Dropped weight, now what?

MissedTheBreak

I could tell my weight was holding me back having really struggled on hills (my mates are skinny feckers) so I’ve set out to drop a bit. I have gone from 81kg to 71kg over the last 6 months and am probably now at a maintainable weight for the winter with a bit to lose in the Spring.

The question is now, how do I go about getting some power back. I haven’t improved any Strava times, even in hills so clearly lost power (or lacking energy) due to the weight loss. Is it just a case of structured training and hitting the right calories to power it or focus on maintaining the weight for a bit first?

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Intervals

timothyw

I wouldn't read too much into strava times in December. Wind, Cold, heavier clothes - lots of factors that make you slower.

But yes, intervals, that or simply racing your skinny mates.

singleton

I'm a similar weight.
I'm doing some high gear, low cadence stuff and intervals.

jgsi

Blimey , makes my 'weight drop' from circa 84 to 79 look puny.
Ive got a few pounds to drop before end of February , but I am NOT pushing the training at all, until I'm feeling 100% and keen again.
Having said that, Ive been able to spin in it out on the road and get thru some Sufferfests ok.

MissedTheBreak

Thanks, looks like intervals is the consensus. Will try to mix up my commute a bit with some overgeared, high cadence and sprints as this is where I get best opportunity to do anything. I do have a turbo but it’s an old mag trainer and not very satisfying/easy to use.

Will need to try and maintain the weight over Christmas and then pick up the training, think I need to replenish some energy stores with a bit of maintenance for a bit.

shirley_basso

That is a lot of weight to lose in a short space of time.

MissedTheBreak

Shirley Basso wrote:

That is a lot of weight to lose in a short space of time.

Yeah, probably why I lack energy on the bike at the moment. That’s why I’m thinking I’ll just try to maintain the weight for a bit before launching into heavier training so I can adapt to this weight.

I should add that 81kg was post-holiday/World Cup and was probably a couple of kilos heavier than my normal weight so it’s really about 8kg loss over 6 months, didn’t think that was too drastic!?

zeee

When I was sprinting I was told by my coach that half a stone a year is possible without losing too much power/stamina etc. So a stone in 6 months would seem quite a lot. I'm 74kg at the moment and slowly bringing that down to 70kg by the end of next summer.

Too late to worry about it now. Just keep training and building back up. Like anything you do your body will adjust. Just don't expect to drop weight and instantly be faster. As above intervals and over geared climbs will help massively. I also read that if your commute is short you can try doing a few fasted ones per week. This apparently gives you the affect of a much longer ride.

timothyw

10kg in six months doesn't sound that much to me - to be quite honest, it's going to depend hugely on your build, bodyfat (before and after) and what you were doing to maintain fitness while losing the weight.

Assuming you are relatively new to all this I'm sure it's fine, just make sure any further weight loss you attempt in the spring is done slowly - no point killing your form for the summer months.

OnTheRopes

I would structure my training a little. A bit early yet for intervals imo, I would wait until Mid February before starting that.
Maintain endurance perhaps building up with Tempo rides and start working on strength, either do some weights in the gym or start with some steady hill intervals, so for example pick a route with 3 or 4 steady climbs (not to steep) that you can climb whilst seated in a bigger gear than normal and at a cadence of maybe 70rpm. Or do hill repeats. If you don't have hills then do it into a head wind.
This will increase strength and prepare you for the harder muscular endurance work and Anaerobic Capacity intervals to come later.

cooldad

Or eat lots of pies.

MissedTheBreak

Mmm, pies. I have to admit I’ve become somewhat lazier over the festive period with all the temptation everywhere, I think I’ll have put a few pounds back on this week. You’ve got to have fun though too!

I think I’ll concentrate on trying to maintain my weight over the next few weeks, maybe introducing a few sprints or overgeared efforts and then start in earnest in Feb as suggested!

Ben6899

OP. You might put weight back on and I see that* as your body finding its "natural weight".

*I'm no expert.

I was overweight for a short period, after being in a pretty shit mental place. I got back into regular exercise and got down to 68kg which for me is LEAN.

In reality, this wasn't sustainable unless I lived like a monk. A miserable one.

I still exercise plenty (lots? sometimes too much?), but I like a pint and enjoy good food. I'm now around 72kg, give or take a kg, and much less miserable! And I feel as strong as ever on the bike.

I wont lie though, when I was 68kg I banged out a 38min 10km run. At 72kg, that's fairytale stuff.

So settle in, find where you're comfortable and go with it.

sloppyschleckonds

MissedTheBreak wrote:

The question is now, how do I go about getting some power back. I haven’t improved any Strava times, even in hills so clearly lost power (or lacking energy) due to the weight loss.

This would be concerning to me. How did the weight loss happen?

poynedexter

MissedTheBreak wrote:

I could tell my weight was holding me back having really struggled on hills (my mates are skinny feckers) so I’ve set out to drop a bit. I have gone from 81kg to 71kg over the last 6 months and am probably now at a maintainable weight for the winter with a bit to lose in the Spring.

The question is now, how do I go about getting some power back. I haven’t improved any Strava times, even in hills so clearly lost power (or lacking energy) due to the weight loss. Is it just a case of structured training and hitting the right calories to power it or focus on maintaining the weight for a bit first?

a few fundamentals: your weight loss will be a combination of Fat, gut material, water, glycogen, and some muscle fibre, depending on how your diet is. unless you have been training at a sufficient level to offset the effects of muscle loss and fueling to prevent lower glycogen levels, its highly likely that your power is down a bit. the answer is IMHO;

1. eat enough calories to fuel your activities (don't undereat)
2. eat enough protein.
3. eat enough carbs before and after training.
4. train
5. be patient. (your power will return with good diet and some training)
6. be mindful of how much you eat.
7. don't eat like a monk or shrek.

MissedTheBreak

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

MissedTheBreak wrote:

The question is now, how do I go about getting some power back. I haven’t improved any Strava times, even in hills so clearly lost power (or lacking energy) due to the weight loss.

This would be concerning to me. How did the weight loss happen?

I cut out beer, bread and cake, went to the gym, cycled to work more and had a net 1800 calories a day, with the odd cheat day.

MissedTheBreak

Achieved a new PR on my nemesis hill today (Wizard Hill) so must be doing something right. Maybe it’s the mince pies I allowed myself over Christmas!?

hostman

I'm in the process of dropping weight, intermittent cycling and eating / drinking too much over the last 12 months has taken its toll.

Your weight loss in six months doesn't seem extreme, I'm aiming to drop 2 stone in 3 months, targeted training every other day, eating more calories on training days with an increased protein intake. Non training days low calories. All training done fasted in the morning.

ric/rstsport

It depends on a lot of things. However, what are your goals?

Losing weight is a difficult tightrope to walk. Eat too little and you'll struggle to fuel your workouts. eat too much and you put on weight. It's a fine line.

It could be that it'll take your body some time to normalise to it's new weight, and to the relative lack of food. It takes approximately ~12 months for your body to stabilise at your new body weight and be use to it.

however, importantly, while you're losing weight you have to eat less than you need (because calories in < calories out). Once you're at your desired weight you can eat more than you were eating for the weight loss. if you're still losing weight then it can be difficult to fuel your harder efforts (and, indeed it may be counter productive to do so, not least because you may be in a semi glycogen depleted state and hard efforts will burn your glycogen at a very fast rate which may mess up subsequent training sessions).

ric