Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - Your Best weight loss trick !

Most if not ALL on this forum are trying to lose weight or maintain were they are ! Having said that whats one of your best tricks for when your about to eat somthing bad how do you avoid it ?

I normaly grab a V8 juice there low on calories and have some good stuf in them . Even if I was to go nuts and drink 3 its only 210 calories . Beats a ham sandwich or a pile a chips or cookies .

Post your trick it just might help someone out a LOT :thumb: And I always have a cold one in the car for after the gym 2 years ago after the gym I would a went to a fast food joint and wolfed down a burger and fries ERRRR now I have the V8 and Iam good to go !

Hey and there less than $14.00 a case a 24 at Sam's club

Use a Lean Cuisine for a meal a few times to learn what a portion is "supposed" to be. Bike to the ice cream stand rather than drive. But getting off soft drinks is very important.

Eat a decent-sized breakfast, and slowly shift the size of your meals so they get progressively smaller during the day, rather than the other way around.

I do real good if I don't eat after 7:00 other than that keep meals to appropriate not too much not to little. And drink lots of water plus snacks between meals.

Get a coach.

Trick..???...

4 bran muffins and a pot of coffee... you won't be worth much for ridin' though.

I have to attack the problem before I get to this point. I find that if I exercise, two things happen my appetite is "usually" less and my willpower is improved. I don't want to waste the effort I put into a workout into eating something bad. Also, keeping a food diary helps me think in terms of portion size and calorie content more accurately. I've actually avoided eating something because I didn't know the calorie content I would have to record.

I find the more effort I put into exercise, the less I'm tempted to eat something that might hinder my results. If I eat right and ride UP HILLS, I lose weight.:D

This is something I know a little bit about. A few years ago I lost a little over 100lbs in a year. Put a little back on and have taken 20lbs off in 2 months.

Eat three times a day, ESPECIALLY breakfast, you won't snack as much through the day.

If you do feel like snacking, grab an apple or a banana.

Cut out soft drinks. At 100 calories per 8oz, you don't realize how many calories this is.

Hold the mayo and other "sauces" for your food.

Go sugar free. Something as simple as sugar free syrup for your pancakes makes a big difference. 1/4th cup of regular syrup has like 120 calories when sugar free has 30.

It's actually pretty easy to loose weight. Just gotta know how to do it.

Or you could cut out carbs and eat only red meat and die at the age of 24 from a heart attack. But at least you'll look darn good in your coffin.

My best weight lost trick would to be marry my ex-wife, and get divorced from her again. I did not eat, was stressed out, lost a lot of weight and kept it off for a long time the first time I did this. :roflmao2:

Seriously, I have found keeping vegetables like carrots and celery around to snack on a good way to keep the munchies at bay. Also, those little flavored rice cakes are not half bad either. :)

I have to attack the problem before I get to this point. I find that if I exercise, two things happen my appetite is "usually" less and my willpower is improved.

I'm the same way! I always eat less on the days when I got to the gym in the morning before work. I think endorphins have something to do with that. They are opiates that your body releases after you cause it pain (like a hard workout) and how many fat heroine addicts do you know? :)

Train for something specific. Perhaps losing enough weight to get under the weight limit on the new bike you want or getting in shape to ride some distance that is just inconcievable.

Eating enough to cover my exercise routine. If you don't get enough calories, you will not lose weight. I started eating more and have lost almost 30 lbs since Oct 15th.

Have a life and death goal.

In my case, I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. To get my blood glucose under control, I had to take medication (glipizide), which increases your insulin production.

Good news = your blood glucose goes down. Bad news = the increased insulin makes you ravenous.

I gained 13 lbs in 2 months. :eek:

"Screw it," I told myself. Got on a low carb diet, and started bicycling. I'm losing about 0.5 lbs per day, and I'm off the glipizide already. I've got my blood glucose under control.


If I don't do this, I'm going to die. So I have goals.

I count calories and have for a couple years. It's helped me to lose darn near 100 lbs.

At any given point in the day I know how many calories I've eaten and how many are left. Many is the time that I've known at 2 PM that something was up at 6 PM be it a beer or three, pizza, favorite restaurant, whatever.

You pay the freaking piper. If at 2 PM you know you can't eat large at 6 you either
a) don't get what every one else is having
b) you work out so the calories are available

Sometimes the answer is a and it sucks but it is what it is.

