Cycling for fitness - what sort of regime do you recommend

mp31

Bitten by the cycling bug and bought my first ever bike last week (Giant Rapid 3 )
My aim is to get fitter (and in the process reduce my big belly) and would appreciate any advice that you have on cycling techniques.
At the moment I'm cycling for 20 mins then turning round and coming back home. I'll increase the time as I get fitter.

I pick a pace that keeps my heart rate at around 130-140 bpm until my legs feel like they are about to fall off - then slow down until I get my breath back and then try again.
Someone at work suggested keeping a cadence of 90 rpm but my legs feel like they are out of control at that pace.
I tried micro-intervals but that killed me after 10 mins and I had to slump home and have a lie down

Any advice would be welcome.

Raam

The 90rpm is good advice. Try and do that. It's better not to push a bigger gear initially.

kuro_man

I tried micro-intervals but that killed me after 10 mins and I had to slump home and have a lie down

That means its working!

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is the best for weight loss, provided you don't overcompensate by eating more food. You should eat a little more but not much. Have a banana and some walnuts before you go out,
bring water.

Keep high-intensity workouts short e.g. 5 min warm up, 3 x 30sec sprint + 90sec rest reps, 5 min warm down. Do this 3 times a week max.
As you get fitter, increase number of reps and/or reduce rest period by 15 secs. Short HIIT workouts (10 - 20 mins) are better because it is easier to discipline yourself to do them. A turbo trainier is great for this, and not a major expense.

On other days, take longer trips out at your own pace and enjoy it.

Commuting to work is a good way to get on the bike, you can't chicken out of the cycle home if its raining!

headmaster

Hello,
can you tell us if you are male/female, what height you are, your weight, general health and such like?. I'll be honest with you, you will not lose much weight this way. Anyway, let's have the information and you'll get help.

Lumen

Don't be going mental with structure in the first 3-6 months, there's plenty of time for that later. Definitely don't be messing with intervals.

Just ride your bike as much as you can and try to focus on smoothness and cadence.

The biggest risk to your long term improvement is getting bored or injured.

seamus

Lumen wrote: »

The biggest risk to your long term improvement is getting bored or injured.

+1

Especially when you're just starting out, excessively hard sessions can be quite demotivating in my experience. Although you feel great afterwards, when it comes time to go out again a few days later, all you remember is the amount of pain it took to get to the end, and you're more inclined to make excuses and skip it.

YMMV of course, but I would stick with just getting out on the bike as much as you can, getting miles in your legs and enjoying the scenery.

reilig

I don't know an awful lot about it, but I always thought that HIIT was better for anaerobic fitness and speed training as opposed to weight loss?? I always thought that weight loss would be easier attained by burning a lot of calories. Will you not burn a lot more calories on long steady rides with a constant rpm than a couple of short bursts?? I also though that there wouldbe less chance of injury from this too???

kuro_man wrote: »

That means its working!

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is the best for weight loss, provided you don't overcompensate by eating more food. You should eat a little more but not much. Have a banana and some walnuts before you go out,
bring water.

Keep high-intensity workouts short e.g. 5 min warm up, 3 x 30sec sprint + 90sec rest reps, 5 min warm down. Do this 3 times a week max.
As you get fitter, increase number of reps and/or reduce rest period by 15 secs. Short HIIT workouts (10 - 20 mins) are better because it is easier to discipline yourself to do them. A turbo trainier is great for this, and not a major expense.

On other days, take longer trips out at your own pace and enjoy it.

Commuting to work is a good way to get on the bike, you can't chicken out of the cycle home if its raining!

blorg

Long relatively slow cycles you can maintain. You won't keep up intervals and could injure yourself. Watch the diet- it is easier to lose weight through not eating than exercise.

petethedrummer

reilig wrote: »

I don't know an awful lot about it, but I always thought that HIIT was better for anaerobic fitness and speed training as opposed to weight loss?? I always thought that weight loss would be easier attained by burning a lot of calories. Will you not burn a lot more calories on long steady rides with a constant rpm than a couple of short bursts?? I also though that there wouldbe less chance of injury from this too???

A friend of mine is a physio to some Irish teams and sports people and said that it used to be the belief but now its changing to shorter sessions at higher intensities, done more frequently. Or something to that effect. I'll ask again.

velo.2010

I've had alot of time to read over the last couple of months or so and can point to whats been said above regarding the high intensity workouts over short time periods. The aim is to keep the body burning more calories after you've exercised. Long controlled steady state or moderate tempo riding will only burn calories on the bike (and you'll end up replacing most of them feeding on the bike or snacking when you get home). Short hard efforts will increase the body's need for calories after you've finished your session and as long as you watch your diet and don't reward yourself with too much junk then you should see improvemnts.

