Training & Nutrition - Weight Loss Club

Hey, ive got a ? for anyone that cares to respond.

My names Harrison, 13, living in Florida. I usually do 5-6 mile rides a day, sometimes more if i feel like it, although with school/Band/church/clubs, its extreemly hard to find a good 2-3 hours a day to ride, so i usually end up doing my rides from 8-10 at night. (Although i've heard this can mess up ones metabolism, which im looking into). I weigh about 197, (about 20 pounds overweight for someone my age and height- 6 feet). I am trying to lose weight, but it really doesnt seem to be working, i usually eat about 1500 calories a day. Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

Went for a long ride today (50 miles) and when I got back, I hopped on the scale just for fun, and two more pounds gone!! For a grand total of 35 pounds lost since February! I totally understand about the baggy clothes dillema. Most of my jeans have gotten so loose that I call them my "pajama jeans" as they are as comfortable as wearing pajamas to work.
"Shopping" for new/old clothes in your own closet has become a fun thing lately too. Digging out all of the old clothes that I begrudgingly packed away for when I lost weight (which I thought would be never at one point) is one of my favorite things to do.

I call all my old jeans my clown pants...thats how they look...

Well I think it's time I'm 20 years old...been heavy my whole life, I'm gonna get motivated and take action finally and start doing something. I've started eating at home more, which is 24324524x healthier than fast food...I'm sure some of you can understand the whole eating on the go thing. I am in college, and work full-time so the idea of going home to make food just falls in the back of my mind. I had my car hit back in august, her insurance denied the claim so I've had alot of free time on my hands. I've started walking as much as I can just around the office even when I get a chance. My friend bought a bike and it just perked me up to the days when i was younger and loved riding. Hopefully I can lose some weight. I plan on getting a 2004 Kona Hoss Dee-Lux. Right now I weigh in at 451lbs...down 14lbs from about a month ago so I'm quite happy so far...hopefully some more exercise will help me lose weight Any recommendations on bike parts? everyone screamed this was a good bike for heavy riders, but Just thought I'd ask

No tips on bike for big riders, but definitly your idea to cook at home is a great idea! I was tired of being heavy myself and recently did the same thing back in August (strted the day after my 27th b-day) and have since lost almost 20 pounds by riding and eating proper. You'll love it! Clothes I used to love but stopped fitting now fit again. Bicylcing of course had played a humungous part in it. Just learn to cook with lots of good spices, it makes the otherwise boring taste much more exciting.

Just wanted to share my joy.

I started bicycling a lot this past February (2004) and was 230 lbs. when I first started. Last summer (2003) I got up to 240 lbs.

I first dropped 10 lbs. by running.

Anyway, after some serious bicycling throughout the spring and summer I'm down to 205 lbs. now, the lowest I've been since I was 23 years old (I'm 28 now).

My goal is 180 lbs. which is what I weighed when I was 21-22 years old and very athletic.

Since I'm still waiting on my bike it's time to go walking! Cya!

EDIT:Hey, W.J.! What the heck is that in your avatar?
My guess: the front end of a good-sized catfish.
PainTrain... you are correct! A buddy and I were on a ride that went through Oatmeal, TX. On a road to nowhere there was a fence line with all these Catfish heads... like 30 to 40 of them. They were all big. Some of the heads had been there a while. The avatar is a picture of the biggest one. He was huge and he stunk! No pictured were 10,000,000 flies!

Hey Wonker Jaw, where's your Catfish?
Your right, the catfish is better! It's in my nature to constantly mess with stuff.

