Advice for losing weight (or not gaining) while cycling

[lovelygamer]

Hi ladies. I'm new to actually putting some thought around riding my bike. I bought it last summer and commuted now and then with it. Nothing serious, but I always knew I wanted to do it more and learn more about the sport.

Thing is, I'm heavy. 215 pounds of heavy. I'm not all flab because I do have a gym membership but I don't work out regularly enough to stay fit year round. I also have a ten year old hip replacement so I can't be Lance Armstrong, realistically. I doubt I will be doing many century rides and I know I can't mountain bike (impact).

This month, I've been pushing myself and tracking my miles. I have commuted 95 miles in three weeks. You can see my progress in my signature. Some days, I can hardly walk at night from the soreness in my joint and/or thighs. Since I'm commuting, I'm carrying additional weight on my bike in "stuff" I need for work or wherever I am going.

I can tell cycling makes me hungry and I haven't ate perfect but I'm trying to keep aware of it. I'm going to search the forum for healthy snack ideas.

Do you have any other advice for a new cyclist like me who doesn't want to gain weight and/or might like to actually lose some? I've quit working out at the gym while I'm commuting every day because frankly, I don't have the energy. I stretch and do arm weights at home every day.

I would be happy to hear anything you can throw at me. I don't know any women I can talk to face to face about this.

[goldfinch]

Some thoughts:

--As Muirenn says, track what you eat and calculate the calories. Sites like http://www.livestrong.com/myplate/ can help you with this.

--Figure out roughly how many calories you burn a day, your resting metabolic rate plus a guesstimate of your activity level. Here is a calculator: http://www.caloriesperhour.com/index_burn.php Keep in mind that this is only an estimate and may not be correct.

--Eat 500 calories less than what you burn a day and you will lose a pound a week. This is a good amount to lose.

--Vary the biking with weight training. Weight training helps you preserve muscle while losing weight.

--I find it helpful to eat after I exercise. It helps with the appetite. You can time your meals to eat that way. Or, spare some calories for a snack. My favorite post ride snack is chocolate whey powder in milk. 240 calories worth. Other people like chocolate milk. Or maybe some tuna or cheese.

--Listen to your body! If you can hardly walk in the evening maybe you are pushing it too hard. Maybe commute every other day? And weight train on the non-commuting days, maybe twice a week.

--Be sure to take a day off once a week to recover.

--Above all, have some fun with the biking. Fun will get you to ride the next day and the next day thereafter.

[Irulan]

What she said. If you have a smart phone, there are some terrific apps out there that will help you immensely ( if you use them :)) It can be very educational and in some cases mind blowing to see how what you eat stacks up against your base nutritional needs and how exercise affects the whole equation. While approximate, an app like MyFitnessPal ( for pc or phone) can help you to determine your base calorie need for the weight you want to lose, and then help with the exercise portion. You can eat more when you exercise harder, but it has to be quality food, and it has to be within the range of what you "earned" by exercising, without going over.

[ny biker]

I've found Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook to be very helpful.

http://www.nancyclarkrd.com/books/sportsnutrition.asp

[lovelygamer]

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you for the advice. I had myfitnesspal once and forgot to continue using it. I will go back to it. I get frustrated sometimes with logging food, but I know it helps many people stay straight.

I found an afternoon snack thread with some good advice on it too.

Goldfinch, I do take breaks now but they are often on the weekend. I would like to add longer recreational rides on the weekend and cut back the commutes. I feel that the weight I am carrying in supplies is making it harder to get around.

I appreciate the input!

[Reesha]

I use Livestrong sporadically, but ultimately only when I'm feeling really super quantify-ish. Otherwise I get lazy.

Lately I've been riding TONS. I've been losing good fat and maintaining my bikey muscle mass. Basically I keep my meal portions reasonable and then fuel for the ride just before, during, and after. If you are riding fewer than 20 miles and pretty leisurely you will probably be ok with just a pre-ride banana and a post ride 8 oz chocomilk or yogurt or something. It's easy to convince you that you need loads of food the dinner before a ride or the lunch after, and I just don't think that's true if you fueled during your workout, especially if you are trying to burn fat.

