# 15 miles a day.. Is that good?



## joshmo

Im trying to lose weight and I weigh exactly 250 and I am 6'1 and just turned 30.. I have been putting 15 miles a day on my road bike after work for the past 4 days and my iPhone calc says I avg speed 13-14mph, and I ride for about an hour. Is that a good start in losing weight especially when the cycling app says I burn about 1000 calories.. I figure I will ride every day and lift some weights a few times a week. Any advice and am I on the right track to lose weight ? Any advice and input would greatly be appreciated for this new roadie..


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## mrcreosote

15 is better than 14, is better than 13.... Eventually you will be doing longer distances in the same time. I started with half hour at lunch time, then progressed to commuting (15 km each way), to 100km bunch rides on a Sunday, to 210km community rides. Took 3-4 years to build up to that.

Just keep doing what you are doing, combined with eating a healthy diet. No point riding and then eating a Big Mac after.

Don't expect miracles, and be aware that you will probably lose weight quickly at first, then the weight loss will taper off as your metabolism adjusts. You need to gradually keep upping the intensity until you reach your desired weight.

The important thing is that you have taken the first step.

Good luck.


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## mrcookie

thats a great start, and for losing weight, consistency is huge, but just realize that your cycling app is probably overestimating your calories. i'd guess closer to about 500 calories.


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## wesb321

You could be at home sitting on the couch watching King of the Hill reruns and eating snickers ice cream bars ya know.


All foolery aside I think your awesome and if you keep riding the weight will come off, so many people won't even try to do something for themselves. I think everyone will say don't worry so much about distance so much in the beginning, your body knows when it has had enough for the day. 

On your rides could throw in some sprint intervals and do some 15 minute sessions of 'over gearing' for stronger muscles and 'under gearing' for faster legs. It helps your riding later on and burns calories fast. I started the sprint intervals this spring on the say so of forum members and wow, it has changed me for the better. Plus riding so hard you throw up isn't hard to do and when you tell people about it they will know the level of commitment inside you:thumbsup: Then there is climbing, if you get into climbing much it will also burn calories like the over gearing.

Cleaning up the diet helps tons too, avoid fast foods at all cost!! I am getting into just eating clean whole foods and watching my soda intake as well. A healthy diet and just 30 minutes of daily exercise like cycling will reform your body. I have witnessed first hand someone shed 100 lbs in less than year off of JUST the South Beach diet and going on like 10 mile rides with either myself or his GF in the evenings.

This clip gives some example on the under/over gearing. I do them on the road instead of rollers, it breaks into a sweat pretty quick. Ride 1-2 MPH Faster (Cycling Speed Spectrum) - YouTube


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## wesb321

And oh yeah.. Welcome to being a roadie! Best hobby.. sport.. thing ever!


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## wim

You're definitely on the right track. About 50% of Americans don't exercise at all, so you're in the good group. Within that group, a much smaller percentage exercises every day, with an even smaller percentage of those every-day exercises doing it for as long as one hour a day. So you're in a very select group of people already.

On the other hand, it would be helpful to look at calories burned during your exercise a little more realistically. Your app's 1,000 calories for 15 mile at 13-14 mph is way off, which is pretty usual for computer calorie counting. A realistic estimate for 15 mph is 30 calories burned per mile, which puts your total at 450 calories—in line with the number mrcookie mentioned above.

As to wesb321's throwing up demonstrating committment to others: be careful who you say this to. He must be talking about other cyclists. The non-cyclists I've told this to all thought there was clearly something wrong with me. 

/w


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## Donn12

I have been riding for a couple of months and you are off to a great start. I would recommend a GPS or bike computer so you can track your progress. I have a garmin 800 and it rally helps me be competitive with myself to increase speed and distance. I have been able to make a lot of progress in a pretty short period because i am always trying to beat my time. I bought one that shows cadence and that info was eye opening. Pedaling fast enough and being in the right gear are the most important things I learned when starting out.


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## torch511

Kudos for getting on the bike and riding regularly. Exercise is great, but as someone who has been there, Your diet plays a far greater role.

I bike A LOT. And I find it difficult to lose weight during the peak riding season. I burn so much so I have to fuel up and it's difficult to maintain that balance. 

That does not mean that you should get off the bike. Exercise is a necessary component to healthy weight loss and more importantly, creating a healthy lifestyle that will KEEP the weight off. Honestly, What I have found is the same thing that programs like Weight Watcher will tell you. 45 minutes to an hour of moderate exercise 2-3 times a week is all you need along with a very balanced and healthy diet. I dropped 50 pounds in 3 months doing that.

For 3 years I would ride daily and I would drop about 15 pounds but put it right back on at the end of the fall. This is not uncommon. I personally know a lot of people who have had similar struggles and have come across far more online. Diet AND Exercise.


