Thursday, June 24, 2010

Required Reading

Paleo Diet for Athletes - the serious atheletes diet
1. The Paleo Diet for Athletes - Dr. Loren Cordain & Joel Friel
  • Why? Learn how to make your own homebrew for post-ride recovery. Way better than any store-bought shenanigans.
  • On top of that, while normal Paleo Diet peeps don't eat any grains, the PD for Athletes does encourage ingesting whole grains in your recovery phases. So that's good news for you gluten-loving peeps.
2. Racing Weight - Matt Fitzgerald
  • Why? For those of you who are curious how many grams of protein, carbs, fats, total calories, etc...you should be taking in based on your weight and training volume, he has the answers. There is, however, something to be said for just eating according to the way your body feels - as long as you are getting the right ratio of carbs/fats/proteins in your diet. Just ask Nell. Love her blog & she is a Paleo Purist.
3. The End of Overeating - Dr. David Kessler, MD
  • Thank you KenBob for recommending. This book will make you never want to eat at Chiles, TGIFridays or Applebees again. But why would go there in the first place? I digress. But seriously, ick. It may also make you feel kinda bad about eating at fancy restaurants too.
  • This cat was the FDA commissioner under Bush and was instrumental in the new nutrition labeling regulation on food. He kinda knows a lot.
  • I should add...there is room in everyone's diet for a splurge here and there. Especially if you ride your bike for 7 hours on the same day. You shouldn't feel badly about eating a really crazy good dinner or sweet that you totally enjoy. But only do it every once in awhile. This book explains why it's so hard to only splurge every once in awhile (for some people)...that the way certain foods (fast food, for example) are processed and prepared makes it such that your body is wired to overeat it. Ack! Scary.
I am also currently reading Medium Raw by Anthony Bourdain. Loved his first book, Kitchen Confidential. This book is way different, but still highly entertaining. More on that in a subsequent post.

4 comments:

Jim said...

I'm following Fitzgerald right now. It's a lot like Paleo but with more whole grains. I'm liking it so far because I actually have enough energy to ride well - stronger than I'd expect in fact - and I'm losing weight. Seems unregimented enough that I can probably stick with it. I'll let you know, and BTW thanks for posting that great link on nutrition the other day.

Gus said...

I have to add "In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto," by Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma. Why? Sure, it's not about sports nutrition or improving your 40K time. But it's about eathing "real food." Basically, it comes down to seven words: eat food, not too much, mostly vegetables.

Since you are both foodie and athlete, you'll like it.

Enjoy,
Gus Grissom

margit said...

@gus - I concur. Great book. As is Food Rules, which is essentially a "dumbed down" version of In Defense of Food. Also loved the Omnivore's Dilemma. Huge MP fan! Food Inc. is a nice read/movie as well. Cheers!

@Jim - Fiztgerald is the man. Can't wait to see how slim Jim can get!

Anonymous said...

youre like Oprah with your book club. :) only way skinnier.