Preparing yourself for a ride to Nandi top.

This guide is for beginners and first timers who aspire to ride to the top of Nandi and back. The formula is applicable for a 100kms ride starting from Esteem mall, Hebbal and back.

Undertaking these steps will help you have a better chance of successfully completing this ride. Understand that the ride to the base of Nandi hills is done in the wee hours when the sun is still dull and that you will be doing the climb and the return when the sun is at its peak in the day.

This means that when you need the energy the most is when you would have less of it in you. You can tackle this in two ways, pre ride and during the ride.

Pre Ride

If this is your first attempt, then carrying some extra fuel in your body will help. You can do that by undertaking carbo loading. Carbo loading when done right loows you to endure a harsh physical activity for a longer time without depleting the fuel supply in you or with minimal refuelling.

The trick with carbo loading is holding on to the nutrients that you ingest and not just ingesting additional food. But since you are probably doing this for the first time and do not have enough time to train your digestive system to this process, I recommend this. Eat either one extra meal between lunch and dinner, like a second lunch of the usual portion that you consume or eat 10-20% extra per meal that you normally eat. Do this for about 2-3 days before the ride day and you will a little bloated, but that’s fine. Marathoners are known to put on kilos of weight before their race through carbo loading.

Some carbs are

Rice,
Pasta,
Sweet Potato,
Bread (wheat or flour) and
Noodles

It is wise to add some fibrous fruits during the carbo loading days to your diet, this way the body gets rid of the processed food faster from the system retaining only the good stuff.

Similar principle should be applied to hydration. You do not wait till you get thirsty, you drink water so you do not get thirsty. – That is the principle. The same 2-3 days that you are carbo loading can be used to amp up your water consumption. On the day of the ride, you should wake up with a full bladder ready to pee as soon as you wake up. The rest of your hydration needs can be met be frequent sips from your bottle during the ride again paying attention to the principle of hydration mentioned above.

During the ride

It is recommended to consume dry fruits, banana or the Full Moon Lab ride special, the peanut chikki. This should help you stay on course without having to completely deplete your supply. The rest of the food stops are timed on the route depending on fuel requirements that will occur in different stages of the ride. You can also use electrolyte supplements like electral, plain salt in the water, products like fast & up (personal recommendation) or steadfast nutrition.

Make sure you are not deviating heavily from your usual meal portion size during carbo loading unless your system is used to such regular fluctuations. Stick to the basics and just have one extra meal instead of the evening snacks. The same quantity that you ate for lunch or a mean between the quantity of your dinner and lunch. This is a simpler formula to crack rather than adding 10-20% of your meal per meal. Drink water and get up on that saddle, rest is gonna be all fun.

*Disclaimer: I am not a certified nutritionist, the methods mentioned here are from my experience and experience of others that have shown working results. Please try any of these methods at your own risk.*