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Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) Looking to lose that spare tire? Ideal weight 200+? Frustrated being a large cyclist in a sport geared for the ultra-light? Learn about the bikes and parts that can take the abuse of a heavier cyclist, how to keep your body going while losing the weight, and get support from others who've been successful.

New Embarrassed Rider

Old 05-15-11, 01:35 PM
  #76  
RuggerJoe
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Good to hear 1) that you just got out there and did it, and 2) that your nieghbors kids are well raised!
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Old 05-15-11, 03:38 PM
  #77  
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Just last night I got a "Hey ******, real men ride women" yelled at me. I have to admit I just laughed. I find the comments easy to ignore. The discourteous driving not so much. Me and my fat ass have as much right to the road and to exercise as anyone else.
Ride and have fun!
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Old 05-15-11, 06:47 PM
  #78  
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Originally Posted by WJordan
Wow what a read this thread has been! I feel each and every post here in what all are saying. Also some very good points said to think on.

Only time I have rode my bike is in the mornings while most people are at work and ride back roads so very few will see me. And in the afternoon and evenings, my bike stays in the garage. Many nice evenings I would have loved to get out and enjoy the evening biking. But we have neighbors cross the street from me with kids. I remember when I was a kid how kids can laugh and make jokes at people. I haven't been able to make myself ride down the driveway yet when they are home.
My only thought is to NOT give your power away to anyone else. You have the power to improve your life. You also have the power to make yourself feel badly. For both good & bad, you have the power. Allowing someone else (adult or child) to affect you is giving them that power.

I say transfer that power to the pedals.
Namasté
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Old 05-17-11, 06:37 PM
  #79  
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You may find that most of the people looking at you are actually thinking, " That person is out there doing what I should be doing, way to go !". I was 400+ lbs when I started riding a year ago this month. just easy 20 mins around the neighborhood, for a couple weeks, then 30 minutes at a slightly faster pace. this was on my "old School" Motobecane Grand Jubilee (great bike), then I had to upgrade to an entry level rode bike, the Specialized Allez Sport. 1,300 + miles later (since late June 2010) I am down to 310 lbs. that includes about 2-3 months of falling off the wagon (damn). anyway, about what weight your bike can handle, I haven't crushed mine and I started at 400 lbs ! I was waiting for the rims to explode and the forks to snap. seriously though, I actually had to replace my first innertube the other day but it was the tire stem that sprung a leak while I was pumping it up. only had to true the spokes a bit 3 times in 1,300 + miles. so, ride on ! it's all positive ! I now ride to work 2-3 times a week , 25 mile round trip. and to improve your weight loss AND improve your cycling, enroll for spinning classes at a gym if you can. your heart and lungs will thank you. btw, my resting heart rate went from 90's to 50. I'M HOOKED ON CYCLING !! I still have 100lbs to lose and am going to enjoy getting there, finally
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Old 05-17-11, 07:26 PM
  #80  
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HumanPowerOzmo: What a great first post! Welcome.
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Old 05-17-11, 08:42 PM
  #81  
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I think the key is to try to ignore the negative stuff and focus on the positive both internally and externally. Remember your only as fat on that bike as you think you are. I have a good friend that is in perfect condition: she is a truly beautiful girl but yet she doesnt think so. I asked her if she wanted to come for a ride with me and she said she didn't like to ride her bike much because she felt she was too fat for it. It made me feel kind of bad, but when thinking about it, self perception can be a very strong thing. Even when people make fun of you, often they do so just to make themselves feel better about being lazy and doing nothing. So just get out there and keep biking and try to have fun
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Old 05-18-11, 10:20 AM
  #82  
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My experiences...

I'm a fairly big rider - 5'8 and nearly 300lbs - living in San Francisco. My first ride was a mile, about 2 years ago. Since then I've had cars curse at me for no reason. Bikers curse at me after cutting me off. Car doors open in my face. And yes, even fat hate.

But more that that, I've also found encouragement. For every time anyone has cursed me, 20 have yelled a supportive, "keep going, you're almost at the top of this hill!" The people who matter to me view me in a new light. Now people want me to take them out biking. There's something about starting at the bottom and overcoming obstacles that makes people trust you when you give advice.

