The standard recommendation would be something that combines carbs with a little protein, fiber, and fat to slow absorbtion and minimize any spikes. So something like oatmeal with milk, yogurt & granola, a banana & some nuts, wholegrain toast with cream cheese or peanut butter or an egg, etc.
Less technical than above advice but i managed to go from 78/80KG to 70KG then 65/66kg when i got into cycling seriously. It took a few months. As well as increasing exercise my main strategy was evening meal portion control as iād already cut out snacking. I would eat the same stuff just about 2/3 the amount. In a few weeks i would not feel hungry after meals. My apetite adjusted. But it was difficult will power stuff. If someone leaves a plate of food for me now i would remove some of it and put aside. I say to myself that i can have it later if im really hungry but i do not. Eating slowly also helped me. I would still eat the same decent breakfast before a ride (eg porridge and toast).
Good luck!
Simon
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Some solid strategies in here. One thing to add is that there is some research showing weight loss can be greater for the same calorie defecit if you eat less processed foods. I believe the theory is that your body requires more energy to break down and process these foods, so the amount of energy gained from them in total is less, even though youāre eating the same amount of calories.
Anecdotally, I find it true for me. If I focus on eating whole, unprocessed foods: rice, quinoa, roasted vegetables, chicken, etc., that I feel as full when Iām finished, but maintain weight more easily and physically feel better.
Meal prep can help with this. Iām not the biggest fan, because I like cooking and like variety, but prepping lunches with whole and healthy foods is a good way to ensure at least one good meal with solid nutrients each day.
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I have got curious about how GLP1 is compatible with a typical keen cyclistās training load, and wondering about giving it a go in the off-season in an attempt to shift 5-10kg from 85kg at 6ā2 . Clearly there would need to be a deliberate effort to maintain carbs so as not to end up in a listless mess
Has anyone kept up on mounjaro or whatever to shift stubborn weight?
I was following a sub elite marathoner who tried this. He said it certainly limited his hunger and he was able to drastically reduce his calorie intake for a week. Who knows what kind of health implications that may have.
One thing to add is that there is some research showing weight loss can be greater for the same calorie defecit if you eat less processed foods.
Yeah, itās worked for me. I have nothing against the CICO (calorie-in/calorie-out) mafia.
But for most of human history the bulk of humans maintained healthy weight without needing apps or spreadsheets, even with an available calorie surplus to eat. And the root causes of why thatās no longer the case for many is probably not super simple, but involves the rapid increase of heavily processed foods as percentage of diet.
Just eating super well with a minimum of refined carbs works for me without apps. Granted Iām talking only about losing the last 1-2kg in race season. Iāve been fortunate to have not had to struggle with weight beyond that.
And never drinking calories, always eating them. Including alcohol.
The apps have also worked, though. Which is why I agree with the comments above and finding what works for you and sticking with it.
I think the issue with GLP-1 type drugs is they make it difficult to eat enough solid food because it makes you nauseous. I wonder if switching to liquid/gel carbs would be better to fuel training properly
Adding some probably outdated thoughts from my past life as a biological anthropologist:
Food with strong flavors and whole fats tends to trigger satiety faster than heavily-modified / industrially processed foods like bars, gels, cakes, chips, etc. Solid tends to trigger satiety faster than liquid. I have no idea what your diet is like or what your goals are, but at least in the good old US of A there is reasonably strong evidence that an overabundance of calorie-dense stuff with addictively middling flavor strength drives some eating-excess-to-requirements by doing an end-run around the ancient mechanisms our bodies use to tell us weāve had enough food.
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Not sure that I agree that historical foods have āstrong flavorsā compared to ultra processed.
the problem is that processed foods have so much sugar and salt and are very calorically dense. It is tasty and easy to eat a lot of!
less likely that youāll over consume fruit, veg, grains and lean meats.
