Riding to Lose Weight

[mamaof5]

I'm backwards here. I expect to gain about 10 pounds now that I am riding again. When I'm not riding I just don't need a lot of calories and only eat 1200-1400 cals per day. But when I'm riding I get SOOO much more hungry; I consume a lot more calories- more like 1800 per day.
I don't mind the ten pounds- but I do have to be careful it's not more. After a long, hard ride I feel ravenous. I feel like I could eat a whole pizza and an entire box of Swiss cake rolls. I just need to be careful to take in enough healthy carbs and protein to recover from the ride and then STOP eating.

[Yen]

I lost 50 pounds in 4 years by reducing my intake and increasing my output (exercise). I also changed to an overall healthier way of eating using a basic 1600 calorie/day diabetic-type food exchange plan. I'm not diabetic but I'm prone to low blood sugar. I'm still eating that way but I allow myself some extra goodies on days of high output (30+ mile rides). Like others said, just keep riding, consistency is the key, and don't let a long ride fool you into thinking you can eat a lot of whatever you want. Instead of thinking "I ride to burn calories", think "I eat to fuel my body for exercise". The more active you are, the more calories (fuel) your body requires..... not exactly the same as saying you can just simply eat more. It's a common mistake to think a high activity day means we can eat whatever we want.

Actually, 13 mph isn't bad! After a year, I'm still at about 11 mph on a really light, fast bike, and I'm not overweight now. Stay at it, keep riding. Even short rides as many days as possible add up and build muscle fiber to build your strength.

Don't be in a hurry. Consistency and persistence are key. My weight loss wasn't noticeable until I'd lost 30 pounds, and sometimes I didn't lose anything in a month. That took a LOT of patience to stick with it, so I just concentrated on continuing to eat healthy and doing some sort of exercise most days of the week and let things take care of themselves. I should add, however, that the weight loss was much easier after we started cycling last year -- the fat and pounds seemed to melt as I continued to eat as I already was and increase the mileage each week.

Don't give up!

[Mr. Bloom]

Welcome! I'm down 40 pounds in 18 months and feel great! This group encourage me to set disciplines and goals. Make sure they're

Specific (example, calories or miles)
Measurable (calorie count)
Action Oriented (involve you doing, writing, measuring)
Realistic, & (don't set yourself up to fail)
Time Sensitive (give yourself deadlines to adhere to)

This group has been very helpful to me despite my gender!

[Zen]

Or just ride and fill up on good food instead of bad stuff.

[kermit]

It's all a balancing act. Frequent small meals of simple food, a protein, small carb, and greens. Eat carbs early. Ride as often as you can, small gear and high cadence, 85-95 rpm. Doing this the speed will come and you will burn fat. Lots of water.

[Tabby]

The several threads here and everyone's success stories have been great at keeping me excited to achieve a healthier body. I think the Jul/Aug challenge will be great and it boils down to calories in/ calories out. That seems to be the most common factor I've seen in these threads. It worked for me, January 2007 (177-180) June 2008 (132-135).

PJ

[Triskeliongirl]

I lost 35 pounds about a year ago, and for me its a combination of biking and the right diet. Not just calorie restriction, but I found out that I have impaired glucose tolerance so even with caloric restriction and tons of riding I couldn't lose. I also had to get my thyroid meds optimized.

For me what is key is that I eat a very low carb / high protein diet which lets me keep my blood sugar in a good range, which in turn lets me burn body fat for energy on the bike. So, be sure to get your doc invovled to find out if there are reasons you aren't losing weight if you think you are doing everything else right.

I also think a lot of cyclists, even with normal glucose tolerance, over eat carbs on the bike which inhibits fat burning. When carbs are high, the ratio of insulin to glucagon is high, which while good for letting the glucose get out of your blood and into your cells, inhibits fat burning. Instead I drink protein shakes on the bike, so I fuel my rides on a mixture of stored fat, and carbon skeletons from the amino acids (which are also slowly converted to glucose by gluconeogenesis). This isn't conventional advice, but it worked for me, and I have maintained my weight loss easily.

[sundial]

Or just ride and fill up on good food instead of bad stuff.

Zen, you crack me up.

[tulip]

What everyone else said, plus

cut out the Starbucks and cakes (my former triple latte and "low fat" cinnamon swirl coffee cake was about 1000 calories--all before my day had even started)
eat an apple a day
slow down and think about how and what you are eating
stay away from processed foods (stick to the perimeter of the grocery store)
go with whole grains: bread, rice, pasta, cereal
reduce sweet treats to half portions
start pilates with a good, certified teacher

Worked for me (and still does).

EDIT: also, I found that learning to cook with fresh foods from the farmers market really made me appreciate food more, not just stuffing it in my mouth, but slowing me down and really thinking about and creating what I was eating

[sundial]

stay away from processed foods (stick to the perimeter of the grocery store)

Tulip, that advice has really made an impression on me. I did just that the other day at the store. Thanks for the great tip!