Quote Originally Posted by PinkBike View Post
i wanna take friendly exception to chris-the-cop. when you're young it may be calories in-calories burned. wait'll you go through That Part Of Your Life. i finally started losing those last pounds thru Schwarzbein Principle, but you have to be so blanketyblank vigilant! Every Single Day. uggh.
I'm 40 years old! Your body adapts to exercise, it becomes harder to burn the calories you take in. But it is still calories in, calories out. I am 115 lbs at 5'5. I work my butt off to stay like that (I used to be able to eat whatever and stay slender). Everyone assumes I have a "fast metabolism" or am "lucky"...I battle with the same problems everyone else does. It IS harder to burn calories, I have to do more to get less. I am only lucky in that I *know* how to do that, and I am disciplined enough to do it. Even then, I am frustrated at parts of my body that don't tone like they used to, no matter how many crunches I do. The truth is, I need to switch from crunches, which I like and can do a zillion of, to leg lifts and reverse crunches, which I hate (because they are hard, thus would be more effective). Then maybe I could quit whining. Right now I am just whining.

I totally admire anyone who can struggle to lose 50, 60, 70 lbs. Kudos to em. If you are turning the pedals over, you are on your way. But if you aren't seeing results, it is either a) a medical problem, b) you are not burning effectively or c) your diet is wrong...or a combination thereof.