OldsCOOL

No tights for me. Oh and all my classics still have clips/straps.

jfan

Your weight can vary by several pounds from day to day just due to sodium intake, bowel and bladder functions, stress, time of day, hydration levels, etc. Heavy exercise can cause a temporary weight gain due to muscle inflammation. People go crazy over daily weight fluctuations.

The best way to accurately track how you're doing is to record your weight every morning just after waking and urinating, and calculate 7 day averages on the same day each week. Use only the weekly averages to gage your progress and don't worry about the daily fluctuations.

ZippyThePinhead

I admit, it took a bit of thinking to get my head around this, but the contributor of the chart has considerable expertise in this area.

Verify the figures for yourself using Bikecalculator or an equivalent; the chart is quite correct. It's not intuitive, at least not to me; I had to check it before accepting it as gospel.

KraneXL

OK first, you need at least 2 of 3 parameters (height/weight/build) to be able to be able to determine body structure. And second, that's a lot of empty calories -- which don't contribute nutritionally -- but will certainly add to you fat stores. Indulge yes, but it should be a special treat, not a daily part of your diet. That's just too much to ignore long-term. If you want to manage your weight, try and reduce it down to once a week.

bruce19

I'm going to try the averaging part. FWIW, I weigh myself after urinating and a BM and before coffee or food. I don't weigh myself daily (usually) but maybe every 3-5 days. I chart it every Sunday. This morning I did some measuring and this is what I found. From the same time yesterday, I weighed 1 lbs less, my waist was 1 inch smaller and I was 1/2" taller. I think that's strange.

wphamilton

I was misreading the x-axis units, since the way I described how it should look is how it does look ... so never mind.

bruce19

Some of this I've tried to take into account. At around age 25 and what I call "full build out", I was 5'10 1/2" and 178 lbs. I'm using the weight I was at the end of basic training at Ft. Jackson. I was a college QB. Now I'm 72 and (On a good day) 5'9" and, as of this morning, 189 lbs. I'm a mesomorph. So, those are some of the parameters. Every chart or formula I see online or in nutrition books says I can eat about 2500-2700 calories a day to be at 185 lbs. This takes into account age and activity level. My doctor says I should be around 1800 calories. I don't know why. My meeting with her was brief and she is new to me. I agree with you that alcohol is empty calories, for the most part. OTOH, if I eliminate 400 cals. of alcohol and add, say, 400 cals. of potatoes, I don't think I'm going to lose weight. I'm not upset about the way I feel or look but I am totally confused about my body's reaction to all of this. That's the part I'm trying to understand.

wphamilton

Only 2 pounds variation from three days ago. I see it all the time when I thought it would be a pound down but it was a pound or two up. I think that it tells us that these fluctuations are not necessarily periodic with any particular consistency. I chalk it up to factors not directly related to what I eat, probably fluctuations in body chemistry cause by some other uncharted factors. Sleep cycles maybe, emotional or psychological even. Or maybe some additive in processed food, who knows but there are lots of possibilities. If it's averaging out and generally going the direction I want, then it's not concerning.

KraneXL

Well doctors aren't dietitians, but in this case, she's spot on. Most Americans eat twice the number of calories they need to sustain them per day.You won't, but why would you "add" 400 cal. of potatoes back to your diet? That would be like taking two steps forward and two steps back.

But don't eliminate your alcohol...altogether. Rather, reduce it in steps by 50%. For example, if you drank 4 glasses/day reduce it to two. Or reduce the servings size by 1/2. Whatever works for your psychological state. That's how I reduce unhealthy calories in my diet and made it last.

ZippyThePinhead

Metabolism slows as you age, meaning the food you needed to sustain your 25-year old self during basic training far exceeds what you need at 72. I know a 70-something who doesn't exercise much and what he eats in a day is sobering, meaning it is surprisingly little. But he looks great, and I consider it a collateral benefit of his self-control.

I have logged food off and on using an app on my phone, and it helps one to be more aware regarding how many calories are being consumed. It really requires some self-control to stay the course. Alcohol-- I love beer and wine-- is an Achilles heel for me, because having a bit makes me want to munch on something, and there have been many days where I came home from work, grabbed a beer, and within an hour I've exceeded the daily calorie allocation by 1,000 or more.

If you're willing to use an application like MyFitnessPal or equivalent to log your food intake, the app will accept your weight and particulars, and can provide you with a daily calorie goal to achieve whatever you wish: lose weight, maintain weight, gain weight. It can be integrated with a variety of devices like a Garmin or a WiFi-connected scale to provide whatever amount of data-driven tracking you care to achieve. You can do it using a Web browser or an app on a phone/tablet. It can be tedious at time to log stuff, because you have to weigh it/measure it, but it can be most effective.

bruce19

I have been using Fitday.com on my desk top. I thought I was taking the right steps by going to several "medical/nutritional" sites to establish my daily caloric needs. They all show at least 2500 calories. And, they all asked for my age. In any event that's not working so I am now trying to adhere to 2000 or less. It's also starting to look like Spring is finally going to show up in New England so riding will help. My GF and I rode 24 mi. with 1400 ft of climbing yesterday. That can't hurt. Thanks for the advice.

