as many others my biggest struggel is to loose fat. The training is fun not matter how hard it is. But the hard times are off the bike when the day is long and hunger big.
I would like to hear from you your best ways and strageties to loose some weight. If its just 2 kg to reach racing weight or a long term journey to get you in a healty range, it doesnt matter.
I would love to see that this topic will evolve to a reference book for everybody who is struggeling or needs a kick to get it back on track.
Iām 180 cm and weighing 87 kg right now. My top weight was 120 kg. Thats some years ago but Im still on my jourey. At first i want to get to 85, next stop 80 and hopefully 78 at the end. From there on I want to recalibrate and set new goals e.g. body compostion and so on.
Im eating really healty but my portions are often to big and I love to eat. Counting cal is hard for me but works quite well. My best results are when Iām just eating one smaller plates in the evening (I dont have lunch, just dinner with my family at 8-9pm - not negotiable). But as food is a kind of reward for a long day its an everyday struggle. Cause of this my journy is more an ultramarathon than an 5k race.
So whats your way to go? Fancy food strategies? In Combination with 72h of depleated weekend rides? Let us know and share to make everyone healthy and faster.
At my fattest I was 158kg! Iām currently at just under 80kg, although have previously been as low as 74kg. Iāve found that calorie counting works best for me, rather than any particular diet strategy. You can eat a lot of food, especially if training, if you mainly eat good, healthy food. I try to avoid eating too much high GI food, unless timed with a workout or ride, but I do allow myself an occasional treat. I enjoy food much more now than when I was eating crap all the time, and my tastes have changed towards a preference for healthier foods. Beer is my big weakness, but rather than cutting it out altogether I just try to moderate it.
Due to the amount of weight Iāve lost, and the fact that at times Iāve probably not lost weight in a particularly healthy way (i.e. too quickly, no thought given to where my calories were coming from or properly fueling for exercise), Iām sure that my basal metabolic rate will have been negatively affected. As such, I know that Iāll probably always have to be quite careful about what I eat, and monitor my weight regularly in order to maintain weight loss. I find that I soon gain weight again if I donāt pay attention, and have yo-yoed up and down a bit since losing the bulk of the weight.
My best period of weight loss came earlier this year. I used Myfitnesspal to track calories/macros taking a daily weight. I was training 3-5 days a week.
I gave myself 5 set āmealsā:
Breakfast - mostly porridge
Mid-morning - normally a banana
Lunch
Mid-afternoon - normally low fat yoghurt with oats/berries/honey
Dinner - protein & lots of veg on non training days
Making sure to have plenty of water with meals I felt full on non-training days with a slight defecit and managed a decent defecit on training days which allowed for the occasional treat too.
my best way was to not count all calories, just count the 500 Iād reduce my daily intake by in order to lose 1 lb a week. So for me that meant cutting a few out during the day, no seconds, and no beer. Fruit is your friend when dieting, as fructose preferentially replenishes liver glycogen. General fatigue from dieting is typicallly from low liver glycogen.
Other than that, consistency, consistency, consistency. itās about long term habits, not short term achievements.
Iāve struggled with weight loss/fat loss, myself. Iāve always been a contact sport/fast twitch athlete - American football, hockey, so I carry a larger frame than your average cyclist. I started my journey at 225lbs (102kg). Iām down to 195 (88kg) now, and still losing, with a goal of 185lbs (83kg). Also, Iām 6ā2", so Iām NOT a small person.
I yo-yoed with various fad eating trendsā¦ keto, low carb, vegan, etc. They all worked, but werenāt sustainable.
Until I stumbled upon this:
This article changed my life and approach to eating, exercising, and weight control. Itās a long read, but WELL worth thee read AND the bookmark, because youāll come back to it.
Now, I have figured out my basal metabolic rate, calculated the formula, my macro intake (50% carbs, 30% protein, 20% fat), and I control my weight. I fall off the wagon sometimes when my wife wants to eat junk, or its the holidays, but itās easy to get back on track without doing anything heroic.
The takeaway - you canāt out-train a bad diet. Also, abs are made in the kitchen.
