DarKris

At the start of the year I made changes to my diet and constantly went back and forth with eating well and eating not so well. Six months later at the beginning of June I had somewhat of a health scare with my legs that pushed me to try and actually buckle down and get serious. A week later I went on my first mountain bike ride of the year..... and suffered 😭. I was ~360lbs then, but the following year when I was about 5-10lbs heavier I was able to do a few groups rides so I knew I could handle it (truth was I didn’t bring enough hydration 🤦‍♂️).

Took a break from riding trails on the mtb, but being more motivated to lose weight I put way more focus into my diet and took the exercise down a bit. Well I didn’t actually start fully till July. At the end of June I weighed in at 355lbs. My weight last week for my follow up doctors appointment I was at 342lbs, and right now I’m at around mid 330s. I decided to hop on my mountain bike to try it out again after a good 2 month hiatus (no real trail riding) and it felt like I was pedaling a completely different bike. For reference my MTB is 33lbs in its “trail” setup. So I nearly cut down 2/3rds of my bikes weight in my own body weight and it just felt so good being on the bike (also the suspension felt like it was finally supporting me).

I only wanted to make this post because I haven’t felt this much excitement in terms of riding my bike in quite a while. This is only the start of this transition for me but I will be continuing my dietary changes long term because I just feel so great at the moment, and I can’t wait to see how the future shapes out ✌🏾.

tallbikeman

So easy to put calories of all kinds into your body. I'm fighting a battle with myself at this time to get my weight into the 235lb range. Lots of exercise will not negate a bad food choice. I've found that limiting calories is the only way I can lose weight. Exercising away calories is not a good policy. Exercise is imperative in my view but not for losing weight. Calorie counting and sticking to a calorie goal for every day is really the only way I've been able to lose weight. I'm so glad to hear that you are feeling good about the changes in your weight and its effects on you. Good luck with meeting your weight goals.

chadtrent

I agree 100%. A couple days ago I got on the scale and saw the largest number I've ever seen in my life. Even though I've ridden twice as much this year as I have in any previous year. My average ride distance for the year has gone up a lot. My average speed has increased almost 2 mph. But I'm still eating like crap. I need to change that.

pattrick

While I no longer hit the weight limits for this forum I often visit back here, been there done that. Congratulations on your efforts ,you should be proud, lord knows it's not easy. Keep up the effort. In the long run I tell myself it will be worth it. Hopefully you will feel the same, good luck in your journey, you seem to know where you are headed I hope you get there relatively easily.

TK LP

The war on weight is won in the kitchen, not on the bike. I’m now down 58 lbs. since January. I subscribed to an app called “lose it”, and count every calorie that goes in me. I do take in extra calories that cycling/exercising allow me, but I do my best to make sure I’m running a calorie deficit. I’m getting faster, and going farther. I’m now 22 lbs. from goal weight.

VTBike

I had a lot of failure with calorie counting. Too often I would save my calories for something that I shouldn't have been eating in the first place.

Here is what finally worked for me: eliminating all processed foods. By processed, I mean processed. Not just frozen dinners. I mean brown rice instead of white rice.

If have lost ten pounds in a little over three weeks without even counting calories. The truth is that I feel more full after eating and I am not eating the empty calories, especially when snacking. I anticipate getting to the stage where I will count calories, but that will be much easier to do when I am eating good, filling foods.

Juan Foote

I actually disagree. You "could" outride bad eating habits and was one of my favorite aspects of riding loads of miles a week. It didn't outweigh needing your nutrients and such, but calories really didn't matter much.
The hard part was remembering NOT to eat like that when you weren't riding.

DarKris

So for those of you finding success with calorie counting, I'm glad it works for you! I will say though my personal strategy similar to VTBike involves mostly focusing on the "what" I'm eating and less on the calorie count. My diet basically consists of food low in refined grains & sugars & whole foods that are filling & have the nutrients I need. I've also implemented time restrictions and have found that I have reduced hunger to the point where I'm unintentionally eating a calorie deficit anyway. Key thing is knowing that there isn't a one-size fits all solution and experimenting with different strategies.

"Calorie" wise yes, however calories like you said don't always match up to getting proper nutrition. Since I was more concerned with health, I definitely didn't want to keep putting junk into my body with the idea of "burning it". You "could" do that, but there still might be health complications later in life C:

tallbikeman

VTbike I love my heavily processed food and it loves me, right around my middle. I agree with you on unprocessed food. There is more fiber, more nutrition, no added sugars, salt, and all the other fillers that do you no good. Also unprocessed food is generally much less calorie dense. I weigh every day and this helps keep my focus on weight reduction. Planning meals ahead is a big help whenever I can get myself to do it. Keep up the good work and keep riding.

exercion

I agree with this, at least as far as my own experience goes. I give the changes to my diet and other eating habits more credit for what's happening for me on my journey to a smaller me. Don't get me wrong, the biking is a big part as well, but I had a reasonably active routine before (average 8k steps a day at work) and put on weight.

