flesh_pile

Over the course of the past couple months I have been training anywhere from 10 to 15 hours a week on the bike - usually 1 long ride a day for 5/6 days of the week. I eat whenever I feel hungry which is quite often. However, my weight has gone up 5 pounds in that period from my usual 193 pounds and 11/12% body fat (from a skinfold test several years ago when I was about the same weight) and is up 10 pounds from my all time low. Even in the high 180s, I still had a little bit of a fat around my waist and I can't see my stomach muscles so I think my lower healthy limit is somewhere in the low 180s. I don't seem to store fat at all on my arms or legs. Is there any way I can continue to train intensely, and perhaps step up my training to 15-20 hours a week and lose weight while still having enough energy to get in 2 workouts a day? I've tried cutting back on my eating but then I always get headaches from hunger so I end up eating again. My diet isn't great but it isn't complete crap either.

Here's my daily food situation: Usually a GIANT bowl of oatmeal mixed with milk, raisins, and anywhere from a half to a whole 16oz jar of applesauce (depending on the consistency of the oatmeal), 4-12 slices of toast with jelly and/or peanut butter, and then some sort of random meal (sometimes 2 of these meals) such as a salad (with chicken, cheese, and dressing), homemade egg, cheese, and sausage sandwiches (2), fish sticks with tartar sauce (I know, I know, they're unhealthy), unbreaded fish fillets, pasta with red sauce and meatballs, some veggies occasionally, etc. Bananas and fig bars are spread throughout the day whenever I need something to tide me over until I feel like making one of my meals listed above. I'm pretty lazy when it comes to preparing meals but other than the fish sticks and sausage patties, I usually stay away from junk and processed foods. I'd prefer to keep it this way as far as meal prep goes as I don't have anyone to cook for me and I don't feel like spending as much time preparing food as I do riding, especially as I don't particularly look forward to the generally simple and bland foods that I prepare on my meager food budget.

So anyways, I really want to drop at least 5 pounds (and keep it off) by a big race that includes some hills coming up in 4 weeks but I don't want my training to suffer as well. Any suggestions? How much of a calorie deficit could I run per day and still have enough energy to get 3+ hours of good quality training in? Obviously eating whenever I feel hungry does not seem to be working. Should I go to bed slightly hungry so that I burn fat while I sleep and then replenish my carbs first thing in the morning before/during my morning ride? -500 to -750 calories a day (out of about 4000-4500 for a day with 3 hours of endurance/tempo riding) would drop me about 5 pounds in 4 weeks - would this be healthy/attainable without compromising my training? Could I go for 10?

As far as riding goes, should I incorporate some long, recovery rides that mainly burn fat or would that be a bad use of my riding time considering it's in the middle of the season and I'm approaching one of my targeted races? Could I throw these rides in addition to my normal training regimen without worrying about recover time in between workouts or overtraining? Maybe take a long walk or slow jog at lunch to save my riding muscles but burn fat?

Sorry for the long post, but I figured I'd get all the information out on the table to (hopefully) get the best possible answers. My burning questions I put in bold for those short on time...

Thanks in advance.

max power

it seems like all you care about is getting rid of some fat around the stomach area?

i'm guessing your BMI is fine and you're currently at a healthy weight

maybe you should just do some core workouts to target your problem area?

CbadRider

If you lost just a pound a week it should not compromise your training ability.

steelcx

muscle weighs more than fatty tissue. Cut back on your meal portions. Basically from what you describe and your work out schedule youre just breaking even. keep in mind your natural structure and metabolism has alot to do with weight gain and loss. cycling is high cardio so incorporate some work outs with light weight training and maybe an occasional jog.

shaun3000

Muscle weighs more than fat. So if you were just out of shape but skinny before you started and now you're in shape, I'd imagine you built up muscle mass. How do your legs look now compared to a few months ago?

You won't get a six-pack from riding a bike, you're not using those muscles. Do some crunches or sit-ups.

