TOUR Patrick, you have been a professional cyclist for more than ten years. In addition to training management, nutrition in particular has changed over the past few years and has become one of the most important factors in improving performance. What do you think are the main changes?
PATRICK KONRAD The main thing that has changed is that people have gone for high amounts of carbohydrates. In the past, for example, you used to have a gel or a bottle with maybe 20 grams of carbohydrates. Now we're at 60 to 80 grams of carbohydrates per half litre. The gels have between 40 and 60 grams of carbohydrates. In the past, you might have consumed 40 grams of carbohydrates per hour, but now you can go up to 120 grams and some people might even go higher. This simply gives you a lot more energy. And these fast carbohydrates, fructose and maltodextrin, so to speak.
But that probably doesn't happen overnight, you have to train and get your body used to it?
Yes, you really have to go there and say, now I really have to eat 100 grams of carbohydrates or more in a training session. So that the whole body adjusts to the fact that you learn to take in such quantities, that your stomach can tolerate it and that you can also metabolise this quantity. Because in a one-day race or a tough mountain stage, where you really do consume 100 grams of carbohydrates per hour, that quickly adds up to half a kilo of sugar over five or six hours. Accordingly, you have to start changing your diet during training so that your stomach can cope and your digestive tract is not overstretched. You have to learn to consume energy regularly. It doesn't help if you suddenly start eating a huge amount of carbohydrates and then your body doesn't know what to do with them if it was previously used to utilising a maximum of 20 grams of carbohydrates per hour.
The aim is to supply the body with the amount of energy it actually uses during training or a race. In other words, you don't want to create a large deficit in the first place, which you then have to compensate for after exercise. However, this also means that you have to take a close look at your diet after training or a race to ensure that you don't consume too much energy because you have an appetite and have achieved something, but then gain weight unintentionally.
"We used to have the famous silver discs. Today we know that they are not ideal."
How do you control your food intake during the race? Do you set yourself a certain rhythm, for example a certain amount every quarter of an hour?
No, it's not like that. We used to try to take a gel and a bottle on the mountain classification, for example, but that's difficult to keep up in practice. We've settled on eating a certain amount of carbohydrates per hour; depending on the race situation, you have a little more in one half hour and a little less in the other half hour, but you pay attention to the amount per hour.
Does that mean you take it when the situation allows it, i.e. when you can take a kick?
Yes, a gel is eaten quickly and you drink a sip from the bottles every five, ten or 15 minutes anyway. We have 60 grams of carbohydrates in liquid form in the bottles, so with one bottle and one gel per hour you're at your 100 grams and you just have to make sure you eat the gel in the hour. That's actually a very simple calculation.
Does solid food play no role at all in calculating the amount of carbohydrates?
Yes, we also have bars. But that's a big change compared to the past. We used to have the famous "Silberlinge", i.e. bread rolls wrapped in aluminium foil, for example milk rolls filled with jam or Nutella and a piece of banana. At the time, people thought that this was a great food for the competition, but now we know that it's actually not ideal. The only thing you need in competition and training is carbohydrates. You don't need fat or protein, and that's why people have completely moved away from them. What's still available now is, for example, Rice Krispies, which is really just puffed rice with marshmallows. Or simply cooked sushi rice, maybe with a pinch of salt in it, in small blocks. And the bars that we still have in the team, which are also mainly designed for carbohydrates with 30, 40 grams.
Does this mean that the racers in Team Lidl-Trek have relatively consistent guidelines to avoid fat and protein?
During training and competitions, yes. But outside of training, of course, we make sure that you have your proteins, that you top up your carbohydrate stores in the morning for training and that you have the right amount of healthy fats. Also for dinner, so that after training, after the competition, you quickly get your protein and replenish your stores with the right carbohydrates.
"Basically, it's better to eat a handful of nuts or berries and invest your money in the fresh produce section of the supermarket."
A healthy, balanced diet also includes vitamins, trace elements and minerals. How is this checked? How important are food supplements in this context?
