Build Your Base: Six Nutrition Priorities for a Strong Preseason

The preseason is the perfect time to reset our nutrition habits before training load becomes more race-specific. Whether your goal is to improve power, endurance, or overall health, the nutrition choices you make now can help you recover faster, adapt better, and feel stronger when training ramps up. 

Here are six key nutrition priorities to focus on this preseason.

1. Eat Enough to Support Training and Recovery

When training volume starts to increase, its easy to undereat, especially if we're trying to lose a little weight or clean up our diet, but being in a low-energy state (low energy availability) can actually slow adaptation, increase fatigue, and make it harder to recover.

Action tip

Fuel around your workouts and make sure your meal includes carbs, protein, and some healthy fats. If your goal is body composition change, make adjustments gradually and avoid cutting calories too aggressively.

2. Rebuild Your Carbohydrate Stores

Carbohydrates are an important energy source for training, especially for longer endurance sessions focused on improving durability, as well as higher-intensity sessions. If you reduced carbs during the off-season, it's time to bring them back as training ramps up, because low carbohydrate availability can blunt the desired adaptations.

Action tip

Match your carb intake to your training day: more on big days, less on recovery days. Use rides over 75-90 minutes to practice fueling with 30-90 grams of carbs per hour, depending on duration and intensity. Hexis makes this easy and takes the guesswork out of fueling. 

3. Check Your Iron and Vitamin D Levels

Even if you feel like you're eating well, nutrient deficiencies in iron, vitamin D, or B12 are relatively common, especially if you're female, vegetarian, or training at altitude. Curious about iron? Read this article to learn good sources of iron in the diet and strategies to improve effectiveness of supplementation.

Action tip

If you've had issues with excessive or unexplainable fatigue, it's a good idea to rule out nutrient deficiencies with a blood test. Get preseason bloodwork done to check your iron, ferritin, and Vitamin D, along with annual labs. It is generally a good idea to complete bloodwork at least twice per year if you're training year-round. 

4. Prioritize Protein for Strength and Recovery

Protein supports muscle repair, strength gains, and connective tissue health, which are all essential as we start progressing strength or higher-intensity work. 

Action tip

Aim for 20-40 grams of high-quality protein at each meal, and snack throughout the day to reach 1.2-1.8 grams per kilogram of bodyweight per day. Include a recovery meal or shake with protein and carbs as soon after training as you can. Try including whole-food sources first (e.g., eggs, Greek yogurt, fish, lean meat, soy, dairy), then add supplements if needed.

5. Train the Gut

Our gut is trainable, similarly to our muscles. Many athletes wait until race season to practice in-ride fueling, which often leads to gastrointestinal distress and under-fueling. The more consistently we practice fueling before and during rides, the better our bodies will tolerate, absorb and utilize carbs when it's time to perform.

Action tip

Start fueling before rides and during rides over 75-90 minutes, even in base training. Mix different carb sources (like glucose and fructose) to improve absorption and comfort.

6. Support the Immune System

Training stress, travel, and inconsistent nutrition intake can all make us more susceptible to illness. Adequate energy and nutrient intake are the best defense. Include a variety of whole, nutrient-rich foods of various colors. 

Action tip

Eat enough total calories, stay hydrated, and include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins in your daily fuel. Carbohydrate availability around and during longer and harder rides also helps reduce immune stress.

Takeaway

The preseason is about building fitness, strength, and capacity, not restriction. Proper nutrition now helps to build the foundation on which we can train to perform in the future months.

• Eat to support training and recovery, as well as life off the bike (including sleep!).

• Replenish key nutrients by eating a varied diet in whole, nutrient-dense foods and meeting total daily energy needs.

• Practice your fueling strategies during training before you expect to perform.

• Take care of your gut and immune system by eating adequate total calories, plenty of fruits and veggies, and other high fiber complex carbs.

And finally, don't skip your pre-season health check. It's important to address any health concerns and nutrient deficiencies before putting our bodies through the high stress of training for performance.

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At BaseCamp, we believe that every cyclist has the potential to achieve greatness, no matter where they start. Our mission is to create a community-driven training environment where cyclists and triathletes of all levels can train together, support each other, and grow stronger, faster, and more confident in their abilities. Our cycling training programs are expert driven and tailored to your needs. Whether you're a seasoned pro or just getting started, BaseCamp is where you belong.