How tall are you? 180-190ish might be normal for your height. (If you're 6'+ or so. 5'9, not so much)

flesh_pile

No - I care about dropping 5 or 10 pounds to help my hill climbing ability

I stayed healthy at my normal weight of around 193 when I was probably at 11 or 12 percent body fat and was healthy in the high 180s when I was probably at 9 or 10 percent body fat. Now that I'm in the high 190s I'm probably at around 14% which is pretty high for a competitive amateur cyclist. I'll never be a climber in the 1/2/3 fields with my weight but I can hang with the 3/4s (or at least the field) in climbs as I did last year (when I was around 193). I'm much stronger this year but have not done any hilly races. I'd like to be able to go with a break on a hill or stay away from the field in the hills if I break away... As of right now with my slightly higher weight I'm mid to high cat 3 range for power to weight according to Allen/Coggan's power profile so with the loss of 5 or 10 pounds I should be able to stick with the best of climbers in my category and I know I would demolish the light-weights on the flats or in a sprint.

I just pointed out that my fat accumulates only around my stomach as it's pretty easy for me to see when I gain and lose weight as it's concentrated in one area...

What would be the best way to go about doing this and dropping 500 to 750 calories a day? Go to bed slightly hungry? Eat more 'filling' foods that don't have a lot of calories like salads and vegetables so that I feel full but I'm not getting all the calories?

I'm 6'6" and have been biking semi-seriously for the past 2 years. I had rowed for 4 years before that. I think my muscle mass has probably stabilized for the most part by now I'm by no means fat and I certainly don't look it given my size and the shape/definition of my arms and legs but my body fat percentage certainly doesn't seem that great. I know most amateurs probably aren't at 5% and those that are probably get sick quite often and only (hopefully) hang around that weight during the main part of their competitive season but I see no reason why I shouldn't be back at least at the 193 pound level (11/12 percent) and within the next couple months back to the high 180s or perhaps mid 180s at around a 7 or 9 percent body fat level which I think would be a safe, attainable level of body fat, at least for the competitive season.

max power

ahhh gotcha,

6'6 and 195? that seems a bit slim especially considering 11% body fat. maybe you should talk to a physician or at least nutritionist to see if it's possible to maintain strength while losing weight?

regardless, gl trying to shed the weight, remember Jan Ulrich was a hefty fellow and he was never considered a slouch in the mountains

flesh_pile

Yeah - I've got a really weird body type. I think it works well for time trials though! Very narrow (and aerodynamic) shoulders (which might work to lower the weight of my torso), very skinny arms (again, possibly working to reduce my weight for my height) but large thighs (24" although they look pretty thin compared to a shorter sprinter type rider because of my abnormal height).

pacificaslim

Yeah, right. And a pound of feathers weighs more than a pound of rocks!

What you should say is that muscle is denser than fat. But remember that the only thing that burns fat in your body is muscle. So... building muscle is good for losing fat.

And OP, unless you're like 8' tall, your "lower healthy limit," is going to be a hell of a lot lower than 180 lbs. (not that there is anything wrong with being 180, but you could be lighter if you really wanted to and would still be healthy at that lower weight.)

plodderslusk

How about dropping that giant bowl of oatmeal and milk and being careful with what you stuff your face with after eight pm. The glycemic index-people do have some some sound ideas. It is not only the number of calories one consumes, it is also about how the food interacts with your system.

flesh_pile

I eat all that food because I'm hungry and if I don't I start to get headaches. I'm assuming that feeling hungry/getting headaches = not enough calories.

Eating at night is actually a question that I'm looking for an answer. After my evening/night ride, I eat something right when I get home. I'm usually hungry again by the time I go to bed. Is this the best time to find the 500+ calorie deficit that I would need to lose 5 pounds in about 4 weeks? Then my body could be burning fat all through the night while I slept and hopefully turn some fat into glucose (or whatever the liver produces) in order to give me some energy to start my morning ride (supplemented of course with a breakfast and some ride food/drink)

ImRael

OP: Don't worry about losing weight. Worry about what you are putting into your system to train on. You have a lot of empty calories listed. Watch the prepared foods as well - like fish sticks. Bad stuff.

plodderslusk

I have had a couple of long rides these last few days and now I am down to 153 pounds. At 52 and 6 foot I think I am as low as I should be. I eat whatever I like but I am partial to those who claim that for some of us it is a good idea to eat more fat and protein and less carbs. Do some googling on nutrition and see if any of the newer diets are good for you. Eating right seems to me a much better way of loosing weight than counting calories and going hungry.