Ahhhhh! Now there's a face only a mother could love! Nice avatar. :D

Ahhhhh! Now there's a face only a mother could love! Nice avatar. :D
:roflmao:Good one! :p

Well, it's been a while since I've dropped by the forums - doing a little riding, a little hiking, and a LOT of watching baseball! I picked up a fluid trainer today (Kurt Kinetic, which the bike shop guy assured me was rugged enough for me and super-Clyde husband) and can't wait to hop on. My goal is to ride 500 miles by New Year, and to ask for Spinervals tapes for the holidays (the 500 is for a decent base) :rolleyes:

I noticed a couple of you fine fellas were talking about cooking at home instead of eating out. If you're not particularly comfortable in meal planning or shopping, may I recommend a service called Menu Mailer <http://www.savingdinner.com>? Once a week, you get an email with six recipes for dinner, suggestions for side dishes, and a shopping list. The food is interesting and easy to prepare, and you can get either a regular-with-vegetarian-option menu or a low-carb version, for two or four or six, and so on. You're a lot more likely to cook dinner at home if you know what you're having, and know that everything you need is in the fridge or pantry.

No affiliation with the service, though if you mention that kate@yarnhead.com sent you, I will get a free month added to my sub. I don't care if you do or don't. :)

Today was my routine visit to my Doctor for my diabetes work-up.

I am pleased to announce that it was ALL GOOD NEWS!

At my last visit, we agreed to cut my oral meds in half. This was the first tests after that change. My "A1C" glucose number was 5.4! That was the same as before we reduced my meds! My doc even said, "I don't see how we can even call you diabetic anymore." That was so cool!

My bad colesteral was 68 and good was 46 (he wants this number to increase). My blood pressure was 108/88 which is above my normal but not alarming.

My weight, fully clothed with heavy boots and sweater was 220. That is 5lbs more than I weighed this morning for my regular weigh-in. So, not much change in the weight which is not surprising as the miles are beginning to suffer the onset of colder unpredictable weather. This also means that I have began my winter resistance training.

I discussed the asthma thing and he offered Advair to help with it. I told him no thanks, for now. I wanted to see if training and conditioning would help first.

So, thats it, for anyone who cares.

Remember brothers and sisters; "Cycling is an elixir of phenomenal potency!" Weight loss, improved health, and improved mental health.

Now, get out there and ride!

Congrat's! NC7ZinMT! That's awesome!

Great job Bob!! What a great feeling it is to have an activity you love do such wonderful things for your body! I know that mine is definitely responding to the cycling so much more than I ever expected.

Keep up the good work!

Kat

Bob, that is fantastic news!! Wow, cutting your meds in *half*, with fantastic results!! You should be very proud of all the hard work you put in. So many people would rather pop a pill than put in all the effort that you are.

I hope the asthma improves as you continue training. I had exercise induced asthma that all but disappeared once I got enough base miles in me.

Whenever I feel guilty about how much money I spend on bikes, I remind myself that bikes more than pay for themselves in terms of improved health and quality of life!!

Thanks ya'll!

Yep. I can now justify the cost of my new bike. :D At the rate of gasoline savings by bike commuting and now the savings from meds to doctor visits I will have my new '05 Jamis Quest paid for inside of a year!

I am so excited about these latest results! I hope that they can help me to get my wife motivated! She has been diagnosed longer. She refuses to exercise. :( I fear for her future. (our future) I'll keep trying to set the good example and hope one day she will love herself enough to get healthy.

Steep hill repeats were on the agenda today. Only did 2.07 miles of steep intervals! The 30MPH cross winds didn't help either! I left everything I had on the road. My legs were exploding. My lungs burning. My heart pounding in my ears.

I feel alive.

Here's my day... thetourdepants.crazyguyonabike.com

Hey Ritz! Nice to see you over here too!

I'm aiming to lose some weight through cycling as well.

I'm not really fat at all, but I have too much extra fat, in quite the wrong places.
Most of it around my torso, some on my arms and below my chin.

I'm 1.775 m (5'9.5") and I currently weigh 75 kg (165 lbs).
I have a body fat meter in my electronic scale, and it says I'm at 18-20%, but the manual says the accuracy is +/- 5%. A caliper test I did (very amateurishly done by myself) following an online guide indicated around 23-24%. I would tend to think the caliper test is closer to the truth.

My story goes back to the late 1990s.
In high school, I was really thin. I stopped growing vertically before I turned 16, so I was relatively tall back then. I weighed 53-55 kg (115-120 lbs) at that time.
I so wanted to put on weight, but since I'd always eaten mostly healthy food, the weight just didn't come easy to me.

