Any fit & healthy men that used to be large!! Help Please

top_bhoy

47p2 wrote:

My weight this morning came in at a massive 60.7Kgs (9 stone 8lbs) a loss of 11.7Kgs (26lbs). I now cycle as often as I can and although my speed is a lot slower than it was 30 years ago I can pace myself better and cycle distances I never knew were achievable.

Strict diet is the only way to loose weight, exercise will help speed things up a little, but not a lot. Don't return from your cycle and sit in front of the telly stuffing your face, that only leads to more weight gain.

Well done, the Castelli gear has found itself a new model who properly fits into it . A few questions on your post I'd like to ask.

1) What would you suggest was your average weekly cycling distance/time and was any other exercise involved?

2) With your food, what do you mean by strict? Did you calorie count or simply eat what you wanted of the 'good food'?

Cheers

47p2

Top_Bhoy wrote:

Well done, the Castelli gear has found itself a new model who properly fits into it . A few questions on your post I'd like to ask.

1) What would you suggest was your average weekly cycling distance/time and was any other exercise involved?

2) With your food, what do you mean by strict? Did you calorie count or simply eat what you wanted of the 'good food'?

Cheers

Must contact Castelli and ask them if they will employ me Thanks for the compliment though

At the moment I'm cycling around 100 miles per week, might be a bit more this week as I've been out a bit more than usual. According to Strava I've done 15 cycles, 19 hours and 274 miles this month so far. No other excercise.

By strict I mean I won't have any junk food e.g. fast foods, ready meals, convenience foods, butter, cheese, biscuits, sweets, crisps etc. I stick strictly to healthy foods as stated above and it's not easy when having hunger pangs for a nice slice of toasted cheese or a bar of chocolate but if I give in it would be the slippery slope and I've suffered too much to get to where I am to blow it for some comfort food.

I really feel for anyone who has a lot of weight to loose, dieting is such a difficult thing to do, both physically and mentally and before I started my diet I never realised just how difficult it could be. It would be very easy to have a 'wee reward' on a Saturday night, but that's the wrong way to go about it and a full weeks tough dieting can easily be wiped out in one evening, hence the reason I am strict with myself.


Must dash, cuppa tea (no sugar and semi-skimmed milk) and a nice juicy apple waiting for me

michaelatkinson

Yeah I have found it hard in the past. Got 2.5 stone to lose... Dunno what to do when hunger strikes!!!

napoleond

michaelatkinson wrote:

Yeah I have found it hard in the past. Got 2.5 stone to lose... Dunno what to do when hunger strikes!!!

Drink a pint of water

okgo

Ride more would help if you can and agree regarding diet stuff.

I was around 100kg at one point, lowest I've been was this year at 77.5 and I hover around 79 most of the time, I didn't really change anything I just went from doing noting to 10 hours riding a week it fell off me!

ju5t1n

A good rule of thumb is don’t eat or drink anything that’s advertised on TV

overlord2

Buy a big bag of mixed nuts, brazil, haselnut, pecan, walnut etc etc. Whenever you get the pang for the biscuit tin grab a handful instead. Works for me.

mozzer2906

About 12 months ago a combination of living on the road/hotels and a horrific diet had led me to the point where at 5'8 I weighed around 13st 6lbs. 12 months on I now weigh a steady 11st 3lbs and am comfortably maintaining at that level. Doing a fair bit of weight training means I might actually put a couple of lbs on over the winter months.

The keys I found were:

1) Cut beer out as much as possible. I had lapsed to a stage where I was regularly having 2/3 pints a night, over a week or two this really adds up. I still have beers on a Friday/Saturday (which is part of the reason why I will never reach a "light" weight.) but am teetotal outside of this.

2) Put a Spreadsheet together and track 1) Everything you eat in terms of calories and 2) Your weight on an ongoing basis. I found both to be invaluable and ended up putting together a fairly nifty spreadsheet showing me graphical trends over time. This gives you a much better insight over a long period.

