Exercise & Losing Weight

[Turtle]

Okay this might sound nutty but here's the deal, I was intially riding my bike every other day anywhere from 10-15 miles and I walked (sometimes) on the days I didn't bike ride.

Well, lately it's been so flippin' hot and b/c of my work schedule i've been getting up at 5:30am walking the dog 1-2 miles (depending on if I snoozed too long or not) and then I come home in the afternoon and walk her (the dog) again anywhere from 1-3 miles (depending on how i'm feeling, the heat, etc.).

SO....my point to all this is do you think weight loss is more likely to occur w/ walking? Or Biking??

I ask this b/c when I was doing the biking every other day 10-15 miles and sometimes walking on the other days I wasn't losing any weight...but since i've started ONLY walking when I got on the scale today I was so excited to see i'd lost a pound (hey it's not much but it's a start and believe you me it's been a STRUGGLE).

So i'm just curious if anyone has some insight about this and curious if walking burns more than biking or something....I thought biking the 10-15 miles was a pretty darn good workout but if losing weight is as simple as walking that's great too...

[plantime]

I think they come out about the same. What is happening is that you are exercising, and slowly building muscle. Keep it up, the weight will continue to come off. Keep in mind that you are building muscle while burning fat, so there will be plateaux. At those times, you are building and burning at the same rate. Just stay with it!

[mle-ii]

I think they come out about the same. What is happening is that you are exercising, and slowly building muscle. Keep it up, the weight will continue to come off. Keep in mind that you are building muscle while burning fat, so there will be plateaux. At those times, you are building and burning at the same rate. Just stay with it!

Right, as someone once told me, the best exercies for losing weight is the one that you do. And it helps to be consistant about exercise so if it's fun and something that you can and will do then it's more likely that you'll be consistent.

[Turtle]

Okay that makes some sense building muscle and all that....

I've been staying with it for about 6 weeks now....any idea how long it will take before I start losing some poundage?? Or is that just a body thing, it does it when it wants to??

[plantime]

It took 4 weeks before I saw any loss. Now I lose a pound or two every week. I know it is slow, but I am changing how I eat and what I think and do, so it will be permanent.

[mle-ii]

I know it is slow, but I am changing how I eat and what I think and do, so it will be permanent.

Exctellent point. Most folks can eventually lose or gain the weight they want to or at least get close. The staying there and maintaining the weight is a whole different story. And one that most folks tend not to learn. Most think that they can go back to the way they were eating before and stay at that weight, not reallizing, for some reason, that this is most likely what got them to where they are in the first place.

For most folks it's all a matter of calories in vs calories out. Though I suspect, as do others, that folks like us with affected GIs the calories in vs calories out doesn't quite compute right.

Mike

[CarlaB]

I'm with everyone else, either exercise is fine as long as you do it. You might want to do a little to build muscle in your upper body, too. Remember, muscle burns more calories per day than fat, so you will burn more as you build muscle and lose fat. Muscle also weighs more than fat, so you will have ups and downs as you go along.

It's a good idea to look at your diet and change it to be what you can live with permanently and be at the lower weight. I gained 20 pounds when I was in college. I took a year to take it off by eating right and exercising, and it's over 20 years later and I've never gained it back! I allowed myself treats, but ate them in moderation. When I was trying to lose, I purposefully did not ever eat till I was stuffed remembering that it can take 20 minutes to feel full after eating. I'd leave the table a little hungry, then if I was still hungry 20 minutes later, I'd eat a bit more. One trick I did was to put my salad on my dinner plate, then use the rest of the plate for dinner. It allowed less room for the more fattening food.

Then, when I lost so much weight being sick last year, I just reversed everything to gain it back!!!

Keep up the exercising!

[plantime]

One trick I did was to put my salad on my dinner plate, then use the rest of the plate for dinner. It allowed less room for the more fattening food.

Keep up the exercising!

This is an excellent idea! Thanks!!