In the spring of 1999 (I was 19 then), I dug out my dad's old weights. A barbell from the early 70s, with a decent set of cast-iron plates. That and a couple of light fixed-weight dumbbells. I soon upgraded with more and heavier plates, and after 5-6 months, I had put on a good amount of muscle, at least compared to my starting condition. I only worked out my upper body at that time. (Early on, I'd found an old bench my dad built to hold bass amps, which turned out to be an excellent benchpress bench.) I'd gained both fat and muscle, and was up to maybe 60-63 kg (130-140 lbs) by late summer.

In September 1999, I joined the local gym. It's a real builder's gym, with none of the aerobics and body pump you get in the trendy city gyms.
(Long before, I'd researched the subject extensively, so I knew more than most gym-goers about nutrition and the proper way to perform most exercises. I like to do my homework...)
In just 6 months of thrice-weekly working out, I'd gained another 17-18 kg, and was up to around 80 kg (175 lbs). Much of it fat and water, of course, but judging by the increase in muscle strength (more than doubled overall, and quadrupled in some areas) and muscle volume, I think at least 6-8 kg was lean muscle.
In February 2000, I got a severe cold and fell out of the habit of going to the gym, and didn't do much at all for the next 5 months. Got back into it in July, but the heat in the gym made it hard to keep the pace up. By late August, I'd given up on it altogether.

In April 2001, I moved to Ireland, started working for Apple Computers in Cork and went to the office gym a few times, but no more than 5-6.

Then in early May 2002, I weighed in at 195 lbs. The almost complete lack of exercise had reduced my muscles a good deal too, so I was fatter than ever.
My diet was basically healthy. I ate beans, lentils, good pasta, apples, skim milk, veggies (tomatoes mainly) and so on, but I also drank lots of sugary soft drinks, ate chocolate and cookies and candy.
I made my mind up to change all that and to lose weight.

First, I stopped drinking soft drinks and eating the candy and cookies completely.
At the same time, I started walking to work instead of taking the bus.
4.3 km (2.7 miles) each way, with pretty steep hills (uphill to work), in under 40 minutes. Twice a day (of course), five days a week.
By mid July, after 9 weeks, I was down to 75 kg (165 lbs).
Over the year that followed, I lost another 4-5 kg, and was briefly down to just 70 kg (155 lbs). Since then, I've gained a bit back, and I'm now up to 75 kg (165 lbs) again.

But I'd really like to get down to a fat percentage around 12-15%, preferably with more lean muscle mass. That would put me at around 68 kg (150 lbs).
That's my goal then, to lose around 7-8 kg of fat, and hopefully not lose much muscle at all in the process. I'd also like a nice cut look, but that's secondary.
If it all works out well, I'll probably keep going a bit below the primary target, just to see how my body will react.

My bike will be vital to reaching that goal, of course.
I love walking, but it hurts my neck (the up and down motion at high walking speeds) and I overheat easily, at least during the summer.
Therefore, I plan to make riding my bike an almost daily habit.
I commute to school, but that's not even twice a week on average, so I'll have to ride without any other purpose than to get fit and lose weight. Not a bad goal in itself!

At the same time, I plan to go back to lifting weights. I actually started yesterday.
My body seems to respond very well to weight lifting, and it feels good to have completely exhausted my legs at the end of a workout.
Oh, and I will ride my bike to and from the gym as well.
The ride there will be great as a warm-up, and the ride home (at a slower pace) will serve to keep blood and nutrients flowing through the body after the workout.

I just hope I won't have to deal with too many colds or too much wintery weather.

Hey Ritz! Nice to see you over here too!
Ditto Dude! I wish I could get my mother to do what you did. She was diagnosed with the big"D" about three months ago, and treats it like a joke. She takes four pills a day, and still eats pretty much what ever she wants. Oh well, She is grown... even if she doesn't act like it!

