UKC

I want to use my road bike to shed a few pounds without building to much leg muscle. What's the best way to achieve this ? Lots of steady mileage or hill work, speed sessions ???

In reply to speedymushmouse:
Bang for buck? intervals in Zone 4 / Anaerobic threshold. 10min on 5 min off repeat 3 to 4 times at ~90rpm. Enjoy!

In reply to speedymushmouse:

lots of steady mileage, spin it out!

In reply to speedymushmouse:

Lots of steady miles - but keep your head out of the fridge when you get back. I did 15 hours last week and lost about 200g

E

In reply to speedymushmouse:

I agree with Enty about keeping your nose out of the fridge.

I lost a stone in the last month by doing two things:

i) a 4-5hr ride once a week

ii) eating less

...with the emphasis much more on ii) than i)!

In reply to speedymushmouse:

Put in a minimum of 15 miles at a steady pace, avoid the temptation to have a beer to celebrate your return home alive!

In reply to speedymushmouse:

Oh yes and in the words of Johan Museeuw - no food on rides of up to 3 hours.

E

In reply to Enty:


Sounds about right -- Less than 25 miles I don't bother with a bottle unless it's really warm. 3 hours is about 45 - 50 miles miles at a steady pace for this OAP depending on terrain -- about right for a decent morning or afternoon ride. I generally don't bother stopping, and would probably do it on one bottle of isotonic and possibly a gel.

If I'm going further than that, then a cafe stop is inevitable!

Sadly the weight is slow to shift -- but I enjoy my food and beer too much!

In reply to Lord of Starkness:




Ditto!!

E

In reply to speedymushmouse:

I lost about 10kg last year (77kg -> 67kg), by:
i) long sunday rides - 50 - 100 miles (aiming to burn around 1500kcal)
ii) running/swimming at lunchtime 3-4 times a week, targeting about 300 kcal a day (about 20 mins run)
iii) eating no more than about 500 kcal during the day
iv) cutting out snacks like crisps and sweets. Switching to more fruit.
v) switching from coffee to green tea
vi) cutting down on booze

based on a daily intake of 2300 kcal/day, this meant I'm basically running a deficit of about 2,000 kcals a week. In other words, the equivalent of eating 6 days worth of food over 7 days. I didn't make any drastic changes to my diet, but reckon the extra activity just tipped the balance from steadily gaining weight to loosing it. I think this is a much better long term plan.

In reply to FrankBooth:

I'm in agreement with Frank regarding running a deficit of around 2000 calories per week.

The OP may have to make some hard choices though as the things you like most are normally your downfall in putting on weight. For me it is New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and Choc Chip Cookies etc. So, I cut out all booze and chocolate / cakes etc. unless it's something like a "normal" desert like a slice of apple pie.

You can also make big inroads by getting smaller bowls / plates etc. so that you'r eating smaller portions. Greek yogurt & nuts for breakfast with fresh fruit, chicken salads etc. you need to change your diet.

I believe that losing weight is a similar cycle to putting on weight. I.e. the more weight you lose the fitter you feel, the fitter you feel the more exercise you want to do, the more exercise you want to do the better you want to eat, the better you eat the more you want to do exercise etc.

In contrast . . . . the more you eat the worse you feel, the worse you feel the less you want to exercise, the less you exercise the worse you feel about yourself the more you want to eat (for those quick sugar "highs"), etc. etc.

In reply to speedymushmouse:

I have lost 54lbs in the last 18 months, down from 93.2kg (30+%) bf to 69kg (12%bf) and although no expert, I would say probably at least 80% of this was down to a strict diet. I cycled around 25 to 30 miles per week split into three or four 8 to 10 mile loops. This was however on a heavy full susser.

In reply to speedymushmouse:

Also, again no expert but I'm almost certain I lost a lot more weight by climbing/bouldering four times a week than by cycling. It was quite interesting

In reply to Enty:

I keep a packet of fig rolls on my desk for snacking, working on the principle that if I eat those I really must be hungry and not simply greedy.

In reply to FrankBooth:

Why the switch from coffee to green tea? Unless you were having lattes with cream toppings and sprinkles or something?

In reply to speedymushmouse:

Another one for keeping the head out of the fridge, ongoing skirmishes with Mrs K about keeping "snacks" and "treats" in the house, have something healthy set aside for post ride so you dont end up hoovering up all the cheap and cheerfull sugar/carbs that our modern society likes to have to hand.

In reply to speedymushmouse:

I cycle at least 45 miles every week and could easily put weight on if I just ate whatever I wanted.

I will give another vote to giving up booze and sugary foods. Without these I will lose about a pound a week, eating whatever else I want to eat.

In reply to speedymushmouse:

so no secret formula then - seems that increasing cycling distance / speed makes no difference, it is all about cutting down on your calorie intake

have a look at the weight saving advice within the London Ride 100 magazine to swap from drinking premium lager in pints to bottles of Corrona lager

http://www.prudentialridelondon.co.uk/News/Newsletters/Easy_Weight-loss_Tip...

In reply to speedymushmouse:

I have lost 12Kg since Christmas most of which has been in the last 2 months. so I have gone from 96kg to just under 84Kg, I am aiming for <80Kg. I work on a base calorie intake of 1300 kcal/day and add exercise on top of that.

For me that is typically 20mins fast walk to and from work and 12mins hard calisthenics every morning, that gives me an extra 300Kcal and I try to stick to that. That way extra exercise allows me extra food or treats, so a ride or long walk at the weekend allows me a treat and a session at the wall allows me a post session pint.

I use MyFitnesspal.com to track calories and exercise.

Good luck

Steve

In reply to SteveD:

Not enough calories Steve.

You could ,and should ,be eating more than that.

In reply to andymac:

Have to agree. Overweight friend went on very low calorie intake diet. Worked for a while but ended up putting it all back on once diet stopped.

In reply to Enty:


Errr, cough.....

http://www.velominati.com/the-rules/

#91

4 hours

In reply to Indy:

Yes ,see it a lot.

Scrimping on calories ,and basically depriving yourself of eating a good varied diet ,doesn't work.

It was the route I took at first ,big time.

Along with excessive exercise ,I over did it.

Was down to 11.5 stone at one stage.everyone thought I had a terminal illness .

Now ,2 years later ,12 stone and probably take about 2500-3000 cals a day

In reply to andymac:

I am not claiming to be an expert but since jan I've lost 20 lb by doing this:

Use myfitness pal each day, be honest! No cheating and not adding in that biscuit.
1750 calories per day if I am not exercising.
2750 on days that I am
I cycle three times a week and have been doing between 80 and 150 miles per week.

Not worrying about that say I eat too much, not overcompensating the next day and trying to eat less because of what happened yesterday.