[BRUMI1968]

Being a research buff, I had to look this up. According to an internet source which I forgot to write down, it breaks down like this

CALORIES BURNED IN 30 MINUTES OF ACTIVITY:

Bicycling:

leisurely/moderate: 300

fast w/o coasting: 450

Walking:

3 mph: 124

4 mph: 188

5 mph: 300

(That was calculated for a 125# person).

HOWEVER, that said, walking has many benefits over bicycling. 1. less bugs getting killed and getting in your teeth and stuff ... 2. your hair doesn't look weird after the helmet or wind has had its way with it. AND IMPORTANTLY, 3. walking is weight bearing exercise and cycling is not, and perhaps the tip top reason - you spend time with your dog who otherwise would be pining away for you in the heat at home under the kitchen table or lying on the bathroom tiles. Also, seeing birds and animals and stuff, smelling the air (good or bad I don't know where you live), and saying hi to neighbors and the like. Walking rules the roost.

KEEP WALKING!

[taz sharratt]

Okay this might sound nutty but here's the deal, I was intially riding my bike every other day anywhere from 10-15 miles and I walked (sometimes) on the days I didn't bike ride.

Well, lately it's been so flippin' hot and b/c of my work schedule i've been getting up at 5:30am walking the dog 1-2 miles (depending on if I snoozed too long or not) and then I come home in the afternoon and walk her (the dog) again anywhere from 1-3 miles (depending on how i'm feeling, the heat, etc.).

SO....my point to all this is do you think weight loss is more likely to occur w/ walking? Or Biking??

I ask this b/c when I was doing the biking every other day 10-15 miles and sometimes walking on the other days I wasn't losing any weight...but since i've started ONLY walking when I got on the scale today I was so excited to see i'd lost a pound (hey it's not much but it's a start and believe you me it's been a STRUGGLE).

So i'm just curious if anyone has some insight about this and curious if walking burns more than biking or something....I thought biking the 10-15 miles was a pretty darn good workout but if losing weight is as simple as walking that's great too...

i would say walking just cos when you walk you keep your heart rate in your fat burning zone but when you cycle your heart rate goes up and you leave your zone to convert your fat in to muscle instaed of loseing weight. others may disagree but i was at my lowset weight when idid my walking which is why i had to stop as i went too thin and needed to bulk up so did weights and its working for me. best of luck to you.

[Turtle]

CALORIES BURNED IN 30 MINUTES OF ACTIVITY:

Bicycling:

leisurely/moderate: 300

fast w/o coasting: 450

Walking:

3 mph: 124

4 mph: 188

5 mph: 300

I looked this up too! Great minds think alike....

"when you walk you keep your heart rate in your fat burning zone but when you cycle your heart rate goes up and you leave your zone to convert your fat in to muscle instaed of loseing weight".

This is something I never thought of.....thanks!

My dog has to be walked daily regardless b/c she's obnoxious without the exercise so she motivates me & I am able to kill 2 birds with one stone if that makes sense. And now that i'm FINALLY starting to see a pound drop off (hopefully more will follow) that motivates me too.

I have been one of the ones who has gained weight since going gluten-free. This has been hard for me b/c prior to being diagnosed w/ Celiac I always struggled w/ my weight. I'd go through periods of being thin, then I'd become heavy again.

The year before I learned why I was sick all the time (Celiac), I had been on Weight Watchers and got my weight down & maintained for a long time. I was doing great and thought I was so healthy. But, looking back, (now that I know about Celiac) I realize the constant diarreah probably contributed to my being able to maintain my weight & that I wasn't as healthy as I thought I was.

Anyhow, i've been gluten-free now (to the best of my knowledge anyway) since May 2005 and I am now (a year after going gluten-free BTW) starting to have weight creep up. I understand it's my body absorbing vitamins and nutrients correctly & i'm thrilled don't get me wrong, but i'm a short Turtle, so for weight to start creeping up it is very uncomfortable and is noticeable in my clothes, etc. & it makes me feel like crap too. I am just trying to do whatever I can to keep it from creeping up any further and hopefully start losing those pounds that have creeped up already.

Thanks for all the info and words of encouragement!!!

