Recommendations for Very Overweight Beginner

[Lovacott]

I’d start with a mountain bike and don’t worry about speed. The mtn bike will give you a better workout. Get something second hand and reward yourself next summer if you’ve hit a target weight loss.

An old MTB is perfect for gaining fitness from a low base. You are not trying to break land speed records, you are not looking to be in the next Olympics. You will have all of the gears for every hill.

To start with, you are just looking to build road sense, a cycling habit, a bit of cycling knowledge. Basically, you are learning how to ride a bike.

It's not until you learn how to ride a bike that you will know what kind of bike you would eventually like to ride.

I started out on an old MTB back in March and (like many) I began looking at top end road bikes but the lack of availability stopped me from buying one. So I stuck with the old MTB.

I'm still doing my 20 mile per day commute on the same machine and the more I do it, the more reluctant I have become to changing bikes.

The MTB does what I want it to do and many of its early shortcomings were down to my lack of ability rather than the build of the bike.

 

[Gravity Aided]

If you need to restrict carbohydrates, if your intake is too high, I might suggest doing so, but keeping meals more vegetable matter and meat, and less breads. I got to my size through not monitoring carbs and calories. And when you look at this aspect of your diet, you'll soon find the culprits. If I want to lose weight, I often eat salads for lunch. Big salads, but still salads. And a lighter breakfast. Dinner as per my usual. Try staying under 60 carb units per meal. See a doctor first. Underlying conditions, ye know.

 

[matticus]

Although the above is true, regular exercise does increase your metabolic rate which in turn burns off more calories during the rest of the day

Is there any hard evidence of this? I remember discussions about this a few years ago, and the (armchair) experts seemed to think not.

Note I'm not challenging what you say - it's always kinda *felt* right to me!

 

[Lovacott]

I got to my size through not monitoring carbs and calories. And when you look at this aspect of your diet, you'll soon find the culprits. If I want to lose weight, I often eat salads for lunch. Big salads, but still salads. And a lighter breakfast. Dinner as per my usual. Try staying under 60 carb units per meal. See a doctor first. Underlying conditions, ye know.

Food swaps are brilliant. A hefty bowl of porridge is more filling than a piddly bacon butty and porridge is a hundred times more nutritious.

A decent handful of Walnuts will fill your belly better than half a dozen packets of Walkers crisps and give you a wide variety of your essential daily requirements.

A grilled chicken kebab will contain a 1/5 of the fat of a Lamb Doner Kebab.

Nobody needs to eat less food. They just need to eat better food.

 

[Lovacott]

Is there any hard evidence of this? I remember discussions about this a few years ago, and the (armchair) experts seemed to think not.

Note I'm not challenging what you say - it's always kinda *felt* right to me!

Long story.

We are designed to eat as many calories as we can lay our hands on (as are all animals).

Excess calories are stored as fat.

As long as we are consuming excess calories, our metabolic rate stays high enabling us to to hunt down and consume even more calories.

If we fail to eat when we are hungry, our metabolism goes into survival mode where it tries to preserve the fat stores for a period of famine (in extreme cases, the slowing down of the metabolism causes hibernation).

The opposite of this is muscle building.

When we exert ourselves to the point where a muscle fails to deliver (when chasing prey), the body diverts resources to that muscle so that we are better able to catch the prey the next time around. The trade off is that maintaining that muscle requires more energy and if that muscle isn't used for a while, the body will divert resources away from it and the muscle will waste.

Where we are today is that calories are readily available and minimal effort is required to get them (desk job then drive to Maccas for tea).

This is why we have a lot of flabby bodied 20 year olds today who couldn't make it up a single flight of stairs without passing out.

 

[Nebulous]

I lost over 5 stone, 10 years ago and did a mix of diet and exercise. I lost nearly 3 stone and stuck so I bought a bike and started cycling. Then the bike became more important than the weight.

It’s fair to say that generally diet is more important than exercise, but that balance shifts as the exercise increases. In the summer I can be doing about 200 miles a week and burning over 7000 calories a week above my baseline requirements. That equates to about a kilo of fat. I’ll be half a stone lighter in the summer, simply because I am moving more, without any attempt to diet.

 

[Nebulous]

Long story.

We are designed to eat as many calories as we can lay our hands on (as are all animals).

Excess calories are stored as fat.

As long as we are consuming excess calories, our metabolic rate stays high enabling us to to hunt down and consume even more calories.

If we fail to eat when we are hungry, our metabolism goes into survival mode where it tries to preserve the fat stores for a period of famine (in extreme cases, the slowing down of the metabolism causes hibernation).

The opposite of this is muscle building.

When we exert ourselves to the point where a muscle fails to deliver (when chasing prey), the body diverts resources to that muscle so that we are better able to catch the prey the next time around. The trade off is that maintaining that muscle requires more energy and if that muscle isn't used for a while, the body will divert resources away from it and the muscle will waste.

Where we are today is that calories are readily available and minimal effort is required to get them (desk job then drive to Maccas for tea).

This is why we have a lot of flabby bodied 20 year olds today who couldn't make it up a single flight of stairs without passing out.

I lost my weight by doing a sort of reverse 5:2 diet. I lost a pound a week very consistently over 14 months. I realised I needed a deficit of 3500 calories to lose a pound, but was worried about my metabolism slowing. I decided instead of running a deficit of 500 calories a day to run a deficit of 700 calories Mon - Fri and eat a balanced diet at the weekend. It seemed to work.

 

[matticus]

Long story.

We are designed to eat as many calories as we can lay our hands on (as are all animals).

