littleArnold

I cycled down to 135lbs lost lot fat then stopped and did weight training gained fat and muscle now I'm actually faster Being 30lbs heavier. I was averaging 25km an hour over 20 miles now I'm doing 27km an hour. Lol I was expecting to be slower since gained 30 lbs but my back squat has improved from doing sets with 135 to 225

coominya

Well done. Nothing like that super fit feeling is there

Stormsedge

It's the motor...thoughtfully souping up the motor 👍🏻

Lazyass

I'm 5'10" naturally thin with a fast metabolism. In 2010 I retired from the army and stopped all exercising except for cycling 100-200 miles a week. I'm no pro racer but I've always been a fast A group rider. In June of last year I looked in the mirror and was embarrassed at how skinny I had become and my weight was down to 135, lowest since high school. So I started taking mass gainer, creatine and began a workout program with dumbells, improvised weights at home and the usual body resistant exercises. No need to waste money on a gym membership. Still rode my bike just as much as ever.

Gained 10lbs the first two weeks, by November I was at 165 and outgrew most of my cycling clothes, jeans and a lot of my t-shirts. Took another two months to hit my target weight of 170 and I actually hit 174 but it was beginning to go into my gut so I cut back. Now I maintain 165-170, my average MPH solo is up about 1mph which is actually a lot, and I'm not embarrassed to wear short sleeve shirts anymore.

Now if I had access to an olympic size pool I'd really be ripped now.

pickettt

Arnold, how tall are you? 30 lbs. seems like a lot of weight to add, but what's more important is your body composition. If you add that much muscle, you're surely going to turn out more power, as you're experiencing. Where it becomes an issue is climbing. At the end of the day, with humans, animals, or machines......power to weight ratio rules all. It's a delicate balance trying to find the sweet spot. Congratulations on you weight gain (don't hear that too often.)

OldTryGuy

Good deal

BUT how's the SPEEDO fit now?

Sangetsu

The most important "muscles" are the heart and lungs, and as you ride, these greatly improve in efficiency. In my racing days, I was a sprinter, and if you have ever sprinted in the final stretch coming up to the finish line, you know that it requires every muscle in your body. I spent 90 minutes in the gym every day (much as I hated it), because I needed the muscle.

But that muscle made me slower. There was no way I would ever be able to break away from the pack 50km out, and hold on until the finish line, and climbs were complete agony to me. I could not keep up the same average speeds as the lighter riders, but then, they could not come close to matching my speed in the sprints.

20 miles is about how far it takes me just to get warmed up, I can easily hold 30 kph for 20 miles. But 40, 50, or 100 miles is a different matter, that extra weight eventually starts to slow you down.

Personally, I never liked the look of string-bean, pro riders, with t-rex arms, and with ribs, shoulders, and heads which looked like kids from "Save the Children" posters. My workouts gave me a fair amount of muscle, and a much better (IMO) appearance.

TexMac

I like to lift weights and keep a balance body at 162-168lb 5 8'. Think Sagan has the perfect build and power but of course he's not your regular cyclist

intransit1217

Stronger core?

caloso

I notice your location. On the prairie, added weight doesn't matter much. In the mountains it certainly will.

gurk700

Even 2 kg's gained slows me down on where I ride

Equation is far too complicated than just I gained weight and slowed down etc. Are you fitter? Is it the same route? backwind? crosswind? headwind? Are you wearing looser clothes? Are you in a more aero position on the bike? It's endless.. Get a power meter and an HR monitor.

aplcr0331

Are you faster going uphill?

wphamilton

I can believe it, I gained 30 pounds and got much faster including up hills, endurance, you name it. 35 pounds from the low to the highest. But it was because I started out of shape from many years of no exercise and at about 130 pounds - which isn't spindly anorexic like you guys are thinking, just low body fat and barely inside the ideal healthy weight range for 5'10". Now I've lost 10-15 pounds of that and feel stronger still.