Cycling For Fat-loss

LostCorkGuy

Hey , eh this is my first post , and I was wondering would any boards members have any advice on cycling in regards to fat loss and weight loss ?!

Basically I'm a twenty year old guy 5'10 in height and roughly 14 stone and I've put on a lot of weight from leaving cert and first year college piss ups and pizzas Up to then I was pretty fit and lean

At the moment I'm after buying a hybrid Bike and plan on cycling 35km daily in a continuous route , Ive been doing this for a week now and have been getting it done in around 85 min and I feel fine afterwards just a little tired . The route is mostly flat with a few long hills towards the end .

I was just wondering what people make of this routine and whether I should up the mileage , and how long should it be before I start seeing results !
Ideally I'd like to lose two stone maybe a little more ha

Thanks guys

**Timbuk2**

You can up the mileage by about 10% every week (the recommended rate so as to avoid injury). So if you can do 35km this week, next week do 39km, the next week 43km, the next week 47km, 52km, 57km etc. etc. (give or take a kilometre, you don't need to be surgically accurate!).

Doing 35km in 85mins gives you an average speed of 24-25km/h, which isn't bad for a beginner, and 35km is a good distance!

Some may disagree but for weight loss I think that diet is more important than exercise. In other words, it's difficult to out-train a bad diet.
I don't believe in counting calories you eat (waste of time IMO, just eat more healthy and reduce portion sizes and the weight will come off) but for reference purposes, to lose 2lbs (0.9kg) a week (the recommended max weekly weight loss), you need to create a calorie deficit of 1,000 (as in, you burn 1,000 more calories than you eat) - it's easier to create this deficit by reducing what you eat than increasing how much you exercise - obviously for best results, do a combination of both.

It won't be long until you start seeing results. At 2lbs a week, it'll take 7 weeks to lose a stone, which means it'll only take you 14 weeks to lose 2 stones (obviously this is a bit optimistic as we all have bad weeks, holidays etc.), but considering there's 52 weeks in a year, it doesn't take all that long to lose weight!

And I'm like yourself, just finished 1st year in college where I could have done more exercise and eaten healthier, but the summertime is a good time to get back on track!

Best of luck!

Satanta

I started cycling 4 weeks ago in order to compete in a charity race this weekend. I do 28 miles twice a week on top if my other training. The route is quite hilly. The only thing I changed in this time is the cycling. Diet and other training remain the same. About 5 weeks before that I started doing some crossfit wods. So overall I am doing quite a bit right now.
I hadn't cycles a bike before this in many years. Short story made long... I am down just over 1 kg in bodyweight. This wasn't actually a goal, but it happened anyway. So yes, I thing it will help you loose weight. But... As the previous poster said your diet will be very important. My diet is very clean and I am probably just about at maintainence calorie levels.

I would recomend finding a challenging route with hills. Cycling on the flat is too easy.

Duck's hoop

Satanta wrote: »

I would recomend finding a challenging route with hills. Cycling on the flat is too easy.

Push a bigger gear! No hills in track cycling and it's hard as nails.

flywheel

LostCorkGuy wrote: »

Hey , eh this is my first post , and I was wondering would any boards members have any advice on cycling in regards to fat loss and weight loss ?!

Basically I'm a twenty year old guy 5'10 in height and roughly 14 stone and I've put on a lot of weight from leaving cert and first year college piss ups and pizzas Up to then I was pretty fit and lean

At the moment I'm after buying a hybrid Bike and plan on cycling 35km daily in a continuous route , Ive been doing this for a week now and have been getting it done in around 85 min and I feel fine afterwards just a little tired . The route is mostly flat with a few long hills towards the end .

I was just wondering what people make of this routine and whether I should up the mileage , and how long should it be before I start seeing results !
Ideally I'd like to lose two stone maybe a little more ha

Thanks guys

that sounds like a nice route to build up your aerobic capacity, to build up your stamina and work on that first then you can begin to challenge yourself with other routes and find out what your strengths and weaknesses are... longer distance or building in climbs... it is important to balance you training (i.e. don't just kill your self slogging up steep grades) build up and keep working on your endurance... if you think a flat road is easy change to a more challenging gear and see how you can handle it... maybe even invest in a heart rate monitor for some bio feedback to help your training... if you have any mates who like to cycle that can help to learn some extra technique and also motivate... i like both approaches to go out on my own sometimes and then other times with friends

keep it up and enjoy

Fauntleroy

You're going to be burning about a thousand calories a day doing that kind of cycling, if you can keep it up without increasing how much you eat by too much you should lose the weight in no time. It's always good to change up your exercises though, you can get very used to the same exercise and route. Try mixing in some different cardio or even weights (muscle gain will increase the amount of calories you burn a day), or at least switch up the route you take on the bike.

metamorphosis

unless very very vigorous, 1000kcals for a 35km commute is a huger overestimation to be fair.

Progression will be key once peaked at current level.

Anyway, good diet will sort the fat loss out.

RobAMerc

**Timbuk2** wrote: »

Some may disagree but for weight loss I think that diet is more important than exercise. In other words, it's difficult to out-train a bad diet.

Have to agree - I did this for years cycling 25 odd k each way to work with some longer spins at the weekend, and I lost very little weight although my fitness level improved a lot. I also did some running ( not much I hate it ).
Cleaning up my diet ( and doing weights ) had a far bigger and far faster effect than all the miles I ever did on the bike.

