How long does it take.

[DDH]

I have a question. It has been years since I have ridden, but when we use to ride the highest milage I ever did was some of the organized rides we went on we always did the 25 miles. We rode 15 miles or more as often as we could which was usually 4 or 5 times a week and all the organized rides we could attend. My DH and I did that for a year and I never lost any weight. I toned up and looked better but never lost. Well, maybe a little but not nearly as much as I would have thought for a year of riding. Now this was back when I worked outside the home and had a small child and home along with it to run. Now I am 42, have an 11 year old and still haven't lost any weight in fact have gained, ecspecially since I quit smoking.
I have arthritis in my hips, a problem with my ankle and I think my arches are falling. I am sure that the weight I have on me is not helping anything with my feet or ankle, and the hips although I have the arthritis, I am sure would feel much better if I can get this weight off. Riding the bike is one of the easiest things for me to do for weight loss since it is my lower extremities that are in pain and riding is the least entrusive on them.
Did I do something wrong years ago when I rode that caused me not to lose, or did I just not give it enough time, or ride enough? Do I need to be doing more exercise other than biking?
I am a SAHM and have more time now to be able to dedicate to exercise ecspecially since school will be starting soon.
I have been on here reading post and going through everything on the forums I can think of, and you all inspire me so much, and now I want to do more than just lose weight I want to be able to post a 50 or 100 miles ride eventually. However I think before I can ever do that, I have got to get quite a bit of this weight off. I don't expect to be some skinny little thing, I would just like to be comfortable with my weight again. I'm 42 and not looking to try to look like I am 20 again, but would love to feel good in my skin again before I die. LOL
Sorry this is so long, but am feeling really crappy about myself today and guess I need some suggestions and help.

I wish it was as easy to take off as it is to put on, and once you get past about 30, it only gets harder and harder to lose.

I have the desire, but seem to lack in dedication and let my discouragement get me down. I just keep telling myself that "I refuse to give up this time"
I figure if I can quit smoking which is suppose to be one of the hardest things to do, then I should be able to lose weight and look better too. Right?

Well, anyway, thanks for letting me go on.

[Kano]

I have a question. It has been years since I have ridden, but when we use to ride the highest milage I ever did was some of the organized rides we went on we always did the 25 miles. We rode 15 miles or more as often as we could which was usually 4 or 5 times a week and all the organized rides we could attend. My DH and I did that for a year and I never lost any weight. I toned up and looked better but never lost. Well, maybe a little but not nearly as much as I would have thought for a year of riding.

That's amazing! You had a mighty busy life as a wife, employee, mom, and home-maker back then, right? That adds up to a lot of stress,which also makes it harder to lose weight. At the same time, you can remember that muscle is much more dense than fat, and so we can be smaller but weigh the same -- never mind that we can much more easily measure our progress by a number on the scale, it happens anyway. You probably had a real good body fat number!

On the other hand, I can KNOW all this too, but I still am not happy when the number doesn't budge, so I understand where you're coming from!

Now this was back when I worked outside the home and had a small child and home along with it to run. Now I am 42, have an 11 year old and still haven't lost any weight in fact have gained, ecspecially since I quit smoking.

Don't you just HATE that? Every day for all these years, we want to be smaller, we set out to lose the weight, but.... This summer, I've had all sorts of trouble with the scale going UP instead of down since I've been riding -- so frustrating, and I've decided to quit looking. Felt a little better today when the pants that have been getting tighter during this "break in period" as I've decided to call it, fit some better today than they've been fitting. Three months have passed, if that's helpful at all!

I have arthritis in my hips, a problem with my ankle and I think my arches are falling. I am sure that the weight I have on me is not helping anything with my feet or ankle, and the hips although I have the arthritis, I am sure would feel much better if I can get this weight off. Riding the bike is one of the easiest things for me to do for weight loss since it is my lower extremities that are in pain and riding is the least entrusive on them.

An especially good thing about biking for you -- since you're having lower body issues is that it builds all the muscles that support those parts of your body, and that will help them as well, even without weight loss. In spite of my lack of loss so far, I know that I stand differently, and I feel different than I did before I started riding. It's not just in the legs/hips, I can feel it in my whole body!

