Outdoor cycling to lose weight?

I love my radar, worth every dime. It’s not perfect but it adds one more layer of protection to a sometimes dangerous sport. I still pretend I am invisible on the road. Always wear bright socks (which matters a lot) and pick the safest road I can.

And what was this thread about...

Oh yes, cycling does burn a ton of calories especially if you ride a lot....and get stronger in the bike.

John

I've found that the key to weight loss is integrating sustainable changes into your life. Part of that is finding exercise that you enjoy and that you'll want to keep doing. If you like cycling, than go for it! I started out 5 years ago 80 lbs overweight. I got on a bike for the first time in my adult life, biked a mile, turned around and went home. I slowly upped that, integrated bike commuting into my daily routine, started training for triathlons and look forward to getting on my bike nearly every day, even on a blustery January day here in Minnesota. Bonus, it burns lots of calories, but even if it burned less, I'd still do it because I enjoy it.

BrianSharpe wrote: »

jlklem wrote: »

When you get in good shape as a cyclist you can easily lose weight. I can burn 700-800 calories an hour with only moderate effort.

But the key is good shape, which means lots of miles and time.

John

I beg to differ, yesterday I rode 30km (60km with the return trip) with 560m of elevation in a little over 1.5 hrs and burned about 750 cal according to my power meter and measuring watts is the most accurate way of gauging calories expended. I suspect that you're not really burning what you think you are with just "moderate effort". (Prior to getting my power meter I probably would have agreed with you.....it was a real eye opener)

OP cycling is a great way to improve your fitness, the weight loss part happens in the kitchen. If you're new to being active I would suggest starting off with shorter, slower rides until you build up both your comfort level and fitness. Happy, efficient cycling is based on a bike that fits you properly and that is suitable to your riding needs.

One of the great things about cycling is that it's pretty much zero impact, you could ride, if you wished, 7 days a week. Even after yesterday's hilly 60km ride I feel great whereas after Saturday's 21km run I felt a little beat up and took Sunday off.

Have fun!

I rode 5 hours today at 216 watts. My ride today was 103.3 miles, 4900 feet of climbing. Other than hitting the hills really hard it was not to bad. I have owned a power meter since 2008 and currently own 4 different brands (used to have a Stages but they suck IMO) and have compared them to each other many times, plus I calibrate every ride. Here is the ride.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1589058796

But weight loss is about watching what you eat, that I totally agree with. What I meant about losing weight and cycling is when you burn 1000 extra calories a day you can eat a lot more, feel full a lot more, and still lose a pound a week.

John

I ride on days when my feet are sore (I nordic walk the other days of the week.) We live out in the country, and the roads have wide shoulders (at least the ones that I ride on.) I ride 4 miles downhill with the wind at my back and 4 miles back up into the wind. I love it! I also sometimes mountain bike but I don't feel like it as good of a cardio workout, but it sure is fun!

I'm new to cycling. I bought a Trek Verve 2 and have been hitting the local trails. They are paved and relatively flat, so it has been easy to get some long distance rides in. I'm not really sure how to measure calories burned, though. I do keep pedaling most of the time, and my average speed is around 12 mph, but I feel like my bike does a lot of the work for me, so I don't trust the huge numbers MFP gives me for calories burned. My longest ride so far has been 30 miles, but the majority are between 15-20 miles. I haven't seen any significant change in how my weight loss is going. I started last June and have been steadily chipping away at it with CICO, walking, elliptical, yoga, and pilates. Cycling is the latest and the most fun. I'm 35lbs down from my starting weight and have about 10 more to go. These last ones don't want to move so easily, so I was hoping that cycling could give them some encouragement, but I'm actually up a couple pounds since I started. I don't eat all the calories back, because I don't trust those numbers. Idk if that's just the water retention from starting something new or what, but I'll keep plugging away and hope it works itself out.

I would join your group but I’m not (and can’t) lose weight. I do bike a lot.

John