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## jim911

I dropped 19 lbs by eliminating wheat, not just glutin free but no wheat. I think you will find diet will be a bigger factor then exercise which will become easier and a great benifit of loosing weight. Pick up a copy of Wheat Bellies, by Dr. Wm. Davis and give it a try


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## Akirasho

... decades ago, I rode an 8 mile loop (the extent of our local trail system at the time) and figured I was in the same league as them Tour Day Frenchie riders... course, I was younger then too.

As mentioned, you've already taken the first steps and your goals now should be continuing with consistency.

In my opinion, while cycling can be an excellent form of cardio vascular exercise, it's not the best for weight reduction (as your cycling improves and your body responds to conditioning... it'll take extra effort (both physically and mentally) to up the ante enuff to continue calorie burning) but I'll also note that at my heaviest, I weighed around 354 and am now hovering in the mid 190s... aside from some freeweight training, injuries preclude me from most activities save CYCLING!!!! As mentioned, diet (or more specifically, healthy choices for the rest of your life) plays a huge role.

Also I will note that 15 miles is like a warmup these days (no slight intended). Over time, you may get to the point where if you don't have the time to invest in at least a 30 miler, you might not even get on the bike!


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## Cinelli 82220

Once you have been riding regularly for a month or two, try doing really hard intervals for a minute or two a couple of times each ride.


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## RkFast

jim911 said:


> I dropped 19 lbs by eliminating wheat, not just glutin free but no wheat. I think you will find diet will be a bigger factor then exercise which will become easier and a great benifit of loosing weight. Pick up a copy of Wheat Bellies, by Dr. Wm. Davis and give it a try


Bad advice...with all due respect.

The OP is just starting excercising daily and is fairly overweight. Putting him on a radical diet that eliminates a diet staple like wheat based food would be too much.


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## mike77

I would call that an excellent start, joshmo. I [re-]started biking a year ago, and the intent was never to lose weight, but the weight really can't help but shedding away when you commit to time in the saddle. As you continue and build up speed and endurance, you'll find yourself adjusting your food intake to be better energized for longer rides. Have fun and pedal on -- stay in the saddle and the weight has no chance but to go down.


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## Third Son

It will eventually get to the point that if you don't get a ride in, you will feel physically crappy. That is a good thing......Exercise is GOOD!

Keep going....you on on your way to an addiction!


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## love4himies

Good for you! Riding is a great way to get outside and do some exercise.


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## OldZaskar

Let us be your sounding board - brag when you lose. Rant when you plateau. You'll look back at this thread (in a year, months?) when you're doing 25-40 mile rides 3x week with a 60+ on the weekend... at 180lbs and smile. We will too. Keep us posted!


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## tlg

joshmo said:


> the cycling app says I burn about 1000 calories.. I figure I will ride every day and lift some weights a few times a week. Any advice and am I on the right track to lose weight ? Any advice and input would greatly be appreciated for this new roadie..


14mph for a daily 15mi ride is respectable for a beginner. I won't recommend any special training or diet program. Just keep a daily log of your distance and avg speed. Each day try to push that a little longer and a little faster. You'll be amazed at what you're doing in a month or two compared to where you started. 

As others have said, you're cycling app is no where accurate @1000 calories. Is there any calibration to that? Does it go by your height/weight or is it just a generic calculation?


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## wim

Akirasho said:


> Over time, you may get to the point where if you don't have the time to invest in at least a 30 miler, you might not even get on the bike!


No doubt that this does happen to people. But I would take that as a gentle warning sign that there's a slight problem in the relationship between myself and the sport. No slight intended, just a personal observation.


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## heybrady

Dont worry as much about miles, focus on time. Start with an hour, and gradually increase from there.

I found the best way to keep a ride log is to use a GPS app for your phone (i like AllSportGPS), which makes it easy to look back and analyze rides.

Dont go too crazy on diet, just clean up bad foods and eat smart. Your body will need energy to cycle, so starving yourself will actually have an adverse effect. 

Last thing, don't focus on the weight. Focus on the rides, and the weight should take care of itself.


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## looigi

heybrady said:


> Last thing, don't focus on the weight. Focus on the rides, and the weight should take care of itself.


Completely disagree based on my experience. The only thing that worked for me was strict calorie counting and restriction. Exercise is good for your health, but makes it more difficult and complicated to lose weight IMO. 

Let's say your basic daily burn is 2500 cal and you cut back to 2000/day to lose 1 lb/week. That's all good. Now you throw in significant exercise. You need to add in to your allowance what your burn so you need to calculate that with reasonable accuracy. In my experience, virtually all devices that report calories burned are inaccurate and very optimistic. So, once you have a good handle on burn and add that in, the good news is you get to eat more. However, I found I was hungrier and it was more difficult to maintain the weight loss with diet and exercise than with dieting alone. 

