Necessary distance and speed

[hungrypizza11]

Hi guys,

I've recently taken up cycling again (purchased a Giant Boulder 2012 for on-road/mountain tracks) for fun as well as exercise. About a year ago I suffered a knee injury which prevents me from basically doing anything but cycling and walking, so I'm pretty unfit now. So, I was wondering to try to get healthy again (I'm 6'3, 93kg) I want to eventually be around 85kg. How often, how far and about what speeds to get the heart pumping would be required? Many thanks!!

[foo on patrol]

Start by just doing small rides each day in the smaller gears. Nothing wrong with doing only 5-10ks a day at a speed you're comfortable with and once you feel
you're getting the knack, then increase the gear size, distance, intensity and off you go.

Foo

[hungrypizza11]

Hey, thanks for the reply. I've been trying to do a 35km trip every few days, keeping between 20-30km/h. Is this sufficient?

[bigfriendlyvegan]

Hey, thanks for the reply. I've been trying to do a 35km trip every few days, keeping between 20-30km/h. Is this sufficient?

Depends on how much you're eating and how hard you're going. Do you feel that you're exerting yourself? Or, does it feel easy? If you want to get your heart rate up, put some hills in there as well.

Start off easy and you'll feel when it's the right time to push yourself a bit more. Over do it and you might get discouraged and give up cycling.

David

[Mrfenejeans]

Best way I've found to loose weight is to track what I need to eat vs. how much I eat vs. what I burn. all in all has worked pretty good for me in the last 9 months have gone from 117kg down to 86kg.

Easy to track with myfitnesspal.com


Now adays I cycle so much I eat just to have enough energy to go cycling the next day.

[mezla]

in the last 9 months have gone from 117kg down to 86kg.

Seriously, noone replied to this? Congratulations, that's amazing!

[AndyTheMan]

Actually, that is pretty impressive...

I'm trying to get down from about 90kg. I'm pretty soldly built but I guess my happy goal weight is about 80kg! I am struggling to move any of it..... so your weight loss is fantastic from where I am standing....

Now that its getting warmer though, the bike will start to get a workout (I write, as I look out my window to a 50knot gale.....)

[Mrfenejeans]

My goal was like 105 then 95 and seeing how my body would change I now am working to get to 82kg's which would make me healthy in the BMI stakes(only 3kg's to go till my next goal.)

I just had a trigger go in January because I needed suit pants for a wedding I was going to and I had none that fitted thus I had to that day buy more, and that was my final straw.

[foo on patrol]

That's a good enough reason Mrfenejeans!

Well done on the on going effort.

Foo

[Addictr3]

Dunno if this is a huge bump but focus more on diet, Riding and moving in general is great for fitness and the body/mind but diet is where it counts.

[footloose]

Hey, thanks for the reply. I've been trying to do a 35km trip every few days, keeping between 20-30km/h. Is this sufficient?

I am no expert on the bike but perhaps a little less a little more often would be more beneficial. And as you build fitness, build the speed and the distance. Speaking for myself, I've found that as I gained fitness I was happier to lunch at more distant cafes and the speed fiend that I think lives in most of us, pushed up my speed. : )

[mezla]

Can't beat riding further, more often, at higher speed.

It's all about effort/pain. No pain no gain!

[Mrfenejeans]

Can't beat riding further, more often, at higher speed.

It's all about effort/pain. No pain no gain!

+1

[Rex]

Congrats on the weight loss
I've gone from 112kg down i\to 87.5kg in the past 12 months just from walking. I've recently picked up the cycling bug and 50km a day during the week will hopefully bring me down to 80kg in a few months.

The hardest part is finding the food balance... definitely noticed my greater carb requirements but still learning when to know enough is enough. Weigh-in tomorrow... hopefully will be in the 85's.

[dynamictiger]

6'3" 85 kg...90kg..76 kg

Are you blokes all rakes or something? Some of us have never been less than 110kg since I was 17 and I was really fit then. Now I am just a measely 115 kg, and this is not overweight (for me).

[winstonw]

Here's the math:

- for someone your size, a practical guide to additional Calories burned by road and path cycling, as opposed to sitting on your butt is 15 Cals per km. This presumes an average speed of 25kph +/-2k. (For most riders, over a week or month of cycling, the higher work rates associated with hills is a small % of total km's ridden.)

- if you want to lose 1kg a week, you need to create a weekly Calorie deficit of 7000. It is easier to split this roughly equally between eating less and exercising more.

- 3500 Cals of exercise a week / 15 Cals/km = 233 km a week, and at an average 25kph, that's 9.3 hours a week in the saddle.

