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Struggling To Lose Weight Through Cycling? This Could Be Why


TheX
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So many people think that they can eat with impunity because they did a big ride. Any one of those things in the video would have been fine, but piling them all on is a problem.

The biggest misconception however is the raw idea of "calories in < calories out" as the way to lose weight. Yeeeeeessssss, this is *technically* true but there is another element on top of that.

GOOD calories are way better for you than bad calories. If you burn 1200 calories on a ride and then eat a 1000 calorie piece of chocolate cake you are worse off than if you ate a 1000 calorie salad. Technically both will give you a net reduction in calories (which is good) but the lack of nutrition in the cake will not really help you. Additionally, all of the carbs in the cake will leave you hungry for more in another hour, fat and protein will hold you over.

Yeah, I'm the guy that often drinks a beer or two after a ride, but I am very disciplined the rest of the day. The content of the calories is just as important, if not more important, than the raw number of calories.

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Went to Chicago and gained 6 pounds in 48 hours. That is literally 1 pound every 8 hours INCLUDING WHEN I SLEPT.

got home and rode a lot while cutting back on eating.  6 pounds are gone (~4 of it was water weight).

that is the key to being healthy, you can go overboard and get back on track quickly. If you are not eating healthy it is harder to recover.

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12 hours ago, Ericbike6 said:

You don't want to loose too much weight, then you'll get that saggy skin syndrome.  Living with that fun side effect now. 

Dropped 50lbs last summer, aka 25% of my body weight.  Would not recommend...

I dropped 50 as well, about the same proportion. I don't have saggy skin so I must have gotten lucky. My issue is that my temples appear sunken because my of the 50 pounds I lost appears to have been in my head. I kinda have a skeleton look now and you can't hide that with clothes so it sucks worse than saggy skin. But it is better than hauling two extra bikes up the hill with me on every climb.

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10 hours ago, ATXZJ said:

100% this^

Here's a snapshot of December through today. Notice that there were 3 times that I gained more than 3 pounds in a single day, around the start of the month when I had 2 parties in a weekend, xmas itself and then Chicago (this one was 6 pounds in 2 days.)

Every time I went up quickly in weight, I was riding the next day and watching what I ate - immediately dropped the weight. Most of this is because it was water weight. Now think about your friends that aren't as active and don't eat well. They pick up 3 pounds, complain like it is the end of the world, and it takes them 3-4 weeks to work it off because they are sedentary or not watching what they ate. When I bump up, I swear off beer and carbs completely and that will magically drop off the weight (provided I am moving enough). I move back to moderation once I am back down the my range. 

After having lived at the 200-210 range for years, I realize how lucky I am now and the discipline keeps me going. But I also have the luxury of being able to bike every day and not everyone has that. Exercise alone will not solve the problem but it is very additive to the solution.

If you really want to lose weight, don't spend a lot of money on fancy stuff. Go to Walmart and get a $20 blood glucose meter and start tracking your morning glucose. This will do more for helping you lose weight than all the CrossFit memberships. Added bonus: it helps with high cholesterol and Alzheimer's prevention as well.

Screen Shot 2020-01-04 at 5.46.34 AM.jpg

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So this might not be a proven scientific way... But its helped me...

When I was up at 287 lbs (the highest I've been), I was still playing squash, riding, and pretty much doing everything I do... I'm 6'4" and carry weight somewhat well. I'd tried a few diets and been doing the gym exercise thing, but with no real permanent result. Down 10 pounds, and back up ten pounds kind of deal.

Then one day I came up with this... 

Change eating habits a little at a time — cut out or down on a couple of things — and see what happens.

And do this with no time goal for weight loss... But... With the goal of getting into a certain weight zone and holding it there.

For instance...

From 287 lbs my goal was to get between 280 and 285 and hold it there until it became my normal weight range. Then, when I was confident it had, try to get to between 275 and 280 and hold it there until it became my normal weight range.

And be clear... Your weight will fluctuate a few pounds maybe even on a daily basis... That's normal, especially if you're carrying a lot of weight... So being okay with fluctuation within a 5 lb goal — such as 275-280 — is fine.

The key is to figure out what you did to get it down... And then holding it there until it becomes your normal weight.

Then target the next lower level range... Which in my case was 270-275 lbs.

It took time... But I've got myself down to 230-235 lbs. so far... And it's been about 5 years. And not once have I gone back up into higher numbers. The highest swing upwards that I've had is around 10 lbs, and this was when I was suffering from knee and ankle inflammation due to playing squash injured.

I did get stuck last year in the 230-240 lb range, but this was due to a medical problem and a medication I was on that totally messed up my digestive system and caused intense constant heart arrhythmia. I finally took myself off the medication and insisted that my doctor come up with another form of treatment... It's taken about three months, but I think I'm on the mend and will now be able to restart my downward weight loss regimen.

SIDETONE... Watch the medications that you take... Doctors are prescribing stuff and not really giving a flying turd about what may be happening to you personally.

Back to weight loss...

Unless there is an urgent medical need... Your weight loss goal should be based on a lifestyle change... Which includes home and work environments, especially related to stress, food amount and type — and time — consumption, and exercise. And changing all these things can take time.

In Jamaica there is a saying... "One, one cocoa fill basket."

This means... Things are achieved a little at a time.

 

Edited by RidingAgain
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Beats me. I would assume that it is sodium based on what I ate. If you eat 3 meals a day in restaurants you are eating a lot of processed food (i.e. sodium) versus eating the home cooked food where my wife does a better job of managing the sodium and everything is fresh.