There are situations where that makes sense. We now do a lot of altitude training and you have to pay attention to your iron levels, for example. But as a rule, if you eat really well, you shouldn't really need any. Most bars, gels and shakes also contain vitamins or electrolytes and trace elements. If someone feels poorly or is constantly ill, you should of course take a closer look to see if there is a vitamin deficiency or similar. But basically it is better to eat a handful of nuts or goji berries, blueberries, raspberries and invest your money in the fresh produce and vegetable sections of the supermarket and make sure they are organic.
How are the individual nutrition plans developed for each racing driver?
You can imagine that our team chefs and our nutrition department develop their own recipes. They also accompany us during the competitions. Team Lidl-Trek has three nutrition experts and four or five chefs. This means that each rider practically has their own personal nutrition specialist with whom they work. In addition, there are basic guidelines for the team so that this is always easy to implement. The chefs therefore know exactly how which ingredients and dishes need to be prepared so that they meet the specifications and are healthy and nutritious. And we work together as a team using our own app. This is connected to the Wahoo bike computers and downloads the training or race data. The respective nutrition expert then knows immediately how many calories or energy the rider has burned. My job as a cyclist is to enter how much I ate during the race in the app. And then the rest of my diet is calculated or adjusted based on the data. The app then tells me specifically, for example, that I should eat 150 grams of pasta, 200 grams of potatoes, 100 grams of chicken breast and 100 grams of vegetables after the race. And when I go for dinner, it says exactly that and I just put the plate on the scales and weigh it. This ensures that I'm perfectly nourished.
And how does it work at home? You have a family and children, do they have to follow your diet plan?
My wife and children can eat however and whatever they want, but I am the master of the scales. It can also mean that I eat differently to the rest of the family. I enter what I've eaten every day in my app, see how many calories I've burnt and how much I still need to eat.
And you really do that every day of the year?
Not every day of the year, not in the off-season of course. But when it comes to preparation and the start of the racing season, then yes, let's say from December to the end of the season. In October and November it's a bit more relaxed, then it gets more and more rigorous.
Of course, there are also days when it's difficult to stick to the plan, travelling days, for example, when you have to fly long distances. On the other hand, it doesn't depend on every single grain of rice; it can happen that you have a hundred calories more or less on one day. But I always have a very good overview with the app and keep my baseline.
What insights have you gained from closely monitoring and planning your diet?
Nutrition for maximum performance also includes nutrition for regeneration. And you have to bear in mind that the digestive tract needs a lot of energy to do its job. That's why meal times are also important so that you can sleep well, for example, and your body isn't still busy digesting at midnight. And you also need to eat the right thing at the right time in the morning so that the food doesn't sit in your stomach during training or a race.
What has proved to be the best time for dinner for you?
It always depends on when I go to bed. At home, I like to go eleven or twelve hours without eating at all, for example between six in the evening and six in the morning. Or between eight and eight.
"With rice with chicken, the energy content is easy to calculate and then it's just done like that."
That actually corresponds to the principle of intermittent fasting. Is that a basic principle of your diet?
It's not a basic principle, but I like to pay attention to it because I realise that it does me good if I let my body or digestion rest a little and my stomach isn't busy all the time.
Three-week tours such as the Giro d'Italia or the Tour de France certainly place special demands on your diet. How and what do you eat during this time?
Anything that is high in carbohydrates, low in fat and easy to digest. This means rice first and foremost. Some drivers eat rice with chicken in the morning, at lunchtime and in the evening. It's easy to calculate the energy content and that's how it's done. Or empty pasta with olive oil, parmesan and maybe a few vegetables and fish. On the other hand, food isn't just for energy intake and that's why chefs are so important, because they can cater to individual needs and get the maximum out of very simple dishes.
What is your personal preference?
I like to eat pasta simply with parmesan or olive oil, because you have the healthy fats and the carbohydrates. Parmesan tastes good. Of course, you don't sprinkle half a kilo of Parmesan on top, just a little for flavour. Then add some roasted vegetables and a piece of chicken breast. This is one of my standard meals that I always like, even during a three-week Grand Tour.