Intervals are good. Ride for 2 telephone poles hard, then rest for 4 telephone poles. Or go for loooong leisurely rides. Enjoy yourself. And try not to convince yourself that you can pig out when you've been riding, but make sure you've given yourself enough to get you through the ride itself.

[leah]

I really like the book Ride Your Way Lean (http://www.amazon.com/Ride-Your-Way-Lean-Ultimate/dp/1605294063) by Selene Yeager.

I was surprised when she said you don't really need a post-ride snack if you are riding for less than 90 minutes. That advice has helped me cut a chunk of calories out of my diet and I am none the worse for it :)

[murielalex]

I was surprised when she said you don't really need a post-ride snack if you are riding for less than 90 minutes. That advice has helped me cut a chunk of calories out of my diet and I am none the worse for it :)


hmmmm....well, that explains a few things for me. :o

[ny biker]

Most of my post-work rides are just over 90 minutes. I just eat a normal dinner afterwards, similar to when I work out at the gym.

[ny biker]

This month, I've been pushing myself and tracking my miles. I have commuted 95 miles in three weeks. You can see my progress in my signature. Some days, I can hardly walk at night from the soreness in my joint and/or thighs. Since I'm commuting, I'm carrying additional weight on my bike in "stuff" I need for work or wherever I am going.

So how long is your daily commute? Is it into DC -- mostly downhill in the morning and uphill at night? If it's in a different direction, how hilly is it?

[lovelygamer]

Negative on the DC. I live on the Eastern Shore (near Ocean City) where it's totally flat and sea level. I bike between 6 and 12 miles a day. I'm working to increase it to be at least over 10 every day I bike because eventually I'd like to be able to join a ladies group there that bikes once every week at 13-20 mile routes. I take off one day a week.

I don't snack pre or post ride, yet because my rides are short (30 mins or less). I do take water and drink that while I'm out.

I used myfitnesspal today. I did 12.5 miles, burned 750 cals and ate 1600 cals. According to them, if I did that every day I'd be in good shape.

I really need to increase my mileage. I live within five miles of everything so commute miles only aren't going to get me there.

[lovelygamer]

hmmmm....well, that explains a few things for me. :o


You are funny!:rolleyes:

[bluebug32]

Whenever I use MyFitnessPal, I lose weight. For me, at least, it seems like it's all about portion control and mindful eating.

Also, beware that Myfitnesspal overestimates calorie burn. Even hr monitors can estimate high, so better to air on the side of caution.

[lovelygamer]

I really like the book Ride Your Way Lean (http://www.amazon.com/Ride-Your-Way-Lean-Ultimate/dp/1605294063) by Selene Yeager.

I was surprised when she said you don't really need a post-ride snack if you are riding for less than 90 minutes. That advice has helped me cut a chunk of calories out of my diet and I am none the worse for it :)

Thank you, I will check this out!

[ny biker]

Negative on the DC. I live on the Eastern Shore (near Ocean City) where it's totally flat and sea level. I bike between 6 and 12 miles a day. I'm working to increase it to be at least over 10 every day I bike because eventually I'd like to be able to join a ladies group there that bikes once every week at 13-20 mile routes. I take off one day a week.

I don't snack pre or post ride, yet because my rides are short (30 mins or less). I do take water and drink that while I'm out.

I used myfitnesspal today. I did 12.5 miles, burned 750 cals and ate 1600 cals. According to them, if I did that every day I'd be in good shape.

I really need to increase my mileage. I live within five miles of everything so commute miles only aren't going to get me there.


Oops, I thought I saw "Bethesda" as your location. (I guess I'm hallucinating... :D)

If you keep riding often, it will definitely get easier and you'll be able to do longer distances.

I've never been to Ocean City but I've ridden the Eastern Shore around Easton as well as the Sea Gull Century (Salisbury/Assateague). There seemed to be lots of low-traffic roads, at least on weekends, which should make it easier for you to do longer rides.