Excess calories are stored as fat.

As long as we are consuming excess calories, our metabolic rate stays high enabling us to to hunt down and consume even more calories.

If we fail to eat when we are hungry, our metabolism goes into survival mode where it tries to preserve the fat stores for a period of famine (in extreme cases, the slowing down of the metabolism causes hibernation).

The opposite of this is muscle building.

When we exert ourselves to the point where a muscle fails to deliver (when chasing prey), the body diverts resources to that muscle so that we are better able to catch the prey the next time around. The trade off is that maintaining that muscle requires more energy and if that muscle isn't used for a while, the body will divert resources away from it and the muscle will waste.

Where we are today is that calories are readily available and minimal effort is required to get them (desk job then drive to Maccas for tea).

This is why we have a lot of flabby bodied 20 year olds today who couldn't make it up a single flight of stairs without passing out.

I'm in agreement 👍 ...
But sadly you do seem to have avoided the question (of evidence). :-\

 

[Gravity Aided]

I'm in agreement 👍 ...
But sadly you do seem to have avoided the question (of evidence). :-\

I think the evidence is muddled, at least as I read it from the U.S. NIH(National Institute of Health). I think some may get more benefits than others, and I think exercise aids in access and elimination of blood sugar, but other claims made for exercise are more hard to pin down. No one can say that exercise is not good for you in the proper amount and setting. I just think benefits vary from person to person.

 

[Lovacott]

I'm in agreement 👍 ...
But sadly you do seem to have avoided the question (of evidence). :-\

I don't think I've avoided anything.

But I get your point and It's a quandary.

Evidence is nothing but a strong argument.

If you take hard evidence as fact and nothing else, then there is nothing beyond the orbit of The Moon but illusion.

 

[BoldonLad]

I can recount my own experience, from some 20+ years ago, I have no scientific evidence, just the experience:

I never reached 25 stone, but, at 13 stone ( a good 2 stone over my "acceptable weight), when, at age 49, I suffered a heart attack.

On discharge from hospital, I was given advice from a Nurse, my GP, and, a dietician.

The dieticians advice was to reduce sugar intake wherever possible, and, she pointed out some "hidden" sources, in food which I thought of as "healthy". So, for example, avoid "fruit" yoghurts, instead, by plain yoghurt, and, add (frozen) fruit.

The technique I adopted to. was to read the labels when shopping, I then avoided anything with more than 10% fat, or, with high sugar levels (can't remember what constituted high, too long ago). In practice, this did not mean an unacceptable diet, although, I did have to do without Chocolate!, and, I did treat myself to some alcohol (I switched from beer to red wine).

The Nurse, and GP's advice was to be more active, but, to incorporate it into my life style, rather than "impose" it.

At the time, I was still a wage slave, so, time limited, I worked some physical activity into my daily commute (eg walk to/from metro station), and, into my daily routine (eg lunch time walk from the office).

I joined a cycling group, using a mountain bike. They rode on a picture of roads and trails. I went with them twice per week, typically doing 15 miles per outing. I found I really enjoyed this, not just the cycling, but, the commitment of meeting up with the group. The latter helped to motivate me to "get out there" on this cold, and/or wet days, when sofa and TV beckon.

Within six months, I had shed 2 stone.

Since that time, over the following 20+ years, I have kept up the walking and cycling, I am retired now, so, have more time.

I have to admit, my diet has "slipped", I do not follow a diet, although, I do tend to. eat reasonably healthily, alcohol consumption has increased, and, I do indulge in chocolate occasionally.

The net result has been a slight weight gain, but, I have "levelled off" at 11st 8oz, blood pressure is within acceptable limits, and,, at 73, I feel reasonably fit, certainly unto. cycling 50+ miles per week, with some walking inbetween.

I now ride a hybrid (Giant Escape Disc), and, tend to ride mostly on quiet roads.

Good luck.

 

[matticus]

Evidence is nothing but a strong argument.

If you take hard evidence as fact and nothing else, then there is nothing beyond the orbit of The Moon but illusion.

Difficult to argue with that

 

[Scotty55]

I managed to lose around 2 stone, primarily through cycling, from the start of the original lockdown, starting off with some short runs but very quickly building up to 50km a day (helps being a teacher with holidays). I didn't really change my diet much, but I did find that I was being more careful with any evening snacks post-dinner as I often felt them just sitting there the next morning on my ride.

There's no quick fix, but once you shift a couple of stone, you'll start to feel better and make bigger strides.

Good luck - keep at it.

 

[RichardB]

Nobody needs to eat less food. They just need to eat better food.

This needs saying again and again. I switched to a Mediterranean-style diet (lots of good veg, cut out most carbs, don't be scared of fat, avoid sugar, lots of protein) and the weight fell off me. More importantly, I felt better and had more energy than I had had for years. It just feels like the 'right' things to be eating to keep a body healthy. I spend a lot more time on food prep than before (although I don't mind as I am finding I enjoy it) but the feeling of eating well, rather than just satisfying an itch for a burger, is amazing.

 

[Lovacott]

I spend a lot more time on food prep than before (although I don't mind as I am finding I enjoy it) but the feeling of eating well, rather than just satisfying an itch for a burger, is amazing.

I've taken a liking to the Avocado over the last few years. I buy the "wonky" ones from Morrissons at £2.40 for six or so.

I ripen them at home and have them mashed with a bit of grated cheddar on wholemeal toast along with a couple of sliced tomatoes.

Beats the hell out of a bowl of Cornflakes for breakfast any day.