[gfp]

CALORIES BURNED IN 30 MINUTES OF ACTIVITY:

Bicycling:

leisurely/moderate: 300

fast w/o coasting: 450

Walking:

3 mph: 124

4 mph: 188

5 mph: 300

I looked this up too! Great minds think alike....

"when you walk you keep your heart rate in your fat burning zone but when you cycle your heart rate goes up and you leave your zone to convert your fat in to muscle instaed of loseing weight".

This is something I never thought of.....thanks!

One thing to take into account is most people don't cycle properly. Almost all people who have never done it in a club or competitively tend to use too low a gear and push the bike instead of spinning it.

Its practically impossible to ride a bike properly without toe clips or cleats ...(well its really hard even for someone who rides at an amatuar level) the proper way is to

Open Original Shared Link

see the importance of cadenence part.

OK, you might think this doesn't affect you, your not out to win a race ... but it does. When you have a cadenence of 80-100 rpm you are buring fat and building less muscle. The excersize stresses the red muscle fibres which use oxygen and this is then expelled via the pumping action which prevent lactic build up.

If you drop below 80 or worse 60 then you are pushing the white fibres and building muscle more like lifting weights and lactic acid will build up.

So if you want to loose weight you need ideally to get into the 80-100 RPM zone and this is hard without having your feet attached and being able to pull as well as push.

A friend who is a amatuer racer uses a spinner at home, these just attach tot he back wheel and they are not so expensive. He uses a cadenence of 120 for training (you can adjust the tension usually using fans)

I mention this beccause of the heat. Its relatively cheap and takes up little space when not in use and you can watch a video, listen to music etc. AND have it directly under the A/C

[VydorScope]

Guys... do not count calories when you exercise. You will get depressed... I can run for an hour and not even burn off lunch.

To loose wait, you need to master portion control of your food, and eat better foods. To increase your over all health and the effectiveness of your diet you need to increase activilty level (ie exercise). That is the secret behind all "diet plans".

You can exercise all you want, but if you do not start first with what you eat you will make little to no progress, in fact you could very easliy backslide.

Also keep in mind muscle wieghs more then fat. Judging your progress sololy biased on wieght lose/gain is a poor plan. Judge by your overall health, degree of flabbyness, and your measuremts in adtion to monitoring your weight. And with weight you should be more concerned with trends rather then values.

[gfp]

Guys... do not count calories when you exercise. You will get depressed... I can run for an hour and not even burn off lunch.

Good advice but its not so much the calories that count (as you go on to say) ...

The benefits of the exersize go way beyond the simple process of burning calories.

To loose wait, you need to master portion control of your food, and eat better foods. To increase your over all health and the effectiveness of your diet you need to increase activilty level (ie exercise). That is the secret behind all "diet plans".

I think it depends on the individual, many people here are probably way above average on healthy diets to start off with but like everything else the whole approach needs to be properly planned. I know people who eat 9000 calories a day, 24 raw eggs every breakfast with protein shakes and still find it difficult to gain weight exersizing 5-6 hours 2:3 days but you need to be really fit to start out to do 5-6 hours of meanfingful exersize everyday.. I know I couldn't do 2 right now and I just came back from a camping vacation walking 20-30 miles a day in 100+ heat. I proably ate double my normal intake (lots of mozerella and gluten free pizzas in Italy) but I still managed to loose a few lbs (I have no idea exactly because I don't and would never own a scale which is possibly a worse idea than simply counting calories on exersize )

The problem is most people don't actually realise what they are capable of building up to.

Most track athletes gain weight in the off season but they up their calories when they are pre-season .. and cyclists even more so but you are correct in terms of the average Joe.

I actually paid my way through university doing semi-pro kickboxing and to maintain my weightclass I was doing 3-4 hours 2:3 days pumping iron, 20km running mon-fri (distance to uni x2) and 2 hours skipping on top of sparring (you can also make money doing this, especially if your a small guy because the heavyweights love fighting someone quicker and they genuinley try not to hurt you) and actual training. Sat and Sundays were days off where I cycled 100 miles+ with my buddy the amatuar racer unless there was a marathon or 10k race to do.

