Just Done my First 100 km !

Redjeep!

Ok, now I want to start this by saying that I was a fairly unfit middle aged guy who started cycling after Christmas so that I could do a 50 km charity cycle in May (which I did). Since then I've kept going and have done a few longer spins - up to about 75 km.

I'd set myself my next target and wanted to do 100 km sometime this month but had no set plans for route or date etc.

Well I did it today - I got back under an hour ago. It was quite hard due to the strong wind which seemed to be in my face all the time (don't understand why that happens !). Took 4 1/4 hours including a couple of stops for probably 20 minutes total. I hadn't planned to do 100km when I set out but just kept going.

Apart from feeling absolutely knackered, I feel so good !

If anybody had told me a year ago that I'd be fit enough to do this I'd have laughed.

Just wanted to share this.

Planet X

Well done. Congrats. Adrenaline rush............

blorg

Seconded. 100km is a long distance, well done. If you are in Dublin you should come out with us some weekend/weekday, it is a lot easier in a group!

Vélo

Well done, I just started cycling a couple of months ago and did my 1st 50k during the week while on holidays. I feel pretty good about it because it was in the burren and there was alot of hills to deal with.

unionman

Well done redjeep. Keep going!

Redjeep!

Thanks everyone. Unfortunately I don't live near Dublin or else I'd come along.

Maybe I'll drive in one day.

niceonetom

fair play to ya!

aren't endorphins the business?

Caroline_ie

Redjeep! wrote: »

If anybody had told me a year ago that I'd be fit enough to do this I'd have laughed.

I know that feeling, Well done!! Keep going it's worth it

arybvtcw0eolkf

Well done OP, just as a matter of interest and because it has been a topic on some threads in the fitness forum.

Did you find you lost much weight (if you were carrying any) getting to where you are now?.

TinyExplosions

Mairt wrote: »

Did you find you lost much weight (if you were carrying any) getting to where you are now?.

Can't speak for the OP, but can speak from the point of view of a fat ba*stard who recently discovered cycling. I started just over 100kg, and am still knocking around the 100kg mark, but have lost a lot of fat, so the cycling seems to be great for fat loss, but in my case not weight loss!

smithslist

TinyExplosions wrote: »

Can't speak for the OP, but can speak from the point of view of a fat ba*stard who recently discovered cycling. I started just over 100kg, and am still knocking around the 100kg mark, but have lost a lot of fat, so the cycling seems to be great for fat loss, but in my case not weight loss!

its not only being actively cycling or doing any good fat-loss sport, it also about what you eat and drink plays a significant factor in determining your fat gain\loss factor, doing these sports you will loss fat but also gain muscle mass, so weight remains the same.

so personally you shouldn't concern yourself regarding your weight too much, but more about your fitness.......cos your weight can remain more\less the same

TinyExplosions

smithslist wrote: »

so personally you shouldn't concern yourself regarding your weight too much, but more about your fitness.......cos your weight can remain more\less the same

Sorry mate, I should have said that I know that and that the weight staying the same is due to muscle -you put it more eloquently than I could though

Caroline_ie

Mairt wrote: »

Did you find you lost much weight (if you were carrying any) getting to where you are now?.

Hi - You will lose weight as your body is not used to the cycling just yet, as long as you don't stuff your face with chips and large postions of fat stuff. Portion your food, don't over eat after your cycle because your body is going to crave carbs and sweet things. If weight loss is what you're interrested in then, look at your diet as well. Also, try and challenge your body with diferent routes, not just the same route all the time, as your body will get used to it and and start consuming less calories.

Long cycles likes ours might not be the best if you want to lose weight as you will need to continuously eat to keep going .. and also because I noticed, after a while, we go on about what type of take away we're going to have when we get home :pac: - I guess you can still do a long cycle a week as long as you don't listen to these guys takeaway talk :P

Redjeep!

Mairt

Similar experience to Tiny Explosions in that I started just under 100kg and am a now little less than I was, perhaps 5 to 10kg, but the main difference is that I've completely lost my belly and a lot fat from around my face and neck.

