Tips for losing weight trough cycling?
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AlterJ
Posts: 21
Hello, my name is Kat, and i hope to fit well in your group 
I need your help, guys. I'm not overweight, but i have fat around my belly, butt and legs that id like to get rid of. I love riding bikes, so i thought it'd be the best cardio for me. What are some tips to lose weight? Should i ride with the same speed in my target heart rate or cycle high and low intensity or go up and down the hill? Is it true that i will burn more fat if im hungry if im riding? Will taking a cold shower make me burn more fat afterwards? I read a lot online and every website says different things, so i thought id ask people with experience please share your tips on how to lose fat as healthy, soon and efficently as possible. Thank you!
I need your help, guys. I'm not overweight, but i have fat around my belly, butt and legs that id like to get rid of. I love riding bikes, so i thought it'd be the best cardio for me. What are some tips to lose weight? Should i ride with the same speed in my target heart rate or cycle high and low intensity or go up and down the hill? Is it true that i will burn more fat if im hungry if im riding? Will taking a cold shower make me burn more fat afterwards? I read a lot online and every website says different things, so i thought id ask people with experience please share your tips on how to lose fat as healthy, soon and efficently as possible. Thank you! 0
Replies
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You'll fit in here, we're all mad as a box of frogs, all supportive!
Firstly, do not cycle when hungry. Make sure you fuel properly for cycling! Please don't do that!
Two ways to lose weight.
1. Consume less than you require
2. Exercise more than you eat
And magic number 3 - consume less, exercise more.
It takes approximately 3500 calories to burn 1lb of fat. Fat burns at aerobic pace (low level intensity).
My tips:
Exercise your core. I wish I'd started earlier but I've excess stomach flab that I can't shift.
Get a training plan that is <b>mostly aerobic</b> - if you have a HRM (Heart Rate Monitor) find your maximum through a hill test. Look for Peter Keens calculations for Zones.
If you make a training plan remember to vary the plan (hard/easy/medium rotation), and intensity. Make sure any plan is consistant - keep it in place for at least 3 weeks, take an adaptation (easy week) every fourth week.
Take your heart rate daily. Find out what your base level is. If you start training and your heart rate does not recover - you're doing too much.
Rest! Your body responds better with rest. Make a cycle of ensuring daily you get proper rest, weekly - I have two days strict rest - no getting teas for the team, I take the lifts. No work for me. Monthly - adaptation, Yearly - take the time to rest and recover.
Cold showers do nothing to improve weight loss, but can encourage recovery to muscles. Don't quote me on that. I've heard ice baths help muscles. I would never take a cold shower after exercise. Your body heats up during exercise and needs to keep warm afterwards. It'll make you sick if you don't. You'll be sweaty afterwards, stay warm and bundle up.
Hydrate - your pee needs to be as clear as possible.
Cycling is about suffering - but in a good way.
And please - don't ride hungry!
Oh, and we have a lot of love here. You've come to the right place!!! 0 -
Like Beatpig said, the fundamental is still calories in and calories out.
Find a comfortable bike and ride on a regular basis on flat ground at a reasonable pace. Have fun, enjoy it. That's really it - it's that easy. Seriously.
You can make it more complex and add in all the gear, specific nutrition (although, hydrate still), and other aspects but the principles remain the same. Interval training is a nice enhancement if you want to go to another level. But don't worry about it - you'll know when you're ready. Worry more about making cycling into a habit - another way to say enjoy it.
The other major piece of wisdom I can add is to make sure you somehow stick with it during fall/winter. Ideally, exercise should be a year-round habit. Don't allow yourself to get out of the habit. Plan to do indoor cycling or dress for colder weather. You'll lose everything you earned before Spring rolls around, otherwise (read: get fatter/weaker).
Welcome aboard.0 -
I am new to cycling and have about 100 more pounds to lose. So far I have lost 20 and I love it. Cycling, for me, is much more fun and LESS PAIN than running. Just ride and like the others said - make it a habit to ride 3-5 times a week0
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Thanks for responding, everyone!
Can you please explain adaptation? Do i ride with lower intensity that normal for a week? Can i still calculate zones with measuring heart rate manualy? What do you mean by hear rate recovering? And are you saying i need to be riding at the same speed, as long as im within my target zone? What is interval training? Wont riding on hills help at all?
Also, what do you think of doing the 30ds at the same time? And can you recomend a diet for me? To eat healthy, i have to follow instructions, i cant just go and "only eat healthy food."
Im sorry for so many questions, i just want to get this right and im not very bright haha
At least im well hydrated when i go in the evening, you can even see anything in the water haha And i hate running sooo much, every little bit puts me trough a lot of pain 
Thanks a lot, guys!0 -
Hiya
Adaptation is exactly what you've put. It is riding at a lower level (slower speed! lower intensity)
For example, my heart rate range is 138-154 for aerobic activity. I try and get as close to 149 as possible and spend most of my time at this range during 80% of my rides. Come hills, it will go up naturally, but after the hill you make sure you recover. The more you do, the easier you recover.