Anyway, they point was .... I decided to go up a weight class because it was getting increasingly difficult to do that amount of exersize and study. So I increased my calory intake first to 6000 then 9000 and still counldn't gain enough weight.. (actually it pushed me over so I was at the very bottom of the next weight class - not a good thing) and the only thing allowed me to gain enough weight to keep going was dropping the amount of exersize. Of couse I was an undiagnosed celiac

You can exercise all you want, but if you do not start first with what you eat you will make little to no progress, in fact you could very easliy backslide.

This is true for people who are not already well above average fitness but I just want to point out that if people persist they can get fit enough to eat what they want in terms of calories so long as they have the time and ability to exersize.

Im certainly not preaching.... Im just saying the facts not what I do.... I'm about as unfit as Ive ever been right now and you are absolutely correct that to start the catabolic process off and get fit enough to exersize you need to reduce your intake unless you happen to have a long history of hard exersize.

[CarlaB]

Interesting discussion guys. Especially about the bike. I didn't know that, but generally when I hit the bike trail I've got rollerblades on. I do have those foot clips on my bike, but I can assure you, I do not ride properly.

I find, too, that if I'm eating healthy proteins, veggies and fruits (also some potatoes and rice), I don't have to watch what I eat at all. However, any amount of junk food seems to stick around for a few daysl, which is why I ate Ruffles constantly when my weight was low.

A friend of mine on a 1500 cal a day doc supervised diet had the misfortune of spending a weekend with me before diagnosis. I was 121 pounds and eating as much as I could get my hands on! She said she counted conservatively and I was eating at least 3500 calories a day. I've never been one to count calories ... I'm finally back to the point where I have to watch my weight again, but I still eat as much as hubby does. My 18 year old daughter says I used to eat 10 times as much as her now it's only 3 times as much!

I think you just have to see what works for you to reach the goals you want to reach. It takes a combination of diet and exercise, both weight bearing and cardio.

[Turtle]

"I find, too, that if I'm eating healthy proteins, veggies and fruits (also some potatoes and rice), I don't have to watch what I eat at all".

I too have had luck with trying to stick to meats, veggies and limited amounts of potatos and rice....I try to limit my junk food but i'll admit since going gluten-free I crave sweets more than I ever did before. It's WEIRD!

I agree and just said the same thing on another post, that you have to find what works for you!

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!!

Thanks again for all the great info!

[gfp]

Interesting discussion guys. Especially about the bike. I didn't know that, but generally when I hit the bike trail I've got rollerblades on. I do have those foot clips on my bike, but I can assure you, I do not ride properly.

A good place to practice is on a static bike.

Its a lot harder to concentrate on traffic etc. and maintain a cadenence and because most people actually have been doing it "wrong" since childhood the second you stop concentrating you fall back.

Once you do it its actually easier, especially a touring cadenence of about 80 rpm .. to do a 100 rpm you need to be pretty fit and a sprint 120rpm is really only feasible for a seasoned cyclist....

BUT just getting it up to 80 will really help with burning calories and not building huge thighs.. (I guess most girls don't want huge thights, muscle or not ) buy you also go further and feel less tired (until you stop ) if your serious you can buy the little bike comps for $20 which will mark cadenence and beep if you drop below a level. 20$ isn't much compared to membership of a gym!

Im not trying to say you have to do it this way but if someone is cycling to loose weight (and its an excellent way) then they might as well benefit from it as much as possible.

This obviously involves eating sensibly as well but I think most people here tend to have healthier diets than the SAD....

[Susan123]

the best way to loose weight is to walk at a moderate pace for at least an hour a day. Biking doesn't really help with weight loss as you tend to coast more thus not burning any calories. THe way my doctor explained it to me is that you are taking in so many calories and unless you are burning those calories in the same day they turn into weight. It is a proven fact that your hour a day doesn't have to be all at once. You can do 15 minutes here, 15 minutes there etc. Best advice I think is to get a pedometer and wear it all day. It will help you determine how much walking you need to do. I walk on my breaks at work. I have two 15 minutes a day and a 1 hour lunch. I can get in my walking before I even get home. With the heat, I have been going to the gym and using the track indoors. Be careful to replenish your fluids when you walk. Good luck!