John

Try devekoping a daily calorie intake and output regimen, with a target differential. Basically, you need to burn 3500 calories more than you eat to lose 1 pound.

You can calculate cycling calories according to your body weight, speed average and duration here using this or similar calculators: (This requires using a map or car odometer to measure distance, and a watch,--divide distance by time—or a cheap basic bike computer will show your distance, time and av. speed for your ride.)

http://www.ahealthyme.com/topic/minicalburn

The next part, calculating the rest of your 24 hour day's calorie burn is harder, but may typically be 1500-2500, including sleep.

Then you have to count the calories of your food, here is a good place to look, and many packaged foods show their calories per x ounces serving.

http://www.caloriesperhour.com/index_food.php

It's not all that complicated. The nice thing is, it works! If you can ride 5 hours per week, you can lose 1 pound a week with a reasonably satisfying diet. More riding will get the weight off even faster. Basically, during riding your body sets up signaling that says, "We need energy, go to our fat storage center." With enough riding, you're body will feel comfortable continuing to tap the fat cells even after you're done riding, instead of craving food intake for to meet its energy needs.

In essence, it's kind of like a "physiologic bank account". you've trained your body system to eat and store a calorie surplus. You have to retrain it to make a daily withdrawal from your "fat account"

Trick..???...

4 bran muffins and a pot of coffee... you won't be worth much for ridin' though.

Oddly enough, that is only a problem if your system isn't used to it. I eat at least six apples each day in addition to whatever else I chomp down. That is a bunch of fiber, but since I have been eating that way for over a year now it doesn't phase my system in the least.

Stop eating out.
Stop buying junk food.
Eat a handfull of mini marshmallows when your craving sweets (surprisingly low cal).
Use the smaller plates, it will make that 4-6oz of meat look huge.
Eat your fruits and veggies before your main course.
Drink lots of water.
No soda (not even the diet kind).
Stop putting crap in your coffee, you'll be surprised how quickly that stuff adds up.
No Starbucks.
Milk, Water, Black Coffee, Unsweetened Ice Tea, nothing else.

Before each meal eat a live mouse, if you still feel like eating when your finished with the mouse you can pretty much eat what you want. Just make sure you chew it up really good, availible at your local pet store where they keep the snake food. This trick wont work if your Ozzy Osbourne.

Some of the things that worked for me:

5 or more small meals a day on a regular schedule
lots of fresh fruit and vegetables
drink lots of water
minimise sugary, fatty and processed foods
plenty of sleep and no bedtime/night time snacking
stairs, walking and cycling in place of lift(elevator), public transport and private vehicle
buy a heart rate monitor, Sally Edwards' heart rate guide book and learn to use both

http://www.heartzones.com/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1_2&zenid=0b86a7bc0c54f32238f2a73b1dcb0ca4
http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Rate-Guidebook-Zone-Training/dp/0970013027/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1235568531&sr=1-9

Finally, keep some sort of gains/losses chart and have a realistic fitness based goal, i.e., try not to base it purely on weight loss.

First I'll pass along the success story. Several years ago, I managed to quit eating anything with refined sugar in it: no donuts, cakes, pies, candy bars, soda pop, or white bread.

I pulled it off one winter when I convinced myself that sugar will only make me sick (as in catch a cold). I caught one heck of a bug the prior winter: fire in the throat, chest congestion, stuffed up head and a burning fever. I simply did not want that horrible feeling again. It worked. I have not caught a cold since giving up the sugar (4th year in a row, now).

These days, I try convincing myself that meat is maggot food. I am having mixed results. For the most part, I can resist processed meats like cold-cuts and such. But, I had failed miserably when it came to passing up on steaks, hotdogs, hamburgers, bacon, and chicken sandwiches.

I've since added a visual. I now imagine a big cup of fat whenever I start to crave these meats. It helps that I've seen said cup on YouTube which showed exactly how much fat is in "x" grams of a typical meat product. Ever since watching that video, I haven't touched the crap (a week).

Need a dessert?

Try homemade hot cocoa after dinner. Tablespoon of dark cocoa, little sugar, dash of salt and 2% low fat milk.

Under 200 calories, and filling. Helps me avoid "other" desserts.

Trick? Eat a Subway for a 6 inch roasted chicken sub -no mayo or anything fattening... ie no oil, no honey mustard..jsut palin yellow mustard and lettuce, tomato, onion...maybe banana peppers.
And baked Chips.... It's not all that healthy but youknow the caloires and it beats eating out. It keeps me feeling like I have had something other than a diet salad.

