lost the excess fat you gained again?
I agree about set point for sure. And yeah i pretty much eat whole foods in all meals, with some slightly more proceed stuff on the bike just for the kcals.
The problem or maybe its not is that that set point is well below what most people would deem optimal for my height. But yeah gain fat would make you feel worse then leaning back out again should produce a better feeling so might be that.
I guess its how to balance eating in a surplus with not feeling crap!
Take a look at the US olympic committee athlete plate. Far too common that people focus solely on the calorie measurement and not what is making up how those calories come together. It’s a really handy reference tool and ensures you are properly balancing your food intake. Note that most TR athletes are somewhere between easy or moderate. You need to really read the descriptions to understand what “hard” is defined as.