losing weight commuting

gb155

Always Tyred wrote:

Even if you are managing, your GP might be of the view that this is better than being 20 stone overweight, so why rock the boat. It doesn't mean that this is the best way.

What do I know. Just might be useful for you to hear some slightly alarmed responses.

Its a fair comment, I dont think I could change what im doing for fear of "breaking" something, Silly as that seems.

Jen J

gb155 wrote:

Always Tyred wrote:

Even if you are managing, your GP might be of the view that this is better than being 20 stone overweight, so why rock the boat. It doesn't mean that this is the best way.

What do I know. Just might be useful for you to hear some slightly alarmed responses.

Its a fair comment, I dont think I could change what im doing for fear of "breaking" something, Silly as that seems.

Sorry, please don't feel you're being picked on, but this really is concerning.

At some point you're going to have to increase it - you're presumably not intending to live on that amount forever? And I think the longer you've been on such a low cal diet, the harder it will be to increase.

Not suggesting you'll end up anorexic, but the food 'fear' may be there - you've already mentioned fear of "breaking" something.

How about gradually increasing the amount of calories slowly - say by 50/day each week or so? And now you've got some fitness from cycling, how about doing more exercise? Maybe to offset the extra calories at first if you're concerned.

I'm battling/recovering (depending on the day) from an eating disorder, so I understand the fear of overeating, but you can increase your food intake without it having negative effects.

gb155

Jen J wrote:

gb155 wrote:

Always Tyred wrote:

Even if you are managing, your GP might be of the view that this is better than being 20 stone overweight, so why rock the boat. It doesn't mean that this is the best way.

What do I know. Just might be useful for you to hear some slightly alarmed responses.

Its a fair comment, I dont think I could change what im doing for fear of "breaking" something, Silly as that seems.

Sorry, please don't feel you're being picked on, but this really is concerning.

At some point you're going to have to increase it - you're presumably not intending to live on that amount forever? And I think the longer you've been on such a low cal diet, the harder it will be to increase.

Not suggesting you'll end up anorexic, but the food 'fear' may be there - you've already mentioned fear of "breaking" something.

How about gradually increasing the amount of calories slowly - say by 50/day each week or so? And now you've got some fitness from cycling, how about doing more exercise? Maybe to offset the extra calories at first if you're concerned.

I'm battling/recovering (depending on the day) from an eating disorder, so I understand the fear of overeating, but you can increase your food intake without it having negative effects.

Jen

Thanks for your comments,Not sure admitting this on a public forum is such a good idea but I have battled earing disorders since I was a young child, I have gone from being VERY under weight to being VERY VERY VERY overweight, Its something I dont seem to be able to take to control of, This feels like the first real time I have been in control, I know what my body needs/wants to loose that lbs and I know what I can do to put an lbs on, I know that I must deal with the underlying condition if I hope to lead a normal life, Its just in order to get my confidence back I MUST loose this weight, Then I can tackle my other problems.

Gaz

drewp2008

Go Faster - Simple.

Get some spds too. Go twice as fast and use 1 1/2 times as mch energy. Probably a scientifically proven fact.


If you could tell me how to gain weight, then I'd be very appreciative. living off bacon, sausage, cheese, ham, beer, chinese takeaways and i still waste away.

UnworthyPapaLazaru

Intersting stuff. How do you all know so accurately how many calories you are consuming a day? I would like to count up what I eat in an average day.

Jen J

gb155 wrote:

Jen

Thanks for your comments,Not sure admitting this on a public forum is such a good idea but I have battled earing disorders since I was a young child, I have gone from being VERY under weight to being VERY VERY VERY overweight, Its something I dont seem to be able to take to control of, This feels like the first real time I have been in control, I know what my body needs/wants to loose that lbs and I know what I can do to put an lbs on, I know that I must deal with the underlying condition if I hope to lead a normal life, Its just in order to get my confidence back I MUST loose this weight, Then I can tackle my other problems.

Gaz

I hate to say it, but it sounds like the eating has control of you. You know better than most that intake is very low. Have you had much treatment in the past?

You've lost 12 stone - that success alone should give you confidence, it's a fantastic acheivement. Feel free to PM me if you want.

Anyway, this is a bike forum, so....what bike you got?

Jen J

UnworthyPapaLazaru wrote:

Intersting stuff. How do you all know so accurately how many calories you are consuming a day? I would like to count up what I eat in an average day.