I'm not advocating not exercising. Losing weight with exercising is unquestionably more healthful than doing without exercise. I'm just saying it's more difficult.


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## Mr. Versatile

Good on you! Keep on keepin' on. You're doing great.


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## leadout_kv

Just to get started as you've done is awesome. As many have said...keep it up and I say not for days or weeks or months but for years. Cycling will grow on you after a while and that's a good thing.


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## johnblue2

I think its fine because if you can ride more than 15 km in a day for exercise purpose, it will be harm because during ride you are not focus on racing or like that so should care it will not increase if you want to control your weight in a month


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## desertgeezer

Don't obsess over getting your weight down. Just ride as often as you can. Do some long rides at a medium pace and some short rides at a high pace. You might not loose much at first but don't let that discourage you. Just know that after a couple of months, the weight will begin to fall off rapidly. 

The health benefits of cycling (weight loss included) is more cumulative than immediate. You will loose the weight.


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## Robert1

First off all, that is great! One hour of exercise per day is more than enough to help burn calories and get your metabolism up. However, in my experience you will not lose any weight at all if you don't make just as much of a conscious effort in controlling your calories as you are with your exercise. Typically what happens when you up your exercise is you end up eating more to sustain the extra effort. If you are really serious about losing weight and that is your ultimate goal, continue the exercise but also put as much effort into your diet and counting calories. There are plenty of great websites and apps that make this extremely easy like myfitnesspal.com


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## Robert1

I guess everyone is different so it's hard to dispute your claim of what works for you. But in general losing weight with exercise is easier for at least 2 important reasons. First, exercise raises your metabolism even once exercise session is complete. So you are burning additional calories even at rest that you normally would not be burning. Second, it allows you to eat more than without exercise helping to satisfy those urges. I've been able to lose while still having a snack of a few meltaways or turtles at night and eating satisfying meals during the course of the day. It's all fine as long as calories in are less than calories out. There is just no room for any of that and still be able to get proper nutrition with no exercise at all.




looigi said:


> Completely disagree based on my experience. The only thing that worked for me was strict calorie counting and restriction. Exercise is good for your health, but makes it more difficult and complicated to lose weight IMO.
> 
> Let's say your basic daily burn is 2500 cal and you cut back to 2000/day to lose 1 lb/week. That's all good. Now you throw in significant exercise. You need to add in to your allowance what your burn so you need to calculate that with reasonable accuracy. In my experience, virtually all devices that report calories burned are inaccurate and very optimistic. So, once you have a good handle on burn and add that in, the good news is you get to eat more. However, I found I was hungrier and it was more difficult to maintain the weight loss with diet and exercise than with dieting alone.
> 
> I'm not advocating not exercising. Losing weight with exercising is unquestionably more healthful than doing without exercise. I'm just saying it's more difficult.


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## tuck

Congrats, brother! As others have said, you've taken the first steps AND you're not sitting on the sofa drinking an adult beverage watching King of The Hill. :thumbsup:

For what it's worth, I'll share my little story with you to give you an idea of what you could expect IF you stay with it... 

I'm 5'11". Last August, with a weight of 250 or so, I started cycling. I started out on an old mountain bike which I rode for about two weeks before getting a new Trek Katai (Hybrid), as I wasn't sure if I wanted to ride on road or off. I rode that bike for about six weeks, and finally broke down and bought a road bike (Trek 2.1) after realizing I was addicted to the road. I rode the 2,1 for about two weeks and finally took the plunge and bought my first carbon road bike (Trek Madone).

When I started with the mountain bike in August, I was riding exactly six miles each ride, and it was taking me about 29-30 minutes. I "raced" myself each time out, and was slowly, but surely, getting my speed and endurance up as I went, while at the same time the pounds started to come off. When I got my first road bike (the 2.1), I was up to about 10 miles in the same time (road bike and conditioning). Not long after getting the Madone, I was riding about 13 miles in about 45 minutes, again, while continuing to drop weight.

As I live in the Chattanooga, TN area, the weather is usually okay, even in winter, so I rode all winter...every day weather permitted. By the time spring rolled around, I was up to 20 miles for a daily ride and was completing it in anywhere from 1:02-1:04, and was down to 205 when I had my yearly physical back in April.

As of today (last night, actually), I'm riding my usual 20 mile route which has a nice mix of flats and climbs, in anywhere from :58 to 1:00 and as of this morning, I was at 187.  

