Feature

Mon 29 Jun, 5:00 pm BST

Nutrition: Fuel to go

By Christine Bailey, Cycling Plus

Need an easy-to-eat meal that’s tasty and nutritious? Don’t overlook the humble sandwich. While there is a wide range on offer in delis and supermarkets it can be hard to be sure they will fuel your ride properly, so to make sure your selection is as healthy as possible it’s better to make your own. Here are some options for simple, delicious butties for refuelling on the go…

Pre-ride sarnie: Banana, almond butter and date bagel

Simple and delicious, this is a combination of fast-releasing carbs, protein and mineral-rich bananas. It’s a great way to kick-start your ride and is delicious toasted too.

  • 1 small banana, mashed
  • 2 dates, finely chopped
  • 2tsp almond butter or other nut butter
  • 1 wholemeal or seeded bagel

Mix together the banana and dates. Spread the nut butter over both halves of the bagel then top with the banana.

  • Calories: 233Kcal
  • Carbohydrates: 38.6g
  • Protein: 6.5g
  • Total fat: 6.9g (of which saturates 1.6g)
Banana, almond butter and date bagel:

Pack & go: Roast turkey, lettuce and tomato wrap

Turkey is a fantastic lean protein source rich in B vitamins essential for energy production.

  • 1 tomato, seeded and chopped
  • Splash of lime juice & chili sauce or Tabasco
  • 1tbsp light mayonnaise or plain yoghurt
  • Handful of baby spinach leaves
  • 2 thin slices of lean roasted turkey
  • 1 wholemeal or seeded tortilla wrap

Mix together the tomato, chili sauce and lime juice. Season to taste. As a variation, use mango chutney instead. Spread the yoghurt or mayo over the tortilla, top with the spinach. Spoon over the tomato and top with the turkey slices.

  • Calories: 198Kcal
  • Carbohydrates: 32.4g
  • Protein: 15.4g
  • Total fat: 1.7g (of which saturates 0.6g)
Roast turkey, lettuce and tomato wrap:

Post ride sarnie: Cajun salmon bap

Salmon is a great source of omega 3 fats to help control inflammation, plus protein for muscle recovery.

  • 1tsp Cajun seasoning & 2tbsp plain yoghurt
  • 1 small salmon fillet
  • ½ small avocado, chopped
  • 2-3 slices each red onion and tomato
  • 1 wholemeal bap

Mix seasoning with 1tbsp of yoghurt. Spread over the salmon fillet and marinate for 15 minutes. Then grill the salmon for three to four minutes each side. Mix the avocado with the remaining yoghurt and spread over one side of the bap. Top with the salmon, onion and tomato.

  • Calories: 474Kcal
  • Carbohydrates: 31.2g
  • Protein: 33.4g
  • Total fat: 24.9g (of which saturates 5.2g)
Cajun salmon bap: cajun salmon bap

How to build the perfect sandwich

  • Pick wholemeal bread with plenty of fibre – look for 3-5g per serving.
  • Vary your choice of bread – try sourdough, rye, seeded baps, tortillas, wholemeal pittas and pumpernickel.
  • Go for a light spread or dressing – substitute plain yoghurt for mayo, mix in mustard or use houmous, mashed avocado, salsa and nut butters.
  • Go for lean meats without additives and fillers and trim off any visible fat.
  • Opt for lower fat cheeses – Edam, feta, goat’s cheese, mozzarella and cottage cheese are still great protein sources.
  • Pile on the salad for loads of antioxidants without excess calories and fat. Instead of lettuce choose dark greens like baby spinach, watercress or rocket for additional iron and folic acid.
  • Avoid bacon and salty pepperoni – opt for energising turkey or chicken.
  • Vary your fillings – prawns are a good source of immune boosting zinc, eggs are rich in protein and bean pates, houmous and guacamole are all healthy veggie options.

High street options

Choose carefully if you buy ready-made sandwiches: reports state supposedly healthy pre-packaged sandwiches can contain high amounts of salt, saturated fat and even sugar.

When choosing one look at the ingredients list – it should be short without added fillers,sugars and starches that are often used to bulk up ingredients.

Avoid those drenched in mayonnaise or stuffed with hard cheese – this will increase the saturated fat and salt content. If choosing meat look for 100 percent lean meat (not butter roasted).

If you’re looking for a sandwich as a snack, aim for it to contain about a sixth of your daily calorie needs.

