Your thoughts on bike riding?

I'm new to bike riding, albeit I don't go super fast like some speed demons...more of just a moderate pace. What are your thoughts on bike riding and losing weight?

Bike riding has been my "go-to" cardio exercise when possible. I cycle to work (14 miles each way, hilly terrain) as often as I can. I'm on pace to hit 1000 miles for the season this week (I'm in Maine, so cycling really starts in April or so) and 450 of them so far have been commute miles.

I will warn you that moderate pace bike riding is a gateway drug to becoming a speed demon.

I also signed up for a long charity ride (3 days, 180 miles) to force myself to train heavily in preparation for it.

I mountain bike. A 2 hour mountain bike ride easily burns over 1000 calories for me, so yeah, it's effective for burning calories.

I started two years ago at 334lb and 18miles a week
I'm currently at 245lb and at 70 mile a week. all without doing more than portion control and cycling.

However
Remember the rules (all hail Keeper of the cogs)

Rule #1// Obey The Rules
Rule #4// It’s all about the bike
Rule #5// Harden The heck Up.
Rule #10// It never gets easier, you just go faster.

Rule #12// The correct number of bikes to own is n+1. Where n is the number of bikes currently owned

dropped 100lbs in 9 months using bicycling as my main exercise

Cycling is great! You don't have to go crazy fast to burn a decent amount of calories, but if you choose to, you can go full out and get an intense workout. I find cycling useful because it's flexible that way - if i've just done a very hard kettlebell workout, the next day i will take a leisurely cycle an hour or two and still burn a fair bit.

I wear a helmet, use a bell liberally and signal my turns. So far so good.

This is by no means meant to be a downer, but:

I used to be an avid mountain biker. It was my drug. I then had a knee injury (by no means was it caused by cycling, it was from poor joints I got from genetics) so I got out of it for a while. I recently tried to get back into it, but it was costing me WAY too much money, so I decided to drop it again.

Perhaps some day I would start cycling again, but it's not very high on my to-do list.

Edit: Side note: Mountain biking has been given the runner-up by Ask Men as being one of the best full-body workouts you could do (a top-10 list)

Use it to get from point A to B, then you have the added incentive of commuting to keep you committed to your exercise. Very underated form of cardio.

My son bought me a bicycle for my birthday and I am riding almost every day. I usually ride about 20 miles a week so far. I am also using portion control and have lost 10 pounds in 6 weeks. I find riding better than walking as I have back issues and its lower impact.

A wise man once said

"Bicycle bicycle bicycle
I want to ride my bicycle bicycle bicycle
I want to ride my bicycle
I want to ride my bike
I want to ride my bicycle
I want to ride it where I like" ~Queen

I'm also new to biking. I was walking and jogging and I broke my foot after tripping over my dog while jogging with her. Now I'm down to biking and 'trying' to swim. Before I broke the foot I had purchased a HRM and I now know that biking burns twice the calories that I burned while walking/jogging.. I love it, I get done faster and I enjoy it more. I cant go really fast (mph) because of the broken foot and while going uphill I cannot stand up to pedal so I bike in 1st gear and pedal fast but go so slow I swear I will go backwards if the wind hits me. lol The only problem is the sore butt deal. lol I have a big butt, gel seat but my tailbone still hurts sometimes. It does get better though. If I had the money I'd get a recumbant bike you sit in like a chair and pedal.
I'm 5ft3, 138lbs and according to my HRM, I burn about 360 cals in 45 minutes. I love biking.

I'm new to bike riding, albeit I don't go super fast like some speed demons...more of just a moderate pace. What are your thoughts on bike riding and losing weight?

Here's MFP's guess at calories burned during 30 minutes:

150 Walking, 3.0 mph, mod. pace, walking dog
180 Bicycling, <10 mph, leisure (cycling, biking, bike riding)
360 Bicycling, 12-14 mph, moderate (cycling, biking, bike riding)
450 Bicycling, 14-16 mph, vigorous (cycling, biking, bike riding)

I love riding the roads. Lots of great farming areas around where I live. I bike 4-5 times a week, averaging 36 miles everytime I touch the bike. I am attempting my first century this Saturday, and I have 2 more scheduled for later this year.

I started riding in March when I was 205 and am currently at 188.

Obviously, wear a helmet. Carry at least 2 bottles of water. Don't listen to iPod on the road (on the bike path is ok). Get a rear view mirror. Obey all traffic laws, ride with traffic not against it. I am shocked at how many bikers ride opposing traffic. Carry your cell phone and eventually get a small repair kit together so you can at least fix a flat while 20 miles from home, you don't want to have to walk that far home. Forgot to add, get a strap on frame bike pump.

My knees were hurting too much to run so I started doing a spin class to get a good cardio workout and take the pressure off my knees. After about 3 weeks of spin I dusted off my old mountain bike that I had not been on but maybe twice in the last five years and started riding outside on the road when I couldn't make the spin class. I worked up to 20-25 miles on my mountain bike and friends had been pushing me to "upgrade" to a road bike. I finally upgraded to a used Trek and now ride on average 35 miles every time I get to go out. I love it and get cranky when I can't get out as often as I would like. I would like to reiterate some of the previous points:

Wear a helmet
Obey the local laws
Be aware of your surroundings, it's sad but inattentive drivers are a cyclists worst enemy
Invest in the best bike you can afford and find a local bike shop because they will be the ones that help and guide you.
Invest in quality gear (shoes, shorts, pedals, and high visibility clothing), it makes a difference.


Good luck and safe riding.

I enjoy biking but my body is definitely telling me to take it slow. I live in a hilly terrain and riding a bike as a kid on flat land is very different. I pacing myself slowly with a little push to go farther.

I love riding the roads. Lots of great farming areas around where I live. I bike 4-5 times a week, averaging 36 miles everytime I touch the bike. I am attempting my first century this Saturday, and I have 2 more scheduled for later this year.

Good luck on your centuries! I've done two 100 mile rides. The first ride I "bonked" because I didn't eat enough. The second ride (a month later) I learned my lesson and ate properly and felt great during and after the ride. The key is nutrition and hydration. Make sure you get at least 100-200 calories per hour even if you don't feel hungry, force yourself to eat.