Looking for Newbies with a large amt of weight to lose..

[new2ride]

My story is somewhat different. In January, 2004, I was diagnosed with a life threatening condition. And it was diagnosed by a fluke. I had a defective heart valve and if that wasn't bad enough, I had an ascendng aortic aneurysm. I had exactly what killed John Ritter. In April 2004, I underwent open heart surgery to repair the aneurysm which saved my life. I recovered well and remained fit and trim.

In 2006 I was placed on a drug to alleviate some nerve pain I was experiencing in my cervical spine. I've also been through two spine surgeries as well as a couple other surgeries. The medication caused me to gain an inordinate amount of weight. The medication alleviated the nerve pain but it was placing a strain on my heart. I had to be weaned off the medication but not before gaining nearly 60 pounds.

I started riding my bike in May of this year and have managed to drop about 15 lbs. I'm 5'4" and currently weigh approximately 183 lbs. Before all the medical problems started, I weighed 135 lbs. After the heart surgery, I weighed 138 lbs. I'm nearly 49 years old and need to drop the weight to keep from placing a strain on my heart. I've never been this heavy and know it will take time to get the weight off permanently.

The weight didn't happen overnight and it's not going to come off overnight. I ride practically every day for about 20 to 25 miles. I have a Trek 3700 WSD bike but am thinking about upgrading to a road bike. I love riding and want to be able to ride further in a shorter period of time.

Good post and good luck to everyone. Baby steps will help us to reach our goal!

[sundial]

How's everyone doing on their weight loss goals?

I have noticed that I'm losing inches moreso than weight. I think I've lost maybe 8 lbs but I've toned up quite a bit and my tummy is a little flatter.
Anyone else seeing results?

[Caecilia]

I've lost 10 pounds since my last post, 15 since I started riding again... another 4.5 and I will weigh what my driver's license says I do

[bikerchick68]

I'm really late to this thread as I've been on vacation... but I want to cheer you on too! I'm also not a "small" cyclist...but I'm strong and can ride a long way anyway!

and I wanted to share my brother's story... his story was in the newspaper last week... he was 458lbs and facing gastric bypass when he fell in love with cycling... got down to 270lbs! He now maintains around 300 but wants to take a bit more off still...

http://www.venturacountystar.com/new...cling-through/

It's hard work but I have faith that you can do it too!!!

[Livin the Dream]

Wow, bikerchick, what an inspiration your brother is! And once again, three more cheers for cycling, a sport that doesn't require participants to wear size 2's!

[indigoiis]

I don't know if any of you have checked out this site:

www.littlechanges.com

In January of this year, this woman and her husband embarked on a round-the-country (literally) bike tour, with trailers, on a limited budget, to prove that little changes can make a big difference. Her starting weight was 325 pounds or so. They are incredibly inspiring. Although I don't have any weight to lose, I feel like, if she can do 35 miles a day with a trailer, then dang if I can't do 45 minutes a day.

[robinmary]

I use to ride religiously until I was pregnant with my son 14 years ago and became asthmatic. Since then I may go for a few short rides each summer but had not tried to be regular about commiting to ride like I was. My husband was also an avid rider when we first met and had let his riding drift off until last summer. Last summer he began training again and rode a century for cancer research. This summer he has done the same.

After a long talk one night he told me that there was no reason I shouldn't be out there. He knows how much I loved to ride. He was right. So I've started to ride again. I found team estrogen in a search to find a pair of shorts that fit. I have nearly 50 pounds to lose, but I love being on my bike and my legs have held for my rides (shorter for now but I'm building up). I live in VT so there is no way to avoid hills and I am managing my asthma. Reading your posts makes me feel like I can check in here from time to time and hear from others who are working toward fitness with there love to ride. Thanks for sending the story of Pricilla. Small steps is the way to go.

Robin