Did I do something wrong years ago when I rode that caused me not to lose, or did I just not give it enough time, or ride enough? Do I need to be doing more exercise other than biking?

Not necessarily! You probably lost fat and built muscle, and offset the numbers....

I have been on here reading post and going through everything on the forums I can think of, and you all inspire me so much, and now I want to do more than just lose weight I want to be able to post a 50 or 100 miles ride eventually. However I think before I can ever do that, I have got to get quite a bit of this weight off.

I am finding myself continually amazed by the stories I read here -- the rides people do, the weight some have lost, etc. I'm with you -- I started out happy to ride a couple of miles, at a slow and steady pace, and now find myself looking for ways to make it easier to go faster and farther, practicing hills, and more than happy to put in the time! I'm not so sure I'm with you though on the HAVE TO get a bunch of weight off to do some of these longer rides. I've got a couple of 30+ mile rides under my shorts already, and I'm pretty certain I can do a fifty yet this summer, maybe even one of those metric century things! I think it's easier than the losing weight part!

I don't expect to be some skinny little thing, I would just like to be comfortable with my weight again. I'm 42 and not looking to try to look like I am 20 again, but would love to feel good in my skin again before I die. LOL

We all want this! We struggle with the discovery that we're not 20 anymore when our bodies won't do the things that they used to do so easily. Now throw in that peri- and menopause phase, just as we thoughth we were getting to know what to expect from our bodies again! Sometimes, I think an alien has taken over my body... We struggle with not looking like we did. Parts don't feel like they really belong to us, but we can't open the zipper and peel them off, like we do our ski clothes.... Some of it we'll learn to live with -- wrinkles don't go away without substantial financial investment, for example -- but we can work on making our bodies as healthy and functional as possible for the second halves of our lives!

Sorry this is so long, but am feeling really crappy about myself today and guess I need some suggestions and help.

No need to apologize -- you have a nasty sunburn, so you're physically miserable too! And then you're still struggling with having missed three days in a week of riding -- even though you've been doing other things! Summer vacation with the kids is horribly disruptive to our routine, but you and your kids are very lucky: you get to be home with them! I have always been glad that I was able to be with my girls, even though we were kind of in an era of the women who did that were "just a mom." Is there still that attitude? I get the impression the working moms are a bit envious of the "justamoms" these days, though I always felt like the prevailing attitude was that "justamom" wasn't good enough back then, when the equal rights for women stuff was such a big thing.

I wish it was as easy to take off as it is to put on, and once you get past about 30, it only gets harder and harder to lose.

For what it's worth: you're not alone! That's why the diet industry is so huge! I'm in your same boat, wishing that same thing every day! We all want the weight gone NOW!!!

I have the desire, but seem to lack in dedication and let my discouragement get me down. I just keep telling myself that "I refuse to give up this time" I figure if I can quit smoking which is suppose to be one of the hardest things to do, then I should be able to lose weight and look better too. Right?

Quitting smoking is an amazing thing -- I've never smoked, but I watched DH quit smoking every day for a couple of years at least before he finally quit for real. Without minimizing your accomplishment, I think weight loss is harder: we can't QUIT eating. I think we moms face an extra threat -- we are responsible for all the food for everyone. I remember feeling like it was all I thought about for many years -- what's for breakfast, then it's time to start thinking about lunch, and then I have to deal with what's for supper, throw in some snacks, cuz kids eat often!, and then it started all over again! How does one lose weight when all one thinks about is what is someone going to eat next, even if it's not food that's supposed to be going in my mouth? I have a feeling we have to be careful when we're biking and dieting -- if we don't eat enough, we're going to run into trouble on our bikes, y'know?

Well, anyway, thanks for letting me go on.

It feels good doesn't it, to be able to vent now and then?

Karen in Boise

[salsabike]

Right. You can. It takes a lot longer to lose weight than it used to when we were younger, but it still can be done. You have to exercise and diet at the same time so that you know for sure you are burning more calories than you are taking in. And you don't have to wait till you lose a bunch of weight to start working towards and doing long rides. I have dealt with a lot of the stuff you mention. I have ridden 3000+ miles a year for the last two years, and my husband and I just did the 206-mile Seattle to Portland ride in one day (last year, we did it in two days. It hurts more that way, by the way. I would happily do it again in one day). Have lost 35 pounds but still have 40 more pounds to lose. I just figure that it takes longer to lose weight than it used to, consider it a long term project, and just keep trucking. I'll get there, you'll get there...BUT know that you have to watch the calories you eat pretty carefully--it's easy to outeat your exercise if you don't!

