Philipaparker

Why don't Iose any weight?

I have to say I am envious when I read about a bicyclist that started riding 6 months ago and has dropped 25 pounds. I ride like crazy, I ride hard, have a light breakfast and have salads for lunch and occasional beer at dinner and I haven't lost a pound! Well some days I lose a pound but most days I don't. I ride about 500 miles a month in hilly San Francisco and Marin where the average elevation gain on 20 mile ride is 1500 to 2000 feet. Here I am grinding away up those hills pulling all 240 pounds with me and do you think I would be rail thin? No, I just get in better shape.

There is a hill I ride up in the Presidio that at the start of the season I could barely make it to the top. Yesterday I cruised up. At the start of the season I said to myself, if I keep riding I'll lose 30 lbs and this hill will be easy. Yesterday I said to myself hey I've got to look for a steeper hill this one used to be hard now it's easy. What's up with that?

Well if I could live on one packet of instant oatmeal for breakfast I would, but it doesn't fill me up so I have two. Lunch is always a salad. I've eaten so much salad I don't like lettuce on my sandwiches anymore. Dinner is what ever my wife cooks which is usually very good well balanced etc. And to hear her talk she's of the opinion that I am eating way too much at work because if I just ate what she ate for dinner I'd be thin like her. URGHH!!!

Maybe it is because I concentrate too much on my weight that I don't lose any. Certainly between a full time job, raising a teenager, having my mother-in-law living with us, taking care of the house, the car, the grocery shopping etc. Commuting to work on bike is my only free time.

Well the good news if I can call it that is I can still fit into my pants.

ZmanKC

I know what you mean. I lost 55 lbs. but reached a plateau and have stayed at the same weight for a year. Frustrating as I'd like to drop another 30.

DnvrFox

Muscle weighs more than fat. How about your waistline? Lose any inches?

Portion size?

I would never eat that instant oatmeal. Slow cook old fashioned.

Congrats on the faster riding.

BluesDawg

I know the frustration. It took me bigger changes in diet than I expected to make a difference. My problem was carbs. I was injesting way more carbs than I thought I was. My doctor suggested that I go for a week without any rice, bread, pasta, potatoes, sugar, sodas or anything high in carbs except fruit (not juice, just fruit). During that week it became clear to me how much carbs I had been eating. Then I added back minimal amounts of those foods, concentrating on high fiber sources of carbs. No sweeteners or sweetened foods or drinks. No added fat except olive oil. No food after 8pm. I started riding more regularly as you have. I lost 30 lbs. over the next few months.

GeneO 

I changed my diet and cycle at 500mi/month now and lost 35lbs (and still dropping) after 4 months - a similar regimen to yours sans the hills. I had a slow metabolism and couldn't loose it any other way. The more you ride the more muscle you build that can burn fat and the more your metabolism improves. You may have some sort of medical condition that keeps your metabolism low - I would consult with a doctor.

2dog

I think Blues Dawg has it right. Cut out the carbs. Thats what worked for me. It was a little tough at first but the resulting weight loss was a real bonus . I was 329 pounds now 225. My wife and I went to a nutritionist and followed her advice and it has paid off.

qmsdc15

Losing it slow is the way to go. Keep up the good work!

Velo Dog

I'm not a weight-loss expert, but I've interviewed dozens of them for stories for newspapers and magazines (also, I've lost probably 150 pounds over the last 30 years, but it does tend to creep back...).
If you're exercising and not losing weight, and there's not something metabolically strange going on, there's only one answer: You're eating too much. And the amount that's "too much" is likely to be less than it used to be as you age and your metabolism slows. Exercise is important in a weight loss program, but it takes more of it than many people think to work off the calories. I should weigh about 210, tend to hang around 240 but have gone as high as 270. The last time I was able to get down to my goal weight, three or four years ago, I was burning 7500-10,000 calories a week on the bike (I'd just retired from my "real" job and had lots of time and motivation). I ate what I considered normal meals, but the head of the nutrition program at the U of Nevada, where I was enrolled in a weight loss program for a story, was amazed. My "normal" intake was about 4000 calories a day. She thought I should be down around 1900. For me, at least, that's a really tough goal.
I have an excellent computer program called BalanceLog that lists dozens of exercises (even including sex, Light, Moderate or Vigorous, and various chores in the garden) and at least a thousand foods, including brand names. You plug in your specifics and it tracks everything for you: "You may eat 320 more calories today and still meet your goal" or whatever. It's no longer available, but when I posted about it a few months ago, somebody suggested an alternative, which you can probably find online. If you do, you're going to be surprised how hard you have to work to get rid of a Frapuccinno.
Also, regarding low carbs, I don't remember the details, but there was a story within the last week or so about long-term health problems for people who've followed that regimen. You might want to check on that before you commit.

qmsdc15

That low carb deal isn't cool. I don't dig that. Never listen to advice from a doctor about nutrition. They aren't trained on that subject.

