Training & Nutrition - Let's hear some weight loss stories

So I've mostly been sculking in the shadows and I've started to lose weight and train regularly. I've a very disciplined individual so I know I can lose about 2 lbs a week safely. I'm currently 5,7 168 lbs. I was 185 this time last year. I'm going to go down to 155 as soon as I safely can. I'm riding tues, thurs, and saturday 20 miles each ride maintaining a constant HR of 170.

What I'd like to hear is some of the stories of weight loss and how you went about it and how long it took. Time to brag.

Two years ago I looked in the mirror on my birthday and saw a pudgy middle-aged guy. It made me sad. Realizing I could fix half that equation, I embarked on a weight loss journey that has taken me from 255 to 195 lbs. I did it by counting calories and getting back into cycling. I ride almost every day and measure my food so I know how many calories I'm eating. I use a heart rate monitor to keep track of calories burned on bike rides and purchased some software that makes keeping track of it all fun and easy.

It took about 8 months to get below 200. Now I'm a lean, mean, ridin' machine. I am, however, still middle aged, but much purdier than before.

Good luck with your program. When your motivation starts to fail, get naked and stand in front of a full-length mirror. :)

I am twenty years old. I was overweight as a child and never quite grew out of it. I always remember being unathletic and kind of a nerd. When I hit high school I got taller and began to wear the weight better. Unfortunately, when I started college, I realized that I had put on a good amount of weight by the end of my freshman year and was up to 215 lbs. At 6' this is not as overweight as some, but I felt bad.

One night I went out with a buddy. We bough junk food and I bought a book. I drank a 7-11 slurpee and when I got home, I ate an entire canister of pringles while I was reading. Later that night, I woke up and was sick to my stomach. I then realized that I was eating horribly and needed to change.

I signed up for a boot camp class at my college over the summer. It met monday through thursday from 6:50 AM until 7:50 AM. I didn't know what to expect, since I had been inactive for quite a long time up until that point. I hadn't exercised since my sophomore year in high school and I was preparing to enter my sophomore year in college. On the first day of class, it was just an orientation and a walkthrough of all of the workout stations. I knew that the class was definitely what I needed.

On the second day, we did an actual workout. It consisted of going from station to station and performing the required exercise for a given interval. This was to last for 50 minutes and to end with 10 minutes of stretching. Well, I didn't make it to the stretching, I had to leave after 30 minutes. I was absolutely dying, and I went outside and started dry-heaving. I was very discouraged and quite sore later that day from such a small amount of exercise. I was worried that I would have to deal with the same thing every day.

The thirid day was the same, but I made it through the workout and the stretching. I was talking with my friend's sister in the parking lot. It was around 8 AM and students were filtering in and filling the lot. She took off and I was sitting in my car. All of a sudden I was hit by a wave of nausea, and I opened my door and vomited my orange and water. It was horrible! Worse yet, I was discouraged, and almost quit going.

Fortunately I stuck with it. I altered my diet to include healthy food, and I cut all junk food. I reduced my portions, and lo and behold, I lost a good amount of weight over that summer. I started at 215 in the beginning of June, and by October I weighed 175.

Along the way, I started cycling on my fridays to add to my workouts. I soon bought a new Trek 2100 and have been riding since then, which has helped keep the weight off.

So I've mostly been sculking in the shadows and I've started to lose weight and train regularly. I've a very disciplined individual so I know I can lose about 2 lbs a week safely. I'm currently 5,7 168 lbs. I was 185 this time last year. I'm going to go down to 155 as soon as I safely can. I'm riding tues, thurs, and saturday 20 miles each ride maintaining a constant HR of 170.

What I'd like to hear is some of the stories of weight loss and how you went about it and how long it took. Time to brag.


There is an sticky at the top with tons of positive weight loss stories. Later.

211 to 176 since feb 1st 2006

Heres the whole story.................


http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=163776&page=11

3 years ago I got a warning from my doctor that my blood pressure was creeping up. I got a warning from my scale that my weight was also creeping up. A change in employment left me working from home (an upgrade!), dug out an old bike and started riding just to get out of the house. Then I noticed that I was starting to lose some weight, too. So I kept at it and have taken the long, slow route (same way the weight went on) to losing about 30 lbs over the past 2.5 years. Stabilizing now at just over 160lbs, down from 190+.

1999, I was 22 and my doctor told me I would be dead by the time I was 30.

I was 6'2" and weighed 430 pounds. I was very sedentary, I smoked and I overate horrifically on food that is not good for you.

