Losing Weight - Generic title I know

Retroman10

Hi Guys,

Basically I've started riding for general purposes of getting fit although its quite addictive I'm finding.

I'm out on the bike a couple of times during the week and then a 20mile ride out in the peak district at the weekend.

Basically though I need to shift all this weight I'm carrying. After years of inactivity I'm 16 stone and compare to my cycle partner I'm dragging an extra 3-4 stone up some of climbs and its killing me.

Any idea how soon I could start to see weight falling off as I've been riding for 3 weeks now and see no change at all. Is there any particular thing that you would recommend that aids in fat burn?

Any info would be greatly appreciated.

dmch2

weight loss will happen if you use more calories than you eat. 20 miles will see you using many hundreds but less than 1000 kcals. If you eat a mars bar after the ride you'll pretty much undo all the good work.

So try to resist eating more than you used to.

Also you'll soon find that you can do 50 miles then you'll be getting through a few thousand kcals

As a rough guide a pound of body fat has about 3500kcals in it. So that's 5 20mile rides to loose a pound (all other things being equal)

danowat

Eat less, move more 8) , it really is that simple.

There is no "trick" to it, just eat well, train well, and drink plenty of water.

The only "aid" I can think of is a food diary, do a full and frank one for a couple of weeks, most people are quite suprised at just how much they do eat.

saltski

use a heart rate monitor while exercising, this gives you a good guide as to how many calories you're burning, just saying a ride of x miles is so many calories doesn;t work because everyones metabolism is different.

I use an app on iPod which tracks the calories in what I eat, it also tells me how many I should have to lose so much weight per week (2lb/1kg per week is the best rate), this way I can monitor what goes in and get a good idea of what's burned in the gym.

Make sensible choices for food, low fat but filling food is good, fresh fruit and vegetables, avoid processed foods, I've lost 1.5stone in 5 months following this advice and am happy, the climbs aren;t quite so hard anymore.

Lycra Man

What I am going to tell you may depress you if you are looking for a quick result.

I started a 15 mile commute in May last year. I rode 3-4 days a week, and it's a good hour workout. Plus I ride out 25-40 miles at the weekend (now slightly further) but all last year I did not see my weight reduce.

However, I was turning fat into muscle, and getting faster and fitter.

After Christmas, I did start to see weight go down, and I have now lost just over a stone.

So my advice is keep at it, and measure your fitness to see progress in the short term. If you keep exercising you will lose weight, but you'll get fit too. Win-win!

Lycra Man

CiB

Don't overeat. Most wouldn't consider wolfing down a pile of food & rehydration after an hour or so in the gym, but somehow 20+ miles on the bike necessitates a whole stack of food & energy bars. In = Out usually. An hour on the bike won't lose much off the weight htough.

Remember too as fat dissolves with effort your muscles build; muscles weigh more than fat...

danowat

You can't turn fat into muscle, fat is fat, muscle is muscle.

Be carefull with low fat foods, most are pumped up with sugar to compensate

HRM's calorie calculation is theoretical, so take any values from them with a pinch of salt at best.

There is no "quick fix", whatever you change, you need to continue doing that forever, so don't do, or change anything you aren't willing to stick to indefinately, it must be a lifestyle change, NOT a "diet".

I've tried all the "tricks", including diet medication, and there is NO replacement for sensible eating and excercise, in total, I've lost about 10 stone, so I sorta know what works and what doesn't 8)

acebobby

You already know there is no quick fix answer to this, otherwise the billion dollar weight loss industry would collapse!
I have struggled with my weight most of my adult life, have been from 12 stone to almost 18 stone and everything in between. I could write a book on my experiences!
Think how long it took the weight to go on, then realise the journey you face in loosing it! I am currently losing a little more than the healthy recomended of 2 lb a week, I am closer to 3 lb a week but to achieve this I have virtually turned my entire lifestyle on its head. There is a list of positive and negative things you can do to improve your lifestyle and what I have realised is simply the more of these things you do the more effective your results will be, everyone is different but I will give you a couple of examples from myself.
The idea is to introduce positive's and get rid of the negative's
In the last 2 months a few of the positive's I have introduced are
Bought a bike and am aiming to get a minimum of 7 hrs per week on it.
Started RPM (spinning) classes and other fitness classes at my local sports centre, min 5 per week.
A few of the negative's I have got rid of are
buying anything from the machines at work.
eating fatty junk food, I now cook for myself.
the big one, the colossal amount of calories we stick in our bodies, the booze had to stop, I havent quit drinking all together but I have all but stopped, a side bonus to this is feeling great the next morning (Bike run)!
This is a few examples and if your honest with yourself you will put a list together and see results immediately, remember its a journey and not going to happen in a couple months, think of it more as a lifestyle change and as a side bonus to losing weight your cycling fitness will improve!
DO NOT fall into the trap of starving yourself, if your exercising your body needs a decent amount of calories to function effectively!

