HMMMM. Well it has been a few years sense my big loss, but the weight seems to be coming back. time to gain that self control again. Here is my story in a nutshell.
back in about 2002 I was pushing about 215. I put on the freshman 40. I got really sick of myself and dug out my old POS Mtn bike. bent back rim and all I got on that thing every day. I started to see a difference after only a week of hardcore dieting and riding, I dropped 10 lbs. mostly water weight though, it slowed down a lot after that first week. I started to ride more and more trails with a friend, so I bought a Fuji Nevada, it was cheap, but I was in school and I needed something better (I still have it, and love that bike). after about 5 months I lost about 50 or 60 lbs. but by the end of the summer I was at 132 pounds.
Sadly I took it to far, I looked like I was dyeing and people actually asked me if I had cancer, I am not lying. so I took to the weights and put some muscles on. now I am lazy and barley ride, so I bought a new bike and I am about to start all over again, this time from 175. got to lose about 20-25 and I’ll be happy.
my secret was no secret. I kind of did the Atkins thing before it was the Atkins. I kept my carbs low, and no junk food. I allowed myself one bad meal every 2 weeks (some times once a week). I rode minimum 75-80 miles a week, school and working full time made it difficult. no soda, my caffeine came from lots of coffee. It was hard to not eat French fries, I love French fries. But the part that is killing me now..... Beer. I love beer. I am in a beer club and I drink a lot of different beer. Back when I started working out I didn't drink at all, then I moved to State College (Penn State) and that changed. But I only drank liquor, not good for you but still better than beer. Then I used my BMX bike to get around campus.
My day (for 2 years before PSU Main) went something like this: get up around 8 a.m. do pushup, sit-ups, lift some free weights (and I am not going to lie, I was young and in college this didn’t happen every day, I mostly just did pushups in the morning). Grab a shower and an apple or banana. Took off to class for a few hours. I would grab a salad for lunch go to class again then head to work. Work from around 2 or 3 in the afternoon until 8, some times from 12-8 depending on the day of the week and the semester. Get home about 8:15, do more pushups, sit-ups, and free weights (after work I did do this every day). In the summer I would hop on my bike and take off, in the winter I would toss it on my trainer and ride for as long as I could take it. on the weekends I would get up about 7 or 8 and go for rides with my friend, we would normally go at least 22 miles, with a break in the middle to swim at the damn. When I got out of class early or didn’t have work I would get on the bike as soon as I could get home. I was stoked when I would go to the beach without a shirt on and not be embarrassed.
When I got down to main it was a little different. I rode my bike to class, and when I wasn’t riding I was walking everywhere. I only drove my car to get groceries and to go home for the weekend. So I worked out less, but the weight stayed off.
any who, now I am lazy and have a desk job so I am getting pudgy. I am a little more muscular now, I worked a few manual labor jobs so that stayed with me, but for the past few months I have been solely at a desk. I guess I got reliant on working my but off at work every day. But once my new bike gets here I will be ready to ride the road. I went with a fixed gear so I have no choice but to not stop pedaling. I will try and keep a chart of my progress, if Fed Ex ever delivers my bike!
P.S. the thing that helps me the best with my trainer is video games. Riding and not getting anywhere is boring as hell, and it is hard to watch TV or as movie, they get slow, but video games seem to be great. I zone out and don’t even realize it have been on my bike for over an hour. So far GTA4 is the best. Tons of things to do, so it never gets boarding. But I would much rather be on the street.