I had to go to a recycling company to get my intial weigh in (and the next few) because my doctor's scale did not have enough capacity.

My doctor put me on Medifast (liquid) diet, which I did for 9 months, I was then down to 230.

After that I did exercise although sporadically, and still smoked. I did start eating more healthily and would not eat any fat. I eventually got down to 195.

At one point I started eating a normal diet again (i.e. and healthy amount of fats and occasional guilty pleasures), stopped smoking, and went back to 230.

I have since hovered around that weight (currently 222). In finally started exercising last year when my daughter turned 1.

I now ride ~100 miles a week, and try not to eat too much crap.

I still overeat some, because I did that for so much of my life. It's difficult to shake.

But when I do overeat, I try to make sure it is on something good for me like fruits/vegetables.

I am happy that I have found cycling, because I love doing it, it is great exercise, and it can help ensure that I will never going back to being what I was.

Fred

March, 2005, 581 pounds, in a wheelchair and on oxygen, due to a pituitary disorder. Now, 241 pounds (340 pounds lighter), actively cycling and able to wear spandex without looking like a WWE villain wrestler!;) ;)

Cycling and bariatric surgery were both a lifesaver for me!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DVtAepKGY8

I had to go to the little boys room this morning really bad. I lost almost a pound. Whew.


Ok, seriously. I lost about 40-45# a couple years ago (215# down to 170-175#), and thus far have been able to keep it off with regular riding, commuting, and watching my calorie intake. I try to lay off the junk food, eat more veggies, and of course, moderate beer consumption is always a plus. Gotta watch that tire, you know?

:beer: :beer: :beer:
March, 2005, 581 pounds, in a wheelchair and on oxygen, due to a pituitary disorder. Now, 241 pounds (340 pounds lighter), actively cycling and able to wear spandex without looking like a WWE villain wrestler!;) ;)

Cycling and bariatric surgery were both a lifesaver for me!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DVtAepKGY8

:beer::beer::beer:
Congrats, that's awesome. I am officially owned!!

March, 2005, 581 pounds, in a wheelchair and on oxygen, due to a pituitary disorder. Now, 241 pounds (340 pounds lighter), actively cycling and able to wear spandex without looking like a WWE villain wrestler!;) ;)
Cycling and bariatric surgery were both a lifesaver for me!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DVtAepKGY8

Dang! You win, close the thread.

Ummm....you lost two of me. That is some crazy sh1t.


March, 2005, 581 pounds, in a wheelchair and on oxygen, due to a pituitary disorder. Now, 241 pounds (340 pounds lighter), actively cycling and able to wear spandex without looking like a WWE villain wrestler!;) ;)

Cycling and bariatric surgery were both a lifesaver for me!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DVtAepKGY8

wow... cycling has literally saved lives here!

Ummm....you lost two of me. That is some crazy sh1t.
Thanks, David, much appreciated
:D
Wabbit, it sure did mine!:D :eek:

Dang! You win, close the thread.

I agree, lock the thread, I give lol

nice job

I know some people have no concern about this, but does anyone find that even after they have lost this weight they still have a high body fat? I mean at least those that only do cardio, no resistance training.

I know some people have no concern about this, but does anyone find that even after they have lost this weight they still have a high body fat? I mean at least those that only do cardio, no resistance training.
Can't answer that in the long run, right now I still have about 40-60 pounds of body mass to trim yet. When I hit final weight, I'll have about 6% body fat. To hit final weight though, among other things, not to get too graphic, I am going to hgave to have 15-20 pounds of excess skin removed a swell. I plan on donating that excess skin to use for reconstructive treatment for burns, by the way!:D

I know some people have no concern about this, but does anyone find that even after they have lost this weight they still have a high body fat? I mean at least those that only do cardio, no resistance training.

I only had about 20 pounds or so to lose, but I've dropped mostly fat.

If you find that that's a problem, make sure that you nutrition during the ride is good and you replace the carbohydrate stores right after (I use a recovery drink, but most people say a good meal works well). If you don't do that, you can tear down muscle at the end which is obviously not what you want when you're trying to keep your lean mass up.