I'm not sure if I'm unusual or.... Everyone's riding schedule is different due to life. I ride a LOT compared to most people I know...both cyclists and non, but not as much as others. I ride the 20 mile route at least 3 times a week now (slacked off a tad due to spending time on the boat with summer), and ride a 40 mile route with a LBS' B group on Thursdays. I also ride on the weekends at different times/routes with the local club, and have completed 4 centuries this year so far (#5 is this coming weekend in Braselton, GA, and have signed up for #6 on June 30th in Cartersville, GA). 

When I first started all this, I was watching what I ate REALLY closley, but now that I'm close to where I want my weight to be (I want to get to a normal weight of 180-185), I've started eating more liberally...but still use common sense. Diet will be a BIG part of your experience.

Now that you've (maybe) read all that... Cliff's Notes version: Madone purchased in mid-October of 2011 and as of last night's run, I have 3,493 miles on it and I was at 187 pounds this morning. 

Sorry for the rambling reply...I'm at the office and meant for this to be a quick reply, but fear it's been a babble-fest. 

I'm shutting up now.


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## joshmo

*Thank you*

Thank you for everyone how read my post and even commented on it. I appreciate all the input, advice and outcomes everyone had to share with me, and l look forward posting on this forum with my results and outcomes.


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## ph0enix

It's great as long as you don't input more calories than you burn.


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## Mapei

If you're doing 15 miles a day, presumably five days a week, that means you're doing 75 miles a week, which translates to a little under 4000 miles a year, which is pretty damn good. Of course, it helps a lot if, during your rides, there are a couple of points where you get seriously out of breath. But still, I've even found that 65 miles a week is enough to put me on a healthy path.


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## InfiniteLoop

Kudos! Been there, done that. I strongly recommend talking to your doc, preferably internist if you have one, and maybe a dietician.

I worked with a dietician/trainer and here's what I did to get from where you are today to where I am today (6', 160lb, 120+ miles/week @ 20+ mph). Diet is key. I tracked every single thing I ate for about a year and tried to stick to about 1800 calories/day. It weren't always easy. About 28g of fiber/day is healthy and helps to fill you up. Otherwise I didn't worry too much about what I ate other than some fruits/vegi's every day, some protein, etc. Today I eat about 2200c/day. Keep in mind that you naturally burn about 100 calories/hr during the day (Avg male burns about 2100/day) so burning 400 calories w/ your ride is effectively an extra 300 burned. And DO NOT think that just because you burned it, you can eat more.

Good start on the riding. As others said, continue to SLOWLY increase your workouts. It will take time. And DO take rest days EVERY week. 2 days on, 1 off might be a good schedule. BTW, speed is an indicator of a workout, but not always a good one since other things, like wind or elevation, can have a big effect, so don't worry if you're a bit slower one day than previous, it might have just been windier or a hillier course.

Keep us posted on how it's going.


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## Oxtox

RkFast said:


> Bad advice...with all due respect.
> 
> The OP is just starting excercising daily and is fairly overweight. Putting him on a radical diet that eliminates a diet staple like wheat based food would be too much.


speaking of bad advice, you don't sound all that well-versed on the subject of gluten.

you can eliminate gluten from your diet without abstaining from bread, pasta, beer, pancakes, cookies, crackers, etc.

these products are available gluten-free and are made with ingredients such as amaranth, rice flour, tapioca, quinoa, etc. GF beer is made with sorghum instead of barley.

so, you can modify your diet without it being 'radical' departure from what you were consuming previously.


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## esldude

Exercise does help with weight loss. But diet is key. 

I have run into a situation where too much is not helping weight loss. Lost 120 lbs over 3 years with careful sensible diet and some moderate exercise. Lost 35 lbs with no exercise, added walking the first year and then riding (I rode a lot 20 years ago and liked it). Due to work couldn't ride more than 30-40 minutes 3 or 4 times a week. Recently retired and had time to up the mileage. Once I got past an hour's worth it started making me too hungry. I slowly over a few months worked up to more than 100 miles per week with at least a couple rides over 35 miles. Planned on doing more. By then I was just too hungry. Couldn't control eating. Tried a number of approaches. Basically nothing less than an excess of 600 to 800 calories a day would be enough. Otherwise I was uncontrollably hungry. At one point rode more than 400 miles in 4 weeks and gained 4 pounds. 

I have read some research on the subject and apparently about 1 in 8 people have a similar reaction to additional exercise. So it might not effect everyone. If you find it does I would say limit yourself to around 45 minutes 3 times a week. You can improve your fitness plenty even that way and it will make you feel better. You cannot exercise your way to big weight loss anyway. 

Over and over I have had the same discussion with people who know me and have seen me lose weight. They see the exercise and assume that is it. I tell them the diet is the key and only way it can work. That the exercise helps a little bit, but mainly makes me feel much better. They always argue it has to be the exercise and if only they could have the discipline to do it they could lose too. They also always ask another wrong question. That being I bet you feel better losing that much? I do, but mainly I feel better from the added fitness of exercise.