[utdan]

I agree that it takes a combination of a good diet and exercise to get results. I've also found that the time of meals and exercise make a big difference as well. From a book "Mastering Leptin" claims that it is crucial to not eat anything (not even a tic tac) after 7pm . Also it says to only eat 3 times a day (no snacks at all) spaced at least 4 hours apart. I've tried this and got excellent results with this alone.

With that I've found it troublesome to exersize in the evening as it raises my metabolism and not eating after 7pm I get ravenous by about midnight. I've heard that exercising in the morning or afternoon is better anyway because the metabolism is higher at that time. And it's important is to eat enough protein every meal. The muscle you work so hard for gets wasted away otherwise.

I've heard that we crave sweets because they stimulate serotonin production in the brain. When we eat healthy then we (or at least I) sometimes get irritable and feel like I need something else to eat even if I'm stuffed. To combat this I try to find other non-food things that can stimulate serotonin and its good feelings. Otherwise, I eat a little something sweet or delicious to fill the need, warding off binging.

Maybe it would be a good idea to stop weighing yourself for awhile. I found it easier to get lost in the diet and exercising as a different lifestyle rather than watching the pounds as if I were only living that way to reach a certain goal. The goal is fine but it is easy to relapse when the goal is reached. Making the goal a lifestyle change is better because it is always being worked on.

[BRUMI1968]

I think it's very important to find what works for you. Eating three meals a day w/o snacks does not work well for me -- I need small meals and lots of them.

I will tell you that when I quit eating grains and beans, I dropped a pound a day for a while. I've got my husband on a temporary grain-free diet (though he eats dairy and beans): he's been on for seven days and has lost 4 pounds.

Anyway, I agree with the finding when you feel good, as opposed to when you weigh a certain amount; but it sounds like you've already got that all figured out.

Have fun walking - I LOVE walking...(my dog walks too slow for it to be much exercise these days, but when I walk without him I get to breathing and burn some calories).

-Sherri

[mylady4]

Turtle, I am so with you on this one. I too gained weight after being diagnosed with celiac. I got hit with a double whammy, I also had to stop working out because I was running too much on the treadmill and got brucitis in my hips (very painful). Up until two years ago I had lost 75 pounds and was just 20-25 pounds from goal. Two years ago everything stopped. They weight just stopped coming off. Now my doctor is testing for Whipples disease. It is like celiac but has more side effects but it is treatable. I am hoping it is this because this 13 pound weight gain is making me feel like crap. Nothing I do makes a difference. I will keep plugging away though. Just wanted to let you know, you are not alone.

Nicole

[VydorScope]

GFP,

I do not disagree with your points at all, just that all advice that deals with ppl needs to be generalized as much as possible and fine tuning is best done in a private 1- 1 session not a forum where 1000/s of ppl read the thread. At least thats my opinion which is worth exactly as much as you make it.

The reason there are 15 thousand diet/exercise plans out there is because each person has different needs and tastes that need to be addressed. I do not know mcuh about your country but here in America by far most ppl just walking 30 mins a day would be extremly dramtic increase in activity, and most Americas would do best by simpling not going to fast food joints any more.

[gfp]

the best way to loose weight is to walk at a moderate pace for at least an hour a day.

The best way is what works for you.... walking is a pretty poor way, you don't see many professional boxers trying to loose weight by walking but if you enjoy walking and it works then its a good way....

Biking doesn't really help with weight loss as you tend to coast more thus not burning any calories.

Is an absoluely mindless thing to say. Barring stop signs and traffic lights there is no reason to stop.

You could say walkings is bad because of park benches but noone is putting a gun to your head.

It is a proven fact that your hour a day doesn't have to be all at once.

OK

You can do 15 minutes here, 15 minutes there etc.

No you can't at least not effectively.

