33 Weight Status
 

Post body weight and trends - gain or loss and any relevant comments on weight loss or gain strategies. Does weight loss or gain impact your power?

174.3 this AM 6 feet tall. I am doing intermittent fasting two days per week and reduced starches/sugar. My power (short and long duration) tends to go up as my weight goes down. This includes sprint power. I am sure there is a point where lower weight affects my sprint.

The thread of all threads! Easiest way to get faster haha, provided you are already a trained athlete. We should also remember to post more in the Eating Status thread! That's a thread, right?

I weighed 2-3 lbs below race weight (145 lbs) for most of last week which was awesome. But a camping weekend with lots of snacking and drinking put me back up at 146-147 last couple days.

I never bother changing my weight in Zwift. Even in the off season I don't gain much weight, I just eat less. I literally don't think that I've been >3 lbs away from 145 lbs in 2.5 - 3 years, when I decided I wanted to cat up (from cat 3) and see what I could really do if I applied myself. I was 155 lbs before that.

I'm trying to be a crit racer now, so I don't even weigh myself anymore.

But last time I did I was right around 150. Surprised at how fast I came down from the high 150s (saw 160+ at least once) after doing all the gym work. Maybe not eating enough protein or something, as I've stopped the fasted rides.

I'm 6'1", 165-ish. That "ish" part is important to me, haven't been on a scale in months after I noticed some bad habits forming in that never-ending quest to be as light as possible. Not here to rain on anyone's parade, weight and w/kg will always be tied as closely to bike racing as lycra is, all good there. Just a word of caution is all, everyone's experience is different, but I'm a happier guy all around when I can eat cake at a birthday party and not feel guilty after. Overall, I eat healthy and pay attention, just not as crazy as I once was.

Now that I've got that crap out of the way, I first started racing bikes in 2014, I was around 185. Steady improvement and steady but slow weight loss over the years. Didn't start training with power until 2017, by then I was about 175. Getting down to 165 did not negatively effect my raw power numbers, even on the high end (high is very relative for me, lol) and as my w/kg numbers improved so did my results and especially obviously when going uphill. I've been in the 165 range for the past few years now, and really don't swing much one way or another, even in the offseason. I will say that at most of our levels, even at the "top" (I'm a 1) a couple pounds one way or another isn't likely to be the difference between good or poor performance...unless those couple pounds serve as a major confidence boost, which can absolutely happen. Feel light, feel fast, go fast. And vice versa.

My benchmark has always been 168lbs. I call it my graduation weight because it's what I weighed the day I graduated from high school in 1985. This morning I'm GW+2lbs.

Right now I'm 5'7", 135 lbs. My goal is to drop 3 more pounds. I'm more going off my fat measurements for a stopping point, and right now I have 9 mm of belly fat (which sounds like a lot but I'm probably around 10%). Not sure what I'm going to do with it since there are no races around here for climbers this year, but we may go up to NorCal and do Copperopolis. In the winter I'm going strengthen my legs, but with a low rep program to avoid growth.

Its great for Tuesday Night Worlds though...

Dang

I’m 5’6”. At some point in 2019 I saw 127. That year I was generally 135 or less. When I was doing more track and crits I was typically mid 140s.

might need a discipline when I can thumb my nose at threads like these and toast youse guys with cookies.

When I retired in 2019 I was afraid I would gain weight because I wouldn't be on my feet for 40+ hours per week but instead I have lost and am under 200 for the first time in decades. I think it might be due to less stress eating.
Not a racer but I'm on the bike 13-15 hours per week and intensity is higher due to more climbing. The lower weight helps with climbing and makes me want to lose more. Too bad I don't have any discipline.

I'm 5'7" and got up to 161 after hernia surgery at the beginning of year, now at 149. Last year hovered around 155, but I think now that I'm over fifty, I'm starting to finally lose some of that muscle from my younger bodybuilding days.

Stopped the Covid Climb in weight from 2020 and lost a good bit to an all time low. During my taper for the TT race have chosen to add a pound or two to not risk it and be sure to be "topped up" and ready. It's pan flat, so whatever.

Once that and my birthday is over, I'll shift back to "volume" riding and lose the couple pounds from the TT taper and my birthday celebrating.

In general I'm happy with it. I can't reasonably eat much less and be happy given I can't increase the riding volume enough to trickle down the weight to you folk's really really low numbers (based on height). I'm not a high volume rider.