Sorry if this has already been mentioned, but this topic immediately reminded me of this post by Jem Arnold on Discord
Iāll try to stop Discourse turning this into a previewā¦(Discord)
For those not on Discord:
Jem Arnold: ā Strong recommend here for Empirical Cycling recent pod with Dr. Eric Trexler on energetic constraints and deep nuance of estimating/measuring caloric inputs & outputs
https://www.empiricalcycling.com/podcast-episodes/perspectives-40-energy-expenditure-and-compensation-with-eric-trexlerā
Much like the original post above here, I have cycled since I was a kid and Iām not āoverweightā but I am heavier than I want to be and at the age of 63 Iāve spend my entire adult life frustrated that I canāt keep my weight where I want it to be. I just like food and wine too much. I can control myself for a while and lose a bit but it comes straight back up so much faster than I can lose it.
So I found the podcast that Jem recommended was a real eye opener, to realise my body is always going to work to keep weight on and adjust the basal metabolism to save me from starvation.
Perspectives #40: Energy Expenditure And Compensation, with Eric Trexler - Empirical Cycling
Iām going to scroll back up here now and read everyone elseās comments, to see if Iām just repeating someone elseās postā¦
AOL. In my case Iāve been trying in vain to have a dry spell for about 5 years but it often feels like wine is the one thing I look forward to each day. 
To my amazement Iāve had none for ~10 days now - since weāre in our campervan and I managed not to bring any wine with us. What a martyr! 
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THIS!
I canāt just have one glass of wine in the evening.
I seem to be more capable of fasting for 24hrs than I am of just having one glass of wine! 
I think Iāve finally realised Iām a very obsessive person. Or Iāve become more so with age. 
I dunnoā¦ I can eat a lot of carrots! 
I do actually try to substitute carrots for crackers / nuts etc in the evening but if I am honest with myself Iāve slacked off on that lately. I can resist most sweets but I really like wine and cheese! 
I would suggest a nutritionist. Someone who can provide expert advice on diet in line with your sporting/fitness goals and demands. Unfortunately, advice on a forum like this is largely based on each individualās personal experience which may have no bearing on your specific circumstance or need. It might cost some dollars but you are more likely to get a positive result first time around.
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I listened to the one podcast. 3 thoughts:
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I think I burned a lot of calories listening to it. Whew.
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I appreciated the discussion of body compensation on energy burned. Very interesting.
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Iām more interested in long term weight reduction than weight reduction for targeted performances. Nonetheless, I found that discussion interesting on how one cannot maintain such weight levels and why.
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Me too, but I guess I assumed when listening to that pod that the same mechanisms are in play / working against me when I try to maintain lower weight. Itās SO much easier to put weight on than to lose it! I always felt this was a bit of a cop out but that podcast discussion explained to me that our bodies really do work hard to resist weight loss. If weāre travelling and not riding much I almost always put on weight because I canāt cut my food intake as much as I should when not riding lots. I eat because I like food, not cos I need it all.
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Is Macrofactor any different to My Fitness Pal?
Iāve used MFP (and it thinks I still do) but Iām too lazy to keep updating the food inputs. In years past Iāve setup my standard meals in it but I need something that can evaluate my meals without me having to weigh each bit.
Iām tempted to try Macrofactor if itās better at that part.
Yeah, very different (although I havenāt used MFP for a year or so). You still need to log, but MF can guess fom a photo of your meal if you want to do that. You can do recipes if you cook the same thing regularly and the barcode scanner is faster than MFP. The way it presents what to do and how much to consume of each of the macros is what had the biggest impact for me.
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Cool, thanks. I guess Iāll have to give it a try.
Seconding the advice to eat for fuel before and during exercise. I used Noom to drop 15 pounds a couple of years ago. Not sure why it worked, but somehow it helped me overcome the same all-or-nothing relationship to foods you describe. I recommend it; I went into it pretty determined, and it sounds like you are in that mindspace, too. Good luck for meeting your goals and building the healthy habit you seek!!
Learning to eat one bite of dessert or half a cookie helped even more than cutting booze. I also started thinking about consumption on a weekly basis rather than daily. I still have more weight to lose.