MinnMan

Exercise is important to weight loss, but as others have said, it's not enough. You've got to burn 3500 calories to lose a pound, and depending on who you talk to and how you cycle, you maybe burn 600-800 calories/hour on the bike. You can dispute the latter set of numbers if you like, I don't claim that they're very exact. But clearly even fairly active cycling (10 hours/week) doesn't burn that many pounds off if your diet isn't right.

I personally don't think much about cutting down carbs, per se. I eat tons of pasta, rice, and bread. If you do the math, they don't really have that many calories compared to many other foods. What I recommend are 3 things:

1. Cut way down on the number of calories you consume in liquids. NO NON-DIET SODAS! It's amazing how many calories you can drink with those. But also, be very careful with juices and other sweet drinks. While I was losing weight, I cut down my liquid calories to zero except for beer and wine, which I kept to a minimum, and sports drinks on long rides only. Now I'm less strict because I'm at my target weight and I just want to maintain.

2. No eating at night! That's when all the damage is done. There's nothing like a bag of chips at midnight to wreck a day of nutrition virtue. Eat 3 round meals and allow yourself a healthy snack in the afternoon, but nothing at night. If you have to eat at night, eat some fruit.

3. Avoid processed foods and start reading nutrition labels. Once you realize how many calories there are in many foods, you'll learn that things that seem equally filling can have radically different caloric content.

Eat a ton of fruit, a reasonable amount of lean meats, etc., avoid chips and processed sweets. Salads sound great but if you're putting a creamy dressing on them, then they suck.

And above all, keep riding. Because..... well you know why, right? In particular, I'd give my left arm to live in San Francisco, and not only because you get to ride all those amazing hills.

BluesDawg

Just to be clear, I'm not talking about some crazy no carb diet. That first drastic week my doc suggested was just to make me aware of how incredibly high my carb intake was. Even then he told me to eat all the fruit I wanted, so I was not starving myself of carbs and bringing on ketosis like with the Scarsdale diet. You need carbohydrates to live, but you don't need nearly as much as I was eating when I weighed 230.

cyclezen

ah, most of us are not 'trained' on the subject of nutrition. But suprisingly, some interest provides plenty of motivation to getz enough education to make better, even good, decisions.
Doctors are no less intelligent than the vast unwashed, hence even they can actually give 'good' advise...
and cutting refined carbs (or heavy carb diet) is a good way to start the weightloss ball rollin. Balancing carb intake during the weight loss process is key to staying at the new lower weight.
Nutritionists are a great tool, but there's nothing like being cruelly honest about yourself, and makin the changes.

deraltekluge

First, find out how much you're actually eating. Keep track of everything you consume for a while and see. Be honest, don't cheat. Add up the calories, and figure out how you can cut 250 to 500 a day from what you've been eating (one 20 oz. non-diet Coca Cola is about 240 calories, for example). Keep exercising the same as you've been doing. That should give you a loss of 2 to 4 pounds a month.

ro-monster

If you're that much stronger than you used to be, you've probably gained muscle mass. Since muscle is more dense than fat you could very well be losing fat and not losing weight. Perhaps a mirror would be a better measuring device than a scale.

lhbernhardt

Some people just have slow metabolisms. I have a fast metabolism, plus my temporary assignment in Victoria, BC has me commuting about 90km on Friday to get home to Vancouver, and another 80 or 90 to get back to Victoria on Sunday. Plus I am constantly fidgeting (characteristic of people with fast metabolisms) and I eat fast.

Sometimes I go out riding with recreational riders - guys who don't have racing backgrounds but who can ride quite fast. Most of them look overweight, but they can still motor. I've always thought that was quite interesting, that despite all the cycling, the guys still looked overweight. I think maybe it's because cycling is not a weight-bearing activity. You don't see too many runners who look overweight, but I guess if they were, they would not be running - their joints would have been destroyed long ago.

So enjoy the cycling, it sounds like a good sport/activity for you, easy on the joints even if you're heavy. Maybe if you ride a bit longer, like try to get in two hours every day, that might have some effect on fat reduction, although as has been posted, most people don't see a weight reduction because they are building muscle.

Luis

gtragitt

You can go to Livestrong.com and start tracking your calorie deficit or gain on the web.
If you would rather have an app that runs on a smartphone you can use My Personal Diet.

