Do any of you guys use enhancers to boost training ?

VTech

thegreatdivide wrote:

You can’t buy weight loss and Pro cyclist’s legs that will make you go fast and up hills effortlessly.

Ride your bike a lot. Eat less cr4p. Ride your bike some more – and up hills as much as possible.

The weight will drop and you will get better at riding a bike.

Simple as that.

Great advice.
I was however referring to the types of boosters advertised in each and every cycle magazine in the UK like SiS etc but then people took from that that I was referring to things like EPO, Steroids and Blood transfusions :shock:
I have noticed that the biking world is a real mixed bag. There are plenty of people willing to give great advice but at the same time there are plenty of people with whom I wouldnt give a second of my time.

thegreatdivide

These aren’t ‘boosters’ these are nutritional supplements to assist in the maintaining of energy levels for people who ride long distances at a moderate to fast pace and who can’t be bothered or don’t have the time to eat ‘real’ food while on the move. There are also protein supplements for folk who want to assist muscle recovery after a hard training session.

By your own admission you are overweight and have a penchant for sugary food, so the last thing you need are sports supplements. You need to get out on your bike, ride as much as possible, improve what you put into your body and create a calorie deficit.

VTech

thegreatdivide wrote:

These aren’t ‘boosters’ these are nutritional supplements to assist in the maintaining of energy levels for people who ride long distances at a moderate to fast pace and who can’t be bothered or don’t have the time to eat ‘real’ food while on the move. There are also protein supplements for folk who want to assist muscle recovery after a hard training session.

By your own admission you are overweight and have a penchant for sugary food, so the last thing you need are sports supplements. You need to get out on your bike, ride as much as possible, improve what you put into your body and create a calorie deficit.

Ohh, I wasn't referring to you as being anything other than friendly
Yes, obviously a wording issue. But as you say, I do eat cr4p and I am quite lazy as I dont do much exercise which is why im trying to do something about it.
I am trying to eat less and do more which I guess is the way forward

ShutUpLegs

VTech wrote:

thegreatdivide wrote:

These aren’t ‘boosters’ these are nutritional supplements to assist in the maintaining of energy levels for people who ride long distances at a moderate to fast pace and who can’t be bothered or don’t have the time to eat ‘real’ food while on the move. There are also protein supplements for folk who want to assist muscle recovery after a hard training session.

By your own admission you are overweight and have a penchant for sugary food, so the last thing you need are sports supplements. You need to get out on your bike, ride as much as possible, improve what you put into your body and create a calorie deficit.

Ohh, I wasn't referring to you as being anything other than friendly
Yes, obviously a wording issue. But as you say, I do eat cr4p and I am quite lazy as I dont do much exercise which is why im trying to do something about it.
I am trying to eat less and do more which I guess is the way forward

Just how overweight are you :?:

VTech

According to the doctor I am 4st overweight, having said that, I dont think that is right. I am 5'9" and 15st5lb so I personally think around 13st7lb would be right ?

smidsy

5'9 I think you should be under 12 stone. I am 1" taller and under 12 and need to be nearly 11 stone to be average weight

jotko

VTech wrote:

According to the doctor I am 4st overweight, having said that, I dont think that is right. I am 5'9" and 15st5lb so I personally think around 13st7lb would be right ?

He is probably basing on BMI

BMI Categories:
Underweight = <18.5
Normal weight = 18.5–24.9
Overweight = 25–29.9
Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater

At 5ft9 to get a BMI of 24.9 (eg top of 'normal weight') you would need to weigh 169lbs, which is 12st1

Murr X

VTech wrote:

According to the doctor I am 4st overweight, having said that, I dont think that is right. I am 5'9" and 15st5lb so I personally think around 13st7lb would be right ?

Hi VTech,

5'9" at 15 stone 5lb is in the obese category while 13 stone 7lb would put in the mid to upper range of overweight for a male. Of course this is just going by BMI which fails to take account of lean mass but it is still very likely that you have to lose a great deal of body fat to be at an ideal weight. Not taking into account if you have a very large bone structure, a body weight of 10 stone would be in the correct range for somebody of your height assuming that you are not carrying a lot more muscle than average, which if possible if you have weight trained for quite a while.