On Feb. 2nd of this year I weighed 185 on a 5'5" frame and in my opinion looked like a blimp.
My Dr. said I had high blood sugar and my dentist said the same and it was contributing to gum disease.
I was borderline diabetic!!! This scared the h*ll out of me.
I started on the South Beach diet and have to date (6/6/06) lost almost 30lbs.
Forget the low fat diets....I was on one for years and it did nothing for me even while biking heavily.
Cut your carbs, get control of the insulin they raise, and you will lose weight, lower cholesterol and feel great in short order.
This way of eating has changed my life and it's not difficult to do, nor is it restrictive from a food choice perspective.
I haven't been this trim since I was in my 30's and that was 30 years ago.
Last year I biked 1500 miles......this year I've already got 500 and plan for 2000.
I will be writing more about this in the nutrition forum, but wanted to 'brag' about my accomplishment here as well.:):):)
Thanks for listening.

Len

Simply put, when I saw a photo from my 44th Birthday I went nuts! No, I vow that I am not going to look like my father nor do I like what I see looking back at me in the mirror. At that moment in time, I stepped on the scale to realize I was at 240 lbs. At 5'10 I am Obese. I began waling and got my Giant Sedona and started riding twice a week. I began eating less, and taking longer to eat. I reaffirmed water into my diet and vitamins as well. I continued the walk/ride regime thru October of 05 and with winter came more wlaks and added runnig as I felt stronger. I started back on the bike as soon as late Feb or early March and am up to 4 rides a week with other activity on my off days. My current weight is 203 and am loving it! what clothes I have no longer fit and I desperately need a trip to the clothing store. Beyond that I have motivation to ride a century in August of this year. Am raising funds for the LiveStrong Challenge. Where would I like to end up? My goal weight is 170 lbs. I am convinced that I will get there! It won't happen over night either. I will let all know when I arrive at my goal. Currently I have been where I am at, a platue of sorts and holding steady for 2 months. Good luck to all the losers!

220 - 170 pounds in around five months. I decided to lose some weight after having to have my heart checked out with a stress test, 24 hour heart rate monitor and a bunch more wires hooked up to me. At the time my doctor told me to lose 50 pounds, I told him he was nuts. I'd lose about 20 pounds and we would call it a day.

I basicly stuck with about 1,000 calories a day and did two hours of cardio a day at the gym as well as weights. I also rode bikes a good bit but for some reason riding has never helped me lose weight. I've managed to keep the weight off for over a year now. I am hoping to lose another ten to fifteen pounds before the 2007 race season begins.

Here are a couple of before and after pictures. The first picture I was around 205 - 210 and growing. The next picture I am around 170.
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b148/LowCel/Mountwoodrace42004small.jpg http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b148/LowCel/Tomlinson4-2006a.jpg

Superbowl Sunday, 2003 went into the ER with chest pains and got a stent put into a blocked coronary artery. Weighing in at 300 lbs, lost 100 lbs. At the time 15 miles with a moderate incline would wind me. Two weeks ago I did the Sea to Summit ride (Ojai, CA to Mt. Pinos - 100 ft to 8300 ft with a total of 12,000 ft of climbing) and going for the Death Ride next month. Woo Hoo! Cycling rocks!

I topped out around 340lbs a number of years ago. Got divorced. Remarried. Diagnosed with Type II diabetes. Scared the hell out of me. Lost quite a bit of weight through diet and half hearted attempts at exercise. The kids begged me to go out riding bikes with them. That got me on the bike. Since then, I've gotten hooked.

I've been off of medications and have tested "normal" on my HA1C blood glucose testing for over a year now. 5 miles used to kill me. This July, I'll be riding in the Triple ByPass (http://www.teamevergreen.org). I guess you can say that my physical health is better, my mental health may be a different story. ;)

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b44/zinrider/Fitness_and_weight_loss/pattygraduation.jpghttp://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b44/zinrider/Cycling/2006-5-22/IMGP0467.jpg

I topped out around 340lbs a number of years ago. Got divorced. Remarried. Diagnosed with Type II diabetes. Scared the hell out of me. Lost quite a bit of weight through diet and half hearted attempts at exercise. The kids begged me to go out riding bikes with them. That got me on the bike. Since then, I've gotten hooked.

OT: Your link is misspelled.

What's the text on the jersey in the photo? Great stuff!

SimiCyclist,
Thanks for the note. I fixed the typo on the hyperlink.

The text on the jersey is BikeJournal.com (http://www.bikejournal.com). Ride, Log, Repeat. Its a great place to log your miles and stay motivated. Great bunch of folks too. :)

Thanks Zin. I just signed up.

I topped out around 340lbs a number of years ago. Got divorced. Remarried. Diagnosed with Type II diabetes. Scared the hell out of me. Lost quite a bit of weight through diet and half hearted attempts at exercise. The kids begged me to go out riding bikes with them. That got me on the bike. Since then, I've gotten hooked.

