dan_bo
How much does it cost to Oldham?
Nah. Like a lot of people, I could do with being smaller but I have trouble with keeping weight off it has to be said. Used to be easier when I was poor.
Who cares about weight anymore?
- Thread starter Crackle
- Start date
Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
Nah. Like a lot of people, I could do with being smaller but I have trouble with keeping weight off it has to be said. Used to be easier when I was poor.
Weight control is a constant. Since I went past 50, I find that putting on the pounds is just too easy. Nevertheless, I strive for a lower weight and have lost about 10lbs since my post Christmas weight. I am now 12st and have a further 7lb to lose to reach an ideal weight.
IMO if you lose control, you can quickly spiral to becoming a really fat man.
IMO if you lose control, you can quickly spiral to becoming a really fat man.
Arch
Married to Night Train
- Location
- Salford, UK
Since I started tomake the effort, I've lost about a stone and a half, and another half lost would be good. It's taken me over a year, year and a half, but it's not been all that hard.
One big help has been getting my physical job of course - lifting, walking a couple of miles or cycling a load trike 2 or 3 miles in a day. But I've been eating more at lunchtime to make up for that. Otherwise, it's not been a harsh regime - just cycling more (recently I've added loops into my commutes, to double and then treble it, up to 50 miles a week), and reducing the size of my portions, and trying to avoid snacking (often not sucessfully!). Easy to say, I know, but if you're prepared for a slow loss over a couple of years, it's easier than trying to get faster results.
Globalti
Legendary Member
When I was a student I worked in the stores at a plant hire company in Newcastle. There was a bloke called John who was immensely proud of his weight loss; he wore his old trousers folded around his waist and held with a belt and if you mentioned it he would undo the belt and show you what his waistline had been before he started the job. He'd been a clerk and pretty fat by the look of it but since starting the heavy physical job in the plant stores the weight had dropped off him dramatically.
For me the motivation to keep slim is having seen my Dad walking around in his pants and been disgusted at his belly; I vowed to myself that I would never neglect my body and become that way and I haven't.
For me the motivation to keep slim is having seen my Dad walking around in his pants and been disgusted at his belly; I vowed to myself that I would never neglect my body and become that way and I haven't.
I do sometimes beat myself up about the fact that I could do with losing a few more pounds, then I remind myself that at the age of 44 I still fit in the same size (32in) trousers that I did when I was 24. Sod it if I don't quite have a washboard stomach, the only guy I know of about my age that carries less weight than me runs marathons for a hobby.
I've been through the same process Crackle. I lost 3/4 st gradually over a year by cutting down on things here and there. I thought it would be sustainable doing it like that but I noticed I was creeping back into the bad habits and indulging myself again. It's a tricky choice to give up those luxuries and indulgences forever and I entirely see why you'd choose to accept the new you.
I've been making an effort again for a particular reason and it ain't easy - there's only so much salad and fruit you can eat!
I'd also become addicted to wine gums until I discovered that a pack contains between 500 and 900 calories depending on the brand. I reckon I was eating a pack every other day!
I've been making an effort again for a particular reason and it ain't easy - there's only so much salad and fruit you can eat!
I'd also become addicted to wine gums until I discovered that a pack contains between 500 and 900 calories depending on the brand. I reckon I was eating a pack every other day!
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
I practically live on salad, fruit and veg. I'm still overweight, mind you... (beer!)
twentysix by twentyfive
Clinging on tightly
- Location
- Over the Hill
Yes indeed - he runs them and we eat them
I managed to knock about 9 pounds off this year. Mainly through riding a lot of miles in training for a big ride through France this summer. I reckon I've stabilised at my new weight for the moment. The big danger for me are those long dark nights during the winter months when pedalling is reduced and snacking increases
twowheelsgood
Senior Member
- Location
- Zurich Switzerland
Think I know where you are coming from Crackle and this is something I can sympathise with being 6'2" and fairly hefty. I think your basic premise is correct, providing you have good cardio-vascular fitness (which is exactly what you get from cycling) then carrying a few extra kilos doesn't matter so much healthwise. However I think there are practical and long-term difficulties maintaining this.
Firstly you're very lucky if you can consistently stay "a few kilos" over as you get older, it does tend to sneak up on you, especially if, like me you carry the weight fairly evenly and don't have a particularly fat gut or arse, you just tend not to notice gain too much. Secondly you may be fit and physically strong but it doesn't necessarily follow your skeleton is any stronger. I'm a keen skiier and I notice every extra kilo on my knees.
I'm also a mountain biker and it is pretty difficult setting-up a bike over about 95kg, even if you change to heavyweight springs, you just can't dial-in the suspension of nearly every bike I've tried. It also helps if you don't fall like a sack of spuds. Similarly on road bikes, you need to put 23c tyres way beyond their rated pressures to work properly. The chart recommending pressures on a michelin pro-race indicates the maximum pressure corresponding to an 85kg rider!! I have them up at 140-150psi...
