Noticable changes to your body because of commuting

DonDaddyD

I've been commuting to work by bike on a 5day week basi for 6 - 7 months. I've gone from shy track pants wearing enthusiast to a full-war tights wearing die hard.

Recently I've had a few people telling me I've lost weight.

I've noticed:

- I'm using the smallest or 2 smallest notch on my belt again and my shirt still won't stay tucked into my trousers.

- All my trousers are baggier.

- My shoulders, arms and thighs are also bigger.

- My butt is also more pert and tighter.... :oops:

- My beer belly is getting smaller.

What changes to your body have you noticed since you started commuting?

wgwarburton

I eat more.

prawny

The lump in the back of my trousers where my wallet lives is much smaller :?

artaxerxes

More grey hairs due to numerous close shaves with taxis/white vans

lost_in_thought

Well, when I stopped riding for 7 weeks I lost a reasonable amount from both legs, more from the injured one.

Knee-high boots now fit comfortably over my calves. :shock:

EDIT: I should clarify that I also stopped going to the gym 3x a week, stopped running and stopped pilates, so lack of cycling may not be entirely to blame... Also, my waist got larger.

roger_merriman

i'm commuting far less than i used to but am thiner, now. mostly but cutting out the exess food as i no longer can burn food by just walking across the room...

well commuting makes my knees more vocal.....

always_tyred

My back hurts more. (This could also be due to age.)

woodyonthebeach

Eat more. Food bill has gone up

Go to the pub more after riding (MTB)

Commuting - don't get so angry in the office any more, OK only when I get some daft questions

Spend less money on the GF at the moment

Feel generally better

DonDaddyD

lost_in_thought wrote:

Well, when I stopped riding for 7 weeks I lost a reasonable amount from both legs, more from the injured one.

Knee-high boots now fit comfortably over my calves. :shock:

EDIT: I should clarify that I also stopped going to the gym 3x a week, stopped running and stopped pilates, so lack of cycling may not be entirely to blame... Also, my waist got larger.

You ride every day, go to the gym 3x a week, run and do pilates. Are you an Amazon?

What's that? I think Don_Don's heart just skipped a beat... mine just skipped 2.... :oops:

downfader

Trousers got tight around the thighs. :oops:

I felt much fitter and happier, no longer got breathless climbing the stairs (I have cycled my whole life but did have a slack period in my mid-20s where I put on a fair amount of weight)

No longer get indegestion but my appetite did increase...

Waist got more muscular, as did my arms. I was no longer as sensitive to small knocks and bangs to myself at work, say if I accidentally walked into something (this has changed a bit since getting knocked off annoyingly :? )

My back stopped hurting. Christ I could go on with this :? :oops:

biondino

Putting on weight hand over fist now that I'm not riding so much. Hopefully this will change as my ribs heal and spring arrives!

More scars from prangs. More muscular legs.

Anonymous

More scars on my knee/hip region.

DonDaddyD

What the hell happened to your ribs?

lost_in_thought

DonDaddyD wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

Well, when I stopped riding for 7 weeks I lost a reasonable amount from both legs, more from the injured one.

Knee-high boots now fit comfortably over my calves. :shock:

EDIT: I should clarify that I also stopped going to the gym 3x a week, stopped running and stopped pilates, so lack of cycling may not be entirely to blame... Also, my waist got larger.

You ride every day, go to the gym 3x a week, run and do pilates. Are you an Amazon?

I misread that as 'are you on Amazon'.... well I may be browsing for books, but what's it got to do with you?

And yeah, I did, before I injured myself! Now it's gym twice a week for a lighter workout, running forbidden until September, still cycling and still doing pilates, although carefully!

DonDaddyD

lost_in_thought wrote:

I misread that as 'are you on Amazon'.... well I may be browsing for books, but what's it got to do with you?

And yeah, I did, before I injured myself! Now it's gym twice a week for a lighter workout, running forbidden until September, still cycling and still doing pilates, although carefully!

Actually what book are you buying... I'm all curious now? :oops:

Also, what are you trying to become or achieve with all that exercise LiT? Or is that a personal question you don't care to share?

Citizen Smith

@DDD - personally, I don't think that's a lot of exercise for someone who wants to fit and active. I aim to cycle x3 a week (normally achieve x4), gym x4 a week & play football on Sunday's.

For the record I am trying to shift some weight but getting nowhere fast at the moment (hopefully this is down to putting on muscle).

Also, noted you are using cling film in another thread. I realise these are a little bit more expensive than that but I'm trying these out to see if they make any difference: http://www.sweatzsportz.com/

Only used them twice this week so far but boy did I really feel like I had been to the gym after using these thingy mijigs* :shock:

*Technical term.

lost_in_thought

Well, trying to drop the excess fat and get good and fit!

I like being fit, feeling healthy, I like exercising, and I could stand to lose a few lb of fat!

I don't find it a lot of exercise myself, but each to their own.

Bassjunkieuk

Well where to start really........

My legs certainly seem to be beefing up and I'm sure my calves are getting bigger now I've gone clipless and try to employ a better pedaling technique!

My wife delights in reminding me that my 6 pack isn't as evident anymore but hasn't complained about anything else in general, I think my upper body is bulking out a bit which is odd as I don't really need to use that for cycling, so maybe that's down to lifting the kids into their bunk beds off an evening :-)

Mentally I'm a lot calmer when I have cycled, I get rather snappy and short tempered if I don't get out for my regular dose of cycling, which is pretty much all the exercise I can squeeze in financially and time wise :-)

linsen

My state of mind depends on regular exercise

I have a waist again (possibly for the first time)

I have lost a stubborn half stone which has plagued me my entire adult life

I have rather too well-defined muscles in my legs to be ladylike. Thankfully I have never wanted to look ladylike......

don_don

DonDaddyD wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

Well, when I stopped riding for 7 weeks I lost a reasonable amount from both legs, more from the injured one.