I've been off of medications and have tested "normal" on my HA1C blood glucose testing for over a year now. 5 miles used to kill me. This July, I'll be riding in the Triple ByPass (http://www.teamevergreen.org). I guess you can say that my physical health is better, my mental health may be a different story. ;)

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b44/zinrider/Fitness_and_weight_loss/pattygraduation.jpghttp://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b44/zinrider/Cycling/2006-5-22/IMGP0467.jpg
Outstanding job, Zin! Absolutely outstanding! If you can achieve the weight loss without going the route I did, that's optimal! Wish I could have, but the combimation of metabolic disorder and being nearly dead from my weight precluded that. Again, good job!

Tom,
Bariatric surgery has been a life saver for many folks. I had considered it long ago. But the more I talked with my doctor about it, the less appealing it was. Many people think, "its the easy way out." Which, from my research and friends experiences, could not be further from the truth. I took a pass on the surgery because it was simply way to much work afterword! Being inherently lazy, I chose the slow road to where I am today.

Good job sticking with the post surgery regimen. There is NO WAY I could have done it! :)

I'm 5'8", kind of stocky build.

Dates will be guesses, but:
Somewhere in 1996 I was 280. Moved to NYC for school and dumped 100 pounds.
1997 added 60 back
1998 stayed about the same
2000 weighed 245
2001 went out "with the boys" from the office to MTB
2002 shed 10
2003 shed 20

2006 - 175

Goal 165 by next season.

Training and riding brevets and losing weight is tough, so I'm letting it level and will look for losses in the fall / winter.

In Feb/Mar-06, I went to the docter for an unrelated issue and when they weighed me in, the scale hit 182. I'm about 5'5" and always been stocky, but I was so shocked by the 180+ number, I half turned and almost told the nurse to get her foot off the scale! I'm now down to 145, heading for 135. Jeans are falling off. I can see belt buckle and junk again. Several people have asked how I lost all the weight - which is very cool. I feel lighter (gut is almost gone) and stronger (riding a 34 lb mtn bike 100-120 miles/week).

That moment on the scale was "the moment" for me. I knew I was putting on weight, but this was out of control. I completely changed the way I eat, plus am back into the bike thing (the roubaix arrives Wed :) :) :) ) for real. It's taken a few months (2-3 lbs/week), but it's really about a lifestyle change.

Before: Breakfast - eggs/bacon, maybe hashbrowns. at least two cups of caffeinated tea. Lunch - burger/fries or a platter of carbs from the work cafeteria with a 20 oz Diet Dr Pepper (like that would make a difference :rolleyes: ). Afternoon snack - At least 2 20 oz sodas. Dinner: Any kind of pasta/meat/vegetable combo with more soda. Night Snack - Beer or two on semi regular basis and ice cream if available. Does this sound familiar to anyone?

Now: Breakfast - Smoothie and a protein bar (just enought to start the metabolism). 1 cup tea (still w/ caffiene). Water (lots of water). Lunch - Half a turkey/roast beef sandwich and water. Afternoon - one diet soda (still w/ caffiene). More water. Dinner: Fish or chicken w/ steamed vegetables. Water. Yogurt dessert. Snacks are beef jerky or rice cakes. One soda per night - otherwise water.

Some realizations about this whole thing.

Restraunts serve an exorbinant amount of food. I now divide the platter (it's not really a plate anymore) in half - half is eaten, half goes home as leftovers.
Eliminating carbs is key and the toughest part for me.
I'm at the age where metabolism doesn't solve everything. Cutting portion size was the biggest item for me.
Exercise makes a huge difference - if I don't exercise (bike) for a few days, I go up 2-3 lbs in no time. Definately going to need a trainer this winter....
Drinking water instead of caffeine really makes a difference, both in weight loss and alertness.


New Rules:
No more fast food, except for the occasional cave-in (I still love anything mexican and taco bell still calls on the weekend).
Eliminate beer for the most part.
Cut the portion in half.
Cave-in's happen - i.e. doing something off-plan. Keep them to a minimum (like the weekend) and stay focused during the week.