Now two stories. First the bad one.

I've been training for the Aids Lifecycle since the beginning of the year. (For those of you who don't know, it's a 545 mile ride over 7 days from San Francisco to Los Angles.) This will be the hardest thing I've ever done and every weekend of training this year has been the hardest athletic weekend of my life.

About a month ago, I was on the longest ride I've ever done - 70 hilly miles that would ultimately take me nearly 11 hours, including rest stops and lunch. I'm slow and was riding alone. I was 3/4 of the way up a hill I had never climbed non-stop and I noticed that I had just passed the 50 mile mark - a half century and still twenty miles to home. And that's when an SUV with 4 ******bags drove by and started yelling insults. "Try weight watchers before wearing spandex" and "Stop hogging the road lard-ass!" are the ones I remember.

This senseless act of violence (and this was violence) did sting. But somehow the sense of pride I had in myself from my accomplishments was even greater. I met up with some others in my group near the golden gate bridge and in their outrage, I realized that I had better people on my side than the f*ckwits in the car could ever understand.

Now this doesn't mean that I didn't want to pound these sub-humans to a pulp, just that I think I have something better. And that's probably a healthier way to look at things.


Now a second, shorter story, that also explains why I could have pounded them to a pulp.

Most mornings I bike to the gym and do olympic lifting or boxing. On my way back home, I stop by a coffee shop. About a month after a new woman started working there, I kind of sensed that there was a joke going on at my expense. Obviously I assumed that it was a fat guy in spandex joke - but I let it slide. Finally I was talking to one of the barristas and I asked her. The joke was that this woman had been working for a month and saw me almost every day and had never seen my eyes. I never took off my sunglasses in the coffee shop, so she had started joking that I had no eyes.

I guess the lesson here is that yes there are major asses out there. But most people see other things than just a fat guy on a bike.
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Old 05-19-11, 11:02 AM
  #83  
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Great post ALC

Funny how the safety of a swift moving vehicle makes certain folks very brave. I'm guessing not many of these people would have much to say face to face to us larger riders.

Always remember you're out there for yourself, your health and to have fun and no insults can harm you.
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Old 05-19-11, 04:22 PM
  #84  
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Thanks Jethro56. glad I found this site!

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Old 05-19-11, 04:29 PM
  #85  
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Thanks Jethro56. glad I found this site!

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Old 05-19-11, 04:46 PM
  #86  
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First off - congratulations to you for getting out there. Don't worry what anyone thinks, you are doing this for your own health and fitness and again, good for you. As for riding slow, for now do what you can - speed and confidence will come later. If you have to walk up a hill, so walk it up - think of the nice ride down the other side. When i started riding again at 60 years old i thought people would think "look at that old fart on a bike" , well - let them look. I am enjoying myself and am feeling healthier as well. Good luck to you and stay out there -- don't give it another worry. ENJOY!!!!!!
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Old 05-19-11, 04:58 PM
  #87  
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Originally Posted by CraigB
Great for you. You'll find more of those moments as you continue along this path. Like the first time you wear bike shorts. All it takes is just enough gumption to get you over those bumps, and they recede to nothing in your rearview mirror pretty quickly.
Dude, I just noticed your weight loss ticker...nice work...what was your success secret?
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Old 05-19-11, 05:01 PM
  #88  
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Alc_4_me: I'm blown away by this latest group of "New Brothers In Excellent Spirit". I've been on this journey for 22 months now and your posts brings a smile to my face. Welcome.
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Old 05-19-11, 05:23 PM
  #89  
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Thanks for the positive comments guys. Just for the record, I did make it the last quarter of the way up that hill. And the entire next hill as well - slowly, of course. Last weekend, I did the same ride with an extra 12 mile detour through Tiburon - over 80 miles in total.
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Old 05-20-11, 05:58 PM
  #90  
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Anybody worth half a squirrels poop will admire you for doing something that is difficult for you. Anybody else doesn't matter.