Years of eating disorder

gb155

Jen J wrote:

UnworthyPapaLazaru wrote:

Intersting stuff. How do you all know so accurately how many calories you are consuming a day? I would like to count up what I eat in an average day.

Years of eating disorder

DITTO

Im on a GIANT YUKON 08

Hope you dont mind if I take up the offer a pm Jen

Gaz

aidansweeney

Gaz, your weight loss is obviously happening, and I think I'd be the same as you when it comes to messing with your regime. Even though the number of cals per day is low, if it works and you feel healthy, AND you're getting it monitored by a doctor regularly, then it's probably okay. I'd see a dietician as well, though, from time-to-time. You seem to to be evidence that the experts aren't always 100% right about things like calorie intake.

To get back to the OP, aerobic exercise like cycling doesn't burn as many cals as specific target exercises, such as weightlifting. Research has been done (hasn't it always... The Abs Diet, Zinczenko/Spiker, Rodale 2004, pp44-46) into lifters and runners/bikers and the increases in metabolism; the increased metabolic effect of of aerobics lasted 30-60 minutes, while the effects of weight training lasted up to 48 hours - that's 48 hours during which the body burns extra fat. Fat-burning while cycling is also more efficient if you eat first - ie have breakfast before your commute - and make sure what you eat includes carbs to burn before the exercise starts burning stores of protein. I find it very hard to eat breakfast so early in the morning, but an energy bar does the trick, and I found it improved my short (6 miles each way) commute a lot.

nwallace

WheezyMcChubby wrote:

Fat Ar5e on sofa for oh a decade or so !

Weight prior to starting back on the bike - 84.8kg

Cycle 158 miles over 4 weeks - 98 miles last week(56 commute 42 civilian)

Weight yesterday - 85.7kg

Any thoughts??

You built muscle up before starting to drop the fat.
Or You replaced the same volume of fat with Muscle, Muscle weights 3x fat.

Forget the nubmers look at where the fat was, or which hole in your belt you are using.

Eat breakfast after commuting

Cost of breakfast at home = Occasionaly fix of parents computer, mum jsut buys the Weetabix.
Cost of breakfast at home = 56p becasue it is always a fatty flapjack.

gb155

aidansweeney wrote:

Gaz, your weight loss is obviously happening, and I think I'd be the same as you when it comes to messing with your regime. Even though the number of cals per day is low, if it works and you feel healthy, AND you're getting it monitored by a doctor regularly, then it's probably okay. I'd see a dietician as well, though, from time-to-time. You seem to to be evidence that the experts aren't always 100% right about things like calorie intake.

To get back to the OP, aerobic exercise like cycling doesn't burn as many cals as specific target exercises, such as weightlifting. Research has been done (hasn't it always... The Abs Diet, Zinczenko/Spiker, Rodale 2004, pp44-46) into lifters and runners/bikers and the increases in metabolism; the increased metabolic effect of of aerobics lasted 30-60 minutes, while the effects of weight training lasted up to 48 hours - that's 48 hours during which the body burns extra fat. Fat-burning while cycling is also more efficient if you eat first - ie have breakfast before your commute - and make sure what you eat includes carbs to burn before the exercise starts burning stores of protein. I find it very hard to eat breakfast so early in the morning, but an energy bar does the trick, and I found it improved my short (6 miles each way) commute a lot.

Thanks for your comments, I know long term this will probs be an issue but im hoping before then I can sort it out, Once I have dropped to my ideal weight

Gaz

BoydJ

biondino wrote:

Balls out riding won't help you lose weight. Riding moderately-paced for a long time will.

In my experience of marathon running, cycling and triathlon, long slow distance is the key to losing weight.

High intensity exercise relies on your glycogen stores. It takes half an hour or so for your fat-burning to kick in properly, but, as has been pointed out, there can be significant afterburn which will be enhanced by a consistent exercise regime over a period of time. On longer outings, you have to eat the carbs to keep you going, because nobody can keep going on fat reserves alone.

If you are starting from scratch, then you need to give it at least a couple of months for the fitness to build up, and the gain in weight from the muscle growth to be outstripped by loss of fat.