However I don't really weigh myself and so can't really be sure of any exact numbers. I just know that I'm pleased with the difference.

smithslist

Caroline_ie wrote: »

Long cycles likes ours might not be the best if you want to lose weight as you will need to continuously eat to keep going ..

good points made there Caroline_ie,

short intense cycles are best for weight loss (spinning, indoor training on turbo etc), long cycles improve more your endurance and stamina, you do loss fat on long cycles but not as much as short intense ones

arybvtcw0eolkf

Ok thanks for the replies.

But I was more or less thinking along the lines of people's experiences with cycling and weight loss in general and not dietry advice, although both probably go hand in hand.

I'm a competitive Judo fighter, normally I'll try fight around 110kgs (I'm 6'2'') but I hoover around 115-117kgs for a lot of the year, then cut weight in the weeks coming to a competition.

Last year I injuried my neck in competition, I'm still being treated for a trapped radial nerve. My physio took me off ALL traininig, and my weight ballooned to 126kgs.

Thankfully I'm back training one month now and my weight has dropped to 118kgs, I'm fighting again (all going well) in early September so I'm aiming for below 110kgs and both fighting fit and aerobically fit from cycling.

All that said, I'm not experienced enough (in cycling) to give advice to people in the fitness forum on cycling for weight loss.

For me at the moment its a combination of a few things.

Largely its down to when I cycle and what I eat (or not eat) before a spin. Plus I dropped my carbs, upped my protein intake and moderated my good fats.

So, thats what cycling is doing for me at the minute but I can't relate that to someone who's not coming from a sports background.

blorg

Mairt- in my experience it is a lot easier to lose weight through diet than exercise. It's easier to cut 3,500 calories out of your diet than to burn them! Exercise has other benefits though and certainly will assist the process.

Tiny- losing fat is ultimately what it's about. I'm actually around 9 or 10kg heavier now (or in cyclist units, over 1 bike!) than when I've been at my lightest but I'm a hell of a lot stronger and faster on the bike now than then, even going up hills!

arybvtcw0eolkf

blorg wrote: »

Mairt- in my experience it is a lot easier to lose weight through diet than exercise. It's easier to cut 3,500 calories out of your diet than to burn them! Exercise has other benefits though and certainly will assist the process.

But you see thats where the problem lies.

We all know that a calorie deficit will lead to weight loss, thats a no brainer for most people. But its not sustainable and for most people its a very short term loss of weight/fat.

To benefit properly 99% of people will also need a life style change, for the good and for the long term.

Blorg, from reading your posts here we could put you into the athlete catagory, so a calorie deficit for you would be hugely detrimental to your goals. As it would with me during competition season.

But I'm wondering how cycling has changed someone here who is not coming from a sports background like you and I.

I'm only thinking along these lines as most people in the fitness forum looking for info on cycling and weight loss get mixed replies from people who are not necessarily cyclists.

For me its working very quick. But then my body adapts to exercise quickly anyway, but I'm (and you blorg I'm sure) are not people who've done no exercise since leaving school/college then finding in their 20's or later that they've a gut to shift and a sedatary lifestyle to change.

TinyExplosions

Mairt wrote: »

But I'm wondering how cycling has changed someone here who is not coming from a sports background like you and I.

I'm only thinking along these lines as most people in the fitness forum looking for info on cycling and weight loss get mixed replies from people who are not necessarily cyclists.

For me its working very quick. But then my body adapts to exercise quickly anyway, but I'm (and you blorg I'm sure) are not people who've done no exercise since leaving school/college then finding in their 20's or later that they've a gut to shift and a sedatary lifestyle to change.

That's me too a 't' then! Used to do a lot of sport, but not in the last number of years, and for me cycling (and no real modification in diet) has lead to no weight loss, but quite a bit of fat loss.

Blorg -it doesn't bother me that I'm not getting any lighter -I know my build is just large, and I'll always struggle to get to around 90kgs

Redjeep!

I'm in the same boat in that I'm not too bothered about weight loss - I'm 6ft tall, and fairly well built (48' chest) so don't expect I'll ever get below 90 kgs. What has bothered me in recent years was my ever expanding waist.

Cycling has reversed that trend.

I've always eaten reasonably heathily - plenty of fresh fruit and veg, no fried food or junk food, but have a love of curry and sweet things. I've cut back a little on the curries and sweets, but probably not enough to have made any difference on it's own.