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## Kerry Irons

*Gluten free*



Oxtox said:


> speaking of bad advice, you don't sound all that well-versed on the subject of gluten.
> 
> you can eliminate gluten from your diet without abstaining from bread, pasta, beer, pancakes, cookies, crackers, etc.


This of course assumes that there is some reason to eliminate or restrict gluten in your diet. For the vast majority (90%) of us, there is no reason to worry about this issue.


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## nelson4568

i started doing 10 then 15 then 18 then 20 then 25 now 30 hopefully 40 eventually 50 some day 60 i don't think 80 id be surprised if 90


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## wilier

joshmo said:


> Im trying to lose weight and I weigh exactly 250 and I am 6'1 and just turned 30.. I have been putting 15 miles a day on my road bike after work for the past 4 days and my iPhone calc says I avg speed 13-14mph, and I ride for about an hour. Is that a good start in losing weight especially when the cycling app says I burn about 1000 calories.. I figure I will ride every day and lift some weights a few times a week. Any advice and am I on the right track to lose weight ? Any advice and input would greatly be appreciated for this new roadie..


Congrats. First - I hope you are enjoying it. Don't worry about calories and such too much. I know that is your goal, but if you enjoy the sport and getting outdoors, you'll stick with it. If not, and the only reason you ride is to burn the calories, that will get old fast.

15 miles a day at 6 days a week is just under 100 miles a week. That is certainly respectable. Does not matter what pace you are doing (and yeah - I said 6 days - take a day off). As you get comfortable, maybe find an extra little loop that gives you an extra mile or two on Saturdays. Mix it up so you don't get bored. It's ok to do less miles too. Better to cut short and make it out the next day than to get sick of it and not want to go out later.

Find someone to ride with. There are plenty of clubs that have faster and slower groups that will keep all the riders together. You'll find that chatting away with someone makes the hour go by really fast, and chances are you'll ride a bit faster too.

Keep us updated. Good luck!!!


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## ecub

I'm not a nutritionist, but I understand diet and excercise would help you lose weight. You can't lose weight if you're burning of 1000 calories a day, and you're eating 3000 calories a day. So if you're burning off more calories on a 15 mile ride, compared to how many calories you're taking in, then you're good.


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## strohman

I'm another guy who started riding as a way to get some fun exercise and to lose weight. I do find that riding is a great way to lose weight, and yes, diet will also be a big part of the equation. I agree with the people who say that you don't need to make radical changes right now. You are just getting started with the exercise. Try to cut out the obvious stuff--fast food, soda, sweets, etc. 

15 miles is a great start! I think that you will find that after a few weeks, you will be ready to add another mile or two to your rides, and moving up to 18 or 20 miles won't be an issue at all. Check with the bike shops in your town to see if there are any beginner group rides during the week. A lot of people who have been riding for years but don't consider themselves serious riders, will still ride in these. It's a great way to meet other people who ride and learn how to ride in a group.

Get some comfortable riding clothes too. I started out using bike shorts, but switched to bibs, which are much more comfortable. Find a couple on sale and them just wash them in the delicate cycle. That way you will always have something ready to wear when you want to ride. 

Keep riding as much as you can, and your body will get stronger, and with consistency you will drop the pounds. I have lost 50 pounds in the past by riding regularly and limiting my diet a bit. I have also ridden a lot and eaten whatever I wanted, and not dropped a pound, so don't forget the diet part of it too.

Good luck!


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## SlurpeeKing

I didnt read all the other responses, but I'm sure it was mentioned. 

15 miles is good, but riding for an hour is awesome and what really matters. It's also 80-90% diet that will get you to lose more weight than riding alone. Dont worry about your speed and miles, focus on time, the others will fall into place. 

Create a work out schedule
Create a meal plan (even 7-10 days in advance)
Log everything you eat (even over estimate by 20%, never under estimate. I use myfitnesspal)
Log all cardio you do (cut the estimate calories in half from your cycle computer unless you're attached to a HRM, then cut 10% off that)
and most importantly enjoy yourself

I've done the above and have lost 85#'s and still losing.


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## wim

SlurpeeKing said:


> 15 miles is good, but riding for an hour is awesome and what really matters.


That's a very good point because it implies that an hour's worth of riding could be much more beneficial than noodling out 15 miles at the same recreational speed. And if you put a little bit of structure into that hour, it's possible that you will actually burn more calories with fewer miles.

