oopfoo

Hehe...thanks for the encouragement, Tom.

fatnslow

Hey y'all. Long time lurker, just decided to join today after looking in the mirror and trying to figure out which one was my real chin. 6'1". 246 lbs. started commuting by bike last summer - 7 miles one way - but new job, new baby and frigid midwestern winter all combined to make me wuss out. Other than the bike commuting I have been doing no riding - no long rides, no races, nothing like that. I am hoping to drop some weight and eventually get down below 200. Initial goal? I guess I'll try sub 230 on for size. Thanks for being here and for all your previous posts! They lift up more people than you know!

Halthane

Thought I should probably say hello as well. I've been rattling arround in here and on the mechanics forum, thought I should say hi. Started cycling last summer to lose weight, 6 weeks and 15lbs later I fell and dislocated my patela was off the bike for 6 weeks by doctors orders, then had my bike stolen. But I'm ridding hard again. Goal this year is 2000 miles, I'll track the weight as it comes off, but the mileage, thats something easier for me to see.

Cheers,
Paul

Chris in WCVA

Well, I found my group! 6'3" and 260. I live in a very bike un-freindly town. Even folks around here who are experienced cyclists take to the sidewalks. I rode a cruiser as a teen. Bought a mountain/street hybrid from Wally-world that I rode in college. Right now I ride a clunker from heck. A roadmaster "mountain bike" from Walmart. I ended up with it a couple years ago. Rode it for a summer before I bent the crank hauling it to a campsite. This month I ordered a Bulletproof one piece crank and got back on the road. (I wouldn't insult the site by posting a pic of it.) My work keeps me seated a lot and, heck, I love food, so I'm hoping to lose some excess poundage riding. Also have a 6 and 3 year old, so my time's limited.

I have a question. What makes a good bike for a Clydesdale? I don't race nor do I trail ride, and my butt likes cushion, (My current saddle is a torture device, I hate to spend more cash on the clunk, but its got to go!) and I usually town ride (sidewalks and sidestreets). I'm also 35 and, while I don't feel the need to look like an X-games wannabe kid, I don't want to look old on a bike! Any suggestions in the $300-500 range? Oh yeah, another problem. Around here, you're choice are the big box stores (gag) and the bike shops who seem intent on catering to only the super high end crowd.

Glad to have found the site though! Ride on!

Tom Stormcrowe

Ebay? Craig's List? You can get some sweet deals!

Here's my Clyde Rides, from the Walmart level bike and better....
Cheap Royce Union, from sometime in the late 90's


Raleigh Pursuit, 1988 (Road Racing and trainer bike)


Schwinn Passage, 1986 (Touring and my favorite bike)


I have less than $300.00 wrapped up in all my bikes combined, by the way and have scored them from yard sales, thrift stores and the Schwinn was tucked back by my LBS for me.

gqsmoothie

225lbs and 6"7'.

Chris in WCVA

Yeah but what kind. Like I said, I currently have a torture saddle, I had thought about a comfort bike. I like the look of you blue Schwinn, is something like that comfortable for long rides? Can it handle grass and light gravel roads? Or am I better off looking into the light duty city mountain bikes with smooth riding tires?

Tom Stormcrowe

I love that Schwinn of mine.....

Thus far the furthest in one day I've ridden that particular bike is 109 miles. I've ridden it in various conditions from pavement to dirt pack, but it's primarily a touring bike. Stretched out relaxed geometry and designed for long hours in the saddle!

Tom Stormcrowe

By the way, the saddle on my Schwinn is a generic market clone of a Brooks Comquest. It's one of those cheapie but goodie saddles you occasionally run across and has stood up to my lard butt just fine! The springs absorb a lot of the road rumble and it's just the right width for my "sit" bones and doesn't restrict the circulation to my legs!

MikeLD

49 Year old, 5'11", 254 lbs ... my rides are a CF Specialized Rubaix, an Aluminium Specialized Sequoia ... and I have a custom steel bike currently being made by Carl Strong. I started riding two years ago ... and fairly seriously last year ... serious in that I rode 2,000 miles in 2006. I don't race, I can't climb worth a darn, but man can I go down a hill.

I'm going for 3,000 miles in 2007 and have set a modest weight loss goal of 15 pounds. I've found the most fun riding is with a group. There's a "non-racing" cycling club in town ... some fairly serious riders, but you can choose whether you want to ride with slow, medium, or fast group.

Chris in WCVA

Thanks Tom, I'll look into it. Tourers are easy to find secondhand for a decent price. I was just afraid a. they were uncomfortable, and b. they wouldn't stand a lot of wieght. I love the style and at 6'3" with plenty of leg its hard to find a bike that is "too tall".