BTW don't rely solely on the bike. Hit the gym or do some hard efforts at home to replicate what you should try to do on the bike.
Here's a good workout from 'trainer to the stars' Paul Byrne.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewi04K6K5X8

kuro_man

I watch this program by Michael Mosley http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00ksh7c

they compare a longer moderate workout to a 3 minute (or maybe 5?) HIIT and, over the following 24hrs, the HIIT burned more calories even though the calorie count during the exercise was smaller.

I know weight training is great for weight loss - takes a lot of energy for the body to build muscle. I reckon HIIT convinces the body that is needs more muscle, so post-exercise calorie burn is high.

The trick with HIIT though is to keep it very short i.e around 3-5 minutes, with 5 minute warm up/warm down either side. As you get fitter, shorten the interval period rather than increasing the overall time.

When cycling normally, go at your own pace, forget about weight loss, and enjoy it.

blorg

I think HIIT can be a good approach if you are already trained. I know I lose weight from racing for example, as do most racers.

Starting from zero, I don't think it is such a great idea. He will get wrecked and discontinue. Or worse, injured.

I agree with Lumen, he doesn't need a structured training plan right now. Ride bike as much as possible and eat less. The latter being most important; calorie counting is a good idea to get a handle on what you are stuffing into yourself.

ccull123

I started cycling in January and lost a total of 22 pounds. I cycled about 30km a day and at the weekends maybe 50km so on the grand scheme of things nothing spectacular distance wise. The big focus for me was my diet. I had a healthy breakfast,lunch and dinner. I did not eat ANYTHING after 7.00pm and cut out the majority of the junk.(With the exception of maybe the cinema) once every two weeks.

Every week i found the wait just fell off. As i said above no matter how much cycling you are doing if your diet is wrong, well then your waisting your time.

Killme00

blorg wrote: »

I think HIIT can be a good approach if you are already trained. I know I lose weight from racing for example, as do most racers.

Starting from zero, I don't think it is such a great idea. He will get wrecked and discontinue. Or worse, injured.

I agree with Lumen, he doesn't need a structured training plan right now. Ride bike as much as possible and eat less. The latter being most important; calorie counting is a good idea to get a handle on what you are stuffing into yourself.

This.

Do not listen to the guy recommending HIIT. Fat people should avoid HIIT until their body can cope with it and/or they are fit enough to recover afterwards.

petethedrummer

Just to clarify I was not advocating HIIT, just smaller amounts more often to keep the metabamolism up.

alexanderomahon

ccull123 wrote: »

I started cycling in January and lost a total of 22 pounds. I cycled about 30km a day and at the weekends maybe 50km so on the grand scheme of things nothing spectacular distance wise. The big focus for me was my diet. I had a healthy breakfast,lunch and dinner. I did not eat ANYTHING after 7.00pm and cut out the majority of the junk.(With the exception of maybe the cinema) once every two weeks.

Every week i found the wait just fell off. As i said above no matter how much cycling you are doing if your diet is wrong, well then your waisting your time.

But what about the alcohol? tell me about the alcohol. Tell me you continued to drink regularly and the weight still fell off!:eek:

Dermot Illogical

alexanderomahon wrote: »

But what about the alcohol? tell me about the alcohol. Tell me you continued to drink regularly and the weight still fell off!:eek:

If you're looking for someone who has lost weight while maintaining alcohol intake, look no further! 24lb since March, without giving up beer..

mp31

kuro_man wrote: »

That means its working!

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is the best for weight loss, provided you don't overcompensate by eating more food. You should eat a little more but not much. Have a banana and some walnuts before you go out,
bring water.

Keep high-intensity workouts short e.g. 5 min warm up, 3 x 30sec sprint + 90sec rest reps, 5 min warm down. Do this 3 times a week max.
As you get fitter, increase number of reps and/or reduce rest period by 15 secs. Short HIIT workouts (10 - 20 mins) are better because it is easier to discipline yourself to do them. A turbo trainier is great for this, and not a major expense.

On other days, take longer trips out at your own pace and enjoy it.

Commuting to work is a good way to get on the bike, you can't chicken out of the cycle home if its raining!

Errr.... I think I overcompensated with a cup of tea and several biscuits...
I eventually want to be able to cycle to work (and back on the same day) so this is good advice for me. Tks.
Walnuts... why walnuts can I ask?

jumpgun

I have been cycling for just over one and half months and I have lost 3.5kg. I still eat and drink the same as before, I cycle 4 days a week two 25km spins one 35km and one 50km or 60km spins, I'm avg 25kmh. I know I will have to start looking at what I eat if I want the kg to keep coming off. Ride your bike as much as you can and most important thing is you keep enjoying it. Oh and if you are having trouble motivating yourself, read some of the logs the lads here post, helps me to get out.

mp31

headmaster wrote: »

Hello,
can you tell us if you are male/female, what height you are, your weight, general health and such like?. I'll be honest with you, you will not lose much weight this way. Anyway, let's have the information and you'll get help.