CdCf, You CAN do it! We're all standing behind you! This is a really good thread to stay in touch with. You might also like "Do you need to lose weight?" on www.bikejournal.com

Ditto Dude! I wish I could get my mother to do what you did. She was diagnosed with the big"D" about three months ago, and treats it like a joke. She takes four pills a day, and still eats pretty much what ever she wants. Oh well, She is grown... even if she doesn't act like it!

Ritz! Your mother sounds like my wife! She was diagnosed a year or 2 before me. She controls with meds. Does not exercise. Eats whatever, when ever she pleases. I fear for her. For us. I just hope its not to late when she finally wakes up and realizes she needs to get moving.

I love the BLOG, Ritz. I'm watching ya man!


CdCf, good luck. Make sure you check in on this thread often. We normally are quite an active group. Although, here lately the thread has slowed WAY down. Must be all the holiday candy and goodies. Folks don't want to step on the scale this time of year..LOL

N7CZinMT, The main reason I put all this "Out There" Is accountability. I also hope to inspire others, but I'd be lieing if I told you that this is doing nothing for me. Thanks, and you keep it up too!

Hey Ritz. I do the same thing here. Only not as in depth. You should put a link to your blog in your signature.


I was just informed today by my doctor that I no longer need to take the diabetic meds! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hallelujah! I'm sooooo happy for you! Now you can not only justify your new bike... You can UPGRADE! Good idea about the sig. line, as you can see I took your suggestion. C-Ya' :D

Back on a bike for the first time in a long time...I put in right at 6 miles (5.96) I'm really glad that I got that done. It was alot for me considering how big I am and my first day back on my bike, but I enjoyed it. I might need someone to help me out of bed in the morning. :)

LOL

Man, we have all been there at one time or another! Good on ya for taking the first step!

Went to the doctor yesterday for what I thought was asthma (luckily it was just lung irritation from some smoke I had to ride through two days ago) and my blood pressure was down to 110/78 and the pulse was down to 64 beats per minute. These are the best numbers I have ever seen! Also, got a "Whoa! You've lost a ton of weight, and look fantastic!" from her as well!

Happy, Happy Day!!

Ah yes, and congrats Bob!!!!!!!!!

Kat

PWRDbyTRD, Baby steps dude. Don't try to do more than you can enjoy. If cycling becomes tortuous, then what motivation do you have to get back on the bike? When you ride, just enjoy it! When you're tired, stop. Before too long, the rides will get longer, and you will be smaller. One day you'll look in the mirror just after finishing a century, and there will be some skinny dude lookin' back at you... "Wow, when did that happen?" You'll be askin' yourself.

Kat, you are an inspiration! Keep it up! And congrats on blowin' the Dr.s mind.

bahahah I moved my saddle up about 2 inches, tilted it back a bit and put in 6 miles this morning on my way to work. I'm a little tender, but it will take a bit to get used to! I am happily enjoying my bike and the fact that I'm saving close to 400/month in just car bills.

Went to the doctor yesterday for what I thought was asthma (luckily it was just lung irritation from some smoke I had to ride through two days ago) and my blood pressure was down to 110/78 and the pulse was down to 64 beats per minute. These are the best numbers I have ever seen! Also, got a "Whoa! You've lost a ton of weight, and look fantastic!" from her as well!

Happy, Happy Day!!

Ah yes, and congrats Bob!!!!!!!!!

Kat

You ROCK Kat! Keep going girl!

Hey, I noticed you joined Bikejournal! WAY COOL. I expect to see those miles adding up soon!

Bob


bahahah I moved my saddle up about 2 inches, tilted it back a bit and put in 6 miles this morning on my way to work. I'm a little tender, but it will take a bit to get used to! I am happily enjoying my bike and the fact that I'm saving close to 400/month in just car bills.