[leah]

ny biker, I'm the one in Bethesda :)

As a total aside, not to hijack - I just spent the weekend in Bethany and rode Rt 1 to Ocean City, it's a 32 mile round trip. Going there was fine, but on the way back I had a fierce, and I mean fierce, headwind the whole way. I thought I would never make it back.

[ny biker]

ny biker, I'm the one in Bethesda :)

As a total aside, not to hijack - I just spent the weekend in Bethany and rode Rt 1 to Ocean City, it's a 32 mile round trip. Going there was fine, but on the way back I had a fierce, and I mean fierce, headwind the whole way. I thought I would never make it back.

Glad to know I'm not completely crazy. ;)

I think wind is generally the challenge on the Eastern Shore. I personally prefer hills to headwinds, but either one will make you stronger.

[Irulan]

I second REALLY evaluating what you are eating. It may be time to log everything that goes into your mouth. You may think you are eating well or within a certain calorie goal, but are you really.? I thought I was, until I started logging. There are some good websites and smartphone apps that make it pretty easy.

Do you know your base rate for calorie, that is how much you need to function, BEFORE any exercise? Do you know how much more you can eat, calorie wise, for the amount of exercise you do in a day?

Last fall I was on a quest to reduce fat without loosing muscle. I did it with the help of some guidelines from a trainer, as part of a challenge at my gym. Here's an example. To lose about a pound or two a week, my base calorie rate was 1200. If I rode my trainer for an hour, or did my high intensity circuit training, I could add in 450 calories for the day. For me and my size, 2000 calls a day would have still been too much. I was riding my trainer 2x a week, doing a high intensity circuit 2x a week, and something moderate. At the end of 12 weeks I'd dropped fat from 31% to 22% with very little muscle loss.

So short version is, look at the food piece of it with careful analysis.

[Irulan]

Stats: age 51'
Height: 5'3
Weight today 125. I was up to 136. Right now I fluctuate between 122-125. Last time I had body fat checked it was about 22% down from 31%. I established all my calorie stuff when I set up the MyFitnessPal app. It worked great for me for establishing a slow but steady rate....YMMV of course.

[lovelygamer]

A funny that some of the recent posts mention evaluating diet. I've been logging a week and already I see the issue. Although my calories are in line, My diet is high in fats and carbs. I am going to work at reducing these- I'm sure that's what my issue is.

Also, reminded of my earlier years when I was seeing a nutritionist. She used to tell me you wouldnt believe how many things society touts that you need in your diet that are actually bad for you. She recommended I cut or nearly cut dairy out because of its propensity to make me gain weight. Her advice was make sure you have good vitamins instead.

I am a snacks person and I think, convienence foods too. I do have a CSA farm share so I eat lots of veggies. Not all a lost cause but I totally need to improve my diet ASAP. Thanks for all the book recommendations!

[lovelygamer]

Great for everything except substituting vitamins for dairy. Definitely reduce dairy with a lot of fat though. :) Skim milk versus whole while losing weight, etc.

Greek yogurt is the bomb for nutrients and a nice filling snack at nine pm.

I do love greek yogurt. Right now I use almond or soy milk. I need to quit eating ice cream.:eek:

[OakLeaf]

I used myfitnesspal today. I did 12.5 miles, burned 750 cals and ate 1600 cals. According to them, if I did that every day I'd be in good shape.

Are you talking about your estimated total calorie burn for the day? Most calorie counters way overestimate your burn for "exercise" activities. I think a more realistic count for most people would be 2-300 calories per hour for a cruise, up to maybe 500 calories per hour at a hard recreational pace.


Also - just my opinion - while it's true that you don't need a recovery snack if you haven't depleted your muscle glycogen (i.e., gone hard for over 90 minutes without taking in any calories), I think it's a good idea to get into the habit of having a recovery snack. If you don't need extra calories, move them from another meal/snack rather than adding them in. Once you're in the habit, then it won't be such a struggle to force yourself to eat when you do start going long and hard enough to need it. The #1 impediment to portion control IME is not replacing glycogen when I need to (within 30-100 minutes of the end of a long moderate to hard effort). If I don't force myself to have a recovery snack immediately after a long effort, I'll be ravenous for literally days. Establishing the habit now will make it easier for you to do when you really need to, when even the idea of food seems nauseating.