During my adaptation weeks I keep my heart rate strictly below 138, on average about 120bpm.
The heart rate zones are here:
http://www.machinehead-software.co.uk/bcfguide.html
Start interval training once you've done at least 16-20 weeks pure aerobic activity.
I don't know what 30ds is, so cannot comment!
With regards to diet, I started off looking at reducing the amount I ate, and cut out most oils/fats. I started looking at lower calorie meals, and alternatives.
The downside for me was that I started off hungry for a couple of weeks, but made sure I ate plenty of fresh veg, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, radishes as snacks.
Timing was important for me, I eat every two hours, otherwise I get "snacky"
My diary is open to look at if you need to.0 -
I'm not an expert with the HRM so I'll leave that to Beatpig lol.
I don't subscribe to the "healthy food" doctrines. No such thing as healthy food. Just a healthy diet. I would suggest reading about "If It Fits Your Macros" aka "IIFYM". I currently run a 35% carb, 30% fat, 35% protein diet but that's because of weight lifting on top of the cardio. Protein is also fantastic for staving off hunger (protein and fat are great for satiety).
I recommend chicken breast (no skin) such as sandwiches, bakes, or similar. Rotisserie chicken. Non-fatty lunchmeats (e.g. no salami, pepperoni). Steaks (avoid ribeye due to the fat). Celery with a small amount of low-fat sour cream mixed with a veggie dip powder. Steamable bags of veggies (Pict-Sweet for me). Typically, you'll meet your fat goals just by trying to meet your protein goals. Carb goals are so easy to meet to the point of destroying your diet if you're not careful.
I would start with IIFYM for diet. If you want to go the "clean food" route later then you can do that. Just depends on who you believe. Keep in mind that carbs are necessary for cycling. Some diets avoid carbs which would be problematic.0 -
What is interval training??? haha 30ds is the 30 day shred workout thing, its on youtube. And i was looking at the 17 day diet. What do you guys think? And i know that carbs are good, but you have to eat them before 6 or something
So, at this point, i need to get a HRM and measure all my heart rates, right? And i bike, which im gonna go get in an hour or so. Im so exited!
Thanks for making me feel welcome, guys!0 -
I wouldn't worry about intervals yet.
Consider your cycling like a pizza. Intervals, climbing, sprinting is the topping.
Start off with working a HRM at your aerobic level until you have a good base!
Watch out for crash diets - they cause you to loose too much energy which you need for cycling.0 -
Ill just ride for fun untill i get a heart rate monitor, to get used to it. Finally got my bike yesterday! Rode around the block and couldnt climb the hill on the way back haha is it a better to ride sitting down or standing up?0
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Sitting - stand when you need to for power though (sometimes called Honking)0
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I lost my weight by climbing hills on the bike. Day after day, week after week I just keep going after those hills. I left two much more experienced cyclists in the dust today thanks to some long, long hills.
ETA: I was like you when I got my bike in May 2012. I could barely make it 7 miles on flat land, and hills laid me out in pretty short order. I got a little pissed off at getting left behind by the groups I was riding with. I just kept at it until I could make it to the top of a reasonably small hill. Then I aimed a little higher. Then went up a major climb in my area. That took me 4 weeks to conquer. I would just keep going as far as I could without stopping, and every day I'd get a little bit further. (this hill was on my commute home from work)
Today, a year an a half later, I rode 62 miles that wound through 2 mountain passes. I was with two very experienced riders, and I left them both behind as that road in front of me quickly became the hill falling away behind me. It was amazing! I had attempted that particular route 3 times previously, and spent a lot of time walking my bike about this time last year. But today, another major climb has been conquered.
62 miles, 2283 vertical feet total. Average speed 14mph. Did I mention the head winds? Bring it on, mother****ers!0 -
I lost my weight by climbing hills on the bike. Day after day, week after week I just keep going after those hills. I left two much more experienced cyclists in the dust today thanks to some long, long hills.
ETA: I was like you when I got my bike in May 2012. I could barely make it 7 miles on flat land, and hills laid me out in pretty short order. I got a little pissed off at getting left behind by the groups I was riding with. I just kept at it until I could make it to the top of a reasonably small hill. Then I aimed a little higher. Then went up a major climb in my area. That took me 4 weeks to conquer. I would just keep going as far as I could without stopping, and every day I'd get a little bit further. (this hill was on my commute home from work)
Today, a year an a half later, I rode 62 miles that wound through 2 mountain passes. I was with two very experienced riders, and I left them both behind as that road in front of me quickly became the hill falling away behind me. It was amazing! I had attempted that particular route 3 times previously, and spent a lot of time walking my bike about this time last year. But today, another major climb has been conquered.
62 miles, 2283 vertical feet total. Average speed 14mph. Did I mention the head winds? Bring it on, mother****ers!
*THIS* is full of win!0 -
Sitting produces less power but uses more (and bigger muscles) and is more sustainable.
Standing is good for speed but the muscles tire really quickly.
Aim to sit for as much as possible!
It's often a compromise of cadence v power.0 -
Sitting produces less power but uses more (and bigger muscles) and is more sustainable.
