FEED ZONE PORTABLES
A COOKBOOK of ON-THE-GO FOOD for ATHLETES
Biju Thomas & Allen Lim
BOULDER, COLORADO
FOREWORDS
I AM A PROFESSIONAL CYCLIST. I burn upward of 5,000 calories on an average day of training and racing. This means there are times when I can eat like a garbage disposal and there are times when I need to hold back, but most importantly, times when I must eat. Because I spend so much time on my bike, Im obligated to eat while keeping said bike in motion. Up until recently, I basically had to force down food. Bars, gels, and mini sandwiches went down the hatch for one sole purposeenergy. While these foods may have done the trick calorically, my level of enjoyment was at an all-time low.
Enter Allen Lim and Biju Thomas. Allen has been a close friend/training consigliere/psychologist/brain stimulator since 2007. In late 2011 his friend Biju started coming over to my house and graciously hosting dinner parties a couple times a week. I have a new appreciation for the art of carnitas thanks to this man I call Bij (pronounced Beeej). If I could pack Al and Bij into a suitcase and take them everywhere, I would.
My eyes were truly opened to the wonders of Feed Zone Portables in the summer of 2012 leading up to the London Olympic Games. Rather than go the traditional route and race my way to fitness over June and July in Europe, I opted to stay in my hometown of Boulder, Colorado, and train very specifically for the Games. This meant I spent a whole lot of hours on the bike, drank many a bottle of Skratch, and had the two best guys in the game preparing food for me. Their support was unparalleled, and I will forever be indebted to them for their commitment to my Olympic dream. When it was all over, returning to normal Euro life proved to be quite difficult. I went from perfectly prepared rice cakes with bacon, almond butter, and maple syrup back to your standard bars and gels, from the greatest chicken fried rice I have ever tasted to two pieces of bread with a slice of cheese and ham.
At least I can control what I put into my body at home, which is why a book like this is invaluable. Whether youre like me or just a casual Sunday cyclist, youre going to love Feed Zone Portables because from now on you arent going to eat just because you have to in order to make it home from your ride. You will reach into your back pocket for a Feed Zone portable and feel like a kid with a candy bar. You will be rewarding your body with the goodness within these pages. Dont be surprised if you ride longer and harder than ever before.
TAYLOR PHINNEY
2-time Olympian
Professional cyclist, BMC Racing Team
EATING FOR FUEL had been a struggle for me throughout my cycling career. I spent my summers road racing and my winters racing cyclocross, so it seemed as though I was always racing, traveling, or resting. Constantly trying to keep my energy level up at the right times and avoid food at the wrong times was consuming too much time and energy. It was exhausting.
Like a lot of other young cyclists, I fell victim to poor habits and misinformation. I found myself cutting out this or eating more of that in hopes of going faster. I eventually learned that virtually anything worked for a time. But adapting my lifestyle and food choices to match my true needs was really the only way to make a lasting impact on my performance.
I met Biju and Allen a few years ago at the Ride on Washington, where they were tasked with feeding riders and staff. I poked my head into the trailer the first morning at around 5:30 a.m. Biju was knee-deep in oatmeal, while Allen was shuttling food in and out and trying to get the coffee maker working. It was controlled chaos, but it was clear they were going to turn out some tasty grub. One bite showed me a lot of what I was missing.
Eating real, flavorful, and simple food was a revelation. I began eating more energy-dense foods when I needed them and lighter meals with more fiber when I was resting or traveling. Instead of just eating something I considered healthy before a ridelike cereal and yogurtI was eating oatmeal with eggs on top (and maple syrup, my all-time favorite). Instead of finishing a ride and eating a tuna fish sandwich an hour later, I was pulling warm rice out of the cooker and eating while still in my cycling shorts.
Being around Allen and Biju began to ground me and my diet. Over the summer months, I spent long hours riding with my training partners in Boulder and plowing through plate after plate of rice and eggs. After tough workouts where we pushed ourselves to the limit over and over, it was liberating to be rid of any apprehension about what or how much to eat. It meant we had enough energy left over to give each other shit, or maybe even start thinking about the next workout.
Good food may only be a portion of what it takes to ride professionally, but to me it has been truly life changing. I believe that not knowing what to eat and when to eat it can be as detrimental to performance as shirking your training. Now that my nutrition is dialed in, I can focus on the other important aspects of training and racing. I hope you too can find a new relationship with eating through Biju and Allens delicious creations.
TIM JOHNSON
Cannondale p/b
cyclocrossworld.com
PREFACE
SINCE THE LAUNCH OFTHE FEED ZONE COOKBOOK, Chef Biju and I have received a lot of questions from athletes around what to eat while exercising, traveling, or on the go. The Portables section of our first cookbook presented a number of recipes for real food that can be eaten during activity, and it started a conversation about the rationale and science behind what to eat when training and competing.
Attempting to answer any question about science or theory is only part of the equation when it comes to the evolving discussion around nutrition and performance. The practice of making real food is not always easy, especially when our lives are busy and stressful. But when all is said and done, we still need and want healthy, fresh, and simple portable foods to keep us fueled and nourished when were on the move.
Its our hope that Feed Zone Portables will take your practice a step further by giving you some of the science behind eating when heart rates are higher than normally found at the dinner table and providing a greater variety of easy-to-follow, real-food portable recipes and ideas for the times when youre away from the table.
ALLEN LIM