Pre and Post-ride Meal for Cyclists – What to Eat During the Event

People, in general, think that they will need the best bike accessories for conducting a long distance cycling trip. As a result, they often underestimate the proper nutrition that they will require for performing successfully in any event or tour. It has been found that beginners and amateurs mainly underestimate their diet. As a result, they end up compromising their cycling performance.

• Importance of Proper Nutrition Plan for Cyclists

Well, it is not hard to understand the importance of proper Nutrition for cycling. This sport, in general, is known for utilizing physical endurance. In addition, you will also need strength, stamina and power for cycling in the Pyrenees, as well as in the other mountain ranges in Europe. If you do not eat properly it will become difficult for you to accomplish any short or long trip successfully.

For example, you have to eat the right foods that are high in protein. This type of foods will help you to build muscles. In addition, you will also need some good source of carbohydrate that will give you the energy for riding the bike. In this post, we will not focus on the entire nutrition plan of a cyclist. However, if you are looking at what exactly you can eat before or after riding the bike then the post is perfect for you. So, read on to know about your pre and post-ride meals in details.

• What You Should Eat before the Ride

If you want to boost your cycling performance then you have to pay special attention to your pre-ride meal. It is always suggested to take a heavy meal (high in carbohydrate) before the ride. You can consider adding oats, peanut butter, and banana in your post-ride meal. It will give you enough thrust that you will need to ride the bike successfully in the event or tour.

• What You Should Eat after the Ride

During your Alps or Pyrenees cycling holidays, you have to pay special attention to post-cycling meal. This meal is important for recovery. So, you should consider eating protein-based food after riding your bike. You can consider eating chicken salad, spaghetti squash with pasta sauce, whey protein shake, egg toast after completing the ride.

So, this is all about the best pre and post-ride meal for cyclists. Hope knowing the facts mentioned above will help you to keep your nutrition up to the mark during the tour.

List of Major Attractions that You Must Visit in the Pyrenees

With the presence of natural scenery and revered excursion sites, the entire region of the Pyrenees is spiritually inspiring. The place offers incredible scenery of high foothills, green gorges, untouched lakes, rushing waterfalls, dramatic ravines and lot more. Being on such high elevation topography, the place has got some amazing mountaineering traces through gorges, forests, waterfalls and past streams. In this post, I will reveal some major attractions that you must explore during your visit to the Pyrenees.

1. Cirque de Gavarnie

This place offers a spectacular sight to the people coming to enjoy their vacation and to make it memorable for the rest of their life. This place is more like nature’s version of the cathedral and it offers soul-stimulating happenstance with nature. The Cirque is a spherical loop of the rocky sandstone walls that seems to enclose the valley and it is more like the huge nave of the church.

2. Col du Tourmalet

When it comes to visiting the Pyrenees, the name of Col du Tourmalet comes on the top of the list and it is one of the highest peaks in the region with a height of 2,115 metres. This is one of the most popular climbs for the people coming for cycling vacation in the Pyrenees. The dare of the actual climb is as tangible as the entire setting is incredible. It has been seen more than 60 times in the Toru de France.

3. Col d’Agnes

Col d’Agnes is one of the great climbs and the Tour de France arguably criminally underuses the same. In total, the Col appeared for five times in the race and it is even more challenging as compared to the other Cols in the Pyrenees. This region remains open all throughout the year and the place is subjected to the weather. But people willing to take on this location should be aware of the fact that short-term closures are very common during winter.

4. Col d’Aubisque

Col d’Aubisque is one of the legendary climbs for the Tour de France and has been featured for more than 40 times during the competition. This is one of the most important climbs in the history of professional cycling and it is stunningly beautiful. The Col remains open from June to end of the October. Depending on the weather conditions it gets open again in the month of May.

Pyrenees cycling holidays could be one of the most thrilling and exciting adventurous places that fill the mind of the escapade junkies with great confidence. So, get your bags packed and contact with a genuine tour operator who can manage the entire tour to the Pyrenees.