Tom Stormcrowe

Shoot, a true touring bike is designed to ride across the country with a full gear load and they are actually a bit siff unless they have some weight on them and they come with bombproof wheels as well! My Schwinn has 40 spoke rear and 36 spoke up front! The saddle is aftermarket, of course.......you can't beat a good leather saddle!

Retem

well I am still around and am down to 215-220 depends one what I ate the night before riding all the time non stop and car free

my wife likes that she can see my hips again and that my tool shed has shrunk darn beer wish I knew how to quit you

naisme

I don't want to admit it, but I am a Clyde too. I did manage to loose some weight (30lbs) a while ago, but the lack of a long commute and a van to drive in the winter, I'm at a comfortable 250, comfortable 'cept when I take off my clothing and look in a mirror, ugh. I have gotten back to riding, have a five mile commute (one way), and quit a desk job to work a sales floor. I've gotten back into reading my food labels, and work at eating low/no fat. Getting back on the bike is tough, I'm a little out of shape, and at 48 it is tough to get through the early pain of getting in shape. I would like to see 190 again. So, I'll be checking in more often for the support, I do get it from my co-workers, they are all 20 something and look at this old guy who rides in the cold as some what of a nut, and humor me. They are impressed when I roll in on the Bianchi Pista, without the brakes.

DnvrFox

Well, I am 67 yo, and I am 217lbs. I hate to tell you, but 48yo is young, and you are NOT an old guy, and the "pain" of getting in shape is nothing compared to the pain of not being in shape. I did 28 miles in heavy wind today while getting "in shape" for the riding season, my longest ride yet since the snows have melted. And, I was riding with a guy in his 70's who shows me up all the time!

Drop by the 50+ forum for lots of folks getting in shape and staying young after 50.

DnvrFox

And 67yo isn't an "old guy" either! It's all in your mind.

naisme

I endure the pain of getting in shape so I can reach my 70s and beyond. What I am finding is I tend to have the mind set of a 20/30yo and think I can do what they can do without stretching, without consequences, and it just isn't so. I can't imagine what you would do on the flat land DnvrFox.

DnvrFox

Well, the big secret is, Eastern Colorado is flat as a pancake! I only went up about 400 feet (from 5,800 to 6,200 feet) in the 14 miles going out - but the wind was in my face a consistent 20-25 mph at the same time!

I know you were kidding and joking, but I do get frustrated when I start seeing folks calling themselves "old guys," no matter what their age. Firstly, that represents an atitude of defeat, and perhaps excuses. Secondly, hey if someone is old at 48, what the heck does that make me, at 67? It could make me feel as if I should totally give up (but it doesn't, really!).

It is not only the aerobics of bicycling that is important. It is also, as you suggested, important to do stretching, but even more important are resistance exercises. I do a whole series of resistance exercises regularly, and have an entire gym in the basement. I even set goals for myself - right now I am increasing my bench press from 200 pounds to 225 pounds. Why is this important? 1. You lose about 10% of your strength every decade as you grow older, and this is entirely preventable. 2. Osteoporosis is the bane of bicyclers - good resistance training with heavy weights is a preventer of osteoporosis. 3. I like looking good.

I recently had a heart check using a portable sonogram. The cardiologist told me that he could hardly see the heart because of the mass of muscle in my chest, and kiddingly told me I was "too buff." I can think of worse things!

Most of my 217 pounds is muscle, but I admit to about 10-15 pounds of winter (and perhaps even last summer) fat that really needs to come off!

Here is my home basement gym. I use it daily:

Good luck to you, "Young Guy!"

Tom Stormcrowe

Dang, Denverfox, I want your gym!

Wogster

Your not the only one, heck I would like to have that much spare space, an extra training bike, and a few freeweights and maybe a bowflex, and I likely wouldn't be a clyde. Problem around here, is that I don't have the space.

funrover 

X3.. that's AWSOME!!!

Stray Cat

Just rejoined from a 3 week vacation as I gained 5lbs and am up to 202 now. Not concerned about weight so much as performance and muscle mass. Spent a few years at 6'2" and 150lbs being unactive in high school and was called "bones". Filled out finally and very active.

19, 6'3 and 202lbs.

Tom Stormcrowe

At 202 in this crowd, you might get the nickname "Skinny"! Welcome Stray Cat!

maoglone

Hi, I'm fairly new to the forums and thought I'd introduce myself here. I'm 5'10" and got up to almost 260 around the end of the year. Started eating less and paying attention to other health issues. Since January, I'm down to 235 without excercise, and just quit smoking. I've replaced the cost of about a year's worth of cigarettes with a decent hybrid bike (Rocky Mountain Metro 30--and it's a dream to ride, really). I have to admit, riding in to work is way more fun than catching a smoke.

DnvrFox

Err

May I suggest your local gym or rec center?