I also did not flour/sugar for 10 years - lost 100 lbs and kept it off. It was a very obsessive plan for me and I think did not help me lose my food obsession. My new plan is more gentle- no foods are off limits. but I do stay away from them. If I really want something I may have it.


Latest trick - bring food to work. Do not buy stuff. I am trying this with breakfast to help me with quantities (Home made 1/3 cup dry oatmeal - is much less of a portion than what I buy in the cafeteria).

Tell you whatt, someone on this forum pointed me to sparkpeople.com a few weeks ago where I now log my intake and riding daily...I am totally amazed that the weight is just falling off simply by being more aware of what I am eating.

Dropping meat from my diet while still pushing a hard workout pace: 20 mile daily rides on MTB, 50 to 100 mile weekend rides all Winter and 30 mile commutes to work beginning again in March, requires some dietary planning. I need my calories, not to mention all my vitamins and minerals.

For protein, I now consume a ton of hemp nut and, for iron, I go for the darkest possible greens such as kale, chard and spinach. I take in fats via coconut, cocoa, avocados, cashews, jungle nuts, almonds, and nut butters. Sugars come from fruits, like apples, pears, oranges and berries, and from cliff bars and gels. Source of complex carbs: wheat pasta.

Last summer, this style of eating had my weight down to just a touch over 200. This year, I had hoped to get it down near 180, but since I fell off the routines and gained 20 lbs throughout the early part of winter, I will be happy to get it back down to around 200 again.

At this point, I have stopped putting on additional weight. I am feeling much better and stronger, but my knees still smack against my belly when I hop down into the drops. That's why I am setting a realistic goal of 200 by early summer. However, I am still aiming for that 180 by summer's end.

My best weight-loss trick? Climb Mt. Kilimanjaro! It's amazing how much weight you can drop when you're burning 20,000 calories/day.

Second-best trick? Rather than going to lunch with the guys, I ride the bike 15-18 miles in an hour and eat a Clif bar or two. Restaurant food at lunch is my big problem: large portions and/or too many calories make weight gain easy. Especially if you sit at a desk all day, like I do.

That said, I'll agree with Mr. Beanz: I find that, surprisingly, exercise helps keep my appetite in control and it also reduces my desire to eat crappy food.

Best Trick.....I paid a nutrionalist, i lost 48 lbs in just less than 2 months when i weighed in at my follow up appt and i lost 8 more after that. Theres no tricks, count calories consumed and compare to calories burned.

There are tricks that allow you to eat less calories or use more calories. Perhaps techniques would be a better description since I don't think anyone is hyping anything magic?
Counting colories consumed is pretty easy to manage.
Counting calories burned now that is something else for some.

I've burned from 60k to 184k calories just cycling this year depending on if you listen to my hr monitor, online calculator, online trackers, or average calories per a mile estimates in some studies. That is a difference of about 35lbs over just two months depending on the number used! I'm sure due to my body being used to cycling the calories are even lower.

48lbs in less then 2 months seems pretty extreme. How many calories were you eating before/after?

prolly taking a guess.........5000 or so before. I did 1400 to 1500 for 2 months to lose, now im always 3500+ avg, 5000+ for some rides

First I'll pass along the success story. Several years ago, I managed to quit eating anything with refined sugar in it: no donuts, cakes, pies, candy bars, soda pop, or white bread.

I pulled it off one winter when I convinced myself that sugar will only make me sick (as in catch a cold). I caught one heck of a bug the prior winter: fire in the throat, chest congestion, stuffed up head and a burning fever. I simply did not want that horrible feeling again. It worked. I have not caught a cold since giving up the sugar (4th year in a row, now).



I thought I was the only one who noticed this..... The winter before I started to get serious about my life and start losing weight / exercizing, I had this nasty cold that I just could never shake. It was like my lungs were just clogged. Over the last 3 years or so, with diet and exersize, I haven't gotten much more than a minor cold that lasted a couple of days. I don't know if I'd contribute it all to cutting out excessive sugar...getting the heart pumping most days of the week helps. I also rarely get heartburn anymore...which is awesome.

Tricks...hmm

1. A handful of almonds and a lot of water always help carry me over between meals.

2. Also, I've been doing the food journal thing for about a month now, very eye-opening. For those with an Iphone or Touch, get the free app "Lose It!" Very handy. Highly Recommended.