Bobby

CiB

danowat wrote:

You can't turn fat into muscle, fat is fat, muscle is muscle.

I don't think anybody's claimed that, but clearly as you expend energy by exercising hard enough, fat will start to reduce and muscles will grow. As muscles weigh more than fat, so the weight loss is mitigated by the weight gain from muscle growth.

rodgers73

Yes, quit the booze. Makes a big difference.

Anonymous

There is a quick fix to weight loss. Worked for me, however not only did I lose weight but my training/racing improved dramatically as well...

The cost? 95 quid.

danowat

Lycra Man wrote:

However, I was turning fat into muscle, and getting faster and fitter.

8)

kingrollo

Commutte to work.

I had tried for years - traing x amounts of time per week - etc.

Comutting to work is the only thing that has worked for me.

acebobby

danowat wrote:

You can't turn fat into muscle, fat is fat, muscle is muscle.

People use this term loosely all the time, if one was to structure their training to loose 2lbs of fat per week and gain 1 lb of lean muscle per week in 14 weeks they would have lost 1 stone and look alot buffer and muscular hence turning the fat into muscle! Obviously its not scientificly possible but the image suggests that he's turned his fat into muscle as he's lost 2 stone of fat and gained 1 stone of muscle completely changing the bodies image!
I think its just a term that gets used alot!

Bobby

pneumatic

rodgers73 wrote:

Yes, quit the booze. Makes a big difference.

Sadly, this is true.

I have stopped drinking alcohol for a month or six weeks on several occasions over the past few years. Each time I lost half a stone without making any other changes.

Also, your body is cunning: if you starve it, it gets more efficient at storing fat. Losing weight is a long game.

My advice would be, first and foremost, to enjoy the cycling; have fun, push yourself for the thrill of it. If it is only ever about losing weight, it'll soon stop being fun.

jordan_217

A good few of years ago I shed 3 stone in about 6 months. I had a wake up call when I was called 'tubs' at work. Smoking 20+ ciggies a day and sinking 6-10 pints most nights I realised things had to change.

I started running six days a week (I hadn't discovered bikes yet) and was following a good eating guide from the British Heart Foundation.

It basically provided the calorific and fat content of most common foods and then all I had to do was make sure I was eating no more than 2000 Kcal per day. The theory being that the average male requires 2500 Kcal per day and by consuming 500 Kcal less than this you will start to lose weight. I was new to exercise and the 'healthy' thing so this seemed easy to follow and monitor. As others have said here, it's just simple calorie counting and maths.

I tried not to consume anything that provided little in the way of nutrients, eg crisps, cakes, deep fried food etc. A jacket spud for lunch helped to keep me fuelled for my daily run session. Weight loss was dramatic at first, 5-6 lbs a week but then plateaued to 1-2 lbs. Which apparently is an ideal amount to lose per week.


I tried to train for at least 25 mins a day, don't know why it was just a goal/target I set myself. Contrary to popular belief there's no magic toggle switch in your body that says after 20 mins start burning fat. My main target was to lose 2lbs per week (I knew this was a realistic and achievable)

Don't worry about having a treat once a week, in fact make a curry/fish & chips etc a reward for doing well. Then a weight loss regime won't seem like a prison sentence. Making small changes to your diet also helps - swap crisps for pretzels/mixed nuts, regular coke for diet etc.

Looking back I was very strict and regimented in my approach (ok obsessed) but this was working so I stuck to it.

I found it really tough for a long time but once I noticed a change in myself it started to make sense. Once I got to my target weight I then realised I'd become quite hooked on running so my focus switched from weight loss to improving my run times/distances.

The following year I bought my first road bike........

Good luck Retroman, persevere and stick to it.

spinndrift

I've gone from 22 stone to 18 stone and have another 5 stone to go before I do Lands End to John O'Groats in June next year.

My secret is basically less in more out and the following:

100+ miles a week on the bike.
3 sessions of weight training per week in the gym.
2 cross training sessions per week in the gym (running, rowing, x-trainer).
One rest day per week.

