Question for you big weight loss cyclers?
 

I want to lose a fair amount of weight myself. I'm at about 345 - 350 pounds right now. I've lately been hanging steady, but think I've been losing some inches and putting on muscle.

Anyway, my question is what is your routine? How often do you ride? Do you ride casual or ride hard? How far on average? How long (time) on average? I know diet is important too....any super special diet tricks you learned?

I am just curious what routines worked for you to see if I am close or need to make any changes. I had been riding for over a year and really seen no significant weight loss...but I was only riding on average once a week (and often busy and didn't ride for weeks at a time).

Now I'm getting the bug and probably riding 3 or 4 times a week for about 12-16 miles each ride (been doing this for about a month now). Am I still riding waaaaay to little? Or am I on the right track and should start seeing the weight come off soon?

Im riding an hour at a time 4-5 days a week. If I ride more then an hour I lose interest. I dont weight myself but I know when I started in June I was at 336 becuase I went to the doctor. I go to the doc in October again and will see if I have made any progress.

I eat quite a bit better then I did before as well but still eat what I want if I want it. I also drink less beer/booze. I know my legs are getting stronger but dont really see any weight loss but it will come with time.

Cycling a day a week for a year and taking weeks off at a time isnt going to yield you the results you want...try to get on the bike 3-5 days a week for at least an hour and you will burn about 1000 calories each ride.

commuting works for me. 10 miles each way.

Commuting isn't really an option....nothing but crazy roads that I wouldn't dare ride on to get to work. Besides....I have a job that really would appreicate me coming to work all sweatty and ragged out.

diet is just as important as the excersize quantity. Making the changes to your diet will take the weight off much faster than excersize alone. I, like you worked out(cardio)3-4 times a week for about an hour but didn't see any real changes until I got serious and changed my eating habits to a healthy life style. After that I dropped 80lbs in 10 months going from 230 to 150.

I just started riding a couple of weeks ago. I ride pretty hard, but for me, that still means what most here would consider a very short, slow ride. Today I did about 15 miles on my old junk Huffy, and I was pushing pretty hard, but that's by far my longest ride. Previous longest was about 7-8 miles.

I picked up some "road-style" tires for the Ancient and Venerable Huffy yesterday, and that's a 1000% improvement. My top speed and my average were each increased by about 3mph with that one change. Then again, today was also a lot more hilly than what I've been used to. (But we're talking praire hills here, not mountains.)

All in all, it was a very good morning.

The other thing about the bike (although it has jump-started my weight loss) is that you could lose a lot of weight and not increase your actual fitness much. If you ride the bike hard, you'll do great things for your CV. I'm seeing a difference after a couple of weeks of "hard" riding.

I weighed 253 about 4 months ago and started biking. Lost a little weight, but not what was expected. Since then, I started watching what I eat and have lost 35# so far with about 50# to go.

First, I limit what I eat to about 1500 calories (I'm a woman - you'd need more). I bike 12 to 15 miles a day, 5 days a week and 20 - 30 miles on Sundays. Monday is a rest day. The weight is really coming off now.

Someone on this forum mentioned http://www.fitday.com/. They have a website where you can enter your food intake and exercise and view some pretty cool statistics about what you've eaten and how you've exercised. After looking at the website, I went ahead and purchased their stand-alone program for the PC. It is really a BIG HELP in tracking the food I'm eating and energy expended. Plus... with the graphs, it's really motivating to see the weight graph going down and the miles graph going up!!!

In any case, log what you eat every day and calculate how many calories you're eating. The bottom line is you can't loose weight if you're eating more calories than you're expending.

well if you saw my other post you will see how much I have lost.

It is not a diet!!! It is changing the way you live, its all about eating right AND exercise.

I agree 100%....I've never believed in "diets".


But I was looking for more specifics......what type of riding did you do, how far/long? Hard/fast riding or casual? That kind of stuff.

I didn't start losing weight until I started curbing the eating...I only lost 3# after riding about 200 miles a month for March, April, May. Then I stopped eating that 1/2 serving more because it tasted good, and cut out the midnight snack, and lost 7 more pounds after upping the biking to 300-350 miles a month for June. Also, I was playing 6 hours of tennis a week, lifting weights and doing spinning classes a min. of 2 a week. Yep, that's all I've lost. I'm at 120 pounds, female/46, at 5'1". I was 130 pounds.