Was 1 lb below race weight this morning at 144 lbs, sweet. My legs felt great on the way to work too, I should be able to smash the front at Fiesta Worlds tonite. I have a sneaking suspicion that I'm quite aero for my size on the road bike although I've never tested it.

When I punctured my lung I lost my lats and a ton of upper body mass, and I coudn't get under 150. Granted, I don't think I lost 15 pounds of muscle, probably 10.

I've always struggled with excess body fat - I'm skinny fat. I got down into the high 150s back in 2016, when I was focusing solely on road racing.

Since taking up track a few years ago, my weight has climbed, hitting almost 180 this year. But the good news is that I did not have to buy larger clothes. And I'm trying to watch what I eat so I'm back down in the high 160s.

the short answer, I'm currently 160ish +/- a couple (usually plus 2 lol)

I weighed like 225 back in 2013 and we had moved to an apartment that was 1 minute from a bike path. I wanted to get fitter but didn't really have an outlet I enjoyed, so I started using my cheap mongoose dual suspension MTB and quickly realized it wasn't great for paved (not to mention I was out of shape). So I got a giant escape hybrid and enjoyed it a ton more and even bought a $20 trainer to keep up my riding in poor weather. Over the course of a few months of diet/exercise I got down to 155. I've gotten up to 170 during some times I hadn't been riding much, and I'd love to drop these last few lbs to be in what I consider my race shape, but I'm good where I'm at too and don't want to sacrifice weight loss for being able to stay fueled for workouts.

I am 5'10". I was 215 May 2019 and started cycling more and bought my first road bike (well, second. But does a Schwinn from the late '70s ridden when you were a kid count?) FTP was about 230. Got weight down to 188 by the fall with FTP up to 282. Weight up to the low 190s by Spring 2020 with FTP up slightly to 285 or so.

Stopped cycling from mid-June 2020 to mid-September. Weight ballooned back to 215. FTP dropped to about 250. Started cycling again and increased volume. Getting weight back to 190 wasn't too hard but it's been slow going and my lowest has been 186. FTP up a lot, though. I hit 303 last week. I blame my diet for the weight. It's not like I don't work out enough.

My goal is 175, though I think I could hit 165 and still be fine.

144 again this morning. Feeling a bit drained after constant attacking and pulling at Fiesta Worlds last night. I wonder if I didn't eat enough. I'd be fine with 146 or 147 if I had sufficiently fueled and held onto a bit of water from inflammation.

145 lbs was an arbitrary goal for me a few years ago when I was still a cat3 and at 155 lbs. Turns out the empirically, it is a great race weight for me. When I dip below that, I start to feel weak, fatigued, drained. Really one or two lbs over (on average) is likely the best place for my baseline weight, so I don't dip too far below.

I think we are all very weight sensitive vis a vis an ideal weight for a particular event depending on the energy systems used and muscle fiber composition - crit, road race, hill climb, pursuit or sprint. My first coach, coached an eastern block national team before immigrating to the US. He set body weights for everyone. I was to be between 168 and 170.

No other coach that I have used offered that counsel. They probably do not have the extensive database that national team coaches have. And recommending ideal weight to humans is a sure fired way to get fired or not hired. However, over the years, he has proven to be correct. So I have about 7 pounds to go. I just think of it as laps to go.:D

I did a club ride today and a friend I haven't seen much was there and I could see he was lighter. He retired from work last year and he lost weight without trying, same as I did. He said he was an emotional/stress eater, too. Just another reason to avoid working.

171.8 pounds 98% SpO2 and 114/64 BP this AM. I have about 3 more pounds to go. My power seems okay and I feel great training on an empty stomach in the morning with just coffee and caffeine.

Still cruising at or slightly under race weight, which is consistently a couple pounds less than normal. I can really feel myself start to get a bit weak and more fragile when it dips below 144 lbs. But I am feeling great on the bike, just gotta make sure to fuel big the day before hard rides at my weight.

I weigh in on Friday's and have been holding 149 since the beginning of April.

A good friend stopped riding and racing for a couple of years, and I remember my wife asking how he was doing, and I said he had gotten fat - well, fat by cycling standards, but he was still pretty thin compared to the regular population.

Just something to consider as we all stress about weight. Just make sure you’re being healthy.

160 today. If I could get to 150, I bet that would still only be 10%ish. Get to new low weights would be a cool way to offset the inevitable dips in power I'm going to start to see.

Holding at a morning weight of 167 (6'1" height), about 3 lbs lower than I have been for the last 5 years. I'm quite sure I'm not down to levels where I'm sacrificing any power, and not in single digit body fat.