This is not aimed at you by any means but most men think that they are have much lower body fat levels than they really do and they greatly overestimate their lean muscle mass. It is very surprising to most when they find out how much fat they carry and how much lighter they would be if they got down to 12% body fat or less with no muscle lost in the process.

Taking things another step, much of the game in road cycling is being at a low body weight - little mass whether fat or muscle as is visibly very apparent in professionals who are often much lighter than are billed to be. Many years ago I kept my weight very low for racing and it worked superbly and boosted power to weight significantly as the pounds left me. The funny part was that people who had not seen me for a while thought I looked very different with some of them being concerned that I was ill!

Anyway the bottom line is that the majority of men believe that they have much less fat than they really do and could easily lose a lot.

Murr X

VTech

Thanks for the detailed reply, I have no disillusions of the weight issue, My dad died at 50 (heart attack) and with 3 kids I dont wish to follow.
My issue is that I have all the good intensions of the world on my side but I get hungry and eat crap.
Having said that, I am really going to try, I have almost stopped the snacking and have stuck to 2 meals a day and with exercise I hope the weight will fall off.

BTW, the doc says I should be 11st4lb

mattshrops

Unfortunately there are no shortcuts, time to get serious if you really want to lose some weight.
Most of us have been or are currently going through something similar.

Cut out the rubbish food, track your calories, and work hard.(It is very very hard to lose weight just using exercise alone)

Good luck

Murr X

VTech wrote:

Thanks for the detailed reply, I have no disillusions of the weight issue, My dad died at 50 (heart attack) and with 3 kids I dont wish to follow.
My issue is that I have all the good intensions of the world on my side but I get hungry and eat crap.
Having said that, I am really going to try, I have almost stopped the snacking and have stuck to 2 meals a day and with exercise I hope the weight will fall off.

BTW, the doc says I should be 11st4lb

I think being around for your kids is a great reason to lose weight and should provide needed motivation.
Being surrounded by supportive people can be a huge help and if you have a supportive family see if they can keep you on track if things get difficult, they probably also want to see you go in the direction you want to go just as you do.

If you want to you could keep a log on this forum with regular updates on how you feel and how you are progressing, this kind of thing can inspire others too and I am not alone in thinking that probably everyone reading the last few posts of this thread are with you on this and very much want to see you succeed in reaching a weight that will benefit you and that you are happy with.

mattshrops wrote:

Unfortunately there are no shortcuts, time to get serious if you really want to lose some weight.
Most of us have been or are currently going through something similar.

Cut out the rubbish food, track your calories, and work hard.(It is very very hard to lose weight just using exercise alone)

Good luck

Very true, especially the part regarding diet being more important than exercise.

Changes have to be made and getting used to a reduced calorie intake and feeling less full can be hard but is vital to success. A key point is to always remember is that most people are so much happier to see weight being lost and especially after being at a weight that they are comfortable with, it is something that feels great when it has been achieved even if it is quite a challenge to endure. Ultimately very few people who have succeeded say that it wasn't worth it in the end.

Best of luck, and feel free to keep us updated!

Murr X

ShutUpLegs

VTech wrote:

Thanks for the detailed reply, I have no disillusions of the weight issue, My dad died at 50 (heart attack) and with 3 kids I dont wish to follow.
My issue is that I have all the good intensions of the world on my side but I get hungry and eat crap.
Having said that, I am really going to try, I have almost stopped the snacking and have stuck to 2 meals a day and with exercise I hope the weight will fall off.

BTW, the doc says I should be 11st4lb

Has your doctor also advised on the best safe form of exercise to start with? Being 4 stone overweight and not exercised in 20 years you may want to have a sensible plan to start with.

VTech

ShutUpLegs wrote:

VTech wrote:

Thanks for the detailed reply, I have no disillusions of the weight issue, My dad died at 50 (heart attack) and with 3 kids I dont wish to follow.
My issue is that I have all the good intensions of the world on my side but I get hungry and eat crap.
Having said that, I am really going to try, I have almost stopped the snacking and have stuck to 2 meals a day and with exercise I hope the weight will fall off.

BTW, the doc says I should be 11st4lb

Has your doctor also advised on the best safe form of exercise to start with? Being 4 stone overweight and not exercised in 20 years you may want to have a sensible plan to start with.

I've not been to the doctors, I just thought I should get too it.