3. Have an 8x10 photo of myself shirtless next to my trainer bike. enough said.

4. Buy some clothes (preferably something you know you'll look impressive in) one size too small, keep working til it fits...great feeling, confidence, compliments (especially from the opposite sex = fuels the fire)

Along with others have said about the food journal, it really helps for planning ahead once you get the groove of it.

Have been diabetic for 30 yrs so SUGAR or the eating of it has been cut out for yrs ! I Haven"t had a drink of regular pop in 25 yrs atleast . I have lost 104 lbs since fathers day last june ! My problem I just plain like food . NOT sweets . I am the type person that would rather have 2 steaks than cookies or cakes or candy bars and the like . I don't get it much now but I LOVE pasta .

The almonds thing sounds like a good idea !

Originally Posted by baron von trail http://www.bikeforums.net/images/buttons/viewpost.gif (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?p=8423612#post8423612) First I'll pass along the success story. Several years ago, I managed to quit eating anything with refined sugar in it: no donuts, cakes, pies, candy bars, soda pop, or white bread.

I pulled it off one winter when I convinced myself that sugar will only make me sick (as in catch a cold). I caught one heck of a bug the prior winter: fire in the throat, chest congestion, stuffed up head and a burning fever. I simply did not want that horrible feeling again. It worked. I have not caught a cold since giving up the sugar (4th year in a row, now).



I thought I was the only one who noticed this..... The winter before I started to get serious about my life and start losing weight / exercizing, I had this nasty cold that I just could never shake. It was like my lungs were just clogged. Over the last 3 years or so, with diet and exersize, I haven't gotten much more than a minor cold that lasted a couple of days. I don't know if I'd contribute it all to cutting out excessive sugar...getting the heart pumping most days of the week helps. I also rarely get heartburn anymore...which is awesome.

Tricks...hmm

1. A handful of almonds and a lot of water always help carry me over between meals.

2. Also, I've been doing the food journal thing for about a month now, very eye-opening. For those with an Iphone or Touch, get the free app "Lose It!" Very handy. Highly Recommended.

3. Have an 8x10 photo of myself shirtless next to my trainer bike. enough said.

4. Buy some clothes (preferably something you know you'll look impressive in) one size too small, keep working til it fits...great feeling, confidence, compliments (especially from the opposite sex = fuels the fire)

Along with others have said about the food journal, it really helps for planning ahead once you get the groove of it.


Interesting. . . I also used to get sick a lot. 3-4 cold/flu type bugs per year probably. I got a cold about a week after I started diet/exercise which was almost exactly a year ago. I haven't been sick since then. Last week I felt what I know to be the beginning stages of a cold coming on and I felt a little tired, but then it was just gone. +1 on the rare heartburn too. I haven't been concentrating on not eating refined sugars but cutting them out more or less happened automatically with the rest of the life changes. I wonder if it's that, or just overall improved health and immune system. . .

Interesting. . .+1 on the rare heartburn too. I haven't been concentrating on not eating refined sugars but cutting them out more or less happened automatically with the rest of the life changes. I wonder if it's that, or just overall improved health and immune system. . .

Ha, I forgot about the heartburn, it's been so long. I used to get it all the time. It began to go away when I cut out the booze, but I'd still get it now and then. Once I started eating more uncooked greens, the HB completely disappeared.

Sugar: After noticing here at work that those who ate the donuts often caught the colds, I did some digging. The Web has a lot of research information that indicates sugar really weakens the immune system -- it's kind of our enemy, really bad for those with cancer. Anyway, basically speaking, there is a bunch of stuff wrong with eating refined sugar. So, I ditched it.

BTW: Exercise also gives a boost for the immune system. So does Vitamin D. Cyclists get lots of both.

Got food poisoning and in two days lost 11 pounds :P (206lb. down to 197lb.)
Though for serious, look into a nutritionist they really benefit when you want to lose weight.

Writing down your ultimate goals and then breaking it down into intermediate goals _with_deadlines_. For example, your ultimate goal may be getting down to 7% body fat in 2 years. That may mean losing 1lb of fat each week. There may also be additional goals (complete a century ride, complete a double century, complete a 10k century, do 20 pullups, etc.). The key is to WRITE THEM DOWN and keep these goals some place where you will see them each day. Another trick is to affirm your daily goals each morning by speaking them out loud, e.g. "Today I am going to eat 5 meals with a total of 1900 calories and go on a 20 mile bike ride". The idea of self-affirmation sounds stupid to most people, especially men. However, it has been proven scientifically that you can fool your subconsious self in this manner. You probably hear and/or see numerous fast food commercials each day that get pounded into your brain but how many self-affirming commercials are there? Who do you think your brain is going to listen to?