Food wise it's:

Porridge or Dorset cereal and yoghurt for breakfast, for lunch I'll have cous cous with some oily fish but if I have a big ride that night I'll have pasta or rice with some parmasan and a couple of boiled eggs. Evening meal will be white meat and two veg or fish and two veg.

Once a month I'll have a big full English and will normally have a one Chinese and one Indian a month and if I feel like a drink I'll have one.

Out on the bike what I take depends on the distance I'm riding - 2 hours and under I'll take two bottles with orange cordial in them unless it's really hot and then I'll take an electrolyte drink. For rides over 2 hours it's electrolyte drink and there is usually a coffee and cake stop.

As for stuffing yourself after a ride I normally have a glass of milk on getting home and my meal as soon as I can after getting in.

Once I'd cracked it in my head things have gone from strength to strength (apart from keeling over one night in the gym) and I feel great and am really toning up - I still get dropped on the climbs but catch up on the flat and end up on the front on the desents.

Velonutter

Miles, more miles and more miles=weight loss.

To be specific, ride during the colder weather at no higher to Zone 2, try to do at least 2-3 25-30 mile rides in the week and at least one long ride of at least 50-60 miles each weekend.

This is only once you have built up to that distance.

Try and do the 30 mile rides early morning before work with no food inside, but take some emergency food just in case, the weight will drop off if you eat a balanced sensible diet.

HTH

louthepoo

my short answer is its a lifestyle change. I eat low gi food (wholemeal bread, oats) steam veg, stop drinking fizzy drinks, crisps, choc etc. But i still have beer and an indian once a week and i enjoy it more for being good all week. I commute 3 days a week (48 miles a week) as well as a 20 mile weekend run minimum. I've lost over a stone and put on a bit of muscle in 6 weeks. I feel & look better. It depends how much and quick you want to lose weight. I wanted to lose it quickly.

top_bhoy

Diet, diet, diet. Get that right and the rest takes care of itself. Make sure food portions are sensible, so weigh your food. Even healthy and nutritious food will add weight when excess is taken.

Complement the diet change with exercise.....it can be anything from a 30 minute walk to a bike ride. Just become active regularly. If you want to increase the effort, do it sensibly. Even a quick health check-up before starting out may be benficial.

This is not new and I am sure this is all known to you....one can hardly read a mag or watch a TV programme now without this information being detailed. Good luck with it.

Discowheels

As depressing as it is, the booze is the main thing. I started commuting to work and then i extended my route to around 20 miles a day, stop the snacking and eating more fruit and veg

Result?? going from 17stone to under 13 in around 10 months

bice

It probably sounds daft, but I always assumed I didn't put any weight on because I cycled at least 60 miles a week commuting and could therefore eat and drink exactly what I liked.

So I was surprised to discover recently that my weight had gone above 12 stone. (i had noticed a slightly fuller figure and tighter trousers.)

I am now on a diet cutting out biscuits and booze etc. The weight is quickly falling off and I am below 12 stone again.

All this was prompted because I went to the doctor a month ago who weighed me at 77 kilos whereas three years ago in winter I had been 72 kilos. I probably thought I was just a few pounds overweight.

I think I will get down to 72 and try to stay there.

Buckled_Rims

I quit beer and chocolates and lost a fair bit without pushing up the mileage or cutting down proper meals. Strangely, I had 4 cans of Stella at the weekend and didn't really enjoy them, probably why I felt crap on Sunday mornings ride.

Losing 2lbs a week is extremely hard. Maybe too hard as your body can sometimes react. Losing weight is a long term process.

Also, remember, that weighting yourself straight after a ride is bad because of the sweat lose and you'll soon drink the weight back on. Best to weight yourself in the morning after going to the toilet as this is more a true steady weight.

As mentioned it takes burning 3500 calories to lose 1lb of fat. A hard bike ride might burn approx 600 to 700 calories per hour. Do the maths

knull9

Calorie counter applets are great for controlling you weight - I have one on my i-pod touch, it's free and it's great to keep your daily intake under the magic threshold. They are also available on the internet or on any smartphone.

Try FitnessPal, or any of the others, they are all very similar.

In fact, of all the expensive gizzmos a bike racer can use, such as powermeters, HR monitors, etc.. I say a calorie counter and some good scales do far more for your performance than all this stuff put together.

I bet all the pro cyclists count exactly how many calories they put in and how much goes out to keep their weight exactly where they need it.