4 Things You Need to Know to Conduct a Long-distance Cycling Tour

Conducting a cycling tour can bring you such an experience that you might have never been undergone before as a rider or tourist. Meanwhile, it is also a cheap way to explore a country or perhaps the entire continent. Conducting a cycling tour can bring you such an experience that you might have never been undergone before as a rider or tourist. Meanwhile, it is also a cheap way to explore a country or perhaps the entire continent.

However, conducting a biking trip is not as easy as it seems. It requires years of experience and great fitness to conduct such a trip. Meanwhile, if you want to conduct the trip on a challenging road then you also have to make your bike compatible for it. Take mountain ranges for example, for cycling in Pyrenees you have to take your bike to the next level. In fact, there are plenty of things that you need to keep in mind when conducting a long distance cycling tour. In the section below we will take you through the four of them.

1. High-Performance Cycle

Pro cyclists understand the difference between riding bikes in challenging roads like valleys and in the relaxation of a nearby park. To meet the difficult challenges of a dangerous road, you also need to prepare your bike for it. So before getting out for conducting such a trip, you need to ensure that the performance of your bike is up to the mark and it can meet all the harshness of the road.

2. Proper Cycling Gear

Similar to your bike it is equally important that you pay enough attention to proper cycling gear before conducting the tour. It will enhance your safety feature during the trip. Some of the best cycling gears are as follows:

• Sleeve jersey
• Helmet
• Insulated water bottle
• Rubber  gloves
• Rechargeable USB flashlight etc.

3. Knowledge of Bike Repair

During your cycling trip, you may need to visit several remote areas. When cycling in Pyrenees or in the other European mountain range you will get the chance to see many picturesque remote villages and iconic spots. In this type of spots, if you find the bike is not working properly then your knowledge of bike repairing will be really helpful for yourself.

4. Physical Fitness

During the trip, you need to ride a bike for around 10 -15 miles every day. Especially when it comes to a challenging environment the job becomes even harder. In a situation like this, you need excellent fitness to meet all the challenges of a cycling trip.

So, these are the top 4 things that you need to aware of before conducting a long distance trip. Hope knowing the facts mentioned above will help you to conduct a successful biking trip.

5 Places for Biking in the Pyrenees – Make the Most of Your Trip

Stretching over 400 kilometres, Pyrenees is a vast mountain range situated between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic. It has naturally created a border between the two most popular European countries, France and Spain. The name Pyrenees, especially the term “Pyrene” has come from the name of the virgin daughter of Bebrycius.

But in recent time, the mountain range has become very popular as an attractive place for conducting cycling trips. But, due to its large size, sometimes it becomes really a daunting job for bikers to choose a good area, where they can plan a Pyrenees cycling vacation and can enjoy cycling most.

In the below section we will cover the top 5 best destination where you can plan a trip.

• Bagneres de Luchon

Situated in France, this is one of the best places for riding bikes. During your cycling trip, you can enjoy here beautiful scenery on both the sides of the route and it contains plenty of villages which can be a good reason for you in order to choose this destination.

• Tarascon-sur-Ariege

This is also another challenging route for cycling especially for beginners. But the beauty of the valley will encourage you to cover any distance or risk everything during the trip.

• Luz-St-Sauveur

This is one of the most popular roads for cycling. Especially if you are craving for thrill and adventure then you must opt for this road. The climbs are high here but if you have the ability to conduct long riding then you can easily get from one destination to another easily here.

• Tardets-Sorholus

This is another great place in the central mountain. Both amateur and professional cyclists can choose this area for conducting a Pyrenees biking trip. But beginners and amateurs are always suggested to not go out for a solo trip in this area. Even pro cyclists who do not have knowledge of this road should also consider planning a group trip here instead of solo riding.

• Girona

Located in Spain this is the most beautiful region of Central Pyrenees. You will get here very little traffic which makes this area a quiet place for cycling. There are very few climbs are available in this area which makes this place a great place for riding for beginners.

So these are the top 5 places in the Pyrenees Mountain where you can conduct a trip and enjoy your cycling. For any related question regarding this feel free to leave us a mail.

Top 4 Tips to Get Most from the Cycling Pyrenees Trip

“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”

“Pain is temporary but quitting is forever.”