My husband looked at me somewhere around mile 150 on the Seattle to Portland ride two weeks ago, and said, "You just rode 150 miles and you're still riding. If anyone says anything about you not being thin enough, you should just tell them to go f*** themselves!". Then he laughed. He's a cool guy.

[mimitabby]

You just quit smoking. Nicotine is one of the most addictive substances there is; right up there with cocaine; more addictive than alcohol and heroin.

That is an amazing feat; it will put at least 10 years onto your life. You will feel better for the rest of your life too. This feeling better will help you beat your next demon.

I think as you continue to ride, you will be able to do longer and longer rides; and once you get to the longer ones, that is when you are going to start changing your shape. Right now you're just getting started. If you want to watch numbers, log all your miles.
(go to bikejournal.com; you can log your miles there) Each ride you complete, come home, log your miles. compare yourself to yourself, and then compare yourself to the rest of the gang. If you are consistently riding, you will see your
rank going up slowly but surely.

You are heading in the right direction. have patience, eventually you will reap the rewards.

[rivergrl]

I also am discouraged by not losing any weight. I've been riding for over a year now, I bought a road bike a few months ago and I go out and I ride that hard for 40-60 minutes (15-17 mph) at least three times a week and on the weekends I try to ride even longer and I haven't lost a pound!

My arms feel more muscular to me but they are still very large and don't look toned, if I stretch out my arm and feel of it it is very, very firm, but it doesn't "look" fit. I have large arms and I was hoping cycling would help make them leaner but so far that has not been the case. I guess my only hope of actually getting into smaller pants is to ride for two hours or more and eat only salad and then I might get somewhere.

I'm getting very discouraged that at 34 I'm classified as obese and I try so hard and I feel great but after all that hard work I still look like I don't do a damn thing. I don't feel obese and I have tons of energy more than some of my skinny friends who NEVER exercise, but I'm obese according to all the statistics and it irritates me to no end.

[Bikingmomof3]

You quit smoking, which takes a tremendous amount of will power. Be proud you made a healthy life choice. You are riding, again, another healthy life choice. As you ride, your muscles will tone and your fitness level will improve. I shed over 66 inches overall and about 66 pounds of fat (I held onto the pregnancy weight for over a decade, not proud, just the truth). In the beginning I was concerned about what the scale said. No longer. I am most concerned with strength. I do not want to be teeny, like I once was, and after having children and getting older, it is unlikely that will happen. I happen to truly enjoy food, so I do not "diet". I eat 6 small haelthy balanced meals a day and exercise every single day. I feel better, and look better (not smaller) then I have ever looked in my life. Most importantly, I finally am content with who I am.

In case you are wondering, I chose to shed weight and build muscle slowly. It took about 1 1/2 years (that time flew by but pales in comparison to the years I carried all the excess weight) and I did everything myself at home and now on a bike.

IMO, each person is different and each person must decide what makes them happy or unhappy and how to become happy and satisfied. There will always be someone prettier, younger, stronger, and thinner than me. That used to bother me, now I just accept it as a fact of life. No matter what I do, I will never be tall or have long legs or a petite bone structure. I am who I am.

[Veronica]

I can only speak to my own experience. I've put up a lot of posts about how I lost 30 pounds and have kept them off for more than 5 years now.

I still don't fit the ideal. I weigh 150 pounds, which according to BMI makes me overweight for my height. I scoff at BMI, because I know my body fat is around 20%.

I have the ugliest legs ever, even with 20% body fat. They are so frickin' round. I can't wear a bunch of really cute clothes, 'cause they just don't work for me and my stupid ugly legs. But most of the time, I don't care. Fashion is someone else telling me what to wear. These legs kick butt on a bike. I may not be super fast, but I can go far and I can climb. They do what I need them to do.

This sounds weird, but you have to make peace with your body. There are certain things that you are NOT going to be able to change - EVER. And if you keep focusing on what your body's not, you lose sight of what it is. Focus on it's positives.