The final point about high-intensity is that it is more likely to lead to injury, illness and a loss of desire to keep going. By all means do a hard session or two every week, but make sure your body gets a chance to recover.

sc999cs

Gaz,

When is your target date for the other 8st you want to lose? You look so much healthier in your after picture so what you're doing is working. However have you considered that you're also building muscle so your weight loss is probably greater than you think?! Maybe you should think less about weight and more about percentage body fat?

A suggestion, and please excuse me if it is out of order, but have you considered giving yourself 25% longer time to lose the weight and uping your calories by (say) 10%. This will help your acclimatise to eating more normally in the future, and help give some peace of mind to friends on this forum, who are concerned about your diet.

sc999cs

TRADESIZE wrote:

Hi,

Does anyone know of a good book or good link they could point me in the driection of, of how to optimise weight lose through cycling/commuting.

I am doing a 20 mile round trip, and have lost at least a stone, but want to work out what steps I can take to do this most effectively.

Try to search on the forums but cant find anything

thanks

If you really want to drop weight, try a few audax rides. a couple of 400km rides should see the lbs drop off.

ansbaradigeidfran

Gaz

While I have no real comprehension of weight loss regimes and diets (I hover on severely underweight on the BMI measure of things, but I've always been this shape), I do want to offer you some hearty congratulations on getting so far, and encouragement on the rest of your mission.

While your sig mentions that you've lost 12 stone as of this month, you don't say when you started. If I may ask, how long have you been on this warpath?

gb155

ansbaradigeidfran wrote:

Gaz

While I have no real comprehension of weight loss regimes and diets (I hover on severely underweight on the BMI measure of things, but I've always been this shape), I do want to offer you some hearty congratulations on getting so far, and encouragement on the rest of your mission.

While your sig mentions that you've lost 12 stone as of this month, you don't say when you started. If I may ask, how long have you been on this warpath?

Good point, I started Nov last year, and got my bike April this year

Gaz

TRADESIZE

flippn hell, i post a question this afternoon, look later in the day and the thread is lit up light a christmas tree. thanks for the info so far peeps,some intersting stuff there

gb155

sc999cs wrote:

Gaz,

When is your target date for the other 8st you want to lose? You look so much healthier in your after picture so what you're doing is working. However have you considered that you're also building muscle so your weight loss is probably greater than you think?! Maybe you should think less about weight and more about percentage body fat?

A suggestion, and please excuse me if it is out of order, but have you considered giving yourself 25% longer time to lose the weight and uping your calories by (say) 10%. This will help your acclimatise to eating more normally in the future, and help give some peace of mind to friends on this forum, who are concerned about your diet.

I have given myself 2 years in total, im in the 11 month, So I have 13 Months left for the other 8 stone, I know the next 8 stone will be ten times harder than the 12 I have already lost, You do make some good points and its something I think I will have to consider based on the reactions here.

Thanks

Gaz

tailwindhome

Gaz

Just wanted to add my congrats on managing to lose so much weight. Having read some of your other posts on other threads I have admired your willpower in getting off the sofa and on to the bike. To start at only being able to manage 1 mile on a bike but keeping at it shows real determination and a degree of bravery. I believe a chapeau is well in order,

As far as your calorie intake goes the restricted intake to start was probably appropriate as a radical solution. As you were presumably 30stone+ losing a lb or 2 a week was not going to be enough (to be blunt you probably crapped more than that)

I note you are seeing a GP regularly and I am sure they are delighted to be treating someone you is taking steps towards a healthy life. Possibly you should be referred to a dietician/ nutritionist who can help you in the next phase, which may require a different approach in terms of calorie intake and exercise


Congrats again and remember to update your sig regulary

kitch@mmm

Hi Gaz. Hope you don't mind me joining in your post.

I started cycling again last year mainly as a means of getting to work but i needed to loose weight and more importantly (for me) i could feel my body getting very un-healthy.

I couldn't climb the stairs without getting out of breath! From the beginning i only wieghed myself once maybe twice a month, as the lack of weight loss can be very negative (from past experience)There will come a point at which the weight will not drop as quick.

BUT, you will be healthier. The blood pressure will level out, the diabetes risk etc will reduce.

You will know when this happens (if not already!)

Listen to your body and enjoy the exercise. For the record, i started at 16st 4lbs in Aug last year, i am now 12st 13lbs but i only weigh once a month. I have not lost any significant weight for last 4 months but that does not worry me.

