One of the toughest disciplines
in all of our training is know when to say "when" in the area of
eating.
It amazes me how I have no
problem finding the motivation to complete a 4hour brick workout (in sub-40 degree weather & at the right hear-rate
intensity)……..yet can't find that same motivation when eyeing the girl-scout
cookies @
What gives? Is this some type of cruel joke that life bestows upon the endurance
athletes in the world?
Every December, January,
and Feb I receive scores of e-mails from athletes who know that they've
"put on a few" over the holidays and need to shed the weight.
Actually, let me re-phrase this……because it's not 'weight' that will slow them in a race come spring. It's FAT.
Watch an Ironman,
marathon, or stage of the Tour de France on any given year and look at the
leaders, elites, and pro's in the field. If you notice
anything, you notice that every athlete is extremely lean as though a swim-cap
has replaced their skin. This is no accident.
As a coach……..sometimes
the task is fairly easy with an athlete. I know that if I can help them reduce
their %-of-body-fat, that I can INCREASE
their power-to-weight ratio…….they'll go faster without gaining any new
fitness or strength. While this isn't always the case in the water w/ swimming…….it
is often true on the bike……and ALWAYS true when running (where YOU will support
& carry your weight 100% of the time).
Ahhh,
the dilemma…….How does one best drop the % of FAT in their body, while simultaneously
training for a sport (or sports) that demands a constant flow of energy
(calories)?? THIS is the million $ question.
And, actually, the answer
is really kind-of simple.
But first a disclaimer: NO secret diet, NO %-formula, no-carb-this, no-sugar-that
is ultimately responsible for losing a % of body fat. As John Parker said in
his book (Once A
Runner),"The secret is ………..that there is NO secret."
It really is as
simple as 2nd grade math. To
lose body-fat, you must burn more calories than you ingest.
So the 1st step
in losing the fat is KNOWING
what you're currently taking in. To do this, you can simply keep a food-log for
one week that counts all the calories you ate…..then divide by 7 to get the
daily average for the week. Ez.
Next, you need to know
where you are GOING. What is the
goal? Well, if I have a male athlete who's at 17% body-fat (You can get
measured @ most health-clubs these days.) and we set a goal of 12% body-fat to
optimize his race performance………..it's pretty clear that we need to LOSE 5%
body-fat.
Now, I hear you asking, 5%
of what? Well, if the athlete weighs in at 175lbs at the 17% body-fat mark………5%
of that is 8.75 pounds.
THAT's how much FAT we
intend to lose……..…almost 9 pounds.
At this point we simply
apply the math. Let's assume that we found that the athlete averaged 2600
calories per day (through his week's food log) and that THIS intake is what
maintained his 17% body-fat state.
Now, we get a glimpse of this individual's BMR (basal metabolic rate).
Knowing that each pound equates to 3500 calories………we
need to create a very slight deficit.
He can
create that deficit in one of 2 ways…………eat less calories, OR burn
(metabolize) more calories.
Personally, I'd swim the
Know that if we cut back
on the calories (relative to the NEED for them) too much, other mechanisms in the
body will immediately sense the void and shift hormonal & metabolic levels
such that you'll begin to strip away muscle tissue (as 'fuel') and SLOW the
metabolism down. So we want to create
the deficit VERY GRADUALLY……at about 200 calories per day.
So instead of our athlete
(175lb. Male) taking in 2600 calories each day…….we'll have him ingest 2400
calories and not alter training. OR, he can burn the extra 200 calories
and ingest the SAME amount. His choice.
Creating the 200 calorie deficit
each day…..means we created a 1400 calorie deficit for the week. In 2.5 weeks, he'd of lost one pound of fat.
Now if that seems too slow a 'pace' for all of us "7-pounds-in 2
days!!", need it now, Americans out there……realize that each pound of fat
also holds a good deal of water. So on the scales, it may look like you've lost
At any rate, keeping up
this practice (while still rewarding yourself) at this pace for several weeks
(& even months) WILL get you to the
target-point that you set out for. Attempting
to lose weight much faster is dangerous to your training since you'll need 'energy' and
'muscle
tissue'
in order to fuel your efforts & extend race-fitness.
Now up to this point, our
discussion has centered around the TOTAL intake and
expenditure of calories……..and not the %'s of carbs to proteins to fats. I make
this distinction because (in my view) this has less to do with losing
body-fat and determines mostly 'how well' an athlete functions (races
& trains) WITHIN a certain caloric intake.
As a general rule of
thumb, I think that the percentages FOR
ENDURANCE ATHLETES should be 60% carbohydrates, 20% protein, and 20% fat. But everyone should also recognize that, as
individuals, the ideal percentages might be unique and vary from one athlete to
another.
What I am
certain of is that many 'weight-loss' diets (such as: Atkins, Sugar-busters,
40-30-30, and the no-carb varieties) DO
work……….but only because they, in the end, limit the total number of
calories someone takes in. Not because of their %'s. And many an athlete
has been left to cut their training short on occasion because of a lack of
energy (carb-calories) offered by these plans.
To
conclude: You can increase your economy,
endurance, and speed by losing more of a percentage of your body-fat and
increasing your 'strength-to-weight' ratio. But it must be done slowly and
deliberately and occur over the course of several weeks and months. And the
results on your performance can be dramatic,
……….especially when climbing hills on the bike and running.
But it does take some
simple math, some degree of discipline, and omitting the walk down the
'Hagan-Das' section at the grocery store.
For more information on
the TRImyCoach.com training programs, you can visit www.TRImyCoach.com