I do have muscle that I didn't have before, but still, I can't believe how much activity it takes. I'm kind of stopped losing, and I'm afraid even gained a pound back because I had a few 'extra' servings. Sheesh. My goal is 115.

Great site LookinUp! I signed up, and want to share it with a girlfriend, also concerned with weight gain.

I train to race, and ride a whole lot (up to 200+ miles a week). I eat better than I have and I have lost about 35 pounds in the last 6 months or so. If you ride 4 - 5 days a week moderatly the pounds will come off if the diet is good...

Last year at this time, I weighed 290 pounds. Today I weigh about 243 lbs give or take a couple of pounds one way or the other. My new goal is 220 by December.
What routine worked for me?
I decided that I was going to lose wieght, and failure to do so was not an option. The fact is most of us that are overweight like to talk about losing weight, but when push comes to shove we end up failing. Why? Because we don't see the weight loss that we expect to see, so we give up. Losing weight is not easy, about 2-3lbs a week is all you can expect.

To lose weight you have to exercise and adjust your diet. You didn't get to the weight your at by accident, I know I've been there. The only way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you consume. So exercise and a proper diet are vital.

I, like you decided to bike for my exercise. I started by doing 3 miles, 4/5 days a week. I worked up to 10 miles, 4/5 days a week by the end of last year. Today I bike about 80-130 miles a week.
I am dropping weight now on a consistent basis.
It's great to see that you have stepped up you biking from once a week to 12-16 miles, 3/4 days a week. This definitely will go a long way in helping you lose weight, but remember that you must combine it with a eating plan that will ensure you are burning more calories than you take in. There are a lot of good plans out there, just find one that works for you.

A few tips that worked for me
-try to include some type of hill climb on you bike ride. This gets the heart pumping and burns them calories. You will figure out real quick what you can handle and what's out of your league.
-A diet tip. I try to figure out before I eat or drink some thing how long it will take me on my bike to burn those calories off. Example: Say you want to have a Coke, I figure out before I drink it that it will take me X amount of time to burn the calories from the Coke off. I find my self going for the water more often then not. There are 3,500 calories in a pound of fat, that is alot of extra calories that I need to burn off each week, I don't need to be adding any more wasted calories.

I've gone on long enough.
Good luck, keep up the good work

I run 20k a day, 6 days a week, swim 1.5 miles 3 times a week and commute by bike about 75 miles a week. Also, 2 days out of the week I ride 50 miles, normally Wednesday and Sunday as they are my days off.


I'm down to 187 lbs.

I'm a vegeterian, have been for quite some time now.

That's how I changed my life to get healthy, only you can know what will work for you, and what you can stick with permanently.

I ride moderately fast roughly 10 miles 1 -3 times a week depending on my schedule and I also do 1 longer ride 20 or so miles every Saturday at a decent pace. Just getting more active is the key, Its not really how much in the way of activity just that it is a decent increase from before.

Before- No activity
Started - 2 mile rides or walking
Now - See above.

Here is a little trick I use when I want to drop body fat. I eat a pretty early supper and ride an hour when I first wake up. Trick is to catch your system at the lowest point for blood sugar or available energy. Ride slow (not a race or near max HR) and when the available energy runs out your system will start burning fat. Now that your fat burning engine has kicked in it will stay kicked in most of the morningor even day. Also, this little trick kinda kick starts my metabolism when I hit a stall in weight lose. I ask my doctor before I did this. He just shook his head in a bewildered way so I didn't get a yes or no. A nutritionist would be a better person to ask on this particular advise. Works for me and also a friend of mine but may not be for everyone.

I started at 241 in March or so, and I'm down to 229 right now. I pretty much eat what I want, but try to keep it healthy if possible. I cycle about 50 miles on the weekend (one long trip) or sometimes a long ride on the weekend and short 20-30 mile rides after work a couple days per week, but I'd like to do more if time would allow. I try to go pretty hard to get the most out of the ride. I'm averaging about 16 mph or so right now. I'm fairly new to "cycling" as opposed to riding my bike everywhere like I did when I was younger.