“No pain no gain.”

If you have ever been to the Pyrenees for cycling adventure, it remains no doubt that you will be able to relate to the idioms given just at the start of the post. But there are certain ways through which you can enhance the possibilities of your success on the cols and to maximize the enjoyment on the climbs. The tips discussed below are the accumulated result of having mixed experiences of more than 5-8 years cycling in the Pyrenees. Hope they will help you out when you plan for cycling Pyrenees adventure tour.

1. Research About the Location

The location for the trip is of utmost importance for everyone and one must not forget to add a good dose of sunshine. It is crucial to take into account that even in the most popular climbs or cols, weather conditions can change drastically.

This becomes essentially important while heading towards the high peak mountain ranges like the Alps of Pyrenees. It would also be essential to check out the cycling infrastructure where you will be staying. If you find the accommodation surrounded by miles of old farm tracks then it will turn out to be a nasty surprise for you for sure.

2. Check Out the Gears Properly

If you are carrying your own bike to the Pyrenees, make sure that it is equipped with the suitable gearing. The choice of the gearing should be a personal thing and should be taken into account by considering the level of fitness and how difficult you want to make things for yourself.

3. Be Considerate About the Climbing Techniques and Position

As soon as the climb steepens, it is better to move the position forward on the bike just in order to put ultimate power and energy to the pedals. Relaxing the shoulders, avoiding rocking from side to side and keeping the upper body still will help you to concentrate and to give all the effort to the pedal strokes.

4. Better Not to get Too Competitive

It is always suggested not to be too competitive with the fellow riders while cycling in the Pyrenees. If you plan for sprint or signpost races that too on the top of the climb, keep it in mind that it will not work for you and it will not push over the limit.

Cycling in Pyrenees is one of the most adventures and amazing experience one can have in his/her lifetime. Make sure to get things arranged properly to enjoy every single moment completely. In this regard, you can take help from the professional agency to make things easy and usual.

Aspects that Make Pyrenees cycling holiday a Must have Tour

When it comes to road cycling trips, most of the holiday goers start with certain set of expectations like stunning descents, riding buddies, tough climbs, smooth roads, etc. It would not be wrong if someone asserts that the French Pyrenees could be the most beautiful as well as adventurous place and it fulfills all the requirements a rider dreams off.

The mountains of Pyrenees create a magnificent diving line between Spain and France and most of the peaks have steeped in history. The weather is extremely notorious and the thunderstorms are rarely off the cards. This post mainly talks about the aspects that make the Pyrenees a top-notch holiday destination.

• Perfect Gateway for the Adventure Enthusiasts

If you are planning for Pyrenees cycling holiday then make sure that you will get a well-planned and traffic-free network of roads in the slopes. Now this will be an amazing feature for the cyclists as well as the runners.

This will allow the athletes to drive smoothly to their destination without facing hassles. In addition to that, the Pyrenees is also best known for treasuring varied terrain ranging from steep rocky hills to undulated plains. So, all together this place is a perfect gateway for the adventure lovers.

• Remote Yet Charming Locations

Most of the people from all over the world opt for Pyrenees holiday because this destination offers some difficult yet captivating locations. Most importantly all of them are the part of exclusive Tour de France. Nothing can be much better than exploring the beautiful and remote locations and accepting the upcoming challenges; the Pyrenees in this context is one of the perfect examples.

• Agencies Available Offers Affordable Rates

The Pyrenees holiday destinations are best known for having some leading and the most affordable agencies that organize the entire tour. These agencies offer the complete set of training to the people and make them competent enough to make the journey a memorable one. In addition to that, these agencies also offer homely accommodations, bikes, food and other means of relaxation and entertainment.

• Amazing Weather

One of the principal reasons for which millions of people visit the Pyrenees is mainly because of its amazing favorable weather conditions. Not too cold nor too hot, this place remains dry for most of the time, but certain parts of the same receive significant amount of rain and snow and this makes the stay for the visitors even more memorable.

These amazing aspects make Pyrenees cycling holiday one of the most tourist destination all over the world. Make sure to choose a reputed and professional agency in order to make the trip to its fullest.

