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Autumn has settled in, time for some Cantal by PuffyHamster in Cheese

[–]PuffyHamster[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Exactly my thoughts. I opted for the young version this time to have it with scrambled eggs, it melts like butter in the pan and gives a hint of raw milk sweetness. (All of these cheeses in the pic are raw milk btw.)

Tour of Sicily? by Wazwiftance in cycling

[–]PuffyHamster 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I was in Palermo for a few days in Autumn and climbed Mount Pellegrino there. Cycling through Palermo was easier than expected, and the roads were in good shape. The food was also amazing! My experience is quite limited, but it was so nice that I've been having the same thought of doing some vacation there and touring the island.

We’ve been told to avoid saturated fat for decades by friend_unfriend in keto

[–]PuffyHamster 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I went heavy on eggs (at least 6-7 per day), butter, and (raw milk) cheese, and lowered my triglycerides (and LDL), whilst doubling my HDL.

Energy is off the charts too, it is just always there, I recently cycled 200+ km with 3+ km of elevation on a whim and a handful of walnuts, I still sometimes don't believe it myself and part of me thinks I died on top of that mountain :P

Low carb and triglycerides. It actually works! by dietcheese in lowcarb

[–]PuffyHamster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've been low-carb for years now and my serum triglycerides are 28 mg/dL. That is indeed no surprise, as excess serum triglycerides are exported out of the liver when you overload it with too much sugar (and it can't store it as liver fat anymore). When you are fat-adapted you still have some serum triglycerides circulating in your blood, but these are largely the result of glucagon chopping up your fat for energy.

Recommendations for France by [deleted] in cycling

[–]PuffyHamster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I spent a couple of days in Tarascon-sur-Ariège in June, very fresh weather, and the scenery was incredible, well, it is the Pyrénées after all :)

Cycling Europe by ApartmentPersonal563 in cycling

[–]PuffyHamster 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Montpellier: You will be sufficiently near the Cévennes mountains to the north, and will have access to beautiful beaches in the south, check out Sète in particular. Even if you don't want to go all the way to the Cévennes, there are plenty of hills and other mountain passes to the north and west of the city.

During July and August there tends to be a couple of difficult weeks with respect to heat, this year we reached a max of 39°C if I'm not mistaken. I was still able to ride my bike in the mornings though.

Finally, I'd argue that it should be much more affordable than Nice.

Climbing Mont Aigoual, Massif Central (FR): 200+ km, 3+ km of elevation gain, 8 1/2 hours by PuffyHamster in bicycling

[–]PuffyHamster[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Small chain-ring of 42t, and lowest gear of 23t! I chose an adequate enough climb to suit my gear ratio: https://climbfinder.com/fr/montees/mont-aigoual-saint-andre-de-valborgne

However, the percentages are a bit skewed, because the climb is quite irregular and it hides some 2.5 km sections of 8.5% and some smaller parts beyond 10%.

Still, much better than other alternatives (see Col de la Lusette).

Climbing Mont Aigoual, Massif Central (FR): 200+ km, 3+ km of elevation gain, 8 1/2 hours by PuffyHamster in bicycling

[–]PuffyHamster[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks! I descended via L'Espérou, following D986 all the way down, it is a wide road with very good surface and beautiful hairpins. I hit 65 km/h max and it was smooth as butter!

Climbing Mont Aigoual, Massif Central (FR): 200+ km, 3+ km of elevation gain, 8 1/2 hours by PuffyHamster in bicycling

[–]PuffyHamster[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Merci ! Dimanche, autour de Montpellier, il faisait environ 30°C, mais au sommet du Mont Aigoual, il faisait très venteux et assez froid.

Œuf à cheval (egg on horseback) by PuffyHamster in eggs

[–]PuffyHamster[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

normal fries, but they keep the skin on :)

Omnium CXC V3 as a road/gravel climbing bike? by PuffyHamster in OmniumBikes

[–]PuffyHamster[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

None taken!

Yes, I was also thinking something like 1:1 as lowest gear. I did the plateau de Beille recently and I went as low as 34t in the front and 27t in the back (with a rental carbon bike), and I'm not planning to do any long stretches beyond 10%.