Enjoy the cycling.... Be happy....

gb155

WheezyMcChubby wrote:

Gaz

Just wanted to add my congrats on managing to lose so much weight. Having read some of your other posts on other threads I have admired your willpower in getting off the sofa and on to the bike. To start at only being able to manage 1 mile on a bike but keeping at it shows real determination and a degree of bravery. I believe a chapeau is well in order,

As far as your calorie intake goes the restricted intake to start was probably appropriate as a radical solution. As you were presumably 30stone+ losing a lb or 2 a week was not going to be enough (to be blunt you probably crapped more than that)

I note you are seeing a GP regularly and I am sure they are delighted to be treating someone you is taking steps towards a healthy life. Possibly you should be referred to a dietician/ nutritionist who can help you in the next phase, which may require a different approach in terms of calorie intake and exercise


Congrats again and remember to update your sig regulary

Thanks so much for your very kind words.

I actually started by just walking round the block, it was HELL, Then I moved onto walking 2 blocks, It was such a small smount that it felt like being a baby again, Learning everything all over again, Its been a rollercoaster, I got the bike and was AMAZED at being able to do a whole ONE mile lol, Then it was just day by leay getting that litte further each time till I decided to commute via train, then half train and half not, Now im fully cycling both ways, Its amazing, Im getting my life back I really am.

I was almost 40 stone, Shit scary when I actually see the words on a screen...........but yeah I sure would crap a pound or 2 lol

Its getting to the stage where the approach im taking now will have to change, for that I will leave it to what ever medical expert wants me next lol, My ultimate goal is to do the Manchester to Blackpool cycle (maybe not next year but the year after) and I know on 1000 cals on a hot July afternoon that there would be NO WAY I would make it to the end, So yeah it will have to change, I still have a long way to go yet though.

Thanks again for your kind words

Gaz

gb155

kitch@mmm wrote:

Hi Gaz. Hope you don't mind me joining in your post.

I started cycling again last year mainly as a means of getting to work but i needed to loose weight and more importantly (for me) i could feel my body getting very un-healthy.

I couldn't climb the stairs without getting out of breath! From the beginning i only wieghed myself once maybe twice a month, as the lack of weight loss can be very negative (from past experience)There will come a point at which the weight will not drop as quick.

BUT, you will be healthier. The blood pressure will level out, the diabetes risk etc will reduce.

You will know when this happens (if not already!)

Listen to your body and enjoy the exercise. For the record, i started at 16st 4lbs in Aug last year, i am now 12st 13lbs but i only weigh once a month. I have not lost any significant weight for last 4 months but that does not worry me.

Enjoy the cycling.... Be happy....

I know the feeling about not being able to walk stairs, I couldnt walk to the kitchen

I have also in my short time of loosing weight had a couple of stalls, its sooooo frustrating but its just a case of head down and forget about it till its starts to drop again.

Thanks for sharing your story here too.

Gaz

biondino

Yeah, if you are doing a long ride you're going to have to put the weight loss on hold for a day or two! You need the calories, and the right kind of calories, the right salts and minerals otherwise you simply won't be able to finish.

gb155

biondino wrote:

Yeah, if you are doing a long ride you're going to have to put the weight loss on hold for a day or two! You need the calories, and the right kind of calories, the right salts and minerals otherwise you simply won't be able to finish.

Yup, Thats why I have given myself extra time I will need to have shifted the bulk of what I have left before I even try it, Who knows I might make July 09 but I dont think so somehow.

sc999cs

gb155 wrote:

biondino wrote:

Yeah, if you are doing a long ride you're going to have to put the weight loss on hold for a day or two! You need the calories, and the right kind of calories, the right salts and minerals otherwise you simply won't be able to finish.

Yup, Thats why I have given myself extra time I will need to have shifted the bulk of what I have left before I even try it, Who knows I might make July 09 but I dont think so somehow.

Well I think it's fair to say you have everyone's support here and best wishes.

gb155

sc999cs wrote:

gb155 wrote:

biondino wrote:

Yeah, if you are doing a long ride you're going to have to put the weight loss on hold for a day or two! You need the calories, and the right kind of calories, the right salts and minerals otherwise you simply won't be able to finish.

Yup, Thats why I have given myself extra time I will need to have shifted the bulk of what I have left before I even try it, Who knows I might make July 09 but I dont think so somehow.

Well I think it's fair to say you have everyone's support here and best wishes.

