Ben from The Strength Factory has put together a three part series on how to lose fat to improve your MTB riding.
Dropping excess body fat is one of the best upgrades you can make for your riding. Whether your priority is performance or fun, dropping a few kg’s of padding will only help you to get more from your rides. And then of course there are the health benefits which we are all aware of.
So if the benefits are so clear, why do so many people struggle to lose fat and keep it off? Why, despite being active (riding), do I see plenty of overweight riders every weekend at the trail centres?
The problem is that there is so much confusing and conflicting information out there. A million internet gurus all trying to sell you the latest superfood or workout fad. They all want to sell you the, “Best” workout or approach, as any other way of losing fat is somehow wrong or flawed. So much of it is based on opinion, dogma and a narrow field of view, designed to sell something and whilst there are some amazing coaches and companies who do genuinely life changing work with people, the amount of noise makes it hard to stand out and get your message across, especially if it isn’t very click-baity!
That is why I have made this 3 part video series on Fat Loss, with a focus on mountain bikers. At almost an hour of content, there is loads of useable and jargon-free information to help you understand the process and to help empower you to make good decisions. None of this is just my opinion. I do not subscribe to one certain diet or nutritional approach. It is founded on science and an understanding of the fundamental principles that will help you on your journey.
Part One, The Basics
In Episode 1 I take you through the basics:
Calories in Carbs, Protein and Fat
Calories In vs Calories Out
Should you Count Calories?
The importance of a Calorie Deficit
Mindset, and more…
Part Two, Food
This episode focuses on food, nutrition, what to eat and when, and most importantly, WHY.
By understanding the food we eat and how fat loss actually works you can make good decisions with food over a prolonged period of time, leading to sustainable fat loss. No fad diets, no nonsense, just common sense and real world advice.
Part Three, Training
Building on what we learnt in episodes 1 and 2, I explain the difference between long steady ‘fat burning’ workouts and short, intense HIIT style sessions as well as underlining the importance of strength training to support your performance on the bike as well as your fat loss and health goals.