Can't give you a calorie number because I don't track them, but consider my hour yesterday: 12 minutes warm-up to my "training stretch," three 4-minute work intervals at speed with three slow 8-minute rest intervals, 12 minutes back home = one hour. Because of those very fast (for me) work intervals, I probably burned more calories than riding around for an hour at, say, 15 mph. I do this stuff because I still do a little bit of track racing. But even if you don't race, some structure in a ride is good and will make you faster, guaranteed.


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## SlurpeeKing

wim said:


> That's a very good point because it implies that an hour's worth of riding could be much more beneficial than noodling out 15 miles at the same recreational speed. And if you put a little bit of structure into that hour, it's possible that you will actually burn more calories with fewer miles.
> 
> Can't give you a calorie number because I don't track them, but consider my hour yesterday: 12 minutes warm-up to my "training stretch," three 4-minute work intervals at speed with three slow 8-minute rest intervals, 12 minutes back home = one hour. Because of those very fast (for me) work intervals, I probably burned more calories than riding around for an hour at, say, 15 mph. I do this stuff because I still do a little bit of track racing. But even if you don't race, some structure in a ride is good and will make you faster, guaranteed.


you also continued to burn calories after your ride. The main benefit of HIT training!


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## lostPixels

15 is pretty good IMO. I bet you're really exercising yourself. Make sure to add long rides on the weekends too!


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## onthebottom

I started the same way you did, about the same weight and hight as well... now down 50 lbs and up to 30-40 mile rides without much stress at 18+ mph..... you'll get more fit, stronger and lighter, you'll go faster and farther and feel better..... 

I would build a base set of cardio capability, keep expanding the distance until 20 or so is the standard and then start to vary the ride - longer and slower, faster and shorter (helps to keep you from getting board) and throw in some hills... hills are natures intervals which is much better than consistent effort for conditioning and weight loss IMO.

Keep it up and enjoy it....


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## ScottsSupersix

That is a great start. Like you, I started with 15 mile rides last September as a new roadie. I am now up to 150+ miles a week, and my pace has improved dramatically. I will say that, in my opinion, to lose weight, you need to work your way up to longer rides perhaps around 2 hours. On longer rides, your body switches over to a higher percentage of fat burning. For me, once my mileage exceeded 120 miles per week, my rides were all 30+ miles, I started dropping the pounds quickly. When you do this, be sure and let your body recover, and increase your mileage gradually, say 10 to 20 miles per week. I also lift weights 3X a week, but I do not bike and lift on the same day. Good Luck and keep at it!


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## mo_amyot

All I can say is that biking is highly addicting and that you'll find yourself doubling that distance in no time. Just keep at it and you'll see the difference really soon!


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## taralon

When I started 'biking' again on my hybrid two years ago 15 miles was a hard effort. I bought a road bike last year partly because I wanted to go faster (who doesn't?) and now a hard effort like in the beginning is actually fairly hard to come by. Mainly because an effort that puts me in the red back then doesn't take 10-15 minutes of panting to recover from like it used to. I've lost a little over 60 lbs in the past 14 months cycling which has made clothes buying an interesting experience again (why is buying pants with waist sizes smaller than inseam so hard?) and I'm liking what I see in the mirror once again. 

Make sure though that if you started this & kept with it because you enjoy it, that you keep enjoying it. That's the key. The moment you start dreading getting on the bike is when you need to sit down and decide what you need to change to make it enjoyable again.


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## wim

SlurpeeKing said:


> you also continued to burn calories after your ride. The main benefit of HIT training!


For the OP, yes, absolutely.


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## ScooterDobs

My two cents worth and "experinece" as a rider for about 18 months to exercise and lose weight -
1) Keep a log of your distances, speed, and routes to compete against yourself. I was riding yesterday and was amazed that just over a year ago how proud I was to ride 12 miles in an hour on pool table flat ground.
2) Set a goal to keep you motivated to keep riding. A couple friends suggested the Seattle to Portland ride next month about 6 months ago. I stupidly said yes. It has, however, driven me to keep pushing my distance and my pace.
3) Use a heart rate monitor. I wear one on every ride and it gives me some input on how hard I am pushing things without going overboard. After a month or so you learn where your cruising heart rate is and where you begin to go too far.


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## slomaro3.4

Congrats! I'll give no advice on dieting or losing weight. But I love seeing people out riding. Enjoy the bike, enjoy the ride. You probably won't be too concerned about whether your bread had gluten in it or not when you're grinding up a long hill.


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## shoemakerpom2010

Whats really important to lose weight while cycling is watching what you eat. I started commutting the same way little by little increments to get faster but my weight platued. I took advice from my neice who works out but watches everything she eats and she turned me on to vitamins by gnc. Once I did some research and talked to the guys at gnc the vitimins they reccommended also helped curb the appetite so when I stoped riding I wasn't reaching for everything in sight to stop the hunger. I didn't learn this until about my third year of riding when I got a seroius road bike. I hope for your sake it doesn't take you that long:thumbsup:


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## TomH

If you ride a lot and manage to lose zero pounds, you'll still look more fit, feel more fit, have more energy and be healthier. 