The Davestator

Sorry to hijak the thread but i just wanted to see what 'flywheel's opinion of the video is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rx9SIyFMfcY

*waits for flywheel to explode in disbelief and anger*:D

metamorphosis

My eyes bleed!!!

Why?

marathonic

metamorphosis wrote: »

unless very very vigorous, 1000kcals for a 35km commute is a huger overestimation to be fair.

Progression will be key once peaked at current level.

Anyway, good diet will sort the fat loss out.

Agreed.. I cycle to work daily (have been since March). I suppose there'll be differences depending on the weight of the cyclist, the incline of the route and type of bike (road, hybrid, mountain) but, regardless, I don't see a 35km commute burning 1000kcals.

When working out my daily food requirements, I generally calculate my 26km commute as burning somewhere in the region of 500 calories - I'd say this figure is probably accurate to within about 50 calories.

In saying that, cycling IS good for weight loss. It's a staple for me and, now that I'm not looking to lose weight, I have to double up on my breakfast portions and add a little extra to my dinner.

opinion guy

metamorphosis wrote: »

My eyes bleed!!!

Why?

My ears bleed also!!

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Hanley

The Davestator wrote: »

Sorry to hijak the thread but i just wanted to see what 'flywheel's opinion of the video is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rx9SIyFMfcY

*waits for flywheel to explode in disbelief and anger*:D

Surely changing position and working unilaterally is a good workout for the core tho?

flywheel

Hanley wrote: »

Surely changing position and working unilaterally is a good workout for the core tho?

no definitely not on a fixed gear bike with a weighted flywheel - that video is not a class it is like an act practicing for an entertainment show (there are many on You Tube) it's made for entertainment not for training general / sports specific populations - it is not a good workout for the core given there are many simpler ways to achieve better core workout (e.g. body weight exercises, lifting free weights, functional training, suspension training to name a few, all more beneficial)...

the whole concept of Spinning® was to take cycling indoors and allow group exercise participants to enjoy the benefits of cycling training in a safe, effective, fun atmosphere with music and a qualified Spinning® instructor who would have an understanding of physiology and be educated in the basics of cycling training, heart rate training and periodisation... it's a great cardio exercise and can be used to build muscular endurance... it is not a core specific workout...

... on a side note, if you are told to 'pull/suck in your abs' in a class this is not beneficial as it will in inhibit efficient (diaphramatic) breathing which is needed to work at higher intensities and recover after them... check out this PDF document if you've been asked to do the above or anything 'aerobics' like on a bike:

Spinning® - Keep It Safe [PDF]
A guide to safety in the Spinning program—why certain movements are contraindicated and others are not.

Satanta

I think I should take back my comment about cycling on the flat being easty too.I s say it is for regular getting from a to b cycling. I did the race that i spent a whole 5 weeks training for. 28 miles of hello tbh. Thu guys I was out with were fast. I did it in 1:23 but it was very hard. Good few glad too. And the flat bits and even dowmhills were very tough. I am now hooked though! 1 year to train to place well next time

The Davestator

flywheel wrote: »

no definitely not on a fixed gear bike with a weighted flywheel - that video is not a class it is like an act practicing for an entertainment show (there are many on You Tube) it's made for entertainment not for training general / sports specific populations - it is not a good workout for the core given there are many simpler ways to achieve better core workout (e.g. body weight exercises, lifting free weights, functional training, suspension training to name a few, all more beneficial)...

the whole concept of Spinning® was to take cycling indoors and allow group exercise participants to enjoy the benefits of cycling training in a safe, effective, fun atmosphere with music and a qualified Spinning® instructor who would have an understanding of physiology and be educated in the basics of cycling training, heart rate training and periodisation... it's a great cardio exercise and can be used to build muscular endurance... it is not a core specific workout...

... on a side note, if you are told to 'pull/suck in your abs' in a class this is not beneficial as it will in inhibit efficient (diaphramatic) breathing which is needed to work at higher intensities and recover after them... check out this PDF document if you've been asked to do the above or anything 'aerobics' like on a bike:

Spinning® - Keep It Safe [PDF]
A guide to safety in the Spinning program—why certain movements are contraindicated and others are not.

I don't think you picked up on the sarcasm!!

flywheel

The Davestator wrote: »

I don't think you picked up on the sarcasm!!

in all seriousness many instructors actually think aerobics moves on an indoor studio bike are ok or somehow beneficial to 'perform', unfortunately the participants who entrust their training to them assume they must be if they are being instructed to do them

there are many facilities where instructors have no formal Indoor Cycling certification let alone any understanding of how to exercise on a fixed gear bike with a weighted flywheel and variable resistance... it's not complicated but there are some fundamental principals to learn...

here is an actual class that was on offer in the US, you can see they even described it as "safe"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJHaZpDDSRA

there's many similar 'classes' on You Tube described as Spin® or Spinning® classes, what you see in those classes is not Spinning®, it's not beneficial to fitness training and has the potential to lead to acute or chronic injury... so i'll take an opportunity to inform or set the record straight when it arises

Keep it Real as Jennifer Sage would say:
Just Don't Do It in your indoor cycling classes!