Having ridden bike all my life and competitively when I was much younger trying to lose weight over the last few years have been really hard - tried all sorts of things and eventually paid to see a trainer - significantly changed how I went about things. Nothing revolutionary but he suggested using myfitnesspal (which I was using) ignore the calories that get added for activities (as we all know we can do a 4 hour ride and apparently have the calories available to stuff our face all day trying to hit the required amount the app suggests). I weighted around 88kg and with my activities he suggested 2500 cals a day, 150g protein (i wasnāt eating enough) 250g carbs and 80g fats.
Basically try to eat as clean and as health as possible but want an ice cream or chocolate bar sometimes just log it and dont make excuses or feel bad. I lost a steady 5 kg over 2 months.
Not groundbreaking but it worked for the first time in years I was losing regular weight. I am definitely eating less carbs and can ride longer not needing to eat in the way I was before. I often do my TR sessions before breakfast.
Not really rocket science, but I made a few small changes that over ther past season have made a big difference. Iāve started doing some of my sessions before breakfast, and the evening oneās Iāll try to do before my dinner. Eating a bit later also means Iām less likley to snack. Cut down on beer, reduced carbs and increased protien. I donāt count calories at all, but Iām starting this winter 11kg down on where I was last year.
Iām so impressed by the massive weight loss so many of you make happen! I dropped from 80 kg to 65 kg with the assistance of a Nokia Body+ WiFi scale and Lifesum (phone app). I weighed in every morning (after toilet, before food). Like others I also counted calories, and it worked very well. I planned for and completed six months of calorie counting. Being a perfectionist I weighed almost everything I ate, also because I knew of research that shows people usually count too low. They forget the handful of nuts or dried fruits they had before lunch, the biscuits they had after dinner or the tablespoon of olive oil they added to their salad. The only meals I couldnāt count correctly were the ones I didnāt make myself, so I limited my allowance to eat out to once a week and made an effort to overestimate the calories of those meals. My weight trend showed this was working quite well. Calorie counting is a very good way of learning the calorie content of different foods, but is a real PITA to do properly. For people thinking about doing it I think itās smart to set an end date, or else you may struggle with the motivation. You may only need a month or two to learn what you need to learn.
A few months after reaching my target weight I regained a few kg. But I found out that I was a much happier and better cyclist at 67-68 kg. Itās also a lot easier for me to maintain that weight. After all Iām still beat up climbs by people 20-30 kg heavier than me, so Iāve concluded that consistent training is the way forward. Also, Iām completely addicted to chocolate and baked goods, and since I have no plan on becoming a world tour rider Iād rather enjoy life
Random notes about my weight management:
Big breakfasts limit evening food cravings, which means my total intake drops.
I try to always have fruits and carrots at home for the days I do get cravings.
I try to make dinner my last meal of the day, even if I have to go to bed hungry.
Cake and sweets are good. I eat the same amount as before (once or twice a week, usually in combination with long rides).
Fast food is very good, but very bad. I eat way less of it than before. My allowance for eating out is once a week, and that includes everything but home-made meals. Every now and then I go over the allowance. Iām only human.
I still weigh myself every morning. I find it useful for making adjustments and an easy way to stay in control.
My resting heart rate dropped from ~75 bpm to ~45 bpm in just a year after I started cycling and losing weight.
My blood pressure went down 10-20% during that same time.
Cycling is all about fun and achievements for me. When my food intake drops too much I start not having fun and my performance suffers, which leads to fewer achievements.
Iām another MyFitnessPal user.
I found that logging all my meals disincentivised me to snack. This coupled with a no food after 8pm has helped me stick around my goal weight.
If I do over indulge on holiday, I usually start to get back to my happy weight quickly.
As some else mentioned. Eat good things, treat yourself on occasion and have fun. Itās all about balance.
The trick is to balance inputs and outputs and to aim for quality foods.
Learn the difference between processed or fast food and quality fruits and veg. If you eat good foods then you can eat an awful lot more of it. Processed foods are really not good for you so even small amounts have a bad effect. If you eat well you really can eat loads.