Knee-high boots now fit comfortably over my calves. :shock:

EDIT: I should clarify that I also stopped going to the gym 3x a week, stopped running and stopped pilates, so lack of cycling may not be entirely to blame... Also, my waist got larger.

You ride every day, go to the gym 3x a week, run and do pilates. Are you an Amazon?

What's that? I think Don_Don's heart just skipped a beat... mine just skipped 2.... :oops:

I'm afraid I already had a heart-attack after the knee-high boots bit.......

On a different note, no-one has yet congratulated you on getting fitter and healthier and losing some weight! Good work

Bassjunkieuk

linsen wrote:

My state of mind depends on regular exercise

I have a waist again (possibly for the first time)

I have lost a stubborn half stone which has plagued me my entire adult life

I have rather too well-defined muscles in my legs to be ladylike. Thankfully I have never wanted to look ladylike......

Unless you have the muscular definition of a body builder I wouldn't worry! I'd much prefer a women with some nicely defined legs to one of those walking skeletons you find prancing around on the cat walks ;-)

tedlarue

2 weeks in and I'm hungrier and more tired!

Aguila

TedLaRue wrote:

2 weeks in and I'm hungrier and more tired!

Keep going dude! You'll soon be much fitter and have more energy. Also you gotta love the increased eating aspect, what a great excuse.

My mantra: "you've gotta eat fat to burn fat"

shoulder_of_orion

I can tell you what happened to my body after I stopped cycling for a couple of years - I put on weight. Quite a bit of weight, about 6-7kg I reckon nearly all of it around my middle and neck (which is where it goes on me).

Cycled to work today for the first time in a couple of years. Ye gads I was hungry!

il_principe

Bassjunkieuk wrote:

Well where to start really........

My legs certainly seem to be beefing up and I'm sure my calves are getting bigger now I've gone clipless and try to employ a better pedaling technique!

I think my upper body is bulking out a bit which is odd as I don't really need to use that for cycling, so maybe that's down to lifting the kids into their bunk beds off an evening :-)

Mentally I'm a lot calmer when I have cycled, I get rather snappy and short tempered if I don't get out for my regular dose of cycling, which is pretty much all the exercise I can squeeze in financially and time wise :-)

+1,2,3.

Legs are defo bigger and the last 2 years of rather more serious cycling have seen muscle grow where I'm sure it was never visible before (sort of around the knees).

Don't be surprised about the upper body Bass. Mine's bulked out and it's because if cycling. I put it down to climbing and honking. Core strength is important of course.

Of course there is commuting and then there's training. I don't regard my commute as a part of training really as it's:

A too short
B too unpredictable (lights, traffic etc) to be of use

So whilst I'm sure commuting helps, it's the other miles on the bike that make the biggest difference.

rhext

Hungry, tired. Thinner, but unable to go down a waist size because then my legs won't fit. Down to the last notch on a belt, which I was wearing at least three inches wider. Able to run up stairs without feeling out of breath. Hungry.

And I got wolf-whistled by a couple of young ladies the other day. Now that's not happened for a long time (well, ever, if I'm really honest).

Oh, and did I mention hungry?

DonDaddyD

lost_in_thought wrote:

Well, trying to drop the excess fat and get good and fit!

I like being fit, feeling healthy, I like exercising, and I could stand to lose a few lb of fat!

I thought you looked fine as you are to be honest. :oops:

Linsen wrote:

My state of mind depends on regular exercise

I have a waist again (possibly for the first time)

I have lost a stubborn half stone which has plagued me my entire adult life

I have rather too well-defined muscles in my legs to be ladylike. Thankfully I have never wanted to look ladylike......

Same to you as well. Fine as you are. :oops:

The ladylike comment is very fitting with your 'gender and cycling' comment.

Don't mind a defined leg myself tbh, BoB must be a lucky man....

greg66_tri_v2.0

Ahhh, I've always had legs of a Colossus. Just one of those things...

Weight comes off, weight goes on, weight comes off... and so it goes on. The key things that makes a difference nowadays are (a) the intensity of weekday riding, and (b) whether i can be @rsed to go out at the w/end for > 3 hours, *and* keep the intensity up for the vast bulk of the ride. If I don't push it, then riding doesn't really do much for me.

Clever Pun

In nearly 2 years working and commuting at my current location I've lost weight and gain muscle mass and definition (upper body through the gym, legs from cycling)

I cycle 5 days a week and gym 4 times, can get tired as the week gets on but feel great most of the time

Christophe3967

I have seen little visible change in the 4 years I've been commuting by bike, but my fitness levels have improved, and I get to work faster. My heart rate range (resting to max) has widened, and I'm more aware of the effect things like booze and coffee can have. As an example, last Sunday morning after a pretty heavy session ( 3 or 4 pints of Staroprammen and making a start on that third bottle of red) my heart rate simply refused to go below 64. But I was able to complete a 24 mile ride in 61 minutes, which I wouldn't have been anywhere near 4 years ago. So cycling allows me to continue getting away with stuff I know I should have stopped doing long ago.

<touches wood>

the_hundredth_idiot

Shoulder of Orion wrote:

Cycled to work today for the first time in a couple of years. Ye gads I was hungry!

+1 to that. Problem is that I'm part of quite a large team and there are always cakes on a morning because it's someone's birthday or someone has come back from holiday (lucky someone). I've only been in this job for a year and already have a reputation ... I was barred from the Krispy Kremes this morning until everyone else had had one. :oops:

But I'm so hungry after my commute - and a banana just doesn't quite hit the spot.

Without the sweet tooth and lack of will power, I'd lose some weight.