- if you have no idea how to reduce your food intake by 3500 Calories a week, then go see a dietitian or educate yourself. Weight loss without understanding the energy content of food is more often miss than hit for most of us.

[mezla]

I'm 6'1" and 91kg. I've been very undisciplined recently, but I plan to lose a few kgs over the next couple of months. Would be great to be 88kg by Xmas.

Edit: Winston, any idea how many calories above sitting on my butt I'd burn averaging 30km/h?

[miml]

How do you gain weigh by cycling? I'm a skinny person Lol.

[Mrfenejeans]

How do you gain weigh by cycling? I'm a skinny person Lol.

Eat and Eat and Eat, and when you've finished that Eat some more.

Some of the food made up by http://www.epicmealtime.com would probably help

[Cycotic]

Hi guys,

I've recently taken up cycling again (purchased a Giant Boulder 2012 for on-road/mountain tracks) for fun as well as exercise. About a year ago I suffered a knee injury which prevents me from basically doing anything but cycling and walking, so I'm pretty unfit now. So, I was wondering to try to get healthy again (I'm 6'3, 93kg) I want to eventually be around 85kg. How often, how far and about what speeds to get the heart pumping would be required? Many thanks!!

I suggest 3 things that worked for me:

1. Get yourself a heart rate monitor that has a calorie (kcal) function. This will give you an idea of how much effort you're putting in (or not) and a rough idea of how many calories you're burning.

2. When it comes to hunger, learn the difference between what your body needs and your tastebuds want, then train your tastebuds.

3. Find others to ride with of similar ability, or encourage friends to ride with you. Riding with a group will help to keep you motivated.

As a reformed fat person, I wish you all the best.

[Sam_boss260]

Another "fattie" here.

5"7 and was around the 95 - 96 kg mark. Got sick of buying new suits as the others never fit, and I my local GP had a little "chat " with me after my recent blood tests.

So right now I'm focussing on my diet, by not eating any rubbish, limiting my carb intake and watching my meal portions. This coupled with lots of water every day is slowly working.

Now I'd love to be able to do 233 kms a week, but my fitness is just not up there yet. But I am slowly improving. First I could only ride 2 kms before having to stop before feeling like I was going to pass out. Then it was 5kms and I felt just ok. Then 5km and no problems. Then 13km was the next jump, then riding to work 7.5kms and riding home. Slolwy, my fitness is improving, and when it does I know that I will be able to ride more. So this new cycling bug just isn't about weight loss only, it is a change of life for me.

Now after about 3 -4 weeks I did my longest ride of 17klms with alot of short, sharp hills with some of the more experienced guys here at work. In a couple of weeks, I want to tackle their "normal" morning rides 3 times a week.

So now I am down to around 91kgs, and to be honest have plataued at this weight, and am not able to break it. I am 39 years old, but haven't given up. I know that the older you are the harder it is to lose. I aim to be in the mid 80's by Christmas.

And... I still enjoy the good things in life like the occassional beer, just in moderation now.

[mezla]

Firstly, Sam_boss260, you're kicking ass. I too have experienced a lifestyle change thanks to cycling, and I'm so happy about it

I've found in my short time riding (since Jan this year) that whenever I was daunted by a distance (23km then 35km then 50... 85... 125!) or a particularly nasty hill (Mt Ainslie/Black Mtn in Canberra), I've always managed to do it albeit with some hurting. The best way to approach it is to know that you WILL ride home even if you're hurting, so just set yourself a goal that's bigger than you think is wise ...and do it. I've surprised myself repeatedly, and all the pain/soreness has been totally worth it for the sense of satisfaction, the physical development, and the mental cycling toughness.

For you, I would recommend steering clear of much in the way of hills for the moment. They can have a low enjoyment-effort ratio, and if you're heart rate is super high going up them, it's not an efficient way to burn fat anyway, considering you could exercise for way longer at a lower rate. Leave hills until you feel like you want to start conquering hills.

IMO, find a nice, flat 50km round trip from home, and just head out (with plenty of water, a mobile phone and credit card).

- Matt (34yr old)

[Sam_boss260]

Cheers Matt.

Trust me, I avoid hills where possible! It's just that these small ones are in the way of my ride.

The guys at work are waiting a few weeks for another ride with bigger hills. All in good time...

[Sam_boss260]

Oh and when I said "alot" of hills, there were 4 short sharp hills each way, which are alot for me.

[DarrylH]

Also, increase your incidental exercise - never stand still on escalators, don't get the car out for a 2km run to the shops etc. You will be amazed by how many more calories you burn, particularly as incidental exercise is going on all the time.