Nutrition Tips

Moveable Feast staff dietitian Jinee Burdg lends some of her expertise and provides tips on proper nutrition while training. Jinee is returning this year to ride in her second Ride for the Feast and will be leading the Diet Tribe team.

140 miles...140 miles...140 miles...Friends look at you with awe, and you look inside yourself and say, "What was I thinking?" Have no fear, the dietitian is here! My name is Jinee, a registered and licensed dietitian as well as a returning Ride for the Feast cyclist.

So, you have your bike and gear, but you're wondering how to prepare for the miles of pavement and fatigue. You can defeat them both with a proper nutrition plan!

Fatigue can be caused by illness, muscle glycogen depletion, low ATP levels, inadequate sleep, travel and personal stresses. One way to fight fatigue through nutrition is to energize your body with food. Carbohydrate foods are the main source of energy for your body. Eating plenty of carbohydrates not only fuels your body, but it also maintains your energy levels by providing your body with plenty of glucose. Glucose is one kind of carbohydrate that is required for ATP, a form of energy. ATP (adenosine triphosphate) is used to power muscle fiber contraction. The metabolism of ATP that powers this muscle contraction also produces heat. Our body responds to this heat by sweating to maintain a regular body temperature.

Trying to burn off that muffin top? Eat your carbs! You need some carbohydrates to help your body metablolize fat into energy. "Fat burns in the flame of carbohydrates." Remember, carbs are a necessary part of your diet - don't desert them. And, yes, you can have desserts too!

For more information and more tips, see the following handouts:

• Nutrition throughout the Ride


• Fatigue


• Cycling/Excercise FAQs


• Snacks: Grams Carbohydrate per serving


• Recipes (Lemon-lime gel, Electorlyte sport drink with ginger, and fuel bites)

Click here to email Jinee with any questions or concerns.

Why do I Ride?

After reading Ride for the Feast committee member Bob Steffan's story on why he rides, we thought we would regularly update the blog with more of these inspiring stories. Today, Moveable Feast staff member, Sara McClean, shares with us why she has chosen to ride the 140 miles. Sara is one of three dietitians on staff and has been working at Moveable Feast since June 1, 2009. This will be her first year involved with the ride. She will be riding her brand new Trek 2.1 WSD.

Because Chris died.
Chris was 14.
I was 13.

Because he said he would beat it.
"No one's lived as long as me yet."
I didn't know what to say.
"I know you will. You'll beat it."
I wore a polka-dot blouse to his funeral.

Because my dad said he was proud
of how the church handled it.
That the family wasn't isolated.
Because he honestly, sincerely believed
That the only black family in our church
Wasn't isolated.

Because of all the others we've lost since then.

Because no one
should have to stare
this disease in the face
without hope
and support
and fire.

And no one
has fire if they aren't fed.

Because the only reason
that I am not living with this disease
is luck.

Because food is right.

Because I have something to prove.

Because I am humbled by the work we do and the people who do it.

Because I am overawed by the badass riders who have gone before me.

Because this cannot end here.

If you wish to share why you ride...or crew...or donate, please email your story to Amanda Fisher, Special Events Manager for Moveable Feast.

We want your bike stories!

Ride for the Feast community, I know you have stories. I’ve heard many of them. You have stories about the first time you did Ride for the Feast, the first time you had to SAG, the first time you realized you needed a steady supply of Fritos if you were going to ride 100 miles, and more. Now you can share these stories for the glory of seeing your name in print and the warm feeling of helping raise funds for the Feast!  Check it out:

“TaleSpin is a new zine about bike riding. Whether you ride Road, Fixed, Mountain, BMX, or Penny Farthing, and whether you ride daily or not since the banana seat went out of style, we want your stories, essays, poetry, photography and other artwork. The theme of our inaugural issue is ‘First Times’. Tell us about your first bike ride, your first crash, your first spin class, your first flat tire, your first bike race, your first...anything, as long as it happened on, under, near, or because of a bike.

All submissions will be considered. Articles (100 – 1,000 words) should be sent by e-mail (aberrebeATgmailDOTcom) as attached Word documents. Image files should be approximately 5x7 inches, 300+ dpi (.JPG or .TIF format). All contributors will receive a byline for their work and a complimentary copy of the issue in which their work appears. The deadline for submissions is Friday, February 19, 2010.

TaleSpin is being produced by Team Atomic, a Baltimore-based cycling team that rides to raise funds for Moveable Feast of Maryland. All proceeds from sales of TaleSpin will be donated to Moveable Feast’s Ride for the Feast. TaleSpin will be available locally for purchase at Atomic Books, through the Team Atomic website (www.teamatomic.org), and at area bike shops.

For more information, contact: Rebecca Abernathy, Editor, at aberrebeATgmailDOTcom.”