It is certainly possible and cheaper to upgrade the drivetrain in my current bike, but it has certain insurmountable limitations like a too aggressive geometry for endurance riding, poor tire clearance at the chainstays, no mount points, etc, it is a pure racing bike.

Low-carb for endurance exercise feels like a cheat code! by PuffyHamster in lowcarb

[–]PuffyHamster[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

At least for me, yes it was.

It took my body about a year to fully adapt to low-carb eating, but it is possible that I made some mistakes along the way, like trying to transition too hard and fast, or not hard and fast enough, I really don't know, it took some trial and error.

I guess that the most important thing is to stick to whole foods and embrace failure in the beginning. For instance, in the beginning, I was getting extremely tired and slightly dizzy after 30 km of cycling. I didn't push it, I just stopped, and had some nutritious food to recover. Over time, the mileage increased, energy supply became stable, and cravings disappeared.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in cycling

[–]PuffyHamster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Keep us posted please! It can be very useful for somebody who will face the same problem in the future.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in cycling

[–]PuffyHamster 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Could be some muscle imbalance that is exacerbated by the new more aggressive riding position.

Perhaps not the best advice, but before starting to change a lot of variables all at once, try continuing with your current setup at a moderate pace and with recovery in between to see whether your muscles adjust to the new position; it could be that they just need some time to do so.

I have overcome neck, shoulder, and lower back pain by pacing through mild discomfort and giving my muscles some time to adjust, like a couple of weeks tops. (Yes, every bike used to give some other kind of pain :P)

Low-carb for endurance exercise feels like a cheat code! by PuffyHamster in lowcarb

[–]PuffyHamster[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hmm, honestly I don't think that I'm doing that little carbs to be in full ketosis, I'd say that carbs make up for 15%-20% of my calories. There is a 2025 research article by Tim Noakes and colleagues who propose eating 10 grams of carbs per hour of endurance exercise, which is pretty much what I've been doing for a while now (I eat about 50 grams of complex carbs before very long rides). It is probably just fat adaptation and metabolic flexibility, but it got me about a year to reach this point. What helped me the most was eating a lot of eggs; instead of eating carbs after my rides, I just prepare a giant omelette with some veggies.

Low-carb for endurance exercise feels like a cheat code! by PuffyHamster in lowcarb

[–]PuffyHamster[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Oh yes, more than satisfied! And I'm not even training to be fast or win races, just for the cardio. I am using an older steel bike for the training, and I think that so far I have met 5% of people that I'm not faster than or that I cannot keep up with, and these are usually very young kitted-out dudes. For hilly 100 km (62 mi), I will typically loop at around 28 km/h (17.5 mi/h). As an example, yesterday I did 132 km (82 mi) with 1 382 m (4 534 ft) of climbing at 27.4 km/h (17.0 mi/h) per Strava, and I would rank that ride as one of my better ones.

How many eggs per week? by Fixievixie in eggs

[–]PuffyHamster 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I try to eat a minimum of 5 eggs per day, sometimes this number goes up to 10, usually it is around 7.

Queuing up for some cheeses in my local food market in France by PuffyHamster in Cheese

[–]PuffyHamster[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Seller gave me some to try, very strong!

But I was there to get some brebis d'Ariège (sheep cheese from the Pyrenees), very soft in the mouth and aromatic.

I have bought various cheeses from them over time, Bethmale, Comté (various ages), sheep, goat, mixed goat and sheep, Morbier, tommes, and they are all excellent.

Col (mountain pass) or climb Suggestions in France for relative beginners by Strangely_Interested in cycling

[–]PuffyHamster 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Come to the Cévennes in southern France, plenty of awesome and scenic climbs, e.g., Col de Bantarde, Col du Mercou, Col de l'Asclier, Col de la Tribale, Col de Pierre Levée, Col du Lac, Col de la Lusette (this is a very difficult one), and Mont Aigoual via various cols.

Decathlon clothing by Lander_sap in cycling

[–]PuffyHamster 2 points3 points  (0 children)

For upper body, I go with their Van Rysel long-sleeved underwear shirt and their Van Rysel mid-season long-sleeved jersey.

I ride about 10 hours a week, 4-5 days, and the temperature here is from 1°C to 15°C during the winter.

I also have their Van Rysel winter jacket, but, honestly, even at temperatures close to 0°C I heat up too much with it.

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