3) As above Diet is about 80% of the battle. As far as possible cut out processed foods and sugars. Don't worry overly about "sat fats" just eat simple meals. Chicken with Veg, and omelettes are easy to prepare and great for you. I've also avoided starchy carbs (white bread/rice/pasta). I still have one cheat day a week on a Saturday as for me I need that to stay human. If you are a serial snacker source some un salted nuts/fruits/berries and keep them by your desk. The vending machine is the great enemy of the office environment.

4) Exercise is important and here I found that routine was absolutely key. If you can fix a daily slot in which you exercise (6:30 Gym Mon-Wed)/Ride 19:00 Tues-Thursday, Ride 08:30 Sat or Sun. it will quickly become hard coded into your routine. Also as you lose weight the exercise will become more enjoyable.

5) Fad diets work to give you a quick boost, but long time lifestyle changes are the only sure fire method. I lost a stone pretty quickly using 5:2, but have found that it plateaus out after a while at which point, sustainable lifestyle changes are key.

6) Willpower is the single deciding factor, Dieting is hard so finding someone to talk to about your results is often key. I'm well aware of my own weaknesses and just cut out a lot of my favourite crap food from my weekly shop to rid myself of temptation.

Hope this helps and good luck!

littledove44

Yes, we all know you lose weight if you eat less and exercise more. Duh!

The problem is how to do it. You have already solved the exercise problem by getting a bike. Try swimming a bit as well.

As for the food, give the 5:2 regime a go. its a dieting system for people with almost no willpower. worked for me and a lot of others. It gives a steady, sustainable weight loss.

izza

NapoleonD wrote:

michaelatkinson wrote:

Yeah I have found it hard in the past. Got 2.5 stone to lose... Dunno what to do when hunger strikes!!!

Drink a pint of water

And if still hungry add some Psyllium to a pint of water. Not pleasant but very filling and zero calories. Trained my body not to raid the fridge or left overs from kids meals that way.

Camcycle1974

michaelatkinson wrote:

what about the amount of exercise?

You can lose weight with no cardio whatsoever. Personally I like riding my bike so I do some anyway. Is commuting by bike not an option, this can seriously up your mileage?

Google "intermittant fasting" for effective diet advice. I used Martin Berkans Lean Gains site to lose some excess fat weight I had. Got down to less than 10% body fat without too much effort.

Camcycle1974

NapoleonD wrote:

I disagree with the not eating between meals. A small healthy snack keeps your metabolism going and is easier mentally too.

Nap, the thermic effect of eating is what the little and often lifestyle is based on. The thermic effect of eating something means you burn about 10% of what you eat so say you eat 6x500 cal meals a day = 3000 calories, approx 300 of which will be burnt by an increase in metabolism. The thing is the thermic effect will be exactly the same if you ate 3x1000 cal meals. More than one way to skin a cat.

The issue I had with little and often was eating too many calories with the snacks on top of regular meals. I am sure for some people (disciplined ones) it works fine but I found intermittant fasting to be a far simpler way of managing my weight. Cycling throws a spanner in the works as it tends to make you hungrier than if you were not doing cardio based exercise.

The research debunking the superiority of little and often eating is on the Lean Gains website (bodybuilding emphasis but the weight loss info theirin applies).

Not saying L&O doesn't work, just that there are other ways of acheiving consistent weight loss.

top_bhoy

Camcycle1974 wrote:

Cycling throws a spanner in the works as it tends to make you hungrier than if you were not doing cardio based exercise.

To overcome the hunger pangs, surely you'd eat additional food to compensate for the extra calories lost during the cycling.

napoleond

Camcycle1974 wrote:

NapoleonD wrote:

I disagree with the not eating between meals. A small healthy snack keeps your metabolism going and is easier mentally too.