Good deal! Remember, your seat height is very important to the health of your knees! 2 inches sounds like a HUGE change. I hope it is more comfortable. I still have 3 cars. The wife drives one, the other two pretty much just sit until I need them for work. Oh, I still say that is the best looking Kona I have ever seen! :D

Bob

Hello, fellow Healthy People! I just got home from 14.9 miles with my "Mini-Me" in his trailer. Rode for 1:35:17 for an avg. of 9.3 mph. Maxed out at 18.4 mph. Not too shabby with the whole kit weighing around 100 pounds. I can almost hear the FAT melting away... Hummm? Sounds like a skillet full of bacon! Bwaaa Haaa Haaa! :D

2nd day riding to work...is it normal wanting to suck down 60 ounces of water in an hour?

Yes. Especially since you are still very early on in your progress. It also sounds like you may have not been hydrated properly prior to your ride.

It would be helpful to know how far and the type of terrain your commute is. Also the temperature will have an effect.

Remember, drink plenty of water throughout the day, your body needs it.

Umm my ride totals about 4 miles...2 miles then a 1 hour bus ride, then 2 more miles. It's paved mostly...little bit of gravel kicked over from the passing cars...rolling hills...Tennessee doesn't know what flat land is...so I bust my butt up a hill then roll down another one only to bust my butt up another one.

Yep, sounds like you need to drink more. Your dehydrated. Drink even when your not thirsty.

Do a search in the T&N forum, there is a ton if information regarding hydration issues and techniques.

Alrighty. What's funny is when I go somewhere to eat...the idea of coke is almost sickening...all I want is water.

Alrighty. What's funny is when I go somewhere to eat...the idea of coke is almost sickening...all I want is water.
I think this is common. Since I started riding, I started drinking almost exclusively water and sports beverages. Most everything else doesn't seem to sit well. I also drink obscene amounts of water and was initially concerned about this, but it turned out that I just need that much water.

In my limited experience, it's hard to get too much water, so if in doubt, keep drinking, because dehydration is a serious threat.

edit:
As for the distance: When I started my first rides were about 6 miles also. At first I thought I would die after 6 miles. I could barely climb a flight of stairs after getting home. Now, I can do ten times the distance easily, and do it again the next day and still climb the stairs. :) So if you stick with it, and your endurance will go up and up and up.

Congratulations on minding your weight. To reduce discouragement, I want to say that when starting an exercise program we ought to recognize that the scale may not reflect the changes the body is undergoing. Increased exercise builds lean muscle mass. Lean muscle weighs more than the body's stored fat. It is likely that something as simple as noticing our clothes fitting differently is our first indication of our increased health. Supporting lean muscle through exercise and "proper diet"
can be a long term process, especially when eating processed and cooked food which has lost it's natural enzyme, vitamin and mineral content.

should I take vitamins?

ok, Ive been watching this thread for a while now. I am officially able to enter in here and heres why. I am not as proud as I want to be because I will tell you all that I have lost weight with cycling but I have a problem now.

Anyhow, Im 31 years old, 5 foot 9.5 inches. Ex smoker since july 04'. I weighed in at 220 pounds on july 30th of this year after a beach Vacation. Immediately after the vacation I started eating better and riding my wifes elliptical. I started loosing weight 5 pounds, then 7 then 10 pounds. I went to my LBS and purchased an 05' Trek 1000. I have owned 3 other new MB's and this was my first road bike. Almost 500 miles later, I weigh in a just a tick over 200 pounds. My cholesteral has dropped 16 points to 172 my HDL is better as well as my LDL and triglicerides. My resting heart rate has dropped from 68 to 55 with a low of 50 but is currently back up to 60. I feel and look better.

BUT!

I am so freaking stuck on 200 pounds that I am getting really frustrated at this. It seems the more I ride, the more stuck I get. I am taking in 1500-2000 calories a day and on my ride days which can be 15 miles to 30 miles, I take in around 2500.

Now, I know everyone is different, but why have I become stuck? Has my body gotten use to the cycling? Am I not taking in enough calories? My goal is a lean mean 165 pounds by August 5 2005. I thnk it can be done but I know its gonna be hard.