Pros and Cons of Guided and Independent Cycling Trips

Are you planning for something different this holiday? Instead of relaxing on, a beach, do you wish to indulge in something exhilarating that could break the monotony of your everyday life? If yes, I would personally recommend you to take part in the famous cycling trips of Pyrenees. Noted for its enrapturing natural surroundings, this exceptionally beautiful destination in France is noted for being a paradise to both the experienced and amateur riders. Now that you are more or less sure about the location, it is time to decide, whether you would like to opt for independent or guided trips. The guided and the independent trips are really thrilling and enjoyable. But, you should follow some of the measures that will make your trip enjoyable and memorable for lifetime. Both the guided tours and independent tours have their own way of exploration and also they provide you with unique experiences separately. However, both have certain limits and disadvantages.

Both these modes do have their own series of pros and cons. Let us explore some of them in the following discussion.

GUIDED TOURS

An increasing number of individuals from all across the globe have admitted that for Pyrenees cycling holidays, it would be better if they opt for a guided tour. The travel location has many organizations that provide optimal trips to solo travelers, couples or small groups of people. Specialized experts prepare itineraries so that riders could make the most out of this trip. Not only would the participants be provided with cycles and other necessary paraphernalia but they would also be offered delicious and nutritious food along with comfortable accommodations. The guided tours are those that are accompanied with reputed guides and professionals who help in the process. Check out the pros and cons of the guided tours.

 If you are yet sceptical, may be the below-mentioned positive aspects would change your mind.

Pros-

• Pre-planned routes and structured schedules would make the journey hassle free.
• The guides make sure that you do not get into any kind of troubles.
• On these trips, your additional equipment is hauled in a support van and does not need to be carried.
• Guided trips stand to be enriching because the experts offer information on the history and culture of the concerned location.

A coin has two sides and similarly, there are some disadvantages of guided cycling trips too. Some of those are as follows:

Cons-

• Guided trips could be a tad bit more expensive especially if you are running on a tight budget.
• These tours depend heavily on a guide so if the said professional is not competent or experienced enough, your entire trip would turn out to be disappointing.
• Guided trips are much rigid, where you need to follow a well-defined plan. One is allowed to venture on their own.

INDEPENDENT TRIPS

In the present times, most of the travelers are opting for independent trips probably because they love the thought of exploring unknown locations on their own. Being much flexible and offering utmost freedom to the participants, there are some, who wish to go for such tours while enjoying their Pyrenees cycling holidays. The pros and cons of this particular mode are mentioned as follows:

Pros-

• Relatively expensive.
• One is provided with the opportunity to ride as much as they wish to.
• As there is no definite schedule, you are allowed to take detours and have memorable interactions with the natives.
• Traveling alone is the best way to meet new people and make friends.

Cons-

• Such trips could be risky for you have none to help you if in trouble.
• Hauling all the tools and gears on one’s own could be a pain.
• While you might be able to navigate easily, there are chances that you would miss the key highlights of the destination.

Now, you have got an idea regarding the various pros and cons of availing the independent as well as the guided tours. Whether you opt for guided or the independent tours, you should generally choose a reputed tour operator in the case. .

Cycling in Pyrenees for a Memorable Experience in Hilly Region

For excessive workload, you often become stressed and depressed. Spending some days with your loved ones or friends will really be a good option for you. To refresh your mind and body, you may go for a holiday. If you opt for an adventurous trip in the hilly region like Pyrenees, then you will be more excited. While talking about such trip, cycling vacation in Pyrenees can be the best option for you.

The place remains no wonder that with the combination of things like interwoven mountain roads, quite peaceful trails, and scintillating surroundings, Cycling Pyrenees is considered as a perfect holiday experience. There are a number of agencies working hard to bring the reality of spending quality time in the place and it is possible just because of their professional approach.

Few Tips for Making Your Tour in Pyrenees Memorable

Here are some pointers which you may remember if you are planning to visit the Pyrenees in these coming vacations.