Over the past couple of years Iāve taught myself to understand the difference between protein and carb and fats and what foods have what in them in what sort of quantities. Importantly Iāve learned about GI (Glycaemic Index) ie. how fast your body burns through the sugar and wants more again. These days I donāt drink at all and I eat tons of food but I try and keep a rough idea of how much Iām eating relative to how much Iām exercising. If iāve done a 1000 calorie TrainerRoad workout in the morning then i know iāve got an extra 1000 cals i can eat that day. Another 5 mile run at lunchtime = 500cals more I can eat (and have to eat!). If youāve got a rough mental guide of a banana=125cals and a pasty=650 cals then you instinctively develop a sense of balancing inputs and outputs. On rest days I will eat 40g of porridge for breakfast. On hard days i might have 80g with tons of toppings.
Another good trick is to eat dark chocolate. I eat at least half a large bar of choc every day of my life but itās dark so itās very chocolately without being full of sugar.
The book āThe Endurance Dietā is a very good read that clearly shows you how you can eat lots and eat well and stay at the right weight.
As others have mentioned, I think the actions are pretty straightforward.
Make diet changes to eat healthier. Choose foods that you like though so that itās sustainable long term. You want a lifestyle change, not a project.
Put yourself in a slight calorie deficit (300-500 calories per day). I donāt know how you can do this reliably without counting calories in some form.
Measure progress and adjust as necessary
Most people think weight loss is exercise induced, itās 90% in the kitchen!
Here a few books Iāve read recently that provide more of a system on these basic principles. Pick any one of these books and youāre sure to lose weight, or grab the basic ideas from all of them and put something together that suits you.
Only sweet stuff allowed is occasional dried fruit or nuts
Junk food only once a week (One cheat meal of pretty much anything)
Three meals a day with low cal fruits (apples etc) or vegetables allowed in between. Light breakfast and evening meal and large lunch which can be pretty much any normal healthy home food.
Iāve seen a lot of diets that recommend many small meals often, but Iāve found it easier keep motivated if I can eat one good meal a day and not a lot of disappointing ones.
I had pretty great success with a ketogenic diet last year - lost about 30# (14 kg) over 4 months. The first few weeks were pretty tough and long rides were REALLY tough but it got a lot better and now I do all of my workouts fasted and feel great. If youāre a Reddit user, their forum at https://www.reddit.com/r/keto/ is a great resource.
I have come down from 117kg to 89kg with another 5kg to go and have done Atkins, 5/2 fasting, my fitness pal calorie counting and Keto. They all work but I found mfp the best as long as you make your own meals and donāt eat out a lot.
Best tips:
Scales will mess with your mind, look at a weekly moving average, not daily
Keto is best in off season, even a sweet spot workout was hell and affected the quality of the workout badly. An easy run fasted and depleted on Keto is totally doable though.
MFP will teach you where you are eating loads of empty calories and how to eat better.
Only add back half the calories your Garmin tells you when counting and adding excercise calories, the values you get are often too high.
never ramp your insulin up, (you get super hungry) learn about low and hi glycemic index foods. Oatmeal at breakfast will save you from disaster at lunch.
You only need recovery drinks if you are going to workout again that day, but try fuel for any moderate or intense workouts 4hrs or so before, using normal meals
Have some diet appropriate snacks handy. I use bitong/jerkey and snacking chirozo, on low carb diets, also nuts like almonds walnuts pecans etc
Fruit juice bad / whole fruits better
Good quality whole and natural food beats processed, and refined foods
Big +1 to the Endurance diet, especially the app (buggy as it is) because itās way easier to keep using than MFP because you donāt have to search for the foods, you just lump them into the categories.
Also, a bonus with Endurance Diet is that I have a diet score for non-workout days, workout days and pre-race days. Itās so helpful and encourages you to make the whole-food choice as much as possible without making you feel guilty.
Doing lots of HIIT and upping my protein intake.
I also eliminated dairy and nuts from my diet.
Iām a sweet carb junkie so it wasnāt easy. What made it easy was having a goal (āThe Race!ā). Make your goal personal (with a bit of an emotional anchor) and itāll be easier to choose X over that next doughnut.
Good advice, I love the feeling of going to bed hungry, then hammering out a workout in the AM followed by a plant-based (fruit) breakfast. Nothing sheds the kgās faster than that for me. I also will eat a bowl of Muesli for dinner, go do a 3 hour MTB ride then off to bed after. Feels great!