The first 15-20 minutes are simply getting your body into the right state where it will start using glycogen up from storage, after this it starts making new glycogen and buring fat to do it. Trying 15 mins here and there is liek a 3 steps forwards and 2 back method .... but its sure as heck better than sitrting at a desk !!!

Best advice I think is to get a pedometer and wear it all day. It will help you determine how much walking you need to do. I walk on my breaks at work. I have two 15 minutes a day and a 1 hour lunch. I can get in my walking before I even get home. With the heat, I have been going to the gym and using the track indoors. Be careful to replenish your fluids when you walk. Good luck!

Walking is one of the most ineffective ways to loose weight, it doesn't mean its a bad way but its not effective. Running for 1 hour will burn far more calories and stimulate the body far more as will cycling, cross country skiing or climbing stairs. If you can't do these because of knees or joints etc. then thats fine but that doesn't make walking a good way to effectively loose weight, let alone the BEST. Unless you are walking hard (5mph) then its only slightly better than lying down....

Walking in a gym is as pointless as it gets. if you enjoy a walk in the country then cool, exersize should be fun but actually walking in a gym when you could use a rowing machine or stair machine and burn 3x the calories in the same time is pointless unless you actually somehow enjoy walking on a treadmill.

If you want to lose weight quickly run 20-30 miles a day, every day.. you will loose weight, skip for 2 hours or cycle 100 miles a day....If you can't then walking might be a good way to start but it can never be an effective way unless you are climbing mountains .. and even then why not run up the mountain instead?

GFP,

I do not disagree with your points at all, just that all advice that deals with ppl needs to be generalized as much as possible and fine tuning is best done in a private 1- 1 session not a forum where 1000/s of ppl read the thread. At least thats my opinion which is worth exactly as much as you make it. biggrin.gif

The reason there are 15 thousand diet/exercise plans out there is because each person has different needs and tastes that need to be addressed. I do not know mcuh about your country but here in America by far most ppl just walking 30 mins a day would be extremly dramtic increase in activity, and most Americas would do best by simpling not going to fast food joints any more.

I wasn't disagreeing with you either .. its just my habit of correctness and also I think people should realise that exersize is actually enjoyable and eating better and starting off slow is fine but once you have been doing it a while you no longer need to think "duh how many calories do I need to burn off to eat this"

I do not know mcuh about your country but here in America by far most ppl just walking 30 mins a day would be extremly dramtic increase in activity, and most Americas would do best by simpling not going to fast food joints any more

Paris is like NY.... everyone walks everywhere ... and like the US its the small towns with big malls and parking lots where people don't ... weird when you think about it... I take my vacation to walk in the country and these people are surrounded by it and choose not to....

Fast food wise.... lets just say its not really culturally acceptable in France. It exists ... but 90% of McDo customers are either tourists or France's equivalent to Jerry Springer talk show guests !!!! (sorry the word in French is racaille .. or rabble) hopefully you get the meaning.

but back to the previous post....

The best advice is get a training partner.... especially early on its easy to skip or be tired or .... 1001 other excuses and having a training partner to motivate you is invaluable be it walking, cycling or whatever.

Walking should be something you do...IMHO not an actual exersize. Excuses like its 105 outside don't really count unless you are in office clothes and don't have a shower of course.

Joining a club be it tennis or whatever is equally effective .. the key is committing the time and DOING it regualrly. The body is in many ways self governing.. once you start it off gainig or loosing wieght the hardest part is turning it around. To do this you have to overcome your bodies accustomed mode. Keeping exersize regular helps it adjust.

anyway time for bed.....

[BRUMI1968]

I don't think it's productive (or kind) to respond with "...is a mindless thing to say." That kind of language just shuts down dialogue.

[plantime]

I don't think it's productive (or kind) to respond with "...is a mindless thing to say." That kind of language just shuts down dialogue.

Ditto. I'm not looking for a personal trainer. If I have to go into that much detail and spend that much time doing it, then forget it. I have a life outside of running, walking, and biking. I'm not a professional athlete, just a middle-sged woman trying to shed a few pounds. Please do not belittle what I do.