I don't live in the keto world, I am low carb, high fat, which is close, but does not rely on being in some particular state. I call it lazy man's keto.

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I'm low "bad" carbs. The carbs that I get from fruits and veggies, etc. are about 30% of my diet. I try for 40% good fats (avocados, nuts, seeds, etc.) and 30% proteins.

I try to have no sugar outside of what's in my fruit, etc. And very low oil of any kind.

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40 minutes ago, TheX said:

I'm low "bad" carbs. The carbs that I get from fruits and veggies, etc. are about 30% of my diet. I try for 40% good fats (avocados, nuts, seeds, etc.) and 30% proteins.

I try to have no sugar outside of what's in my fruit, etc. And very low oil of any kind.

I'll be going back to a diet similar to this now that I've been officially classified as pre-diabetic once again. Last time was in 2008 and I beat it back with a strict diet of no more than 45 grams carbs (good of course) per meal and healthy snacks of no more than 10 grams carbs between meals (mostly fruit and nuts). Unfortunately over the last few years I've let myself go back to eating just about anything. That coupled with lack of activity due to recent injury along with twenty extra pounds has my fasting blood sugar pushing 120 on consecutive tests. That was the wakeup call I needed! Expecting to restore the healthy me in 2020.   

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On ‎1‎/‎4‎/‎2020 at 5:39 AM, AustinBike said:

I dropped 50 as well, about the same proportion. I don't have saggy skin so I must have gotten lucky. My issue is that my temples appear sunken because my of the 50 pounds I lost appears to have been in my head. I kinda have a skeleton look now and you can't hide that with clothes so it sucks worse than saggy skin. But it is better than hauling two extra bikes up the hill with me on every climb.

 

I unfortunately lost mine in about 3 months.  Started back in the gym and riding my bike last month.  And just this month will start on replacing my wardrobe, was waiting to see where about I was gonna land weight wise. 

So now I am  just trying to maintain this weight.  And I agree I have noticed my weight when riding, such a huge difference.  Now to just add some muscle mass back on, and life will be good.

 

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4 hours ago, throet said:

I'll be going back to a diet similar to this now that I've been officially classified as pre-diabetic once again. Last time was in 2008 and I beat it back with a strict diet of no more than 45 grams carbs (good of course) per meal and healthy snacks of no more than 10 grams carbs between meals (mostly fruit and nuts). Unfortunately over the last few years I've let myself go back to eating just about anything. That coupled with lack of activity due to recent injury along with twenty extra pounds has my fasting blood sugar pushing 120 on consecutive tests. That was the wakeup call I needed! Expecting to restore the healthy me in 2020.   

I do ~50g of carbs a day, almost all with dinner and never have anything between meals. Something for you to try is to not have anything between meals. Especially carbs. Basically that is what is probably keeping your glucose up. If you keep feeding it carbs throughout the day it never gets to calm down.

Also try some berberine. It drops my glucose a few points. Some will say I am just gaming the system, but, hey, I AM the system. Lower glucose is better, no matter how (generally) you achieve that.

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3 minutes ago, AustinBike said:

I do ~50g of carbs a day, almost all with dinner and never have anything between meals. Something for you to try is to not have anything between meals. Especially carbs. Basically that is what is probably keeping your glucose up. If you keep feeding it carbs throughout the day it never gets to calm down.

Also try some berberine. It drops my glucose a few points. Some will say I am just gaming the system, but, hey, I AM the system. Lower glucose is better, no matter how (generally) you achieve that.

I lost 40lbs 10 years ago basically doing something similar but different.  For me nutrient timing was key. I ate pretty much what I wanted for lunch, and always one of 3 things for breakfast.  For dinner I ate veggies and protein, no starches.  For example, a massive salad with plenty of fats (seeds, nuts, avocado, cheese) and a protein (tune, steak, salmon).


I have tried low/no carb but it's just too difficult for me.  What I find way easier is fasting.   I do IF every so often but definitely cut down on snacks and after dinner anything especially (my weakness).  I find it easy to fast even 24 hours as long as I'm not doing any big volume ride.

Recently I read a very interesting book.   Nutrient Timing:  The Future of Sports Nutrition.  The emphasis is on the benefits for training, but it's still very interesting to me and it reinforced some of my good habits, and pointed out some of my mistakes.  One of the things it recommends is to get carbs while training or for recovery, and that the timing is key.  

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IF is very powerful. If I needed to lose weight I would be all over that. We eat dinner early and I eat a late breakfast (2 meals a day most of the time) so I typically have a 16-hour fast every day. My wife has done 2 and 3 day fasts. 
 

Also try a “fat fast” - basically only eat bacon, avocados and macadamia nuts. The fat will hold you and keep you from getting hungry. Basically carbs make you hungry. If you are hungry between meals you need to eat more in your meals, primarily fat and protein, in order to be satiated. 

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15 hours ago, TheX said:

Modifying behavior is extremely difficult if you aren't ready, and dedicated. Eating healthy is a lifestyle.


There is a saying... Without vision people lack restraint... Or become chaotic.

To achieve modification requires having an anchor... Such as a vision of what you want to achieve with that modification. Without one, it's pretty much impossible to work through to achieving the goal in the long term.

Being "...ready..." requires having that anchor/vision. And also the means to sustain your effort in doing so (support your dedication to it). That's why for me I think the short term/long term thinking has worked out. No effort is going to be a straight shot. It just doesn't work that way. There will be hiccups and hindrances. Having short term goals help get you around/over/pass these hiccups and hindrances. The long term anchor/vision helps bring you back on course after experiencing those hiccups/hindrances.

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