[Munch]

So here's my deal.. I'm 5'4, 155lbs, and 22 years old. I've just started cycling I go at least 4 1/2 miles, but am steadily increasing my mileage. My goal is to get to 145 lbs. My basal metabolic rate is 1526 cals, while my calories estimated to maintain my weight is 2332. I got these calculations from a website, but I'm not sure if I'm allowed to post a link or the name of the site. Anyways, I chose my activity level as moderate active: 3-5 days a week, though I try to do something every day. I have been eating around 1500 calories a day for a few weeks, though sometimes going way overboard and have not seen any weight loss. Perhaps I haven't been tracking close enough. Is it possible my body is in starvation mode and I should up my calories to around 1800? That would leave me with a 500 cal deficit from the 2332 cals. I'm not going to experiment with the amount of calories until after my wedding (June 9) as I don't want this to backfire and me end up gaining weight and making my dress unecessarily tight! Just wanted to get some opinions.

[Reesha]

My experience is that when I first start cycling after a long winter off the bike or somesuch I actually gain numerical weight because I'm putting on muscle mass. Honestly, I'd track your measurements if you can. I suspect your using Livestrong.com... theres a place to enter those!

[Irulan]

I used myfitnesspal today. I did 12.5 miles, burned 750 cals and ate 1600 cals. According to them, if I did that every day I'd be in good shape.

.
Wow if I ride for 60 minutes @ 14 MPH (avg trainer ride) I earn 450 cals... are you sure you are entering that correctly? I know it calculates differently based on ht/wt/age, but that seems way off.

[Eden]

Are you talking about your estimated total calorie burn for the day? Most calorie counters way overestimate your burn for "exercise" activities. I think a more realistic count for most people would be 2-300 calories per hour for a cruise, up to maybe 500 calories per hour at a hard recreational pace.

Keep in mind weight matters - the calorie counts you list are close to what I burn - at 5'0" 103 lbs for that amount of exercise (my 50 min commute comes to around 400-450 depending on how hard I work...) so I don't think it is too off base to expect the OP to be burning more.

Unlike some I've been finding Myfitnesspal to be pretty accurate. It agrees pretty well with my Garmin, but strangely enough if I *do not* use the hr monitor. If I use the hr monitor the Garmin cuts the calorie count by about 1/3.... which I know is wrong!! I'd be dying of starvation if I used those numbers... I've been keeping my calorie count 100-200 under what it says I've burned and I've been losing weight slowly - around 1/2 lb a week or so, which seems right on base to me.

[lovelygamer]

Wow if I ride for 60 minutes @ 14 MPH (avg trainer ride) I earn 450 cals... are you sure you are entering that correctly? I know it calculates differently based on ht/wt/age, but that seems way off.

I know what you are saying. Myfitnesspal is usually withing 100 or 200 of each ride I log, according to Endomondo but who knows? I don't wear a monitor.

I think the reason I am burning more now is because I am heavy. I don't ride at 16mph yet either. My average is 11.

[Catrin]

I know what you are saying. Myfitnesspal is usually withing 100 or 200 of each ride I log, according to Endomondo but who knows? I don't wear a monitor.

I think the reason I am burning more now is because I am heavy. I don't ride at 16mph yet either. My average is 11.

I do wear a monitor and have found it quite helpful. I use LoseIt, an app on my phone to track food and exercise for the last 2.5 years. 50 pounds ago when I started this cycling journey I certainly burned far more calories than I do now for the same trip.

A monitor isn't exact either, and I typically assume that I've burned 85-90% of the calories it reports. I have noted that Loseit, Endomondo. RideWithGPS, and other related sites I've tried over the years estimates my calories burned in any activity to be 100-300 calories higher than what my monitor tells me - but we need to have some way of estimating what we burn in our activities. Because of this when I track exercise on Loseit I will scale the time spent back enough so the calories spent will be close to that 85-90% of the calories my monitor reported for the ride/activity.

