When do you start to lose weight?

[KnackeredBike]

So, I've been commuting 11x2 miles several days a week for eight months now. Starting out at 108kg for just under two metres so a BMI of about 27.5. Slightly overweight.

In eight months of cycling without especially restricting food I've lost quite a few cm from the waist but not very much weight. I guess this is fat into muscle, which is of course no bad thing. Certainly I find hill climbing much easier.

I was wondering how quickly people find they start to lose weight? I've been trying to eat high quality protein where possible but not really cut back on socialising so alcohol and restaurant meals either.

I'm potentially relocating jobs which will double the commute so thinking that hopefully that will start to drop the kg. I have suffered from food disorders in the past so trying not to get too hung up on it. But it would be good to know what to expect, partially to check I am not dropping weight too fast either.

 

[ColinJ]

You can lose weight without cycling and you can ride a lot and still gain weight.

On my first cycling holiday in Spain, I rode over 700 hilly miles in 2 weeks but I came home 2 or 3 kgs heavier because I had been eating too much at the hotel buffets and drinking too much in the bar afterwards!

I think that cutting back on the booze and eating out are what you should look at for losing weight, and use the cycling to get fit and have fun.

 

[S-Express]

I guess this is fat into muscle, which is of course no bad thing. Certainly I find hill climbing much easier.

Not necessarily fat into muscle, which I think is a common misconception. Sounds like you have lost minimal weight, but improved your aerobic fitness. Actual weight loss usually starts in the kitchen, not on the bike.

 

[KnackeredBike]

Not necessarily fat into muscle, which I think is a common misconception. Sounds like you have lost minimal weight, but improved your aerobic fitness. Actual weight loss usually starts in the kitchen, not on the bike.

I know of course you cannot physically convert muscle into fat, but surely I must be gaining muscle and losing fat to loose waist inches.

I'm aware that it would accelerate loss if I reduced food but restricting food for any reason is a slippery slope for me (I used to allow myself 200 calories a day and tend to have low blood sugar even eating properly).

 

[ColinJ]

Well, you could certainly do something about the alcohol intake!

As for the food ... How about eating DIFFERENT food instead of cutting food out? For example, you could eat vast amounts of salad, cabbage, broccoli etc. without taking in too many calories, and that should reduce your appetite for more fattening food.

Do you have a medical condition causing low blood sugar?

 

[Debade]

My experience and my DW is it takes about 2 weeks with a fully loaded bike and averaging 50 miles per day to begin to experience weight loss. For a 30 day plus trip, we will lose 10 to 15 pounds, with no concern with what we what we eat. In fact we do not eat healthy. We eat cheap.

My DW has always been at her proper weight and gets back to that eventually. Of the 3/4 inches I originally lost, i was able to keep 2 inches off my waist. (I am really handsome now )

 

[KnackeredBike]

Well, you could certainly do something about the alcohol intake!

As for the food ... How about eating DIFFERENT food instead of cutting food out? For example, you could eat vast amounts of salad, cabbage, broccoli etc. without taking in too many calories, and that should reduce your appetite for more fattening food.

Do you have a medical condition causing low blood sugar?

Honestly a good night out is one of my only vices and I don't really have any desire to change (this being my last year as a twenty-something possibly related to it).

I do eat for the most part fairly healthily, little meat, lots of vegetables, but as I said I don't want to start calorie counting.

The low blood sugar is caused by two of my meds and there is not really any cure except eating sugary food when I start to feel rough, unfortunately.

 

[KnackeredBike]

My experience and my DW is it takes about 2 weeks with a fully loaded bike and averaging 50 miles per day to begin to experience weight loss. For a 30 day plus trip, we will lose 10 to 15 pounds, with no concern with what we what we eat. In fact we do not eat healthy. We eat cheap.

My DW has always been at her proper weight and gets back to that eventually. Of the 3/4 inches I originally lost, i was able to keep 2 inches off my waist. (I am really handsome now )

Thanks for sharing. I would like to take a cycling holiday but my wife is firmly in the "drive everywhere even when it's a five minute walk" camp, much to my annoyance. Maybe once my two year old can cycle properly it might be an option.

 

[Debade]

Thanks for sharing. I would like to take a cycling holiday but my wife is firmly in the "drive everywhere even when it's a five minute walk" camp, much to my annoyance. Maybe once my two year old can cycle properly it might be an option.

I know a 9 year old who road a couple thousand miles with his 12 year old brother. Our kids took road 100 miles in 2 days when 12. Don't underestimate your child's ability. In the meantime, get a bike trailer. Your wife can SAG

 

[KnackeredBike]

I know a 9 year old who road a couple thousand miles with his 12 year old brother. Our kids took road 100 miles in 2 days when 12. Don't underestimate your child's ability. In the meantime, get a bike trailer. Your wife can SAG

Oh I am well aware of how great cycling is when you are young. I was totally fearless and would go on very long rides seeking out steep hills which I would bomb down. When you come off you bounce and it's dreadfully funny. My mum of course forbid me from going on roads so I would push my bike out into the fields then onto the roads when out of sight.

However I am reticent to get a bike trailer because some of the drivers around here are absolute cockwombles and I would rather mini-Chris doesn't become a crumple zone.

 

[User16625]

Well, you could certainly do something about the alcohol intake!

As for the food ... How about eating DIFFERENT food instead of cutting food out? For example, you could eat vast amounts of salad, cabbage, broccoli etc. without taking in too many calories, and that should reduce your appetite for more fattening food.

Do you have a medical condition causing low blood sugar?

A better alternative to that is to have a heart attack. I for one cant stand veg. I love fruit tho. Is it even possible to eat healthily without vegetables? That said I do often eat salad, burgers and kebabs always come with some.

 

[ChrisV]

 

[Racing roadkill]

It's complicated. Everyone is different, but if you wanted a kind of 'blanket' answer. As your fitness levels increase, your body starts to use fuel more efficiently. So, to put a gross oversimplification on it, the longer / harder you ride, the less ( relatively speaking ) you need to eat ( purely on calories, not thinking about nutritional info ). If you get fitter, ride longer / harder, and don't tailor your calorie intake, it's actually possible to gain weight. You may also start to develop more muscle, which cubic meter for cubic meter, weighs more than fat. Body composition calculation starts to become just as important as weight to height. There is a better guide to whether you're the correct weight, by using a calculator that includes waist size / height. If a muscular athlete ( say an international rugby winger ) used the standard BMI calculator, there's a good chance they would find themselves in the pre-obese / obese range, whereas using waist to height would tell a more accurate tale. In short, eat less move more.

 

[Joffey]

Maybe try and log your calories on something like My Fitness Pal for a week or two to see how much you are consuming. It is really easy to overeat without knowing. You might find this is the case and then you can amend your diet accordingly if you want to lose weight.

 

[screenman]

The day you eat less calories than you use is the day you may lose weight.

Nothing tastes nicer than feeeling slim.