You must track your calories to ensure there is not some insidious source of excess calories. Your basal metabolism might be less than 2000 calories per day.

dploy

I thought the OP was describing me for a second there!

Yet I realized that environmental factors were my problem:

1. Two growing 'tweens' at home always eating stuff I shouldn't
2. A wife who loves to cook Italian and bake sweets
3. I work in the restaurant industry!

These factors contribute to my battle and I try hard to battle back by walking away from all the food in front of me everyday. It's a war - mentally and physically!

I roll 2 hours a day or 30 miles. I work the upper body twice a week on weights. No change on the scale. But my wife says I look better and am 'firm' and a few people at work say I look better - and that keeps me going.

smith950

OP,

6 months ago I was in the same boat. My diet was pretty clean, 50% carb, 25% protein and 25% fats. I was burning more calories than I was taking in. My weigh was 230 and holding. I tried less food and more cardio but my weight stayed between 228-234. After doing some research I found an article by Tom Venuto talking about fat lose and muscle building. At first it seemed like a gimmick but as I read the research and talked to Tom online it started to make sense.

For 2 weeks I changed my diet and routine. I stopped riding my bike to work and increased my calorie intact by 20%. The mix of calories to 33% carbs, 33% protein and 33% fat. I bought some weight bands and started lifting at home 3 days a week. I did ride about 10 miles each night. After 2 weeks I gained 1lb.

After 2 weeks I went back to a pretty normal routine. Commuting to work 4 days, diet back to a 40/30/30 split. Every 2-3 week I do 2 cheat days. Bounce my calories up some or change when I'm eating. I am no down to 208 and my body fat is down 9%.

My advice stop eating salads at lunch, your sick of them. Shock your body for a few days. Make a change!!!

Scott

seemunkee

I'm in the same boat. I drink tea and water for the most part. I brew beer but only have 3 pints a week. Breakfast is a a salad or yogurt. Lunch is caprese salad, fruit, humus and a few crackers. Dinners are usually moderate and I have a snack in the evening. I've used Training Peaks to track my intake as well as some other software in the past and can now guess within 150 calories how much I eat. Anything over 2100 calories and I start gaining. I have to be in the 1800 calorie range to really lose weight. Weekend's are tough, friends and the wife want to go out to dinner, and I love to cook too. Usually Monday weigh in is 2-3lbs more than Friday weigh in.
I have dropped 24lb in two years but that is a slow way to lose it. Been stuck just above 160 for months.

gtragitt

It seems like you have found your basal metabolism and it is below 2000 cal.

seemunkee

Yep, but 2000 calories is not easy to maintiain. Especially for someone who loves to cook. My two hobbies are at odds with each other.

The Weak Link

Holy Moly, that's a rather broad brush with which you paint your picture of life, Grasshopper.

Nutritionalists are like economists: if you were to take every single one of them and lie them on the ground, head to toe, they would still not reach a conclusion.

Like economists, they can take the exact same data and reach profoundly different conclusions. If physicians are confused, it's not because they're genetically programmed to be stupid. Nutritionists are often so fad-driven it'[s easier to keep up with Lady Gaga's choice of wardrobe than it is the "current" nutritional recommendations.

OK, my spleen has been adequately vented for the morning. To return to the point of the OP:

As someone else postied above, whichever dietary fad you choose to go with will be more successful if you are brutally honest and weigh and record everything that you eat. I use an app on my IPhone to do this.

If you run a negative energy balance you will lose weight.

CraigB

I would whole-heartedly recommend joining Weight Watchers. Even if you don't find a need for the structure, support and accountability aspects of it, it will at least teach you the real world nutritional costs of all the foods you eat. They use a formula for calculating the "points" value of any food, based on its calories, total fat content and total fiber content, and they put you on a daily points "budget" (with some weekly wiggle room). It by no means touts any particular type of diet other than a reasonable, healthy one, and you're free to eat anything you want, as long as you stay within that budget. The rest is up to you.

I tell you, it was a real eye-opener for me to learn the weight-gain consequences of certain foods I ate regularly, whether for good or bad. It's been an education, and after almost 6 months on it (and nearly 50 pounds lost), I'm a much, much better judge of what is likely to be an appropriately healthy or reasonable food and what isn't.

Sometimes all it takes is a little education.

Kotts

This one line may just point to the solution. I wasn't able to lose weight until I stopped using "full" as my standard for stopping eating, and changed to "not hungry." When I was accustomed to eating too much, the "full" sensation didn't get triggered until long after I had eaten more than I needed.

You might be different, but that was my experience.

gtragitt

I can appreciate that dilema. If I can find the time to ride 30 mi in a couple of hours I can burn enough calories to allow for some indiscretion at the table.