KingCustard

+1 for giving up the booze. I was 12st 5 at christmas, & due to various issues I stopped drinking (not altogether, but I now probably only have 2 pints a week on average, if that - & I run a pub!). I now weigh just over 11st, & haven't really changed anything else, so it just goes to show how many calories we fire down our chops in booze. Of course, the main problem with booze is that although alcohol doesn't contain any calories in itself, the body makes metabolizing the alcohol a priority before any other fat burning occurs.

I've now started to try & watch what I eat a bit more as I aim to get down below 11st, & am new to the whole cycling game so am hoping that that will help somewhat. I do appear to have discovered a new addiction to Mars bars though!

One thing I would say I've discovered from trying to combine weight loss with increased exercise - don't under-eat either. Sounds counter-intuitive, but I had a couple of instances where after a couple of days of eating "healthy" meals & going out on the bike, I found that in a few days I was unable to stay awake due to not having put in enough energy. You need to put enough calories in to your system to allow you to have the energy to burn calories off.

Oh, & I hate to say this on a cycling forum - but going running helps with the weight loss too. I burned around 330 calories in 25 minutes of running the other night, compared to 400 calories in 40 mins of cycling. Mix up your training a bit, running will help improve your cardio fitness anyway. Just a shame it's not as much fun as cycling!

Buckled_Rims

KingCustard wrote:

...<snip>
Oh, & I hate to say this on a cycling forum - but going running helps with the weight loss too. I burned around 330 calories in 25 minutes of running the other night, compared to 400 calories in 40 mins of cycling. Mix up your training a bit, running will help improve your cardio fitness anyway. Just a shame it's not as much fun as cycling!

You can! It's called cyclocross

mattward1979

As mentioned by another poster earlier, quick changes arent really the norm...

I had been doing 10 mile commutes with occasional longer rides for well over a year, and with no change in Diet, my weight stayed the same, but my body shape changed. Most noticeably my legs (obviously!). But other things happened like shirts fitting better across the middle, jeans feeling a touch looser..

Now I am seeing a change in my weight. In the last 3 weeks Ive dropped nearly half a stone with no change to diet or distance, so im figuring ive sculpted enough muscle, and my body is now binning some of the blubber!

Just remember that weight loss isnt the only factor in your cycling performance or your quest for fitness. You will find yourself flying up hills that nearly killed you even if the scales tell you nothing has changed!

Keep at it and enjoy it!!

d87heaven

KingCustard wrote:

+1 for giving up the booze. ......... Of course, the main problem with booze is that although alcohol doesn't contain any calories in itself, the body makes metabolizing the alcohol a priority before any other fat burning occurs.

I agree on giving up the booze, or at least cutting back.
Im sure beer does have calories. From memory ts 100 ~ 150 cal per bottle I think. (I may be wrong but there abouts).
The simple formula for weight loss is calories in have to be less than calories used. Any exercise will benefit weight loss as long as you don't scoff like a good 'un to replace the energy you have used. And just because you are thin it doesn't mean you are healthy. Fat can accumulate around organs. I found the best advice was to make a food diary. I thought I was eating healthy till I totted up what I was eating for a week.

brit66

Quality training is the key.

Rather than spend hours at low intensity on the bike or exercise bike, spend 20 mins a day on a rowing machine at a high intensity. In other words get the heart rate up and you'll burn the callories.

Even though I'll say it, eating sensibly goes without saying.

teticio

i recommend you check out "racing weight" by matthew fitzgerald (contributor to triathlete magazine and author of many tri / running books). the difference with this book is that (a) it is based on reasonably sound scientific evidence and (b) it is aimed at active people, especially athletes. to give you an idea, one of the things that appears to be important is, not only to not eat more calories than you burn but to MATCH YOUR CALORIE INTAKE WITH CALORIFIC NEEDS DURING THE DAY. that is to say, don't undereat before a workout because your body will turn on your appetite and you will tend to overeat. best to eat many small meals during the day, concentrate on the quality of what you eat (he gives a simple and practical method for doing this) and to play around with the macronutrient balance (proteins, fats, carbs) until you find what works for you. it helps to understand a bit of the science behind and to dispell some of the myths.

KingCustard

d87heaven wrote:

Im sure beer does have calories. From memory ts 100 ~ 150 cal per bottle I think. (I may be wrong but there abouts).

Sorry, bit misleading from me - there are calories in beer, wine, etc - just not from the actual alcohol itself, which is poisonous to the liver hence why the body deals with removing that before fat.