Get and read "Burn the fat, feed the muscle"... it touches on this concept as well as actual eating and exercising habits.

Stop eating out.
Stop buying junk food.
Eat a handfull of mini marshmallows when your craving sweets (surprisingly low cal).
Use the smaller plates, it will make that 4-6oz of meat look huge.
Eat your fruits and veggies before your main course.
Drink lots of water.
No soda (not even the diet kind).
Stop putting crap in your coffee, you'll be surprised how quickly that stuff adds up.
No Starbucks.
Milk, Water, Black Coffee, Unsweetened Ice Tea, nothing else.

Before each meal eat a live mouse, if you still feel like eating when your finished with the mouse you can pretty much eat what you want. Just make sure you chew it up really good, availible at your local pet store where they keep the snake food. This trick wont work if your Ozzy Osbourne.

Exactly what came to my head first. If you don't go, and buy the junk food in the first place, it won't be there when the temptation comes. If you have a family, simply ask them to "hide" the bad foods so you don't have them in the cupboards, and closets. As a Gastric Bypass patient (5/08) this is something I've HAD to do, as I like the cookies, and crackers, and chips myself. I've been successful most of the time. Sometimes I've fallen out of the boat, and back-slidden, but I'm getting better all the time. Good luck!

Tell you whatt, someone on this forum pointed me to sparkpeople.com a few weeks ago where I now log my intake and riding daily...I am totally amazed that the weight is just falling off simply by being more aware of what I am eating.

I use www.FitDay.com, and you're right. Actually being able to SEE everything there in front of you makes a lot of difference when you're trying to control your calorie, and carb. intakes.

Before each meal eat a live mouse, if you still feel like eating when your finished with the mouse you can pretty much eat what you want. Just make sure you chew it up really good, availible at your local pet store where they keep the snake food. This trick wont work if your Ozzy Osbourne.

My housemates once had a pet python. They would leave frozen mice on the kitchen counter overnight to thaw, knowing full well I got up early each morning for work..... they loved the scream I gave when I found the mice.

Don't carry change. Or small bills. Then you cannot use vending machines at work.

Track calories.

Cut back on dairy products and sugars.

Eliminate junk food.

Drink more water. Lots of it.

Wear properly-fitted athletic shoes and clothes. No, this isn't a joke. At least in my case it wasn't. I became better at exercising when I gave away the 15 dollar Payless sneakers and invested in 'real' athletic shoes.

Spit out anything that tastes good and eat vegetables. I used to hate veggies with a passon. Now that I am on a low meat diet and I have stoped smoking, vegetables and beans have become the mainstay of my diet and I love them now. I do eat chicken at least twice a week to get some animal protein but that's about it. I've dropped around 25lbs since the first of the year. Some of it is stress related but the diet change has helped.

Motivation is the best trick. It helps you to make the choice when choosing food or deciding eat or not.

Right now?
- I stopped drinking sodas and only drink water
- In the morning I take a multi, B12, and a water pill (friend works at vitamin shoppe, free pilllsss)
- I ride when I want to, dont look at it as "dammit I havent ridden today". If you do that you will start to dread riding which would be pretty upsetting. I also try to make riding fun with music.
- I go to the gym 3 days a week (cardio each day, then I mix what I focus on)
-I watch what I eat...nothing crazy, but I dont eat fast food anymore thats for sure.

Cheerios eat them for breakfast and lunch and eat pretty much your normal meal for dinner. If you must snack, eat Cheerios dry. I chop a banana up in mine.
Eat as many bowls as you want, you will loose weight.

I am a little too sweet, been type 2 for almost 13 years now. When things get out of hand, this has worked everytime.