And for that I am thankful, I really a,

Gaz

simon_e

sc999cs wrote:

Well I think it's fair to say you have everyone's support here and best wishes.

Yep. I'm certainly impressed by your determination and your success to date.

gb155

Simon E wrote:

sc999cs wrote:

Well I think it's fair to say you have everyone's support here and best wishes.

Yep. I'm certainly impressed by your determination and your success to date.

Thank you.

Tonights ride home HURT, The wind was really bad (slowed me down by 4mph DOWNHILL) and the rain was driving, I pushed myself so hard and did the 7 miles in 35 mins, It took me about 10 mins to recover when I got home though, Shower time and then it will be getting stuff sorted for the morning ride :twisted:

peanut

Well done Gaz for getting off yor a%se and doing it .

There is a lot of rubbish bandied about suggesting the normal calorie intake we should have . None of the people advocating such a high intake have done a single minutes worth of scientific research into what is a` health'y daily calorific intake .

Let me give an example of how years and years of well meaning people copying what they read have supported a myth about what is the recommended water intake

The standard recommended daily water intake is generally accepted to be 2litres daily .
Most of us have assumed it means drinking 2 litres of water a day but it doesn't.

The origins of that recommendation is many decades old and was actually intended to include water derived from the food you eat as well as the fluids you drink like tea and coffee and fruit drinks etc. No one has yet been able to find the original source of this recommendation but it is probably from a Government paper published during WWll

Over time it got mis -quoted as bits got left out for the sake of simplicity. Consequently we now all assume that we should all drink 2litres of water a day which is not only complete and utter tosh it is actually often not healthy.

If we drink too much fluid we run the risk of flushing out all our essential salts, vitimin B and essential minerals from our system. We can actually die from drinking too much fluid and many people have.

If you are eating normally you are probably taking in at least 1 litre of fluid in your daily food alone. Add tea, coffee and fruitjuices, fizzy drinks beer and wine etc and you are almost certainly taking in enough fluidswithout drinking lots of additional water.

It is the same with daily recommended calorie intakes. 2500 for a man is probably far higher than is actually necessary. Our bodies are designed and have evolved to live on essentially what is a stoneage diet. I'm sure Fred Flintstone didn't consume vast amounts of high calorie carbs and sugars every day




:roll:

chromehoof

wow, gaz, amazing story and amazing achievement. Best of luck with it.

I think some of the advice on here has been excellent. I did a bit of research into this topic a couple of years ago. I wasn't heavy. Rather I had played a different sport and was coming to the end of my career in that. My worry was that once I stopped I'd balloon out and lose all fitness. Cycling was my saviour.

In terms of actual weight-loss I don't think I have anything to add to what has already been mentioned. A couple of things though. Firstly, as others have eluded to, setting such an aggressive timeframe may not be the best thing in the world. Its no harm to have one in place to use as a guideline, and as a yardstick by which to measure your progress. But, rather than get from a point A where you're badly overweight, to point B, where you hit your desired weight, without a thought for what happens after, why not set things out as a longer term plan, whereby your daily routine will facilitate weight control for as long as you practice it. There will be times when you won't be able to get out on the bike, beit through illness, being away, or whatever. Its important that there is no psychological toll during these times. You have to be happy to allow your weight to fluctuate slightly during such times, knowing that when you're back in working order, that you'll be back to your routine, and the weight will come off again.

Also, weight alone is not a good measurement. People have already mentioned the discrepency between equal volumes of fat and muscle.

And I'd strongly discourage starvation (to those who mentioned reducing their calorie intake to below the RDA). It is unsustainable and will turn out counterproductive in the long run. Your body needs to be digesting food regularly to keep it ticking over and to keep the digestion process efficient. If you starve yourself, the next time you eat your body may not digest as quickly as it should. It may store more fat than it should with the result being that you will not get maximum benefit from the food you eat. Plus you'll feel all backed up, which is never pleasant.

Eating small and eating often is better than starvation. Also, identify foods with a low GI (that GI stuff is fascinating). And, foods that make you feel full yet that aren't that substantial in their own right (for me, soup and apples fit that bill).

Just be mindful that in the long term to sustain your weight loss, a daily routine that involves exercise, and a controlled calorie intake, is the best thing. If you slip now and again, so be it. You'll get back on top again soon.

Best of luck with your continued efforts.