Training & Nutrition - 17lbs in 2 weeks!!!

I joined my nearby gym 2 weeks ago (I had always been in shape except for the last 3 years.), I got on the scale, and OMFG.... 217!!!! So Ive been to the gym EVERY day, biked about 250miles or so, and have cut out all the crap out of my diet. Actually only thing I take in is like 1/2 a bagel, and a protein shake mixed with water. I havn't given up the beer yet.

Feels good to fly by other riders, I need to loose 20 more lbs too. Wish me luck!:thumb:

Not a very healthy diet or weight loss.

I would guess that 12 of those pounds were water and or muscle. not good.

yeah your right. Not a healthy diet. But I used to be a power lifter, and the muscles are getting lean, and my arms are definitly getting bigger. But I know that that diet is hard on my heart. especially riding that way. I did over 30 miles yesterday in 95f heat, after a night of drinking. It especially hurt when i ran out of water. but got on the scale today and am down 21 lbs since i posted this.

Having fewer empty alcohol calories and more real food calories would be a healthier diet.

If you ride in the heat without enough water, then your "weight loss" will just be from dehydration.

I joined my nearby gym 2 weeks ago (I had always been in shape except for the last 3 years.), I got on the scale, and OMFG.... 217!!!! So Ive been to the gym EVERY day, biked about 250miles or so, and have cut out all the crap out of my diet. Actually only thing I take in is like 1/2 a bagel, and a protein shake mixed with water. I havn't given up the beer yet.

Feels good to fly by other riders, I need to loose 20 more lbs too. Wish me luck!:thumb:

While I should congratulate you on the weight loss, it seems way too fast. That's the kind of loss you should be getting after about 3 months minimum.

Furthermore, posts like this:


yeah your right. Not a healthy diet. But I used to be a power lifter, and the muscles are getting lean, and my arms are definitly getting bigger. But I know that that diet is hard on my heart. especially riding that way. I did over 30 miles yesterday in 95f heat, after a night of drinking. It especially hurt when i ran out of water. but got on the scale today and am down 21 lbs since i posted this.

suggest that, frankly, you have very little idea about the kind of diet you're pushing and the ramifications of doing so.

Here's a question: are you feeling weaker throughout the day?

No, definitly not weaker. When I wake up, ill have a protein shake with water to give me energy, and I have a pretty good workout, i ride to the gym, run 30 minutes then do freeweights, then ride back home, I even mowed the yard after that one day, then maybe ill eat 1/2 a chicken breast, and then pretty much nothing. I road 70 miles total yesterday and today, but yesterday I had a date, so I actually ate a good portion of grilled salmon, and today allowed myself to have a hamburger. Im like 196 now, and want to hit 175-180 by the end of july.

I know its a big stretch and hard on my body but Ill endure. As long as Im not feeling week, ill keep going at it. I had a bike ride tonight and was able to keep 20mph for near 20miles withought fatigue. Maybe it was the hamburger.

No, definitly not weaker. When I wake up, ill have a protein shake with water to give me energy, and I have a pretty good workout, i ride to the gym, run 30 minutes then do freeweights, then ride back home, I even mowed the yard after that one day, then maybe ill eat 1/2 a chicken breast, and then pretty much nothing. I road 70 miles total yesterday and today, but yesterday I had a date, so I actually ate a good portion of grilled salmon, and today allowed myself to have a hamburger. Im like 196 now, and want to hit 175-180 by the end of july.

I know its a big stretch and hard on my body but Ill endure. As long as Im not feeling week, ill keep going at it. I had a bike ride tonight and was able to keep 20mph for near 20miles withought fatigue. Maybe it was the hamburger.

So let me get this straight; all you're running on every day is one protein shake and 1/2 a chicken breast?

If so, allow me to do a simple caloric analysis here. I can't imagine these two items totalling to more than 1300 calories. I'll guesstimate that you spend a little less than 1000 to 1500 calories in that exercise block. This means that you'd perceive to be between a net gain of 300 calories to a net loss of 200.

The only problem is that your body needs at least 1200 calories to just function. Keep in mind that this is if you're completely sedentary and do absolutely nothing. If you're even close to active, that comes closer to 2000. So you're actually somewhere between a net loss of 1700 and 2200 calories daily.

I'm pretty sure that this is the reason why you're losing incredible amounts of weight, but I'm almost positive that you've lost a ton of muscle and that you'll probably crash at some point or other, if you haven't already. This also means that once you start eating close to normal again, you'll gain weight like nobody's business, which despite being normal will perpetuate a vicious cycle of a pointless weight loss mentality.

Here's another question: Why do you need to be 175 - 180 in July?

.. what kind of shake are you taking? this seems to be really really weird

I've been where you're at right now. It's called Anorexia, and despite all the mental strength you feel you may have to overcome your tired body, eventually one of these things will happen:
1. You will lose your loved ones/friends as your weight loss becomes more and more important to you.
2. You will lose significant amounts of weight as your personality is eaten for energy.
3. You will get too tired to continue, at which point you will restrict your food more, at which point the point is lost and the will to continue with anything other than self destruction dies.
4. You will realize that what you are doing is not healthy in any way, despite how much you tell yourself you are doing it right, and you stop the spiral while you can.

Seriously dude, be smart about this. I'm glad you want to be healthier, but being unhealthy is not the way to go about achieving it.

Your diet sounds horrible and this is coming from a guy who has cut up to ~7lb in one day before.