A typical breakfast for me looks like this: an omelette with two eggs, a few slices of bread, depending on how many calories I'm going to consume that day; I skip cheese or sausage altogether and maybe have almond butter with jam or honey bread instead. I also like to eat porridge or muesli with yoghurt. And then, if I've had a really hard day, I might eat a bowl of rice with nothing. The jam bread tastes good and the rice energises you. It's certainly not to everyone's taste, but I just need the energy. Later, I might have a snack on the team bus. Our team chefs cook or bake little things for the racers; sometimes a dessert from the previous day or a cheesecake with low-fat quark, ricotta cakes, muffins or something like that.
"For dinner, our chefs mainly prepare fresh products, so we really have a wide selection."
And after the race?
I almost always eat rice and an omelette with chicken, plus a protein shake or a recovery shake. That's already available on the bus. The chefs prepare it in the morning for each individual driver, with customised quantities. Fruit is also always available. For dinner, our chefs mainly prepare fresh products, so we have a really large selection of pasta, rice, quinoa, potatoes, pumpkin, sweet potatoes and various types of fish. If we have a rest day, we sometimes have beef, or maybe a burger with potato wedges at the end of the tour, on the last day. This also serves to lift the spirits and to have something out of the ordinary.
Did I understand correctly that during a three-week tour, the food is always geared towards the requirements of the next day? So the dinner and breakfast the next morning before a super-difficult mountain stage is different to that before a flat stage for the sprinters, where the helpers and riders have less to do for the overall classification?
Exactly. It always depends on the individual's requirements. A rider who wants to compete for the overall classification or for a stage win will fill his stores differently or perhaps eat a little more carbohydrate than someone who is only challenged again two days later. He will burn fewer calories and the nutrition plan will be adjusted accordingly.
All in all, it sounds very complex ...
Yes, you're actually busy all day. You don't go training for three hours and then that's it. After training, you download your data, analyse it, recharge your bike computer and gears and take care of your nutrition; when do I have the recovery shake, when do I have the protein shake, what and how much do I need for dinner ...
Does that sometimes get on your nerves?
No, you learn to deal with it. It's no problem at all at home because I love cooking. I also like to go shopping, stroll through Lidl and see what's available and what I could cook. The food in the team is sensationally good because our own chefs prepare the food, which is a great service. But I'm also happy when I can be a bit active in the kitchen again at home.
"After a 4000-metre mountain stage, you can have a piece of chocolate cake in the evening."
If you have to stick to such a strict diet plan, don't you sometimes develop a craving for something you really want to eat, even if it doesn't fit into the plan?
Yes, of course there are moments when you can sin. It's like training. You also have your training plan, but when your body is simply exhausted, it doesn't make sense to push through the plan. And there's sometimes a day in the nutrition plan when I treat myself to a dessert or go for an ice cream. It just can't become a rule. Speaking of rules: when Mads Pedersen wins a stage or a race on the Lidl Trek, I have tiramisu in the evening. That's allowed sometimes. Or if you've spent six and a half hours overcoming a 4000 metre mountain stage, then you can have a piece of chocolate cake in the evening, because enjoyment is also important and you sometimes have a craving for something like that.
Professional cyclists pay a lot of attention to weight. How do you manage the balance between low weight and the necessary performance?
To a certain extent, it's a question of experience and individual comfort weight. Some people may reach their limit and realise, okay, that was too much or I was too light, I didn't have the energy and I have so little body fat that I run the risk of getting ill. Others put on a kilo or two more, at least in spring, to help them survive bad weather, rain or snow; they don't lose weight until the height of summer. Of course, it's difficult to stay at your ideal weight all year round. But weight management is just as much a part of it as daily training. However, it's not that you have to achieve a very precise value, but rather a range within which you should move.
That's probably also a predisposition. What type of person are you? Do you get too light easily or do you have to be careful not to put on weight?
I'm always very consistent with my weight and find it rather difficult to gain weight, but I also find it a bit harder than others to lose weight. Over the year, I'm more than plus/minus one kilo at my ideal weight, and I've actually been doing very well with that for years. 66 or 67 kilos is my baseline. During a three-week tour, it can happen that it goes down even further. When I was seventh in the Giro (2018, editor's note), I was at 65 kilos. But it was never actually under 65. And I'm not one of those people who gain three or four kilos in the off-season. There are people who really do put on a few kilos as soon as they are off the bike for a fortnight and don't watch what they eat.
Thomas Musch
Publisher