BTW, after 2 years and losing 50 pounds I don't average 16mph either - my average is 13ish depending on the day/conditions & that is ok :)

[Reesha]

Oh man. so after riding 200 miles this weekend, my hunger is through the roof. I am sure some of it is real hunger... my body wants to make up for any calorie lag. i also think there's some perceived hunger. If this is a prelude to this summer, it's going to be interesting. It will be really difficult to quantify calories consumed this summer with no internets and such, and I don't plan on wearing a HR monitor the whole time either.

I suppose I should stay away from junk and try to eat loads of good healthy foods. I just worry my hunger will best me. Can anyone who does long tours like mine weigh in?

[Irulan]

How is your recovery eating? I find that is the key to preventing the "bottomless pit" hungriest.

[Reesha]

I've been careful to get 300-400 calories of carbs and protein into me immediately after getting off the bike the last few days. For example, after my 100 mile ride I drank a big Nesquik and ate a baggie of salt and vinegar chips. I was so full of accelerade and other stuff that it took me an hour or two to get to a dinner-eating level of hunger on Monday.

I think about what I ate yesterday and I was pretty hungry all day but in retrospect it's not that bad. Greek yogurt with granola, honey, and pb for breakfast, 3" sub, 1 cup penne alfredo, 1 cup steamed broccoli and salad for lunch, a choco milk mid afternoon and gnocchi with smoked salmon and asparagus for dinner. I'm just not used to waking up with this voracious appetite!

[Anelia]

I find controlling appetite after endurance riding difficult. I know I have to count but I'm sick of counting calories and proportions. On most days now I eat junk which I know is not correct.
Today I rode 60 miles with a mountain bike and headwind. It took me 4.5 hours on the bike and my HR monitor says I burnt only 1200 cal!
I ate some sugar on the way and a load of pasta at home. I'm going out so, some protein and beer are on the way :D

[lovelygamer]

I just read the kindle sample of "Ride Your Way Lean: The Ultimate Plan for Burning Fat and Getting Fit on a Bike" and enjoyed it so I have ordered the actual book. I read that the tables in it are hard to read on kindle, so I'll check that out this weekend.

Thank you everyone who has taken time out to give myself and the other newbies advice. :D

PS. Catrin, thank you for sharing your story. 50 lbs is awesome! I loved reading it and your advice. I do think eventually, I may get a monitor. Right now, It's all so new that I just need to understand the science behind it and learn my own body a bit.

[Reesha]

I have that book-- ride your way lean. Good advice there in general :)

[Catrin]

I just read the kindle sample of "Ride Your Way Lean: The Ultimate Plan for Burning Fat and Getting Fit on a Bike" and enjoyed it so I have ordered the actual book. I read that the tables in it are hard to read on kindle, so I'll check that out this weekend.

Thank you everyone who has taken time out to give myself and the other newbies advice. :D

PS. Catrin, thank you for sharing your story. 50 lbs is awesome! I loved reading it and your advice. I do think eventually, I may get a monitor. Right now, It's all so new that I just need to understand the science behind it and learn my own body a bit.t


That is a good book!. For me I went the the heart rate monitor route because it is one.way of staying honest with myself. It is hard for me to speak in general terms so I am glad that my experiences can help a little.

[Irulan]

I find controlling appetite after endurance riding difficult. I know I have to count but I'm sick of counting calories and proportions. On most days now I eat junk which I know is not correct.
Today I rode 60 miles with a mountain bike and headwind. It took me 4.5 hours on the bike and my HR monitor says I burnt only 1200 cal!
I ate some sugar on the way and a load of pasta at home. I'm going out so, some protein and beer are on the way :D

It's so interesting to see how the the numbers vary, whether it's an individuals physique and level of fitness, or maybe the device itself? I did 63 miles the other day on a bike trail, avg speed 14.5 MPH, and I got almost 3000 calories out of that??!!!