I'm going to start commuting to work in a month or so when I move, so that will help I would think.

12-16 miles per ride is pretty good. Try increasing the mileage if you think it's not enough.

As for diet tricks, a good way to keep yourself from eating too much at mealtimes is to chug a large amount of water right before you sit down to eat. You'll feel full faster and won't gorge yourself. (That's a big problem for me.) Also, when eating, SLOW DOWN. The food isn't going anywhere, so there's no need to shovel it in. You'll feel full and can stop eating before you've stuffed yourself full of calories.

Those things work well for me, but your mileage may vary.

Forget weight loss, you would have to eat 4000+ calories a day just to maintain your current weight with that workout. You basicly do an olympic distance tri 3+ days a week?

Technical design of my weekly workout:

6 a.m. - 10k run (Mon., Tues., Wed., Thurs., Fri., Sun)
11 a.m. - 1.5 mile swim (Tues., Weds., Thurs.)
1 p.m. - 5 mile commute to work (Mon., Tues., Thurs., Fri., Sat)
11 p.m. - 5 mile commute home (Mon., Tues., Thurs., Fri., Sat)
Midnight - 10k run (Tues., Wed., Thurs)

Wed., Sun., - 50 mile ride each day.

No, I do not time my swim or my cycle.

My 10k time went from 1:15:15 to 54:13. My goal time is to beat the guy who won the 10k race I was in this Fourth of July, 36:24.


So, I may have been off a bit in my original estimation of what I do. No, I don't think I do three olympic triathalons a week.

My first triathalon is a sprint tri though Aug. 13 in Temple.
I will also be doing the Hotter N' Hell in Witchita Falls in late Aug.
My first marathon will be the Waco Match Marathon Oct. 23.
I intend to do the Houston Marathon, if I am ready for it also.


Hey, what can I say really, I was a fat, overweight smoker for the last 20 years, once I stopped eating meat, drinking and smoking (and stepped away from the video games) I found out I'm an OCD freak who can't get enough running/swimming/cycling. /shrug

For me biking is something that I have just recently gotten back into after losing the weight. I went from 287 at age 21 to my current 220 ish. It's been a process, for sure. I lost most of the weight the first year. For me it was changing my lifestyle. A healthy diet rich in protein, low glycemic index carbs, and healthy fats along with intense weight training did the trick nicely. I began eating 6-8 small meals throughout the day. I did (and still do though not as much as I should) cardio on the elliptical machine, treadmill, and stationary bike 3-5 times a week first thing in the morning on an empty stomach at a moderate intensity so as not to catabolize muscle tissue. Personally, I believe that weight training is the most beneficial because muscle tissue burns calories all day long, no matter what you're doing. I applaud you on your decision to change. If I can be of any help at all please let me know. Mark

Be a true hard as* on yourself stay true to your diet and workout alot. drink lots of water.

I am 41 years old, Male, Non Smoker, Non Drinker, Big Pasta fan. For specifics, I have at this point lost 73pounds, and most of that was changing the way I eat. I purchased my bike in March, and ride as much as I can. Commuting is out, traffic is way to dangerous around here for that, so I am limited to nights and weekends. I have not lost that much lately, but that is my problem, and not because of riding. I have noticed my legs are getting leaner, and I have way more air than I did just a few months ago.

I try to ride about 20 miles at least 3 times a week. Not fast, but fast enough for me, I average about 1hour 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the weather. It has been very hot and dry here, but very VERY humid, and that is slowing me down a little bit. I am riding mostly on Biking Walking trails. There are 2 around here, but I do drive to them. The one I like is in Lisbon, and it takes me about 20 minutes to get there, covered with trees most of the way, it gives you a break from the heat. The other one is in Canfield, and it is open to the sun most of the way, so you cant hide from the heat. Both trails are great, so I am going to keep riding them.

I make sure that from noon on I drink a lot of water, I got dehydrated once when I was in the Navy, and I will never do that again. I take 2 24oz water bottles with me, and the first one I fill half Gatorade, and half water the second I have straight water.