Exercise is stress on your body, as such you need to refuel in order to heal up. Not eating correctly and exercising as much as you are is like driving your car but never putting in new fluids. It might be ok in the short term but eventually its going to break down.

10 lbs a month is about the max you can do and still have a life...I mean.... functioning brain and all....

I dropped 10 to 12 lbs a month for 4 months straight.

you have to go ketogenic to drop weight any faster and still eat food, and that is -really hard on the kidneys-.

u could just stop eating entirely, but that has it's own problems.

Congrats! Nice work man, I think you should be proud. Fine tune that diet and you should all set.

You should check out the ketogenic diet section of bodybuilding.com. The only problems I see are that: A) you are currently anorexic and are headed for a really bad ending to this story, and B) Ketogenic diets, although effective for weightlifters, do not generally help endurance athletes function very well. What did you eat when you were a powerlifter? Although a diet for that discipline may not work for cycling, it's probably better than what you are doing to yourself now. I have also lost almost 20 lbs in one month. I was lifting every day, NO CARDIO, and on an interestingly designed ketogenic diet. I have to add +11tymillion to the water weight argument. Please don't hurt yourself, and good luck.

oh, and I'm not trying to rain on your parade. I know what it's like to feel out of shape and get results fast.

I usually don't watch this stuff, but this video is particularly relevant (excepting the fact that the man in question never left his house):

MTV True Life (http://www.mtv.com/videos/?id=1592387)

They usually scrub and polish for these things, but this is in line with stories that I've heard and the textbook psychology.

That video is utter BS towards my situation. Ive actually upped my calorie intake, because I crashed on monday after a 70mile trek. But that could be due to just the bike ride itself and the 90+f weather here in our area. I've got alot of crap and turmoil on my mind as of late, and a 40-50miler sounds good after work tonight. Ill eat alot of veggies/fruits, drink as much fluids as I can, and hit the road at about 11pm/12am. Well see where I end up.

The diet and activity level you describe is not healthy, and not sustainable; it is an eating disorder.

Some of you are over reacting to the weightloss. He is not already 170lbs so he lost a lot but nothing too crazy. I averaged over a pound a day for almost 3 months before and then kept the weight off. Do some caloric analysis on that. It wasn't water weight and I wasn't cutting 3500 calories a day. When you are a big dude a couple of pounds is really nothing. I was able to function just fine. As a matter of fact, I was functioning much better. My body didn't shut down or anything. He also states he does not have lower energy or anything so I say keep up the good work! The weightloss will slow down eventually though.

Man I wish I could do that but I'm pretty sure my food cravings would have me killing people. Actually i'm hoping to drop 15-20lbs by end of summer but I've been saying that since March. guess its time eh!

Yeah, I plateaued with the weight loss. Right around 195. Im eating strictly veggies, fruits, protein, and beer. But the weight lifting is building my muscles back up and that is counteracting with my weight loss goals. Ty Jynx! Alot of these people were definitly over-reacting. I think today Ill bike about 20, hit the gym, jog about 3-5 and mow the lawn. That should be a great day for me. After I get over this hangover *wink*

Oh the good thing is Ive gotten alot stronger on the bike. A month ago I was averaging 13-16mph, and now I can keep up 21mph for a good while now. Those Aero bars REAALLLLLY help! It takes the tension off your arms and you can concentrate on just pedaling. I wish I could kick off some of the wieght items (rack, water bottles, lock) but I use all those things alot.

So a little over a month later. Ive kept up with the cycling, have been a strict vegetarian for a month and a half (only dairy). I take Vitamins, Eat only the vital amount of carbs to get me through my workouts and work. All in all... back to a healthy diet with balance of fitness (cycling 50-100miles a week, 15-20 running a week, lifting 3-4 times a week). I feel great and I am at my target level of 180 from the 217 i weighed at the beginning of June.

I know thats a huge jump in weight, but my body just works like that. Im going for my first century in september, and havn't rode more than 50 miles at once. I figure I should bump up my miles to maybe 65 twice a week with 20-30milers twice a week, and 2 days before the century do nothing but hydrate and eat good carbs. Any advice???

Agree with the others above. Sounds like a really unhealthy crash course. I've been trying to bike a lot and eat healthy this year, and I've lost about 17 pounds in 5-6 months. I think you need to seriously moderate your plan of attack and be more reasonable. I started around 215 like you; I don't buy the "big guys lose fast" or "my body's just that way" arguments. You need to take a rational, sustainable approach to your long-term goals; stated differently: you can't achieve your long-term goals in 1 month!! I applaud your efforts but you really need to rethink the approach and timeframe.

Not a very healthy diet or weight loss. I agree. Be sure to drink cranberry juice, orange juice, and other such acidic juices to help keep your kidneys clean. Might also chat with a doctor, or at least a nutritionist, about establishing a healthier diet and monitoring body functions during such a crash course.

I know thats a huge jump in weight, but my body just works like that.

You've done this before? Losing weight by crash dieting and then regaining it is even more damaging to your health than being overweight. You need to make sustainable lifestyle changes or you are just abusing your health.

You should get one of those scales that estimate body fat % and gauge that as progress instead of your total weight. After I started cycling and eating a healthy diet I lost a total of 15lb in 30 days and then my weight stopped dropping was steady for a week. So I started using one of those body fat % scales. It's been 2 weeks since I started measuring my body %, my total weight is still the same, but my body fat weight is down 2lbs.