- Drink lots of water. LOTS. You should pretty much always have a glass of water in front of you.
- Take a multivitamin every day. It may be my imagination, but I find it easier to control cravings when I take a good multivitamin.
- Instead of eating big meals, try smaller meals with light snacks in between.
- Try healthier versions of foods you already eat (example: if you'd normally eat a ham & cheddar sandwich, try turkey & mozarella instead).
- Similarly, try "Light," "Fat Free," and "Sugar Free" versions of foods you already eat, especially things like condiments, garnishes, etc. In many cases, you won't even taste a difference.
- Ditch soda (yes, this includes diet soda). If you must drink something sweet, try fruit juice instead (in moderation, of course - it's easy to drink 200 calories and not realize it).
- Skip desert. If you must eat something sweet, try fruit (or dried fruit) instead.
- Cut out fast food, and cut back on eating out in general. You'll notice a difference in your waist line and your wallet.
- Muscle burns fat more efficiently than fat does (duh), so work some strength training into your exercise routine. You don't need a gym membership, either - you'll be amazed what you can accomplish in your own living room with 15-20 minutes per day and a pair of 15 pound weights.
- It's a good idea to follow up your daily workout with a protien shake, especially if you're strength training. Just be aware of how many calories are in one of those things and plan accordingly.

Drink more water, cut out soda completely.
Find something healthy to snack on - roasted almonds is my current fad.

I peaked at 224. Have lived car free since 7/07 and lost ~24lbs. I don't really watch my diet and rarely exercise beyond commuting 8.5mi RT and utility riding.
Christmas 08 went to the ER for a kidney stone. They said no soda or caffeine and drink lots of water. I drink a lot more water and have only had a couple sodas and lost 10lbs. I also cut reduced my milk/instant breakfast from 1-1.5qt to 1pt a day or less. My diet still yoyos and my exercise hasn't changed much. I think I could make dramatic change if I really watched the diet and started an exercise program. btw I haven't really been sick since I started commuting (not counting the kidney stone) Sore throats and stuffy noses are usually gone within a day or two.

I seem to be in a good positive mind set at the moment which I think is the big difference for me. I know what I should and shouldn't be eating but I still did it, however I now feel really positive about things (I've been a bit blue recently).

I have a couple of simple rules that I picked up from a Paul McKenna book...
- I only eat when I'm hungry and I make a point to know that I'm hungry (not bored). I'm no longer hanging on until lunchtime then eating loads because I'm starving, instead I'll eat my lunch at 11am if I'm hungry.
- I eat slowly until I think I'm not hungry any more then stop. If I'm hungry again an hour later, that's fine, I'll have more food.

I've lost about 4lbs this week which is reinforcing my mind set and making me WANT to keep going. And for me, that's the trick, my mind is convinced this is the right thing to do and my body is following. I just need to keep this positive attitude going.

eat well, no snacking, no soda pop, no sweets, no coffee, more vegetables than meat.

eat well, no snacking, no soda pop, no sweets, no coffee, more vegetables than meat.

I drink BLACK coffee all the time HOW would that effect my weight loss ? as far as I know black coffee has NO nada calories am I missing somthing here ? Iam not trying to be funny or a smart arse .

I drink BLACK coffee all the time HOW would that effect my weight loss ? as far as I know black coffee has NO nada calories am I missing somthing here ? Iam not trying to be funny or a smart arse .

Didn't you post in another thread that you suffered from sleep problems?

Two tricks:
1.) I think about my kids, and how I want to see them grow up. If that doesn't work..
2.) I think about how much it sucked to carry my weight up every single hill on my big gravel ride last year, and how awesome it would be to carry less of it.

That usually works. If not my wife is good at "reminding" me :)

Wear properly-fitted athletic shoes and clothes. No, this isn't a joke. At least in my case it wasn't. I became better at exercising when I gave away the 15 dollar Payless sneakers and invested in 'real' athletic shoes.

This is a great suggestion, Neil. I'll never again skimp on shoes or cycling shorts. Not only is cheap stuff uncomfortable, but it's also of poor quality and doesn't last long. I had some cheap shoes when I started cycling that lasted about 3 months. I bought some North Face trail runners that I used for about 2 years and countless (probably over 5,000) miles on the bike, they've now been retired to weekend bombing around duty. I bought some cheap shorts when I started, they lasted 3 months. My $70 aerotech designs shorts have lasted 2+ years and countless miles.

Shirts as well. I bought cheap Wal-Mart branded exercise shirts, and they were stained and STINKY after about 3 months of use. I have two Under Armor shirts, one is over 3 years old and the other is 2. They're a little stinky, but not bad, and they have held up really well. For commuting I'm switching back to cheap t-shirts, but for long rides I won't skimp.

Great suggestion, Neil. Gear quailtiy - what's between you and the road as it were - is a huge thing.