Standing is good for speed but the muscles tire really quickly.
Aim to sit for as much as possible!
It's often a compromise of cadence v power.
I am with beatpig on this. I am also sitting as much as possible. However, a friend (and more experienced rider) observed that I may be sitting too much and recommended that I stand on hills a little more, if for nothing else to stretch my legs more. I have been taking his advice for the past few weeks and have improved my riding substantially.0 -
I lost my weight by climbing hills on the bike. Day after day, week after week I just keep going after those hills. I left two much more experienced cyclists in the dust today thanks to some long, long hills.
...
62 miles, 2283 vertical feet total. Average speed 14mph. Did I mention the head winds? Bring it on, mother****ers!
That is awesome, great job! I hope ill be like you one thing we have here plenty of is hills. Im lucky to live on a hill. If i go biking, i HAVE to climb a hill to come back home haha i went on a ride just now, and it felt awesome i had to rest a few times while climbing though. Standing up on hills would help a ton, but i couldnt do it for more than one spin, because my legs are really sore after the 30 day shred. Afterwards, going down the steps was scary. With every step down my legs shook so much, i thought theyll give up and ill go flying down the stairs haha
Thanks a lot for your advice!0 -
Sitting produces less power but uses more (and bigger muscles) and is more sustainable.
Standing is good for speed but the muscles tire really quickly.
Aim to sit for as much as possible!
It's often a compromise of cadence v power.
I am with beatpig on this. I am also sitting as much as possible. However, a friend (and more experienced rider) observed that I may be sitting too much and recommended that I stand on hills a little more, if for nothing else to stretch my legs more. I have been taking his advice for the past few weeks and have improved my riding substantially.
Got it! Mostly = sit, hills = stand
Do you guys know if its bad to drink right before/after the exercise? And how importand is it to cool down? What is the best way to warm up and cool down?0 -
Drink what????
I drink a pint of water as soon as I wake, hydrate thoroughly through the day, tea and coffee is ok (unsweetened), an hour before the ride, at least another pint, on the ride - a few sips every 15 minutes. I use High5 zero during the rides.
After the ride, the key is recovery - within 20 minutes you need to make sure you get the right sorts of stuff inside you.
I have a recovery drink of 1pint milk, 100mls greek yoghurt, 1 banana, 1tbsp honey. It has the right sort of ratio for carbs:protein for my weight (148lbs) Beware, this is a 546 calorie drink! You could trim the yoghurt to low fat and it would be ok, but the main thing is getting protein in your body to encourage muscle recovery - not bulk I must stress!
Cool downs and warm ups are dependant on to whom you speak.
Personally, I potter for 15 minutes to get up to my right heart rate - I struggle to get it up there straight away so I just don't bother.
The last couple of miles I drop down a couple of gears and that is my cool down.
If I am doing interval training - strict 15 minutes getting up to speed, and strict cool down afterwards mind.0 -
...2283 vertical feet total. Average speed 14mph. Did I mention the head winds? Bring it on, mother****ers!
I think I may be mildly attracted to you after that statement :flowerforyou:0 -
@AlterJ - Be aware of a couple of things.
First, burning calories is burning calories. You will burn fat whether you are climbing hills or riding the flats. HOWEVER! Riding in zones 1-2 on the flat will burn fat without building too much muscle and will make you lose weight faster. Climbing hills will still burn fat but will also build muscles so you will be improving fitness and improving your ability to ride but you will not be losing weight like you may think.
Second, recovery drinks are pretty important. If you don't have a mix of carbs and proteins in the recovery drink your body will tear apart muscle to get the energy it needs to recover. So, a mix drink of carbs and proteins is needed. I know I'll take flak for this one but if I have an easy ride I'll just drink water to re-hydrate. If I've had a hard ride I'll slug down chocolate milk afterwards. Everyone is different and no mater what works for one person or another, you will have to adjust and experiment to find what works best for you. Just don't do experimenting just prior to a big race or a big ride.
Third and most important! Repeat after me. "Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming." You can't let discouragement make you quit. If you are feeling aches and pains, you may need a professional fit on your bike. If you are not gaining or losing the way you want, friend someone on here or post a thread. You are not alone and we all go through it. We can talk you off the ledge. Lance Armstrong didn't win the Tour de France without steroids and you won't reach your goal without a few setbacks. They just go hand in hand. Hang in there, vent to someone and then get back on the bike. It's especially hard in the winter unless you live someplace like Florida but just keep repeating, "Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming."0 -
@ therealparisl
Today, a year an a half later, I rode 62 miles that wound through 2 mountain passes. I was with two very experienced riders, and I left them both behind as that road in front of me quickly became the hill falling away behind me. It was amazing! I had attempted that particular route 3 times previously, and spent a lot of time walking my bike about this time last year. But today, another major climb has been conquered.
62 miles, 2283 vertical feet total. Average speed 14mph. Did I mention the head winds? Bring it on, mother****ers!
I'm majorly impressed. :-) You are my hero of the day!0