User Comments

There are 21 comments on this post

Showing 1 - 21 of 21 comments

  • If one of my mates turned up for a ride with some posh sarndwich or even mentioned the words houmous" or "marinated salmon fillets", I shudder to think what would happen! ;-)

  • You're yanking my chain surely?

    Dates and almond butter? There was I thinking that cycling was predominantly a sport for the working classes.

    What ever happened to Jam sarnies?

  • i seem to have missed something with all the powerbars, clif bars and torq bars i eat.

  • Don't worry about a power bar, eat a few shawarma kebab followed by a Stella or two . If anybody want any advice on a customized diet, just ask.. :-)

  • Alright, calm down 'ghetto snobs'; trying to out-working class each other. "I do 100 miles on a jam sandwich, on a fixed gear, wearing 15 year old shorts with no chamoix on the hottest/ coldest (whichever sounds more mental) day of the year","GARLIC BREAD! , "I think you should stuff your exotic foods and try winning a race on Cornflakes and steak, bloomin' ponce."

    Thing is, the good people of BikeRadar/Procycling/CyclingPlus are just trying to give a tasty alternative menu of foods, that are high in the specific nutrients that are needed for cycling. I think we would all be a little disappointed if they told us to forget all of the stuff they had been telling us about diet and said 'eat a ham sandwich and a packet of crisps.'

    My mum often likes the look of most of the recipes, in CyclingPlus and Cycling Weekly (:O Do not speak of t'uther magazine')

    You can't beat a bowl of pasta, mackrel, olive oil and tomatoes post ride, to be honest.

  • Years of riding I have not found a replacement for real and fresh food.

    Peanut butter banana sandwich is winner for me. Simple+good+energy=win

  • All very good but try doing that on a wheat free diet.....

    How about an article for the wheat freeks amongst us, I can't be the only one!

  • I eat Pukka Pies and I've won every race I've ever entered.

  • Most of that stuff would cause a right mess in the pockets of my ss/jersey's..;-)

  • Snickers bars & home made fruit smoothie. Yes.

  • "I eat Pukka Pies and I've won every race I've ever entered."

    there ain't nothing wrong with a good ol' pukka pie, the thing is people who worry too much about all this 'don't eat any later than two hours before the race' and all these energy bars and carbohydrates should just get out and train rather than fannying around buying this overpriced rubbish, i just have a couple of weetabix and a banana before going on a ride, and i beat every other roadie on the road, and i'm only 15 and the bike has been broken for quite a while now so i'm not exactly what you'd call 'really' fit. Also you get a lot of people who spend too much time worrying about all of the small things on their bikes rather than just getting out and training.

  • You're not 15. I teach 15 year olds and your level of literacy, punctuation and philosophical thought is far too advanced for the yoof of today. You're the boss of Weetabix.

  • Hey! Don't forget about honey!

    Honey = Glucose/Fructose

    If you have it on white bread (high GI), without butter, it will crystalize, making it jersey-friendly and will provide a massive boost of energy in an emergency.

  • "You're not 15. I teach 15 year olds and your level of literacy, punctuation and philosophical thought is far too advanced for the yoof of today. You're the boss of Weetabix"

    Brilliant

  • trust me, i'm definitely 15 ;)

  • That seems inconceivably complicated to both make and eat on the go.

    Try reaching in and eating that bagle mid ride. You can take bites from an energy bar, not sure that works so well on wraps.

  • Fig Rolls, simple, small and all a growing boy needs.

  • Not that keen on bagels ;)

  • mmmmmm i find buttered soreen malt loaf does the trick

  • Who could forget the iconic marmalade sandwiches?!

    On the point about salt in ready-bought sandwiches--even if you make your own, assuming you're not making your own bread the bread can have quite a lot of salt in it (eg a third of RDA in 4 thick slices). But having said that, it's probably not a big concern for cyclists given you will probably sweat it out. (Similarly why worry about the sugar in a ready-bought sandwich when cyclists' munchies--including that banana sarnie up top--have it in fair quantity anyway?)

  • "How about an article for the wheat freeks amongst us, I can't be the only one!"

    Surely you could just substitute a baked potato for the bread in the recipes above (admittedly, I've never tried banana, date & potato together...). Or slices of polenta. Or buckwheat pancakes (Orgran mix).

    Home-made spring rolls (where you just wet the ricepaper sheets but don't fry them) are lush, but may be a bit fiddly/liable to disintegrate.

  • 1

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