Eric

Harhir

It is all about a lifestyle change. I personally don't like temporary radical diets. They tend to letting you fall back into old habits. It needs to be something you can and WANT to sustain long term. My Achilles heel has always been beer... lol... Now with some stomach issues I have to cut down alcohol...
But besides this issue I also changed to a more healthy diet. The whole pandemic has actually helped me a bit. No going out for dinner or junk food. We mainly stay home and cook at home. Lots of fresh veggies, salads and fruits. Good thing is that I love veggies and fruits.
And then there is cycling. Yes I don't commute right now but I still ride almost every morning instead. In addition I use my bike for lots of other errands.
Need to get groceries? - Take the bike. I just built me a cargo bike for just that purpose. Went to Sprouts this morning and loaded up on fresh fruits.
Need to see the doc? - Take the bike.
Need to get to the hardware store for small stuff? - Take the bike
Plus all that saves money too.

Ridetolive707

I have tried several diets in the past and had varying results. To make a long story short, two months ago my dad had a heart attack at 67 and has been in and out of the hospital since then. It scared and motivated me to get back on my bike and to drastically change my diet. I hate to use to word Vegan, because I feel it comes with some stigma that I’m not looking for. I’m choosing to eat 100 percent plant based for health reasons. I was 257 lbs at 6’2 on July 21st , I’m down to 244 as of this morning. I’m not in a rush to lose the weight. It took me many years to gain it. My energy level is through the roof, my cholesterol is down, by blood pressure is low, and my resting heart rate is now in the 50’s . I’m 46 years old. I have been riding 5-6 days a week. Mostly short rides 12 miles or under , but I’m working my way up to 30-35 miles at a time.

RandomDesign

I know exactly what you mean. In December 2018 I decided to make a diet change, I was 46 years old and pushing 340lbs at the time. I'd seen both Penn Jillette and Kevin Smith made a big change with a vegan/plant based diet and decided to go the same route that they did (although Smith later changed to a different diet than the one I did) with the diet that a guy named Ray Cronise came up with. As of February of this year I was down to 224lbs and felt better than I have my entire adult life. I started a workout routine at the end of February (first an elliptical trainer and now a combination of elliptical, weight lifting and riding) so I increased my caloric intake and have been adding muscle so I've added a little weight since then. Telling people I was vegan often got me weird reactions from people thinking they were going to get preached to so I found myself making the joke that I was a "non-ethical vegan." I'm 99.9% plant based (using a lot of recipes from Dr. Joel Fuhrman) with the occasional "rare and appropriate" day where I eat whatever. It really was a complete lifestyle change for me, but I couldn't be happier than I did it.

DarKris

I too dislike the idea of going by the “diet” name as people tend to have negative connotations when you say “x” diet. I much prefer referring to the foods that I’m eating at the time. Which ironically for me isn’t vegan 🤭

StephenH

I discovered I could ride a 1,000 miles a month and gain weight while doing so. So no, you can't out-ride a bad diet.
I've actually reduced my riding some, but have been doing WeightWatchers for 2 or 3 years now.
The struggle continues.

Pop N Wood

You'll find that gets increasingly impossible to do as you age.

What is needed is not so much a diet but a lifestyle change.

Ridetolive707

I agree. When I was in my twenties and maybe even thirties I could get away with eating junk and still not gaining. Now at 46 I’m finishing even if I ride 5 days a week I still have to watch what I eat.

Now I’m not Riding loads of mile. Due to some time constraints most of my rides during the week are limited to how far I can ride in an hour (which currently for me is about 15 miles) I do have a friend who is my same age and is able to ride 250-300 miles weekly and he in great shape. He seems to eat whatever he wants when we do go out for meals but I’m pretty sure he eats very health most of the time.

pbechard

Tim for me to get serious on this front too. Will make such a difference on the bike.

Gerry221

Brilliant buddy. Enjoyed reading your post.

I myself have struggled with weight. I currently weigh in at 310lbs. 4 years ago I took up cycling, on the road, not a MTB. I was around 290lbs at the time. I got a few weird looks with me dressed in lycra . Along with a healthy diet and regular cycling. Starting off with doing 3 miles, I ended up doing a century! At that point I had dropped to 250lbs over a couple of years. I felt fantastic! Although still a bit heavy, my fitness was beyond anything I have had.

Last winter I came off my bike and had a bad fall and dmaged my left knee. I didnt cycle over the winter....and now a year later, I have struggled to get back in the saddle, despite numerous attempts. My weight is now back up to 300lbs. fitness is gone.

But reading your post, inspired me. Im going to change my diet. Get a grip on my life.

Good luck buddy!!!!

aplcr0331

Great job to those of you losing weight and sticking with it.

You can lose a ton of weight without exercising at all. It's a good idea to have some form of movement but you can easily lose much of your weight through eating less and eating healthier.

The more I ride the more I eat. I'm still working on the balance.

Milton Keynes

The only way you're ever going to outride a bad diet is if you're riding nearly 100 miles every day. If you're burning 6,000 calories a day it's not going to hurt to eat 6,000 calories a day. But most people outside of Olympic athletes in training burn that much.

It's true that you can lose weight without exercising, too. I haven't been on my bike much in the past two weeks, but I've lost 10 lbs just from changing my diet. As they say, diet to lose weight, exercise to maintain health.

mr_pedro

Loosing weight requires eating less than you want to. That is almost always the case, regardless of exercise.
Exercise does have all sorts of benefits and it also helps in loosing weight and keeping it off, just not in the direct way as in every 3500 kcal burned exercising meaning you will loose a pound of fat.

xenabr549

I used the same comment when I was a runner, you cannot out run a bad diet.. Very true..