Dago

If you mean doing abs if you want to lose fat in your stomach (for example), then this is totally incorrect (an urban myth). You cannot target fat, you burn it from all over you. Look at tennis players (who use mainly only one of their arms), their arms are still both as fat.

botto 

for the love of god, why?

4-12? a little random there, and what's with the PBJ? are you still in grammar school?

what kind of cheese. what kind of dressing.

want to lose weight, drop the sausage. no brainer.

you're beginning to gross me out.

never heard of chicken?



what, no little debbie's oatmeal otameal cream bars?




apparently you're not very serious about dropping the weight.

if all you eat is processed fat, sugar, and salt, everything will seem bland.

good luck with that.

NomadVW 

calories in < calories out. all this "don't eat x foods" or "don't eat after x time"?

Whatever... calories in < calories out. Get your resting metabolic rate tested (or use a good calculator). Add your cycling calories burned to that, and eat less than that total.

I'm 6'2" and 172-173ish. I've been up to 178 this year and down to 165 last year and the year before. I'll aim to be steady 168-170 at the end of next month.

When I choose to lose weight, I simply count every calorie going in and every calorie going out. The first thing you'll find out is that you eat too much. You'll get to spend a week of adjustment period while your body learns to adapt to the amount of food you're giving it. That's called feeling hungry all the time. Feel crazy hungry? Eat a big (and I mean GIANT) bowl of salad with light dressing (you only need a tablespoon at the most) - and I often go completely without it.

Or... celery, or carrots (buy bags of baby carrots). These are foods that you can enjoy snacking on that are high appetite killers and super low calorie per gram.

I ride 18-20 hrs per week, and train to race consistently. I don't subscribe to the 1lb per week deficit on those kinds of hours, so it usually takes about 2 months to lose 5 lbs.

Edited to add:
on the "foods to eat" part though - sausage? way high calories/gram. Oatmeal? Same. Swap the oatmeal for special K. Giant bowl of special K = 100 grams of cereal, or 379 calories. Same "size" (in volume) bowl of Honey Bunches of Oats, usually 130-140 grams of cereal - 570 calories. That's before the milk. 4 packets of instant oatmeal (what it takes to fill me up usually) 640 calories


Figure out how to eat foods that are just as filling as the next one, but way less calories.

aham23

what he said. later.

fordfasterr

if you want to burn fat, then switch to 80％ of your seat time in zone 1.

That is what helped me to shed a lot of fat.

good luck =)

mugatu

swim and run

jdon

Go see a nutritionist to get educated on appropriate foods and why and when you should be eating them. Reading the initial post, I thought you were trolling. Garbage in = Garbage in, nothing more.

DrPete 

Yes, but that would make you a triathlete, and by the Rules of BF you would cease to be a cyclist.

Japhy

Eat more whole foods and foods closer to the source (as in not processed), minimize bread and bread products (toast, fish sticks), and find some big hills and ride up them, turn around, go down, then go back up...repeat as necessary. But please, skip the processed junk. Try to eat the "colors of the rainbow" in your food choices (does not mean eat Skittles), and make snacks be fruit, rice cakes and PBJ, etc. Bring your healthy lunch to work. It does not cost too much more to eat this way, and if you are worried about time, then get off BF, turn off the TV, and make some good food. It will make your rides better too when you are properly fueled.

Changing eating habits is VERY hard and our bodies become addicted to all of the processed junk that we eat. Make small changes and you will notice a difference.

The Weak Link

And then you'd have to tell your Mom and Dad that you're......

......aw never mind.

rodrigaj

Botto, you are one funny man.

To the OP: your diet is crap.

Read Monique Ryan.

Japhy

Also sounds like you are training too much? 2 workouts a day...everyday? Bad diet+too much training = poor recovery and weight gain. I find that after one or two rest days (with a moderate diet on those days) I am stronger and weigh less. Also you should realize most folks have a weight range that fluctuates 5 to 10 pounds depending on diet, fluid consumption, etc. But please, clean up your diet. You'll feel better all around.