waydee

Hey all, i've been reading through this forum for a little while and it seems like a great place to get some advice.

I'm a 20 year old male, 5'11 and bordering on 196lbs - overweight!

In the past 2-3 months i've gone from 175 to 196 and i'm not happy about it - at all. Today being monday, I decided to do something about it. I've already got quite a good bike, I used to be into dirtjump and light trail riding but i'll admit i've not been doing nearly enough, the last proper ride I did was 6 months ago.

Annnyway, today I called up my friend (who is disturbingly fit, he's training to be a royal marine so yeah - we're pretty different guys in terms of physique lol) and offered him to come along with me on a bike ride. We did 16 miles in around 1hr15mins, which I was actually quite impressed with myself about... i'm really not very fit at all so even accomplishing this pleased me greatly. The ride included 4 pretty steep climbs, and for good measure on the way home we threw in one very harsh climb which I found very hard, my legs felt so weak but I made it to the top - albeit out of breath and my limbs aching.

My plan is to drop around 20lbs. My friend has said he'll gladly come along on rides 5 days of the week with me, we're going to keep the distance at around 15-20miles until I can see some improvement in my stamina - my diet isn't that bad, although I do have a problem with not eating properly at breakfast... I can't seem to stomach food in the morning and usually get hungry at around 10-11am, so I usually just hold off and have a sandwich for lunch. For dinner its usually grilled chicken/pork/tuna, veggies and roast potatoes.

I'm just looking to get myself into better shape, I'd like to lose weight but i'd also love to gain some muscle... is 20 miles a day 5 days of the week a good plan for this? I don't want to get too seriously into the whole thing but i'm pretty determined to keep it up because I never realised I was capable of the ride I did today, it wasn't as tough as i'd imagined it to be.

DannoXYZ 

Hey good job so far! If you can, get in one 30-mile ride during the weekend some time. It's the longer ride in one sitting that really burns up the fat because the first 1/2 hour is simply warm-up. So a 30-mile ride is really closer to 2x as long as your 20-mile ride in terms of calories burnt.

Take it easy on the hills, use lower gears and spin our legs easier. No use pushing so much on the hill that it wipes you out early on the ride, or keeps you from riding the next couple of days.

I suspect you may not have an appetite for breakfast because you're still stuffed from the night before. Try to shift some food into the earlier meals. Lighten up the dinners and eat it earlier, say before 6pm. Then add a lot more to lunch to give you energy on the rides, and definitely eat breakfast.

jrennie

Sounds like your off to a great start and well motivated. Keep a calorie log for a couple of weeks and track your intake. Your diet sounds very modest, to gain 20 pounds in a couple of months you need to take in roughly 1100 more calories than you body can burn.(2lbs of grilled chicken for example)

Zee

Actually breakfast is SUPPOSED to be the biggest meal of the day, and dinner/supper the smallest. Going to sleep on a full stomach ruins your metabolism too. I agree with Danno, eat a smaller, earlier dinner and start eating a variety for breakfast, fruit, dairy, protein, etc., and get in some carbs and protein before, during and after your rides.

Don't try to do too much too soon or you may burn out, though. If you really need a day to rest in the beginning, don't be afraid to take it. After you've rested and your muscles have recovered you'll be that much more energized to start again the next day. I was really overweight (I'd lost 20 pounds before I started riding, now I've lost 20 more in the last three or four months, and gained ALOT of muscle, but I still want to lose alot more). I started out with just one mile! See each new accomplishment as a victory, and each setback as nothing more than a necessary step in moving toward your goals.

waydee

Thanks for the replies guys, taking the advice onboard. Gonna try and get my eating habits sorted out.

Only managed 12 miles today , taking tomorrow off (my ass really hurts!) and we're gonna tackle a 30 mile ride on thursday.

jdtschida

Don't do too much too soon. Might injure yourself. Also try to come up with some new routes, or else you will probably get bored.

If you have the time and resources, you might also try some other activities to mix it up a little. Maybe a little time in the gym, maybe running, things like that. Just to make sure you work other muscle groups and stuff.

waydee

I've started a regime of pressups and situps, I do 50 each every night after my ride. I would like to goto the gym but I can't really afford it right now, so i'm keeping it cheap for the moment

weirdest thing... today is meant to be one of my days off, but i've got the urge to get out and ride somewhere, just a few miles...

jrennie

Cyclitis- a common infection resulting in a loss of funds, increase of cool toys and constant ringing in the ears often described as the call of the road.

Giving it a name makes me feel better about it

kleqkleq

Waydee,

Your plan strikes me as being a bit too tough. Starting off with doing 15-20 miles 5 times a week is not how I would go about it. I’d start off with biking it up 3-4 times a week for a couple of weeks and then increase the frequency and or distance. On top of that I’d warmly suggest you eat a hearty breakfast, keep to healthy carbs and enjoy yourself. Don’t count too much on your mate being with you all the time. You’ll need to be doing your cycling alone sometimes too. What I’m saying is start slowly, then increase. You might want to pick up a hear rate monitor too so you can workout in your target zone for burning fat.

I am not a doctor or health professional.

Good luck.

waydee

Managed 32 miles today, but I get where you're coming from - I might be pushing it a bit hard, but im enjoying it so much... I actually wake up with the motivation to get out and ride, I always hate the first half hour of a ride where I find it so hard and im constantly thinking about giving up but after that I just start enjoying it.

I know its going to be hard when my mate cant join me, its really good to have someone to talk to along the way and keep you motivated - when I see myself start to slow down and him pull away I work extra hard to keep up. We did some country park trails today too which really helped, kept it interesting - nice to see a few trees and lakes instead of asphalt and trucks.

I'll keep it in mind though, I dont want to hurt my chances but I want to keep pushing myself.