Two days in and a question already

[Chris_Kn]

Ok, so I've started on an easy training program, using my bike on a trainer.
My GP suggested using my max heart rate and then working to a % of it
for the duration or the exercise. So I did some reading up on this and thought
I'd give it a go, question is has anyone else used this method to loose weight
and if so was it successful??

Bearing in mind I'm 54, 5" 7' and 22st 3lb the first 4 or 5 sessions have been
for around 15 min each and the distance was around 2.6 mile, the way I did it
was to get my HR to between 60/70% of Max and maintain that rate for as
long as I could.

 

[Mo1959]

Ok, so I've started on an easy training program, using my bike on a trainer.
My GP suggested using my max heart rate and then working to a % of it
for the duration or the exercise. So I did some reading up on this and thought
I'd give it a go, question is has anyone else used this method to loose weight
and if so was it successful??

Bearing in mind I'm 54, 5" 7' and 22st 3lb the first 4 or 5 sessions have been
for around 15 min each and the distance was around 2.6 mile, the way I did it
was to get my HR to between 60/70% of Max and maintain that rate for as
long as I could.

To be honest, I wouldn't get too hung up on the technicalities at your stage. Just gradually increase your mileage while keeping at a pace that you could still hold a conversation at and you will be fine. Plenty of time later to start worrying about heart rate monitors, cadence, etc. Far more important that you just enjoy getting out there in the fresh air and get the legs spinning. You will have good days and bad days but keep at it and your fitness will come on quite quickly and, providing you are watching the diet too, the weight should also start dropping. Good luck and welcome to the forum.

 

[midlife]

Exercise is for fitness, eating less is the way to lose weight

Riding a bike should be for pleasure and not a chore in an effort to lose weight

Shaun

 

[vickster]

Eat less, build up to more cycling

If you struggle to modify your food intake alone, perhaps give Weight Watchers or Slimming World a go, the support can be invaluable

 

[jefmcg]

You need to find an exercise you enjoy, and you can stick to for life. For most people, that's not an indoor trainer. If you can, take the bicycle out of the streets and enjoy the pleasures of cycling outdoors. And use it to go to the shops, and work - if you can.

I understand that at 140kg or so, you might want to stay indoors, but do try. It's better for you now and in the long term.

Don't worry about a HRM. You want to stay in the aerobic zone at this stage, while you are building fitness. It's easy to tell if you are in it: you should have enough breath to carry on a normal conversation, but not enough to sing.

Also, have you done a stress test to find out your Max HR? If not, your estimate of your MHR could be wildly off and so you are just doing 60-70% of a random number.

 

[Chris_Kn]

Thanks for the quick answers folks.

I've been here before 3 or 4 yrs ago went from 23st to 17st in 12months ago using an exercise bike.
But by the end started having problems with my knee, I guess that the average fit for the 'Bike' was
wrong for me and that was what caused the problem.

My diet has remained the same since then, just NO exercise( I know ) So I do eat pretty healthy
diet. Due to certain meds that I have to take, having a bang to the head just might cause a serious bleed.
This is one reason why I put the new biker on a turbo trainer at least until I get some weight off and
become a little fitter Then the bike will be going on the road. I guess I must be wired wrong as I enjoy
doing what I'm doing, as I know my long term goals will be even more fun. So I don't see it as a chore.

The irony when I walk around I get really bad back pain due to a serious injury while I was "white water canoing"
20+ yrs ago, using the bike doesn't cause my back any problems and helps.

 

[blazed]

To be honest, I wouldn't get too hung up on the technicalities at your stage. Just gradually increase your mileage while keeping at a pace that you could still hold a conversation at and you will be fine. Plenty of time later to start worrying about heart rate monitors, cadence, etc. Far more important that you just enjoy getting out there in the fresh air and get the legs spinning. You will have good days and bad days but keep at it and your fitness will come on quite quickly and, providing you are watching the diet too, the weight should also start dropping. Good luck and welcome to the forum.

Exercise is for fitness, eating less is the way to lose weight

Riding a bike should be for pleasure and not a chore in an effort to lose weight

Shaun

Don't listen to this. If you're going to do something do it properly. Yes eating less is how you lose weight but by exercising hard you burn more calories, lose more weight and make better gains to your fitness. The more fit you get the harder you can workout.

The fact is you have allowed yourself to get to 22st, I don't know your personals story but people don't usually get that obese by being in control of their lives. In terms of losing that weight you have to take control, don't go into it with a "I'm just gonna ride my bike for fun" attitude, start as you mean to go on.

 

[raleighnut]

Thanks for the quick answers folks.

I've been here before 3 or 4 yrs ago went from 23st to 17st in 12months ago using an exercise bike.
But by the end started having problems with my knee, I guess that the average fit for the 'Bike' was
wrong for me and that was what caused the problem.

My diet has remained the same since then, just NO exercise( I know ) So I do eat pretty healthy
diet. Due to certain meds that I have to take, having a bang to the head just might cause a serious bleed.
This is one reason why I put the new biker on a turbo trainer at least until I get some weight off and
become a little fitter Then the bike will be going on the road. I guess I must be wired wrong as I enjoy
doing what I'm doing, as I know my long term goals will be even more fun. So I don't see it as a chore.