I started out about a year ago my doctor told me I was overweight. (255 at 6') I had borderline high blood pressure and that wasn't good for somebody my age. (25) I said ok I would work on it. I didn't. I went for about another 6 months and tried to eat healthier but found myself eating fast food a lot and eating out all the time and snacking when I was bored. I had this nice new Gary Fisher bike and never rode it. I think I owned it for about 7 months before I rode it for the second time. I then looked at myself nekkid in the mirror one morning and realized... man boobs aren't cool. My wife and I went out and bought a book called "Eating for Life" and started to follow it pretty religiously. Basically you eat 6 meals a day in portion sizes (what you can fit in your hand) and balance carbs and protiens in each meal. For example for a snack/midmeal I eat 1/3 cup cottage cheese and a nonfat yogurt. Lunch I have a turkey/roastbeef sandwich and some carrots... that kinda stuff. I stopped drinking soda altogether because regular soda, damn thats a lot of crap to drink and diet isn't much better in my opinion. I also decided that I have a nice bike I might as well use it. Now I am commuting to work and back on my bicycle, (only about 10 miles total) and riding as far as I can on my days off. Last week I rode about 35 miles, this week I am shooting for 40 on my day off.

I started in April at 255 and yesterday morning I tipped the scales at 229. My goal for this month is 225, next month 215! I am gonna make it. Reading the stories of people on here has been a great inspiration and motivation to keep at it. That and the fact that I am having to wear a belt to keep my pants up now. :)

Keep at it everyone and thanks.

I am sustaining a 90 lb weight loss
over several years from whey protein
diet and riding my bike. I lost the weight
at age 49, I am 55 now.

When I started, I weighed 240 lbs
on a 5'6" frame and could only ride
a bike about a mile without feeling
that death was imminent. (I had
ridden bikes in younger life, but had
gotten fat and lazy)

Today I weigh 150 lbs and can ride
a bike all day if I want and get at
least 100 miles.

I highly recommend the benefits
of Whey Protein Powder. You can
read all about it at: http://www.wheyoflife.org

And you can buy the stuff in 44 lb bags on the
Internet for the cheapest price around at:
http://www.supplementdirect.com/?content=52&product_id=10805

Recovery from obesity is possible
and it sure feels good!

Mine's nothing compared to everyone else. Last year, this time, 167. Today 150. Going into weight loss stage right now, trying to hit 145, then 140? :)

Congrats on everyone's weight loss. I love my bike. At 140 I'm gonna get me a carbon seatpost!

Hey who remembers mikeabike?

Ok, I'll see if I can reconstruct it...
2004, 220 lbs and gaining slowly. I'm 5'7, and was 48. Got bikes to ride around the campgorounds with the kids. Started the South Beach diet on a bet, to prove that calories in vs calories out was all that mattered. 2 weeks later and 17 lbs lighter, I decided to stick with the diet (still don't know about the calories in vs calories out, but cutting out al the junk and way back on highly processed carbs has something going for it). I also started riding a little more seriously than just around the campground. Was soon riding 15 miles a night, and 30 -40 miles on the weekends. Winter came... I maintained 200 lbs all winter. Worked out a little at the gym, but nothing serious.
2005 Spring, started riding as soon as I could. Me and a co-worker decided to try the MS150 in Sept. Started training on hills one day a week, recover two days, ride 50-60 miles each day on the weekend. Kept it up all summer, but never getting more than 70 miles at a time. Got down to 185, Rode the MS150, no walking at at all (this one is hilly). Next weekend did my first century, solo, 117 miles. Didn;t ride much after that.
2006- My wife talked me into taking spinning classes with her in january. First night, I thought I was gonna freakin die. Couldn't walk right for two days! I went in with the attitude that if I could ride 100 miles, I could do anything these skinny butt-little girls could do on the toy bikes. Ha! Humble pie isn't on the diet, but I got a good serving of it... I was soon keeping up with them, doing jumps, standing climbs for 20-30 minutes at a time, got them to do seated climbs for 30 minutes at a time. Great classes. we were spinning in class three days a week, and going on our own 3 days a week. Leg definition/bulk shot up, endurance shot up, weight started coming off again. It's now June, we're doing the 150 again, doing a century a month (wife did her first last week), climbing MUCH better, and down to 175. We're getting rid of the campground bikes this summer, and I'm SERIOUSLY wanting to do a coast to coast in the near future. I'm in better shape now than when I graduated college. Wife joined a "biggest loser" competition in MArch, won 4 weeks thru the period, and took third place overall (was based on % of total weight lost). We now eat smart, still enjoy beer, wine, pasta, steak, whatever, just not all the time. Still losing slowly, but trying to lose, and eat to maintain energy for centuries and long rides is hard. I think spinning/losing weight in the winter, and maintaining weight while riding in the summer may be my ticket. My goal is 160 by next spring.

Incredible stories. I haven't shared the struggle but certainly respect the hard work to make it happen.