I have also lost a lot of weight- 58 lbs, with 25 to go... I'm 5'6, 167 (started at 225), and want to get to 140 or so.

I found that I can eat one third of what I was eating before and still be full, plus, I cut out soft drinks (don't replace regular soft drinks with diet versions), I quit going to fast fod joints, and I set my goal weight to 10 lbs below where I was at that time.

In January, I was 225 lbs... I started walking on a treadmill, and riding a stationary bike. I could only go for 5 minutes the first night, and that was walking a slow pace... Now, I can fast walk a half hour, then ride the stationary bike for a half hour at what it says is 15 mph, or, if it's not raining, I'll ride a mountain bike the apartment complex I live in loans to residents... I ride that 18-20 miles, or however far the junky bike will last that day... (Wal Mart bikes... ya gotta love em).


about diet drinks.... They inhibit weight loss, unless you flush your system with 2 glasses of water after drinking a diet soda. They contain a lot of sodium, which makes you retain water.

Another tip- eating foods with fat in them doesn't make you fat, eating foods with too much sugar in them is what makes you fat! Your body NEEDS fat to keep the skin soft and pliant, to lubricate your joints, feed your brain, etc. Excess fat is turned into poo and expelled, not stored. Excess sugar consumed is what is converted into fat and stored by your body. Also, if you feel like you're going to puke while exercising, cut your sugary food consumption, and those feelings will go away... I know it did on me!

Hi,
I guess I qualify as a "weight-loss cyclist", but no longer qualify as a "BIG weight-loss cyclist". Two Januarys ago I weighed 270 pounds. I now weigh 200 pounds, and have 20 pounds to lose in order to meet my goal. Here is what I did to begin:
I began with the fact that everybody on the planet essentially knows how to lose weight. Unless you have a physiological problem, something that requires a doctor's attention, the formula for losing weight is: eat less, exercise more, repeat. So, I started by going to this web site:
http://www.caloriecontrol.org/calcalsm.html#ccm , and used it to determine how many calories I would need to eat in a day in order to stay the same weight that I was. I than consumed two thirds of that number. The trick to that was to spend a week counting the calories for absolutely every bite that I took into my body. Web sites like this one: http://www.annecollins.com/calories/ , and programs like this one: http://www.snapfiles.com/get/pocketp...ietracker.html , which I used in my Pocket PC, assisted me with this. Once I had a handle on my eating habits I no longer needed to use the program, but it helped when I was starting.
I also increased my water intake dramatically. Lots and lots of water. I also increased my exercise. Because I was perspiring more I added a calcium supplement (you lose calcium in your perspiration), and a magnesium supplement.
I used to love to snack while I watch TV. This was probably the primary cause for my initial weight gain. I had to change that habit. I eat absolutely nothing after dinner. You shouldn't either.
The most important part of losing weight is being honest with yourself. Go out and buy one of those Lean Cuisine dinners. Open it up and take a look at it. After your first horrified reaction at the size of the portions ("That's not a portion, that's two bites!"), accept the fact that that is what normal people eat. Until you also can eat something similar to that amount and be satisfied, you are not eating normally. Weigh yourself absolutely every day, at the same time, in the same way. Keep track of your weight by writing it down, or by using software like this: http://www.weightware.com/ .
One more thing. Geta trainer for your bicycle and use it indoors on inclement weather days. Set it up in front of the TV and use program length to time your trainer sessions. In the beginning, avoid things like Spnnervals DVDs, as they are designed for insane athletes. Just set a MPH goal to be maintained for the length of your favorite TV show. DO NOT "reward yourself" for the good behavior of exercising with food/dessert treats.
Another "one more thing". (grin) When you go to a restaurant, IMMEDIATELY ask for a take home container and place half of the meal into it. Most restaurants give you enough food for an entire day in a single meal. Throw the container away when you get home, or feed it to a dog, or give it to a homeless person, anything other than eating it.
This stuff ought to get you started. OH! Get a ride buddy who wants to ride with you and will bust on you if you cancel out. Bust on him/her if they cancel out. Push the distance envelope every time. Explore. Ride places you've never been to keep it fresh. You can do it.