Now I have to go for a ride.


V.

[DDH]

Rivergrl, I am probably speaking way out of turn, and have not idea what I am talking about, but I have never figured bicycling to be an exercise for upper body firming. You do more with your legs and it's more aerobic exercise than it is for firming and strength.
Okay, girls, am I totally off base here? I figured once I got a little more into shape that I would have to do some weights and situps or crunches for core and muscle toning. Am I wrong?

I also find that when I exercise I seem to be more hungry? Is that normal? If so how do you fight that, when you are trying to lose?

I know so many questions. LOL

I do so much appreciate everyone's help and encouragement though. You girls are all the greatest thing in the world for me, with your help, encouragement, and inspiration!

[roshelleuop]

The advice I can give is from personal experience and worked from me, so it might not work for you, but I honestly think the only way a person is going to loose weight and stay healthy is CALORIES IN / CALORIES OUT.

Jenny Craig, Atkins, Weight Watchers, South Beach, are purely gimics!!!! Yes, they are proven to work for some people, but not me. And the way I did it was free!!!! For three straight weeks, I took the time every day to write down what I ate and calculated the calories. I then wrote down what excersize I did for the day (for me it was cycling), how many calories I burned, and my mood during the excersize (tired vs. full of energy).

By doing this I learned soooo much!!! I first learned that I wasn't eating enough! Yes, can you believe that! I learned that I wasn't eating enough for lunch, which made me snack alot when I got home from work. After forcing myself to eat a higher calorie lunch (adding in some extra veggies, fruit, or grains), it stopped my snacking after lunch and also gave me more energy when I went biking. The second thing I realized is that I was eating WAY too much meat and not enough veggies/carbs. Yes, I said CARBS!!!! There are way too many diets out there that make people avoid carbs and I'm going to tell you, if you plan on biking long term, you are going to have to get used to eating carbs. Ask any biker if they'd rather ride 30 miles after eating a high carb pasta lunch (i.e. wheat pasta w/ marinara and veggies) or a low carb/ high protein lunch (i.e. chicken breast stuffed w/ cheese and veggies). They are going to say the higher carb lunch. The last thing I noticed was that on the days I excersized, I was eating more. But NOT becuase I was hungrier, but because my brain was telling me "it was okay" to have that extra slice of pizza or that donut that co-workers brought in for their birthday breakfast becuase I knew I would work it off later. Well.... if you do that, then your calories in / calories out are just going to even out and you will never loose weight.

So, after figuring out my calories in / calories out every day for 3 weeks, I am now able to do it in my head and am concious of what goes in my mouth more now than ever!!!! Like I said, this worked for me, and may not work for others, but incase you are looking for another option, please try this as it is the most natural and cheap way that I have found!

Good luck and God bless!!!!
Roshelle from Milwaukee

[maillotpois]

I figure if I can quit smoking which is suppose to be one of the hardest things to do, then I should be able to lose weight and look better too. Right?

Well, anyway, thanks for letting me go on.

Everyone has given great input. I just want to look at the comment you made at the end of your first post - "lose weight and look better". If looking better is really your motivation, then maybe that is enough to keep you going on a healthier path. Just looking better would not be enough of a motivation for me, and I'd suggest you have some other real motivators:

1. FEELING better! Arthritis, falling arches, etc. already at your young age must be terrible. I expect that by shedding some weight this will improve.

2. Your child - you mentioned a few times wanting to be around for him. This seems to have been the real kick in the pants to get you to quit smoking. GOOD FOR YOU!!! I can't imagine a better inspiration. Keep drawing on that.

How long will it take? Someone must have said you didn't get this way quickly so it will take a while to come off. Which is true and it STINKS. But you just have to be patient and persist.

You'd think that by cycling more you would automatically lose weight -not true!! When I started cycling seriously 5 years ago, I gained a little weight until I remembered that I had to really focus on the INTAKE part of the equation.