If the speed of sound riders give you a hard time, challenge them to a race.. but to make it even strap 200 pounds of potatoes on their bike.. with an evening handicap I bet you'd win! You are already used to the weight!
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Old 05-20-11, 06:04 PM
  #91  
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I'd be embarassed NOT to ride . . .
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Old 05-20-11, 11:14 PM
  #92  
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Originally Posted by ALC_4_me
<snip>
About a month after a new woman started working there, I kind of sensed that there was a joke going on at my expense. Obviously I assumed that it was a fat guy in spandex joke - but I let it slide. Finally I was talking to one of the barristas and I asked her. The joke was that this woman had been working for a month and saw me almost every day and had never seen my eyes. I never took off my sunglasses in the coffee shop, so she had started joking that I had no eyes.

I guess the lesson here is that yes there are major asses out there. But most people see other things than just a fat guy on a bike.
So, big guy, tell us...is she hot and did you get her number?
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Old 05-21-11, 12:00 AM
  #93  
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Seriously though, it takes courage to get out there. Congratulations on overcoming your fear. Now keep up the great work
This. Plus your are doing exactly what you should be doing. Don't let weenies rob you of spirit.
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Old 05-21-11, 05:40 AM
  #94  
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Originally Posted by cohophysh
Dude, I just noticed your weight loss ticker...nice work...what was your success secret?
Thanks. No great secret other than 1) deciding to do it, 2) choosing to join Weight Watchers as a means to provide some structure and accountability, and 3) most importantly (for me anyway) having the support and companionship of my wife in the whole endeavor.
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Old 05-21-11, 09:39 AM
  #95  
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Pub,

Congratulations on riding, and as others have said, don't let others get you down. I sometimes get jeers out of car windows -- mainly when I ride at night and look about as dorky as possible with a helmet light and reflective vest, etc.

I've been riding again for a couple of years now, and still avoid the skin tight clothing myself (yes, even on my road bike). I find that mountain bike "baggies" (or gym shorts with cycling "liner shorts") and a loose baseball jersey or mountain bike jersey actually work just fine for me.

Best,
Rob
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Old 05-22-11, 07:43 AM
  #96  
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Thanks!

Thanks for this thread! I've never been small, even when I was riding a lot and was much smaller than today. Even with all the stopping on uphills, wheezing and the fact that I can't seem to sustain a cadence above 70, I still feel better when cycling than with any other form of exercise. I think I've gotten over the self-conciousness and I always take heart in being the rider other people want to draft off when the hills go down!
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Old 05-22-11, 08:06 AM
  #97  
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I know what you mean. I've never liked to exercise. But somehow there is something different about being on a bike. It is so much more fluid than walking. I feel lighter than I do on foot.
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Old 05-22-11, 11:27 AM
  #98  
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I'm not a larger person but I relate to this. Hell yes I was embarrassed at first. Imagining drivers laughing or pitying the guy on the bike, self-conscious about being in anyone's way. I didn't know this culture existed or that grown men seriously used bikes for transportation and regular recreation. I just did it, and it was acutely uncomfortable.

After a while you realize something different from talking to people and watching them. These strangers in cars, not all of them but most, admire what you're doing, you can hear that respect, some even envious wishing they could do the same if only ... even with those who resent it, it helps to know where that's coming from. Seeing you bigger guys cranking along, a lot of them are going to be secretly in awe even if they'd never admit it.

About the speed I'll let you in on a little secret. It doesn't matter. The average driver passing by has no idea how fast you're going unless they can't pass and have to follow behind you for awhile. And if they do have to follow it doesn't matter if you're going 25 or 30 mph some will still rag on you for slowing traffic.

Last edited by wphamilton; 05-22-11 at 11:31 AM.
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Old 05-22-11, 11:13 PM
  #99  
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Originally Posted by JonnyHK
So, big guy, tell us...is she hot and did you get her number?
Not her number. But I'm taking the girl at the other coffee shop a couple blocks away on a bike ride across the Golden Gate bridge. She's never done that before. And yeah, got this one's number
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Old 05-23-11, 08:09 AM
  #100  
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Nice work!!!!
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