So like most things, not black and white, especially if you want to stay active as you age.
Firstly you're very lucky if you can consistently stay "a few kilos" over as you get older, it does tend to sneak up on you, especially if, like me you carry the weight fairly evenly and don't have a particularly fat gut or arse, you just tend not to notice gain too much. Secondly you may be fit and physically strong but it doesn't necessarily follow your skeleton is any stronger. I'm a keen skiier and I notice every extra kilo on my knees.
I'm also a mountain biker and it is pretty difficult setting-up a bike over about 95kg, even if you change to heavyweight springs, you just can't dial-in the suspension of nearly every bike I've tried. It also helps if you don't fall like a sack of spuds. Similarly on road bikes, you need to put 23c tyres way beyond their rated pressures to work properly. The chart recommending pressures on a michelin pro-race indicates the maximum pressure corresponding to an 85kg rider!! I have them up at 140-150psi...
So like most things, not black and white, especially if you want to stay active as you age.
Amen brother! I have a similar issue being relatively big framed (for my small stature anyway). The weight goes on relatively evenly and, as I don't weigh myself very often, I can put on a couple of kilo without noticing. Luckily, I can shed it relatively easily too just by cutting back on the intake of particular pastry delights!
There was an article in Cycle Active a month or so back about a 'generously proportioned' cyclist and such generally. Verdict was (as suggested above) that a good, strong cardio system was more important than a couple of kilo extra... that said, I personally thought said cyclist was a little more than 'a couple of kilo' over!
Fab Foodie
hanging-on in quiet desperation ...
- Location
- Kirton, Devon.
But you're paying for other peoples overweight/Obesity. The cost to society i.e. taxpayers is becoming very significant. What's more, it's preventable cost.
Well my original post was a question to myself as much as a statement of defiance. It's only really half right. It's true I have given up on losing significant weight i.e the kind that takes you back 20 years but there is still a threshold I dare not cross, so in a way, I am always cutting back, caught in the eternal cycle of feast and fast.
It's a very personal thing though, self-image and to an extent health. FF makes a very valid point, I would take an entirely different view of my weight if I was a diabetic or had a family history to think about. I might also take a very different view if I was young and single.
Instead I'm grounded in the realism that is good tastes, money enough to enjoy it and the nagging knowledge which holds it all in check. So in a way, I don't care anymore, I guess if any of that changed I would. I envy greatly all lanky streaks of pi$$.
It's a very personal thing though, self-image and to an extent health. FF makes a very valid point, I would take an entirely different view of my weight if I was a diabetic or had a family history to think about. I might also take a very different view if I was young and single.
Instead I'm grounded in the realism that is good tastes, money enough to enjoy it and the nagging knowledge which holds it all in check. So in a way, I don't care anymore, I guess if any of that changed I would. I envy greatly all lanky streaks of pi$$.
Sheet, I can recognise these sentiments. My weight has been pretty stubborn for most of my adult life - between 15.5 and 17st (I'm 6ft). There are times when I've been pretty fit and I'm in OKish shape now, but I've never dipped lower. I've given up worrying about weight - I know when I'm being a bad lad with the sherry and pies and I'll wind it back.
I am fitter than I have ever been. I took my resting heart rate yesterday (yes I know it isn't a perfect measure of fitness) and it was at 45, mid morning. This I know is a direct result of my cycle commuting.
My weight, however, isn't perfect. Back in my uni days I used to compete at judo and my category when I started was -71kg. I must have been underweight! A few years later I moved up a weight to -78kg and I did much better at competitions. The weight categories changed and I changed with it to -81kg.
After I stopped competing my weight crept up and probably hit the heights of 87kg (I am 5ft 10in) so definitely overweight. However, now with the longer hillier commutes it is back down to about 83kg. I'd like to take a bit more off, 81kg would be nice.
If I think back to when I was -71kg and compare it to now, which was healthier? I am definitely healthier now, now question. Do I like my food. Oh yes. Does cycling mean I can enjoy it more. Yup! Do I beat myself up over a few kilos. Nope!
My weight, however, isn't perfect. Back in my uni days I used to compete at judo and my category when I started was -71kg. I must have been underweight! A few years later I moved up a weight to -78kg and I did much better at competitions. The weight categories changed and I changed with it to -81kg.
After I stopped competing my weight crept up and probably hit the heights of 87kg (I am 5ft 10in) so definitely overweight. However, now with the longer hillier commutes it is back down to about 83kg. I'd like to take a bit more off, 81kg would be nice.
If I think back to when I was -71kg and compare it to now, which was healthier? I am definitely healthier now, now question. Do I like my food. Oh yes. Does cycling mean I can enjoy it more. Yup! Do I beat myself up over a few kilos. Nope!