I live in the mountains if NC and tonight is the first night I can truly say that summer is GONE. Its COLD outside. Anyhow, I purchased and trainer and I am commited to working out all winter long. I will not stop riding because I know it helps me and I look and feel better.

Please, if anyone has any idea how I can become "unstuck" and get under 200 pounds and continue the weight loss, please feel free to post here or email me. I have 35 pounds to loose and After the first 20 pounds just melted off, I figure "hey 35 more will be easy" well, its not and I am battling hard to keep from gaining.

Thanks in advance !
Chris

Chris, I am sorry to say I personally can't offer a suggestion... But,I can offer support! I too am comitted to loosing a large amount of weight by 08/05/05!

2nd day riding to work...is it normal wanting to suck down 60 ounces of water in an hour?

You're dehydrated. The rule of thumb for water intake for us big folks is this: take your weight in pounds, divide in half - the resulting number is the ounces per day of water you need to maintain a hydrated balance. The number will freak you out, but it is unlikely to lead to hyponatremia (water intoxication/poisoning) if you spread it out during the day. If you drink it in 2 or 3 big sessions, you may really mess yourself up.[This equation comes from multiple nutritionists I've consulted, as well as the medical panel for Weight Watchers USA, which had this printed in the meeting materials for a while as well as publishing it in the magazine. It is not Internet quackwash.] Add 8 ounces for every 30 minutes where you're exercising and breaking a significant sweat.

Oddly enough, drinking more water will help you lose weight faster. Metabolism becomes much more efficient when you're hydrated, you've got higher blood volume to shuttle wastes out, and your joints will be better lubricated so working out won't hurt as much.

Increase your water intake slowly so your kidneys and urinary tract get used to the load, though. Nothing says "worker with a medical problem" like a guy who's guzzling water and trotting off to the can every 15 minutes!

Hey Chris! I've heard some people who have gotten stuck at a weight have started lifting weights twice a week. It builds up muscle and it can be a good way to 'shock' your body with something new. Just a thought! Good luck, and congratulations on quitting smoking. :)

-GS

I'm 6'1" and was pretty skinny at 170lbs. I got mono, couldn't eat for two months and wound up at 145lbs. I probably lost a lot of fat, but I also lost a lot of muscle. My arms torso and legs barely existed. I got back on the bike after recovering and my weight's been fluctuating between 155-160lbs. I'm starting to train harder though, so I suspect I'll drop back down to 150lbs. It would be nice if I had any kind of upper body strength : )

You're dehydrated. The rule of thumb for water intake for us big folks is this: take your weight in pounds, divide in half - the resulting number is the ounces per day of water you need to maintain a hydrated balance. The number will freak you out, but it is unlikely to lead to hyponatremia (water intoxication/poisoning) if you spread it out during the day. If you drink it in 2 or 3 big sessions, you may really mess yourself up.[This equation comes from multiple nutritionists I've consulted, as well as the medical panel for Weight Watchers USA, which had this printed in the meeting materials for a while as well as publishing it in the magazine. It is not Internet quackwash.] Add 8 ounces for every 30 minutes where you're exercising and breaking a significant sweat.

Oddly enough, drinking more water will help you lose weight faster. Metabolism becomes much more efficient when you're hydrated, you've got higher blood volume to shuttle wastes out, and your joints will be better lubricated so working out won't hurt as much.

Increase your water intake slowly so your kidneys and urinary tract get used to the load, though. Nothing says "worker with a medical problem" like a guy who's guzzling water and trotting off to the can every 15 minutes!I took in about 100 ounces or close to it while riding yesterday. I was riding for about 2.5 hours. I got home and I was so hyped about having ridden home from the mall. Anyways, i plan on riding somewhere today...I'm getting used to my clipless pedals....only lame part is I'm hungry all the time. I try to locate fruit and healthy munchable foods :)

You're doing great! It can be really hard to find reliable snackables if you're out and about. I try to keep an energy bar in my bag - a kind that I don't like enough to eat because it's tasty, but one that's not so nasty that I would buy junk food rather than eat it. For me, that's Clif Bars or Luna bars in non-favorite flavors )