I've pretty much been nudging the weight down, holding it steady, nudging it down, etc. for the past 10 years since my daughter was born. (And yes, I gained WAY too much when I was pregnant and topped out at probably 250 - 260 before she came out!! Yikes!! Sure, a lot of that was water and kid, but after she was born I was around 215.) I'm just about where I was before I got pregnant (165 - 170. I'm 5'8". That's may not be the best BMI, but it is a healthy weight for me as things start shutting down if I get much lower.). Anyway, she's 10 years old!!! This takes time. Kids are tough on you emotionally at times, and having one come out of your body does a number on your body as well - even 10, 11 years later!!

Hang in there.

Congrats on the no smoking. If you do NOTHING else, stick with that because you only get one set of lungs in this life and you need to treat those well!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

You could lose five pounds of fat and build five pounds of muscle and you'd weigh the very same amount but you'd look much better. In fact, if you did this you would look better than if you simply lost 5 pounds of fat and had an overall 5 pound weight loss. Your waist would be a bit slimmer, less flabby arms, shapelier legs, etc. Muscle keeps burning calories while you sleep, so if you have more muscles you will burn more calories automatically, 24 hours a day.

Try to eat more fresh fruit and salads- that will help too. Stay away from empty calories and fat - like soda, ice cream, cookies and chips. Drink more water- try some lime flavored seltzer water for instance, instead of soda. My husband and I gave up ice cream and now we have fresh peaches and blueberries and strawberries over non-fat vanilla yogurt- yum! yes, there's a little sugar in that vanilla yogurt, but no fat!

Losing a pound or two a month really adds up over a year. I lost 20 pounds over the past 12 months by walking more, biking, and eating more fruits and veggies. No drastic diets.

Change your lifestyle just a bit, and you'll see changes slowly happen. Those changes make a big difference over time.

[eclectic]

I went to the doc yesterday and of course had to be weighed

I am 18 - 25 lbs over where I like to be and my BMI is terrible

Doc asked what I have been doing and told him the long rides and mileage. His comment was "I couldn't make it" (He's a runner)
He also said "you are not fat, you seem to have a lot of muscle" I could have kissed him!

I HATE the BMI index and everyone is touting it like gospel. It only takes into account weight and height and has nothing to do with fitness. 3 years ago I was 18 pounds lighter and my BMI was great, a 20 mile ride about killed me. Now my BMI is terrible and I can go 65 miles with no problem AND swim 2500 yards in a hour (Not on the same day ) Go figure

I am hitting the big 5 - OH in december along with the big M in a few years I think if I don't get this weight off now it is only going to get harder

I need to use the motivation of 20 less pounds to pull up a hill Man I'd be fast

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I have been reading a lot lately about the BMI being a very inaccurate way of measuring fitness. I think many up to date people are not relying on it anymore.
Muscle weighs a lot, and having more muscle is GOOD for you!
Yay for sturdy legs- I'm loving seeing new muscles build up on my legs! I don't notice myself much, but people are starting to comment on my leg muscles (which I didn't have at ALL before)- way cool!

[Kano]

Eclectic -- I'm with you: 20 pounds and flying up hills sounds GREAT! It seems I remember reading something about every pound of weight lost makes a significant difference on hills, and so I guess I have that to look forward to! I can climb them now, and it's making me stronger so that when I don't have as much a)) to haul up them, I'll really haul a))!!!


LisaSH -- I've told DH, I've got a killer butt and an awesome six pack, just no one can see them yet! I think I'm looking forward to being able to see them myself -- I can feel 'em growing in there!


DDH, something I thought of in response to how long does it take... Sadly, it takes as long as it takes! The good news is, you're not alone in the process. I know it sometimes feels like it, but I think your thread has showed us that more of us are on this journey than it sometimes sounds like here where we see all these amazing rides being discussed! Our team-mates have simply been on the path longer than we have. We can look at the small stuff with pride! Quitting smoking is HUGE, riding ten miles today, or even five, and an accomplishment like getting ALL the way up the hill, even at 4mph, huffing and puffing, but not stopping -- that's all good! Next time, I'll do it in 4.2 and be even more pleased, and some day, I'll do it without the granny gear!

You and I have a similar path to travel -- we're almost the same height and weight. I'm a few years older. I've decided I'm not in a rush -- at least not tonight -- but some days, I wish I could simply find the zipper and let the inner me out! So, hang in there, kid -- we'll struggle along together with our new friends!

Karen in Boise