Pogacar and what to eat (or not) to win a Tour: "We measure even the grams of sushi rice"

Greg Lemond won the '89 Tour by sneaking out to eat pizza on rest days. Famous is the episode of the Bahamontes ice cream at the top of the Col de Romeyère. Or the two chocolate bars that Indurain gobbled up after his bird in Les Arcs, in the lost Tour of 96. Food and the cyclist, that relationship so essential and at the same time so delicate.

“Tadej is a glutton,” says Joseba Elguezabal, the shadow of Pogacar. And yet, in his spartan self-containment, he will win the Tour against which he opposes, 10 seconds behind Vingegaard before the time trial on Tuesday. On the fine line of one gram above or one gram below, of sufficient energy to respond to extreme efforts, not to go overboard but not to fall short either.. “Everything is measured. If we have sushi, the cooks measure how many grams of rice, how many of salmon, how many of mango for each runner depending on the expense they have made,” explains Gorka Prieto, nutritionist for the UAE Emirates, to EL MUNDO.

In addition to technology and sports science applied to training, nutrition has become the performance revolution in recent years. The key to so many records swallowed, even faster than in the hard days of doping. The diet of cyclists is influenced by nutritionists and chefs, daily scales but also the most sophisticated apps. “We use the Training Peaks platform, where runners upload their activity and there you can see the kilojoules [unit of measurement for the amount of energy used] that they have expended during the stage and based on that the food is adjusted,” Prieto details, trained in nutrition at the University of Navarra and with a specialized master's degree in sport.

Foodtracks

It is a daily and personalized work that extends over time. The diet thinking about the Tour begins “two months” before. Already in the concentrations in height the teams travel with chefs and duties. Later, during the race, the work of Gorka and his colleagues -there is no team without a foodtrack; they travel before each stage and await them with dinner made in the hotels- it focuses on the four daily meals: breakfast, during the stage, recovery and dinner. And there each nutritionist has to 'play' also with the tastes of each runner. “We try to give them many options. They can choose, respecting the quantities.”

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For example, Pogacar at breakfast opts for “rice porridge and pancakes, bread, cake bowl…. eat everything”. “Tadej is very aware, especially this year with the issue of weight. He does everything to the letter. And if he has any questions he asks me: 'Hey, can I eat this?' Sometimes I tell him that better than that not. It maintains the same weight as in recent years”, details Prieto, who before joining the UAE in 2020 worked at Euskadi Murias.

And then, of course, there are the whims of guys so often fed up with pasta and rice: “They ask me for hamburgers, they miss fatty foods. And on the day off we put it on, with their bread, with their cheese…. They can be made 'healthy', with good meat. And there's no problem.”

cooling

More concern leads the physiological managers of each team to hydration, especially in the extremely hot stages that are repeated more and more in the Tour. Fans, ice vests, cold water tubs and even gloves to cool down. But diet can also help “lower body temperature”. “We make ice creams, granitas, they pour very cold water over their heads. The liquid they lose is highly variable, from one to three kilos. From 2%, the performance decreases. You have to make sure they are there”, details the nutritionist about the 'cooling'.

It is, therefore, “almost impossible” to see extreme collapses like those of yesteryear. On each handlebar, the cyclist has a legend reminding him where and what to eat during the stage. “If there is a bird, it is because the runner has not remembered to eat. But with all the refreshment points that are in the stages, it is practically impossible.” They have gels, bars, isotonic drinks that combine in order to a plan. And finally, caffeine. “It is an ergogenic help, especially for the final part of the race. If it is a stage where they are not going to do anything, then better not. It is calculated how many kilometers you must take it for it to take effect in the last 15-20 minutes.

And in Paris… “There I have told the cook to do what he wants, open bar in all senses”, especially if Pogacar manages to reconquer.