It would be interesting to see how one person's stuff would pan out using 5 for 6 different methods of tracking.

[Reesha]

Well certainly Anelia is going to be awesomely efficient, being the superduper mountain bike racer that she is! For now, I'm glad I burn 3000 calories in a 60 mile ride! Means I can enjoy my ice cream comfortably :D

[withm]

ny biker, I'm the one in Bethesda :)

As a total aside, not to hijack - I just spent the weekend in Bethany and rode Rt 1 to Ocean City, it's a 32 mile round trip. Going there was fine, but on the way back I had a fierce, and I mean fierce, headwind the whole way. I thought I would never make it back.

Continuing the hijack - I live in Bethany, and am very familiar with the wind situation on Rt. 1. Since that is the only way to get to different towns, we always have to deal with wind. It may have been Lance Armstrong who coined the phrase "Hills make you strong, but wind makes you mean!"

[withm]

Negative on the DC. I live on the Eastern Shore (near Ocean City) where it's totally flat and sea level.

I live in Bethany - if you want to get together for a ride in the evening or weekend some time, give a holler.

[Munch]

At Munch: I maintain 150ish at 1800 calories per day. If you are switching between 1500 and many more, that may explain why you are maintaining. You can post links, but a lot of formulas tend to overestimate the number of calories you need. Perhaps stay at 1500 until you get to the weight you want, and also work on slowly increasing muscle mass to raise your metabolism? That way, what you need to maintain will increase. (Very slowly, but it is possible). At your age, you should be able to do that. Works for us older folks too, just not as easy! ;)

I think I will do that. I have been lax in making sure I stay at 1500, but I'm determined to lose a couple lbs before the wedding and after that the remaining 10lbs.

Thanks!

[Eden]

It's so interesting to see how the the numbers vary, whether it's an individuals physique and level of fitness, or maybe the device itself? I did 63 miles the other day on a bike trail, avg speed 14.5 MPH, and I got almost 3000 calories out of that??!!!

It would be interesting to see how one person's stuff would pan out using 5 for 6 different methods of tracking.

I vote for device error in Anelia's case... It seems highly unlikely that she only burned 1200 cal's on a ride that long. My Garmin waaaaay cuts the calorie count when I use the HR monitor. I'm not sure why. It does better with no extra data or power meter data.

[lovelygamer]

I live in Bethany - if you want to get together for a ride in the evening or weekend some time, give a holler.

Will do! :)

[malkin]

Whole eggs are a great dairy food. Only 75 calories each. They are a complete protein. And are supposed to lower LDL cholesterol. I eat maybe a dozen per week, most weeks, and my total cholesterol is 119.


I like eggs too, but the USDA has made some big changes, they aren't dairy.

[Irulan]

What's to freak out about? They've been moved to the protein category which makes perfect sense to me.

[Eden]

What's to freak out about? They've been moved to the protein category which makes perfect sense to me.

Indeed - wasn't it "meat, eggs & dairy" before anyway? I would say if it doesn't originate from a mammary it isn't dairy and chickens don't have tits....

[OakLeaf]

I always thought the inclusion of eggs in "dairy" came from the fact that they're kept in the dairy case, is all - and from back in the day when people understood that vegans were vegans, but there were also vegetarians who were not vegans but kept "non-dairy," which meant no eggs either.

[Eden]

I can understand if you are a vegetarian not eating eggs -IMHO they are technically meat - left alone they will turn into a chicken....

[2wheelr]

I can understand if you are a vegetarian not eating eggs -IMHO they are technically meat - left alone they will turn into a chicken....

Only with the help of a rooster!;)

My DD is a vegetarian, she eats eggs (as we have chickens and that's what's for breakfast) her vegetarian friends eat them too. Vegans don't eat eggs because they "came out of a chickens butt". Any animal products at all-vegans won't eat. No milk, cheese, or any other yummy stuff that I seem to glom onto and eat too much of!

Chicken egg=unfertilized human egg. I'll say no more, because to make other comparisons will put you off eggs forever.