Nap, the thermic effect of eating is what the little and often lifestyle is based on. The thermic effect of eating something means you burn about 10% of what you eat so say you eat 6x500 cal meals a day = 3000 calories, approx 300 of which will be burnt by an increase in metabolism. The thing is the thermic effect will be exactly the same if you ate 3x1000 cal meals. More than one way to skin a cat.

The issue I had with little and often was eating too many calories with the snacks on top of regular meals. I am sure for some people (disciplined ones) it works fine but I found intermittant fasting to be a far simpler way of managing my weight. Cycling throws a spanner in the works as it tends to make you hungrier than if you were not doing cardio based exercise.

The research debunking the superiority of little and often eating is on the Lean Gains website (bodybuilding emphasis but the weight loss info theirin applies).

Not saying L&O doesn't work, just that there are other ways of acheiving consistent weight loss.

Who said anything about Little and Often? I eat lots and often. Just the right foods.
Breakfast (huge usually porridge and an omelette comprising of 5 whites and 2 yolks maybe with some spinach added and a piece of fruit or a smoothie)
Mid morning snack (on a weights day this will be something like tuna and broccoli and a piece of fruit, otherwise fruit and nuts)
Lunch
Afternoon snack (fruit/nuts or both depending in whether I'm training that day)
Dinner
Then there's immediate post training food too.

I don't count calories. At all.

I effectively do intermittent fasting by going out for a long ride or run 'on empty' and missing breakfast and lunch.

Camcycle1974

I like your style! Lots and often is a very good diet as long as your physical activity levels are high enough to burn all those calories which in your case it obviously is. Most people practising this are sedentary and eat the wrong foods. Too much good food can still make you fat but it's harder due to satiety when compared to munching on junk.

I don't count cals either, just up my activity and/or decrease my intake if fat starts to creep on. IF is a useful tool for weight loss and much easier than counting cals and obbsessing about food all the time.

Buckie2k5

It is definatly down to willpower. I started cycling and trying to lose weight in october 2012 at 6'2 and 19stone. Iam now stuck at 16stone and really struggling to lose more and its down to my lack of willpower reaching for the biscuit jar.

I smoked for near 17 years and stopped just coming up 2 years ago. I can hand on heart say stopping smoking was easier than stopping the snacks.

ck101

I was 16 stone in March 2012, 181 cm.
I joined a cycling club, did 500k pm in winter and between 750k and 1000k the rest. Porridge for breakfast, Wrap / Bagel for lunch and more or less whatever I wanted for dinner (within reason). I also cut out eating after 7.30 pm. Increase fruit and water intake. Cut the beer down to 2 pints x 2 nights a week. Simple really.
I'm now 12.5 stone on a good day.

tonymurfin

Great advice on this thread. I reached nearly 18 stone at 5 feet 11 and 46 years of age. 18 months later I'm nudging down to 13 stone and will be happy to lose another 10 pounds. I tried getting on the bike initially , but really made progress when I started swimming, which helped my core strength, cardio fitness and initial weight loss -- which made the bike and, later, running more practical and enjoyable. A few points to add to the advice, sorry for any repetition:
1. Don't be in a hurry. You gained weight slowly, it's OK to lose it slowly.
2. Don't expect it to be linear. As your fitness increases your nutritional demands will change. Accept you might stall at a weight for a while as you adjust.
3. Set yourself realistic targets, not just related to weight loss. Go further, faster, enter an event, whatever it takes to motivate you.
4. Find out what works for you nutritionally. I cut out the bread and pasta, cut down the rice and potatoes, changed the snacks and stopped skipping meals. Keep it simple!
5. Don't expect people to notice straight away! I lost 4 stone before anyone commented.
6. Enjoy feeling more alert, energised and active.
7. Exercise makes you feel good. Substitute it for the alcohol or junk food. Go for a ride or run instead of to the pub.
8. Budget for a new wardrobe.
9. Get ready for the cracks about your mid-life crisis.
10. Have fun!