I'm male, 48, 5' 10", 88.3kg, reasonable health but not very fit. As Dave Feherty once said 'My idea of exercise was to sverve round the salad bar on my way to the dessert counter' or something like that.

Lumen wrote: »

Don't be going mental with structure in the first 3-6 months, there's plenty of time for that later. Definitely don't be messing with intervals.

Just ride your bike as much as you can and try to focus on smoothness and cadence.

The biggest risk to your long term improvement is getting bored or injured.

Good advice again. Thanks.
I'm just going out riding, getting used to the bike and actually just learning how to cycle - sounds silly but I find in tight traffic situations I'm paying too much attention to the cars etc and get stuck in the wrong gear. I think this will pass - a bit like learning to drive a car when gear changes etc become smoother and are done without thought.

Another silly question if I may, how would I get injured (apart from falling off)... I'm not doing weights or any sudden movements that would cause injury?

Lumen

mp31 wrote: »

how would I get injured (apart from falling off)... I'm not doing weights or any sudden movements that would cause injury?

http://sportsmedicine.about.com/od/bicyclinginjuries/a/bikeinjury.htm

Most are a result of overuse or muscle imbalances which can develop for various reasons.

kuro_man

Walnuts... why walnuts can I ask?

High is calories but low in saturated fats and, unlike most other nuts, high in omega 3. There is some research that they help the body burn body fat, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walnut.

I wouldn't bet my house on it, and I don't believe in "superfood" hype but a handful of walnuts before a cycle certainly won't do any harm, and will keep the hunger pangs at bay.

Dermot Illogical

Walnut whips are delicious as well as having all that omega 3 goodness

ccull123

alexanderomahon wrote: »

But what about the alcohol? tell me about the alcohol. Tell me you continued to drink regularly and the weight still fell off!:eek:

Off course you can drink but like every thing it is about moderation. There have been times over the last year where i might have gone out three weekens in a row(rare) but after i did i cycled that bit more to try andf work it off.

Your not expected to live like a monk:) i never once thought of it as a diet....more a change of lifestyle. I feel so much better, fitter and healthier. Im just back from holidays and ate like a king( put on 6 pounds) but im straight back on the bike and know that in 3/4 weeks time i will have lost it all again.

blorg

On the drink front, generally the higher the alcohol content the less calories (for a given amount of pure alcohol.) Alcohol itself is pretty calorie rich but with more alcohol you have less other stuff.

So spirits better than wine and beer is the worst. But anything is an option in moderation. Personally last time I was trying to lose weight IIRC I cut out beer replacing with wine (a lesser volume of wine obviously.) I ended up quite into that, subs to Robert Parker and the Wine Spectator, buying cases of Bordeaux en primeur, it was quite an expensive habit. So be careful.

seamus

Drinkwise, Guinness is the best calorie-wise if you absolutely can't do without your pint. But five pints is still about half of most people's daily calorie intake. So it's pretty hefty.

Vodka is the best normal spirit - 7 shots of Vodka is about the same as 2 pints of your favourite beer. In other words you can be fairly bladdered on a relatively small amount of calories.

So yes it can be done by either cutting way back on what you're drinking or changing what you're drinking.

Satanta

Take a read at this thread:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056362817

It is a very interesting read of how to improve your fittness by focusing on your heart rate. It isnt cycling specific but it is certaintly relevant. I intend monitoring my heart rate next year while on the bike on training runs, but for now because I am just starting out I am pretty much doing as Lumen suggested and doing the miles, focusing on my cadence, keeping the gearing light and enjoying being on the bike. Every now and again I will do a route that I have a recorded time on and try to beat it. It's a nice way of me determining my progress.

As for the weight loss. As several people here have already said, the diet is the most important thing. The basic premise in weight loss is eat less calories that your body uses in a day. This is called creating a calorie deficit. This can also be achieved by incorporating exercise into your life, therefore forcing your body to use more calories that you eat. This on it's own may work for people that are particularly sedintary and their weight is fairly constant. It is imporatnt to remember though that it is veeery difficult to out exercise a bad diet. Add exercise to a clean diet (also watching the daily calorie intake) and you will succesfully loose weight.

PS I dont think you are all that heavy anyway. I am 5'7 and 85Kg. I have no belly though

Undercover Elephant

ccull123 wrote: »

Your not expected to live like a monk:) i never once thought of it as a diet....more a change of lifestyle.

I was talking to a gym instructor about this recently. He reckons that even moderate exercise makes your body want food that's better for it - you start craving fruit salads rather than a bag of chips. IOW, exercise is likely to make diet improvements less painful.

This was on the basis of his subjective observation and no proper study, but since it conforms to my personal views, it must be true. :rolleyes: