I lost quite a bit of weight this year from commuting (starting in April). I don't know the exact amount as I stopped counting calories long ago when I stopped body building, but went from a 38 waist to a 31 waist.

Another important factor to consider is intensity of your ride. I can ride 20 miles as a comfortable pace and not go through as many calories as a 10 mile when kicking it into high gear!

I lost 15 lbs in 2 months in my 8 mile commute. Then in september, I started school and stopped biking altogher I gained FAT all in my belly. So keep biking my friend

Sure about this?
High intensity burns more calories per minute. However, riding half the distance at a quicker pace will take less than half the time, so you'd have to be burning more than double the calories /minute on the short/fast ride.

for example
20 miles at 10 mph takes two hours
10 miles at 20 mph takes half an hour.

You'd have to be burning four times the calories/minute on the shorter ride to have burned the same total calories. Is this so?

edit: You may well feel more tired after the shorter ride, but this doesn't necessarily equate into more calories burned.

One of the reasons why I STARTED commuting by bicycle was because I noticed that I was putting on weight as a result of work cutting into my gym time. I started out at 195 pounds with approx. 26% body fat. After commuting for about a month, 3 miles each way, I definitely noticed that I was feeling healthier and that I was looking leaner in the mirror. I probably lost about 5 pounds that month, which I'm perfectly happy with. Unfortunately as a veteran of "yo-yo weight loss", I knew that as soon as I stopped biking every day the weight would come back. Seeing as how I started commuting in October, once the real winter weather set in, it did!

Once the warm weather comes back and I can commute regularly by bike again, I intend on designing my fat loss plan around my commute. Eventually, I hope to drop down to 175 pounds with a body fat percentage of around 15%. One interesting obstacle I've noticed is just the switch of mentality from other sports. As a former offensive lineman, I was always taught to eat as much as possible, go 100% sprint all the time, then take a break to catch your breath. After speaking to some more experienced bikers, I've realized that the mentality that I had ingrained into my brain may have worked for during weight lifting sessions in the football days, but only made me a "masher" in the bike world! I'm trying to spend my all-too-rare winter rides working on technique. Once spring comes around, I'll hopefully have my cadence and technique mastered and I'll be ready to tear down my body and rebuild! However, I'm interested in hearing about any diet or supplemental weight lifting plans that have worked for others in the past. While dieting and cycling may go hand in hand, weight lifting doesn't seem to enjoy the same crossover appeal. Unfortunately I can't give up weight lifting due to my own vanity, so if anyone wants to share their workouts I'd love to see them.

I have no idea why, but I only commute (actually to school) about 2 miles a day, but I'm currently 5' 3 and 103 pounds, lost about 15 pounds since I started commuting after 3 months, then the weight didn't change since. It's been almost 1.5 years since weight loss stopped..

In my experience with other cardio workouts, alternating high intensity/short duration workouts is the most effective method of achieving fat loss. I know for a fact that this applies to running, swimming and plays a huge role in the effectiveness of speed rope as well. Though I'm not on expert, I don't see why this wouldn't apply to cycling as well.

My question as to the comparable calorie burning of shorter vs. longer workouts was just that, a question.

I am no weight loss expert either, and you guys that have practical experience surely know more about it. It was more the math in CrazyWally's post that got me wondering, rather than any real world experience.

Maybe it all depends on how much effort you put into your rides.

But at the end of the day, you are still moving and movement burns calories. And calories in, calories out.

I lost muscle mass in my legs when I stopped. my bike shorts are no longer snug. my weight did not change

I sure hope to lose weight by commuting

Commuting wasn't quite enough for me. 3 yrs ago I lost 30lbs, (200 to 170) , mostly from riding my bike. At that time my commute was only 3 mi one-way.

So I started doing a 4-5 mi ride at lunch, seeking interesting places to eat. On my ride home I would extend my ride to a 6-8 mi ride depending on time. With weekends I was putting in about 80 mi per week.

In addition, I started dieting. Sweets are my addiction. I had to be strict with myself. Since then I have slacked off on the diet part. Back up to 180 now.