• Ensure that you maintain a cadency of 90 rpm while cycling. By doing this, you will be able to rest your aerobic and muscular systems.
• When you are going for long distance cycling sessions, it is always better to break the ride into three segments.
• You have to understand the importance of blowing the wind as it often it can be your friend and or a foe. Consider starting your journey with a tailwind and you will get headwind while returning.
• Take a break while cycling for long and do some stretches.

If you remember these mentioned tips, you may have a memorable traveling experience.

Advantages of Cycling Trip in Pyrenees

The Pyrenees is a place which is situated in the mountain range of both France and Spain.  So, if you plan to for Cycling in the Pyrenees then you will be availed with the general benefits of cycling. On the top of that, you will also be able to enjoy the scenic beauty of the fascinating valley. Let’s check out some of the benefits of cycling in the Pyrenees.

• The approach of the agencies organizing trips in the Pyrenees is extremely flexible and you will be offered with every possible help including homemade food and homely environment for your stay. They will help you regarding the routes too.
• Your package will also include the main attractions of the place.
• You will be at the peak of your health because of long hours of cycling.

With the mentioned information, it is expected that now you have realized why you will take help from the cycling tour operator while going for Cycling Pyrenees. Contact the reliable cycling tour management company and enjoy the trip vibrantly.

 

Pyrenees – the Cycling Vacation Pilgrimage in France

Cycling sport is one of the most aesthetic sports around the world. Apart from the categories based on difficulties there are other types of bicycle racing such as road bicycle racing, mountain bike racing, track cycling, and bicycle speedway, etc. There are also some non-racing cycling sports which include artistic cycling, cycle polo, freestyle BMX, and mountain bike trials. In Europe, France and Spain are known for their amazing biking routes and trails. Among the mountain trails that are world famous the ones situates in Pyrenees are the most scenic and aesthetic trails. For every cyclist around the world, cycling in Pyrenees for holidays is like going to the pilgrimage of cycling tracks.

Why is Training necessary for Cycling in the Pyrenees?

The Pyrenees is a spectacular mountain range, which stands as a formidable barrier between France and Spain. This breathtaking travel destination is noted for varied sports activities, especially biking. Owing to the challenging landscapes and pleasant weather conditions, the Pyrenees has become a paradise for the cyclists, all over the globe.

However, before going on a cycling trip to this marvelous location, travelers need to undertake adequate amount of training. Proper preparation would certainly improve the quality and maximize the quantity of the tour.

In the following discussion, we are going to explore how carrying out extensive training could facilitate the cycling trips in the Pyrenees.

The Value of Training before undertaking Cycling Trips in the Pyrenees
A holiday in the Pyrenees that allows one to cycle through its mesmerizing sceneries would certainly prove to be quite fulfilling. These kinds of trips provide travelers with a rejuvenation of body, mind and soul. They offer relief from the monotony of everyday lives. These tours provide cyclists with the opportunity to challenge themselves and discover new traditions and cultures.

But all the aforementioned things could only be possible if individuals prepare themselves before cycling in Pyrenees. Sufficient training proves to be quite advantageous because of the following reasons:

• Training makes the bikers comfortable, which is an essential requirement if you are planning a cycling trip. One must remember that these trips are not about roaming, visiting tourist spots and taking selfies; they are about riding through difficult terrain for two to ten hours a day. If you train yourself, you could get rid of knee pains, backaches, saddle soreness- issues that are commonly associated with prolonged cycling. Practice would make you flexible and let you enjoy the rides to the fullest.
• Particularly, it is never a good idea to go for cycling without practice, especially if you have underlying health issues. Proper training would make your body ready for long distances as well as improve the general cardiac fitness.
• If you have planned a cycling trip, you certainly want to enjoy it. Well, with enough prior training, you would be able to enhance the satisfaction. Without proper practice, you would struggle in riding 50-100 km. A well-made training plan would prepare you for extensive cycling and daily efforts would make your body resistant to minor injuries and pains. Preparation would make you eager to ride happily until the last day of the tour.

The above-mentioned points are substantial enough to prove the value of training before undertaking an interesting yet laborious trip of biking to Pyrenees. Without the necessary preparation, your cycling tour would surely be a disappointment.