OldsCOOL

That’s a decent ride for spring.

KraneXL

Definitely the right steps. Nevertheless, some calculators are more specific than others.


Calculate Your Caloric Intake

bruce19

This calculator is more in line with my MDs thinking. At this point I'm thinking this may be a simple "too many calories" kind of thing. I am trying to stay at 2,000 or less. The calculator is telling me my daily limit should be 1700-1800 cals with moderate exercise. That's to get to 180. I am 187 this morning. With 50-75 mi. of cycling during the week I'm thinking 2,000 cals will be OK.

KraneXL

It includes exercise/activity so its closer to a health/fitness calculator.I'm about 190 so our weights are virtually the same and I survive on 1500-1800 cal/day. Although you admittedly get in more cycling than I do. Most American eat about twice the number of calories they need to survive per day.

gettingold

Apparently, my focus has been putting on weight this year. I went from an ultegra CF with rim brakes and one 25 mm and one 28 mm to a 105 spec'd Ti with discs and 32's. Same waste size but a bigger smile on my face when I ride (especially the flats).

jimjim58

Thanks to my Wahoo Kickr and Zwift I lost weight this winter. Also eating healthy and cut back on the craft beer intake.

bruce19

Went out with my gf yesterday for a 16.5 mi. ride. A little over 1,000 ft. elevation and serious headwinds in spots. For me, it was a 1:16 ride at about 12.8 mph. Climbing is my Achilles heel. She did the ride in 1:13 @ 13.5 mph and finished about a mile ahead of me. I went and got a pizza to bring home. A "traditional" pizza which means no mozzarella, just parmesan cheese. She went to a spin class. This is what I live with. OTOH, got on the scale this morning and weighed 186.0 lbs. I usually see an increase in weight the morning after a ride. So, this is good.

OldsCOOL

Way to press in! I have found my body will retain water weight for about 36 hours after a “traumatic”, in a metabolistic sense, ride. After that, it’s like a natural diuretic and hoping it isnt at night.

I’ve lost a pound since Sunday and will be targeting my 2lbs per week loss rate.

Monoborracho

I've gone from a bulbous 220 in Nov-17 to currently 189, and still dropping 1.5 - 2# per week. I'm at my HS football weight, aiming for my USAF pilot weight, i.e, well below 170. I have 3" gone from the waist.
Sweet wife has also worked at it with me. With a tandem tour in Ireland fast approaching, we have lost nearly 40# as a team, aiming for 75 or so as we get ready for the "last quarter" of life.

Our biggest challenge has been keeping muscle mass, which means balanced protein and twice-a-week strength training.

bruce19

I'm down to my college football weight and aiming for my Basic Training weight of 178 lbs. Unfortunately, I'm also down 2 1/2" in height.

Borracho tambien.

Tony_G

I’ve lost 25 pounds in six weeks. 195 down to 170. I’m taking frequent 40 mile rides, and keeping my average daily calorie intake under 1,400.

My big motivator was a scary doctor visit. My blood pressure was 155/100. That was definitely a wake up call. Now it is 117/71, without taking any medication.

This is my first diet where I weighed everything I ate and actually counted every calorie. When coupled with biking, it has been very effective.

I’m going to keep going and dump at least another 15 pounds. That would leave me the lightest I’ve even been in my adult life.

gda659

I'm 6'0" and was over 230 a few years ago. I felt like crap. I was still a bit over 220, when saw a new doctor, got put on cholesterol and blood pressure meds a year ago. I also had slightly high blood sugar. Nothing was way out of whack, but the combination was concerning. I'm under 210 now and the doctor wants me under 195--so do I. (Got to get it done before fire season.) Hopefully, I'll be able to get off the meds, then. Cycling is helping drop the weight and strength training a couple times a week keeps me strong. There are no flat routes where I live. I'm still slow, but getting better.

KraneXL

Insanity. jk

Most of us don't realize just how much we eat over what we actually need. I've been working on strength training recently (I had to walk my bike up a hill), and have stabilized on a 1400-1800 cal/day diet. Believe it or not, I'm actually continue to get stronger per workout. I credit that mostly to IF, which is a system I swear by, and can now completely support.

bruce19

I hope your BP med is not a beta blocker. They keep your heart form beating to pump blood when needed cycling. I was on them it it almost killed me. Check with you MD. There is another alternative. There are meds that dilate your veins and arteries and I'm told these are much better. I've been using 100% beet juice which seems to help.