Hi, It's been the same for me since january...so i've started to wonder and did some research on the internet. The answer to your question maybe harsh but simple: you may eat too much, I'm talking about calories, not volume... Here's a website which could help you: http://www.acaloriecalculator.com/ You can calculate the calorie intake you need to maintain your weight, and the recommended calorie intake for weight loss. You should also do some research about calories in your usual food....it's surprising sometimes. for example, a woolworth pasta salad contains as many calories as 2 slices of bread + 1 orange juice + 1 yoghurt + 1 tbl spoon of almond butter (healthy version of peanut butter)...and as many as a large portion of french fries... Here's what I've done to start losing weight: - go on a healthy diet and count calories (you can find the average calories in most common foods on the internet). - try to keep your food as "low GI" as possible and replace most high GI food (sugars, biscuits, snacks, crisps, potatoes, rice, white bread) by their "Low GI" equivalent (xylitol=natural sweetener, agave syrup= natural sweetenr, sweet potatoes, basmati rice, low gi bread: see woolworth or sasko bread, etc...). That way, you don't spike you blood sugar and your food provides sustained energy for longer, it's healthier and makes the diet much easier...you can find lists of low GI food on the internet. - buy a heart rate monitor to calculate the calories burnt during my work outs and therfore check my calories intake. My example: i should take 2000 Calories to maintain my weight. A deficit a 500 Calories should allow me to loose 0.5kg of body fat per week: so I try to take 1500 Cal on rest days and 2000 Cal if i burn 500 calories in training. This may not be easy to do every day so you can average it on one week. And if you burn 3000 cal during a race, well, that's bonus! Then you must train your body to burn fat during exercise and for me, a low GI diet is the way to go. If during races or training you have High GI energy drinks, bars, gels, you spike your blood sugar and use it as a primary source of energy. if you're on a low gi diet, you provide sustained energy to your body and burn more fat. There are new "low GI" bars, snacks and energy drinks available in the market. I can tell you, i've not changed my training routine since january but i've never felt so good and energetic on a bike 9sustained energy=>no need for snacks, gels etc) since i've started the low gi diet, and i start loosing weight! I hope this helps, good luck!