The irony when I walk around I get really bad back pain due to a serious injury while I was "white water canoing"
20+ yrs ago, using the bike doesn't cause my back any problems and helps.

If you're getting knee problems then you may have the saddle set too low.
Your leg should be all but straight at the bottom of the pedal stroke when its at the right height.

 

[ColinJ]

Hi Chris.

I have put 4 stone on in a year before now so I know it is possible to gain a lot of weight quickly, but you really need to stop fooling yourself - you have put 6 stone on to what was already a huge weight for your height, so you are NOT eating healthily! It might be healthy food but you are definitely eating an unhealthy amount of it ...

At your height, you probably need to lose about 12 stone. That is equivalent to something like 17,000 - 20,000 miles of road cycling so trying to 'burn it off' is going to take you a long time, be awfully hard work, and put extra stress on that bad knee. Much better to get the diet under control to lose most of the weight, and use the cycling to have fun, get fit and healthy, and lose the rest of it.

As for the meds ... I know where you are coming from there. After 2 serious illnesses due to blood clots, I am now on Warfarin for life and I had exactly the same worries as you about banging my head in a fall from my bike. In the end though, I thought about it and decided to just get on with my cycling life. I wear a helmet, do my best to avoid such falls, and wear a medical dog tag round my neck with details of my meds/condition. I also make sure that people I ride with know what to do if I am rendered unconscious in an accident. (I.e. make sure that the paramedics read the dog tag!)

Good luck!

 

[vickster]

Do you have a metabolic condition that leads to weight gain or are you taking steroid medication or similar? How many calories do you consume a day? What does your daily diet look like?

It sounds like you have a reasonable GP - ask them to refer you to a dietician to help with the weight loss. Most people (i.e. non professional athletes) cannot consume calories far in excess of the daily recommended amount and maintain a healthy weight through exercise alone (especially if they have other commitments in life like work, family etc)

 

[Chris_Kn]

Hi Colin, I had my first to rounds with DVT then Pulmonary Embolism 15 yrs ago and a third DVT last August.

A quick daily guide would be as follows.....

Breakfast 2 wheatabix and semi skimmed milk, 1 teaspoon of sugar. 1 medium cup of coffee SS milk 1/2 teaspoon of sugar.
Dinner, 1 sandwich usually, 2 slices of Brown bread 2 slices of some kind of cooked meat and a couple of slices of tomato or cucumber,
2 dozen grapes and 2 Tablespoons of yoghurt.
Tea, will be 1 chicken breast or 3 thighs, steamed in the oven with tomato's,leeks, served with 6 new potatoes or mashed potatoes.
or the meat will be tuna steak/pork loin steak. Or a slice of homemade quiche, new spuds, peas. or 2 slices of cheese on toast.
Supper a couple of wheatabix SS milk.

Add to that a couple more cups of coffee and 2 or 4 glasses of bottled water from one of the supermarkets.

So add to that I don't drink, don't smoke, don't do toffees/crisps..

Chris..

 

[vickster]

Have you had your thyroid and other metabolic markers tested? Other than a blood thinner do you take other medications that might be causing weight gain? If accurate, that doesn't seem an excessive amount of food. But why do you need the cereal after your evening meal? I'd drop the weetabix and eat porridge with a little fruit, will keep you much fuller for longer and is much less processed (don't weetabix already have sugar in them, they always have a sweet taste to me?)

 

[Saluki]

Hi Colin, I had my first to rounds with DVT then Pulmonary Embolism 15 yrs ago and a third DVT last August.

A quick daily guide would be as follows.....

Breakfast 2 wheatabix and semi skimmed milk, 1 teaspoon of sugar. 1 medium cup of coffee SS milk 1/2 teaspoon of sugar.
Dinner, 1 sandwich usually, 2 slices of Brown bread 2 slices of some kind of cooked meat and a couple of slices of tomato or cucumber,
2 dozen grapes and 2 Tablespoons of yoghurt.
Tea, will be 1 chicken breast or 3 thighs, steamed in the oven with tomato's,leeks, served with 6 new potatoes or mashed potatoes.
or the meat will be tuna steak/pork loin steak. Or a slice of homemade quiche, new spuds, peas. or 2 slices of cheese on toast.
Supper a couple of wheatabix SS milk.

Add to that a couple more cups of coffee and 2 or 4 glasses of bottled water from one of the supermarkets.

So add to that I don't drink, don't smoke, don't do toffees/crisps..

Chris..

Blimey. You eat less than I do (I eat like a horse) except for the bread bit. I am not a fan of the vile stuff.

Sometimes a shake up in what you eat can be very helpful as your body doesn't know what to expect and works harder because of it.

Happy riding. I am sure, that now you have made the decision to ride, that your weight will improve. Welcome to CC

 

[midlife]

You eat about twice what I do, maybe I was being simplistic about the way to lose weight is by diet but Blazes idea of doing it by exercise only is perhaps a tall order.

Shaun

 

[ColinJ]

Hi Colin, I had my first to rounds with DVT then Pulmonary Embolism 15 yrs ago and a third DVT last August.

Yikes - twice was bad enough for me! That's another reason to lose weight because (as I am sure you know) obesity greatly increases the risk of clotting.

The amount of food that you are eating now certainly wouldn't appear to account for your weight gain. Were you eating like that when you put the weight on? (If so, then I don't have a clue how you managed to get so big!)