Commuting and Weight Loss
 

Did you notice that you lost weight when you started commuting?

indeed. in the first 5 months i lost 10 pounds a month. then over the rest of the course of my first year of commuting i lost another 25 pounds, for a grand total of 75 pounds lost. from 250 down to 175.

i've since gone back up to ~185, where i've been at for around 3 years now. i can starve myself back down to 175 if i really want to, but i simply like to eat more than 1400 calories a day.

I have to ride further than my 9 mile each way commute in order to lose weight. It's not ideal

steely: how many miles is your commute?

28 miles round trip.

I only ride 4 miles each way. I haven't really lost weight because I weight lift too, but I have noticed that my muscles have decreased in size to a more toned state due to the cardio. Legs aren't giant hams wihtout definition anymore...

I've lost about 20-23lbs since I've started commuting 6 months ago. Went from 190lbs to 167/170lbs, depending on the day. The first 10lbs dropped in the first month, and then I level off for a bit, then lost the rest more gradually. My commute is about 30mile round trip. I don't really watch what I eat at all though and still drink plenty of beer.

Losing/maintaining weight is a big reason I commute. In the 30 minute commute to and from, I get my daily exercise in and it only takes an extra 20 minutes or so out of my day vs. trying to exercise before or after work.

I haven't lost much (if any) since taking up commuting this summer, but I'm sure it's helped keep me from gaining any back. ;)

Not me, just because my commute is hardly enough to be a warmup. I had to do other things to lose weight.

^ This! I manage an hour to an hour and a half of exercise each day depending on my route, and it only cuts a small chunk of my day. And it makes me feel good.

*light bulb moment*

The time I save by not having a long commute allows me extra time to do other forms of exercise and get in even better shape. :D :D

I forgot to mention, I have type I diabetes, so even a 15 minute commute does wonders for keeping my blood sugar within normal range (and also lets me eat my favorite food... donuts).

Not initially. I commuted for 4 years (22 miles round trip) without losing any weight and I probably gained some. Then I got serious about watching my diet and started tracking all of my calories from food and exercise. That was last December when I got an iPhone for Christmas. One of the first apps I got was a free calorie tracker called LoseIt!, and I started religiously tracking everything I ate and all of my exercise. I set a budget aimed at losing 1 lb/week and remarkably it worked. I lost 30 lbs. by August and have been maintaining that weight since then. I now weigh what I did in college nearly 40 years ago.

The key to losing weight is watching what you eat. Exercise just makes it easier because you can eat more, but you still have to control portions and eat the right kinds of food.

Yes. I got a long commute. I have to eat more to keep from losing too much weight.

I changed my diet and rode 20 miles round trip 3-4 times a week, I lost 40 pounds in 3 months. I'm now at 175. I didn't start losing weight until I changed my diet, before that I would just eat to compensate for the burned calories.

At 6 ft 3 inches and 135 lbs, I BETTER not see any weight loss!! ;)

Nope. I have trouble losing or gaining weight generally. Been the same for years.

Yup. I tell people that fitness is in three parts --

Want to go longer? Do endurance sports.
Want to get stronger? Lift weights.
Want to get lighter? Eat better.

You can do one, two, or all three, but you will NOT get all those results unless you do all three.

As they say, six-pack abs are made in the kitchen.

I lost a little weight (10 lbs or so) while commuting. I lost a further 30 lbs when I sold my truck and started cycling everywhere. Currently, I can eat pretty much what I want so long as I don't stuff it in and I maintain. At 35 calories a mile averaging 20-30 miles a day at least 6 days a week plus the 1800 calories it takes for a 200 lb man to maintain, that's a lot of calories I get to enjoy!

...

Yes! I've dropped about 20 lbs. from my pre-bike commuting weight...I gain about 10 back in the Winter when I stop biking to work and start carpooling....I have a 34 mile round trip commute that takes me around an hour each way. That's two hours of exercise every work day...I would have to eat a ton of offset that. :eek:

The initial effect of commuting and the additional aerobic activity should always cause some, but I've found you level out as your body adjusts. To lose weight consistently you have to just maintain a calorie deficit every day.
I've been dealing with it all year this year, and even though it has been a royal PITA,the weight is coming off--slowly the way I want.

Marc

When I started commuting regularly it took a while for my weight to start dropping. I like to ride fast, so I was gaining muscle at about the same rate that I was burning off the fat. My belt was getting longer but my weight wasn't budging. I think it was 3 months before the muscle gain leveled off and my weight started coming down. I'm 23lbs lighter now than when I started. I'd be happy if I could loose about 5 more.

I probably would lose weight if I watched what I ate but after a long commute, 36 miles RT, I get home so hungry I eat up everything in sight.

I lost the 45 lbs that I had put on, going from 230 to my "normal" 185. Most of this (230 to 200) was with a 22-23 mile RT commute with 750 feet net elevation gain and no significant change in diet (though I tend to eat pretty healthy anyway). The remaining 15 pounds have dropped off with my current flat 14-15 mile RT.