I know a lot of people freak out about it.. but fasting/extremely low cal is the only thing thats ever worked for me. im down 30lb, and its stayed off for a year. With low calorie diets, you're usually starving all the time and its very easy to cave in. With fasting, yes you're *really* starving but your body adjusts and when you go back to eating regularly, it takes less to be full and you have less desire to eat as much as often. After that, a reduced calorie diet doesnt leave you hungry. If you overeat, fasting helps you kick back into a reasonable food intake level.. if you do it right, its a lifestyle change.


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## Lanna

taralon said:


> (why is buying pants with waist sizes smaller than inseam so hard?)


Taralon,

My husband has this problem. He's a 30-34 (used to be a 29-34). If he's lucky, he can find a pair of jeans off the rack. Usually, I have to order them online or purchase designer jeans for him. Most designer jeans are sold with a standard 34" inseam with the intention of having a tailor hem them to what your inseam is.


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## Madden

Sounds like you're off to a great start. Good luck!


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## Gieggoilija

It's good that u are trying to loose weight. Remember eat also products which has little calories!


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## taralon

I'm back down to a 30-31/34, a year ago I was 34/34 which is much easier to find. The 29/34, or 28/34 I wore in college were impossible to buy off the rack even then. Don't even get me started on shirts. 

I'm not sure I'm glad that someone else is having the same problem, but at least I know I'm not the only one out there.





Lanna said:


> Taralon,
> 
> My husband has this problem. He's a 30-34 (used to be a 29-34). If he's lucky, he can find a pair of jeans off the rack. Usually, I have to order them online or purchase designer jeans for him. Most designer jeans are sold with a standard 34" inseam with the intention of having a tailor hem them to what your inseam is.


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## al0

The only thing is that for the vast majority of peoples (at least 99%) there is *absolutely no* reason to eliminate gluten.



Oxtox said:


> speaking of bad advice, you don't sound all that well-versed on the subject of gluten.
> 
> you can eliminate gluten from your diet without abstaining from bread, pasta, beer, pancakes, cookies, crackers, etc.
> 
> these products are available gluten-free and are made with ingredients such as amaranth, rice flour, tapioca, quinoa, etc. GF beer is made with sorghum instead of barley.
> 
> so, you can modify your diet without it being 'radical' departure from what you were consuming previously.


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## al0

I dare to advise against such intervals for now or next several moths -they may provoke highly increased appetite, you would be much better by concentrating on increasing a ride longevity rather then intensity.

Intervals you may add when you would be able to ride at least 2 hours with the same perceived intensity as you now ride your single hour.


Cinelli 82220 said:


> Once you have been riding regularly for a month or two, try doing really hard intervals for a minute or two a couple of times each ride.


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## stockwiz

I wouldn't let anyone tell you what's good and what isn't. A lot of people here go 5k miles or more per year... that would be 13.69 miles per day, every day all year long, which I find excessive and too hardcore for my taste. I also jog though... and like to relax.. I don't need to spend every minute of the day 'doing something' ...To each their own.


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## al0

Have you noticed, that the original poster has *explicitly *asked for advice?


stockwiz said:


> I wouldn't let anyone tell you what's good and what isn't. A lot of people here go 5k miles or more per year... that would be 13.69 miles per day, every day all year long, which I find excessive and too hardcore for my taste. I also jog though... and like to relax.. I don't need to spend every minute of the day 'doing something' ...To each their own.


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## pakrz

TomH said:


> If you ride a lot and manage to lose zero pounds, you'll still look more fit, feel more fit, have more energy and be healthier.
> 
> I know a lot of people freak out about it.. but fasting/extremely low cal is the only thing thats ever worked for me. im down 30lb, and its stayed off for a year. With low calorie diets, you're usually starving all the time and its very easy to cave in. With fasting, yes you're *really* starving but your body adjusts and when you go back to eating regularly, it takes less to be full and you have less desire to eat as much as often. After that, a reduced calorie diet doesnt leave you hungry. If you overeat, fasting helps you kick back into a reasonable food intake level.. if you do it right, its a lifestyle change.


No offense man, but fasting and starving are probably the worst things a person could do. While you will obviously lose weight, the goal for most people is to lose fat. When you restrict your caloric intake with these measures, you lose muscle, soft tissue, etc. as well. The person always gains their weight back but it's always in the form of fat. 

There is no secret to fat loss. There's no magic diet, no magic pill, no magic workout, nothing. Proper diet and exercise is the only way to shed unwanted pounds and keep it off. These 30 day cleanses, weight watcher garbage and all the other highly marketed weight loss programs are scams. 

Fitness and weight loss is a lifestyle and there are no shortcuts.


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## ILikeBond

To OP, fyi, I re-started riding again in early April, to lose weight (5' 8", started at 252), manage stress and have fun (several years ago a rode a lot for while and really enjoyed it). 

I'm typically riding 15 miles 3-4 times per week, with some of them extended another 3-10 miles depending on how I'm feeling and the time I have. This is always the same path, e.g., same set of roads and (partially) a dedicated trail in my area, which is mostly flat. 

Then I'm trying to add one long ride (30+ miles) per weekend in new/different areas (find some rides on the 'net, drive to the area). This helps mix things up, gives me some new scenery, and some hills, and of course the challenge of longer saddle time. I've lost a little over 30 lbs in a little less than 2.5 months.

I'm also watching what I eat, both the actual substances and portion control (very important), but one of the nice things is that b/c I'm cycling so much, I can occasionally have some less-than-optimal food (e.g., wife and I got a pizza the other night), and not have to beat myself up over it.

BTW, after losing the first ~20 lbs very quickly, I plateaued (stayed the same weight - actually, I bounced up and down in about a 4 or 5-lb range) for nearly a month, before recently dropping another 10 pretty quickly. I think this is fairly common, but anyway I didn't worry too much about it b/c I was just enjoying the exercise, feeling physically well, and could see my body changing even if the scale didn't necessarily show it. Things like how clothes fit, belt loops, etc. All part of the process.

I'm moving to a new city in a couple weeks and am looking forward to exploring new roads, and the next thing I want to do is start getting involved in group rides of some sort with some frequency, again, just to mix things up and have fun with it, be a little more social, enjoy the sport with others.

Good luck with the weight loss and cycling!

PS - A great weight loss tip, that will help with cycling too, is to drink water constantly. Get a water bottle and just drink, drink, drink, then fill up and repeat, all day long. Your bladder will adjust quickly, but water is excellent at promoting weight loss for all sorts of reasons - no calories (unlike juice, soda, etc.), keeps you full, flushes the system, and when the body is dehydrated, it actually retains water and thus appears to be heavier than when it is properly hydrated.


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## bb1857

Josh - first off congrats on the courage and determination to make the change in your life. This subject is very near and dear to me because I am living it as we speak. Allow me a little story as well. 

3 years ago i weighed 335 lbs. I buy a road bike and think this is it, I am losing weight. I take the bike out for an 8 mile spin and thought i was going to die. I live in a very hilly area and this about wiped me out. Came back and the bike didn't move again until this past April. Not good.

Now let's go to July 2011 and I decided I have to do something or I am going to die. So i see a nutritionist and weight loss doctor and seriously alter my eating habits. This change in lifestyle was a key to jump start things for me. Now we get to January 2012 and I was down 50 lbs and starting to workout a lot in the gym. March of 2012 I ran my first 5K and now down about 70 lbs. the weather was getting nice so I decided to jump on my bike and see how things went. The original 8 mile ride was all of a sudden a hell of a lot easier(big shocker) so i started to increase my mileage and got better tools to measure my rides. I treated myself to a new Specialized Tarmac about a month ago and my ride length and intensity is much higher. I average 15-25 miles a day with some longer rides on the weekend. I am now down 95 lbs and still going with no real goal in place other than a mirror and being happy with what i see some day in the near future. I love riding my bike and am doing my first century this weekend with a goal of finishing in under 6 hours.

A few of things that I would give as advice. 1. When your weight starts coming off and people ask, hey what diet are you on? Tell them, I am not on a diet, I am doing a lifestyle change! Diets end and you may find yourself right back where you were whcih would really suck!! 2. Get an app called Tabata Timer on your phone. This is an awesome tool for high intensity interval training(HIIT). You go as hard as you can for 20 seconds, then rest for 10 seconds, repeating this 8 times is one set. You can do it in low gears just to spin like mad or high gears to build some leg strength(others have stated this as well) and you can mix it up during the sets. Lastly get a bike computer with a heart rate monitor because monitoring HR is key to getting the most out of your rides.

Sorry to ramble but as i said this is near and dear to me and I am very passionate about it. Stick to your plan and you will become a lean mean machine before you know it!!


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## Mr. Clean

You're off to a great start. The only thing I would add before over-complicating things is to use something like my-calorie-counter.com or fitwatch.com or some other means to track the calories of EVERYTHING you put in your mouth then reduce accordingly. Knowing how many calories you ingest is eye opening to say the least.


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## Joeballz

Keep it up man never give up


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