Starter Bike for (Very) Overweight Woman

[Ing95]

For a bit of background, I'm 5'6 and 23.5 st. I am SUUUUUUPER aware that that's very big and I want to do something. Because in these strange times swimming pools are closed so I thought why not cycle to lose potential stones. I haven't been on a bike since I was a child and ideally it will be cycling for leisure working up to cycling to work when I've shed enough weight. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you

[Cyril Haearn]

Yes you can!
Similar questions have been asked here before, try searching these fora
An 'elephant bike' as formerly used by the GPO is one possility, simple, sturdy, not too expensive

Others shall doubtless be along with more specific advice soon enough

[Jdsk]

Welcome.

I suggest reading this discussion:
https://forum.cyclinguk.org/viewtopic.php?t=130644

How much are you thinking of spending?

Jonathan

PS: You're probably about to be advised that exercise, including cycling, doesn't cause loss of mass. The current evidence is that it does, but not much. Are you getting professional advice on general health, including diet?

[LollyKat]

Also a very recent thread here: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=139655. Note that if you live in a hilly area you will need suitable gears.

[Ray]

An 'elephant bike' as formerly used by the GPO is one possility, simple, sturdy, not too expensive

Certainly worth considering. I can see that you might consider the name less than flattering, but it would be easy enough to remove the name sticker, or simply tape over it. Or just tell yourself that the bike is so-named because it has a trunk (front carrier)

see https://www.cycleofgood.com/elephant-bike/

Good luck with your mission!

[ANTONISH]

I don't know what sort of cycling you are doing. Although you are overweight most bikes will be strong enough ( wheels may be the weakest part) but you are unlikely to be very powerful and that's as big a factor.
Nothing wrong with the elephant bike but I think a basic mountain bike would be sturdy enough and give you a reasonable range of gears.
Whatever cycling you are doing it's unlikely to reduce your weight although it will help with general fitness.
If you want to lose weight you need to reduce your calorie intake.
weight loss diets as such don't generally work unless you are changing to a reduced calorie diet that you can sustain indefinitely.
I put on weight easily but I avoid cake, biscuits sugar in tea and coffee, sugary drinks (including fruit juice) etc. and I've managed to maintain a reasonable weight since I gave up sugar(almost) more than fifty years ago - eventually you don't miss these things.
I have some cereal bars which contain some sugar which I consume as needed when cycling.
There are of course other things like bread and pasta that need to be consumed in moderation.
And alcohol - high in calories and I'm afraid I like a glass of wine with a meal ( or without) so I try, but eliminating sugar entirely is difficult.
As you get fitter hunger is not such a problem

If you have a friend with similar goals you may be able to offer each other moral support

[RH20]

As already suggested, a mountain bike should be suitable. Cycling will improve your fitness, circulation and cardiovascular performance. To lose weight you need to make SMALL changes to your diet. Remember you need to be looking at a diet that you can live with. Throw away the frying pan, cut down on sugar. Look at your diet and check what are the high calorie foods that you are eating. Don’t forget the sugar content of drinks. Try to cut down gradually, don’t cut out. If you cut out you will probably start to crave that particular food stuff. At meal times remember it takes approximately 10 minutes for the brain to register the amount of food consumed, so after a meal one should always feel that they could eat more. If at the end of a meal there is a feeling that you are full, then you will have over eaten.
Use a smaller plate, this tricks the brain into thinking there is your normal amount of food on the plate. Aim for a weight loss of between 1 to 2 pounds maximum per week. Go steady, and as with diet, make only gradual changes to your excercise routine.
Good luck, be patient, you will achieve your goals.

[Cyril Haearn]

Breakfast like a queen
Lunch like a farmer
Supper like a beggar

Eat slowly, maybe read a book at table to slow down, then the brain catches up

Try different routines, maybe cycling in the evening

[Carlton green]

For a bit of background, I'm 5'6 and 23.5 st. I am SUUUUUUPER aware that that's very big and I want to do something. Because in these strange times swimming pools are closed so I thought why not cycle to lose potential stones. I haven't been on a bike since I was a child and ideally it will be cycling for leisure working up to cycling to work when I've shed enough weight. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you

You'll get a lot of different of answers on this one and none will be specific but rather generic. Few if any bikes will have been designed with your particular build in mind so to some extent it’s a case of buying something sensible and seeing what keeps working. You’ll need a strong framed bike with strong wheels and fat tyres, as such some form of mountain bike is likely to be best. I suspect that you’ll want a ladies type step through frame, from a frame robustness perspective I would suggest that the higher the step the better - but not so high that you struggle to step through. Get something with a wide saddle and research how it might comfortably match your build - women tend to find that getting the right saddle for them is important. Mudguards and a rack would be a big plus. How many gears? Well at least three but after that just accept what’s on the bike and learn how to use them to your best advantage. Frame size is also important, know what your inside leg measurement is and buy accordingly. Make sure that the bike has a comfortable position for you and that you’re not stretching to reach the handlebars - my mountain bike is rarely used for that (hidden) reason. Do not buy a bike that has both rim brakes and steel wheels, that combination doesn’t work well enough in wet weather. Ideally the frame should be made of steel rather than aluminium - a small magnet tells the difference - as alloy material can break unexpectedly and particularly so when it’s been overloaded.

It’s nice to ride a bike but sometimes it’s also nice to walk with it too, so don’t be too fixed in your mind about the form of your exercise. Don’t expect to go far on your bike but be happy with what you can do.

As to where to get a bike from there are cycle refurbishment schemes throughout the country. Old bikes are donated and one buys a bike that has been restored to usable condition. The Elephant bikes are ex-Royal Mail and they were designed to take hard use over many miles. One of those might well be a good first bike for you, something to get you Cycling and to learn from. Expect to want something ‘better’ later as you then desire to go faster and further from home with a bit less effort.

Good luck, ask your additional questions and please report back your experiences.

[Oldjohnw]

Whilst cycling itself has little direct affect on weight it can help change lifestyle including diet. It is a pleasurable lifestyle change rather than a miserable hair shirt type.

[mumbojumbo]

If you are sighted you could take out a bling rider on a tandem.They would be appreciative and you could tell them you are Victoria Pendlesham the medallist,as they cannot tell otherwise.

[arnsider]

Saddle comfort, Efficient and dependable brakes, easy rolling tyres, kept pumped to optimum pressure are vital ingredients for comfy enjoyable riding.
Say a Sprung Brooks B67 saddle, V Brakes or Discs, Quality road tyres like Schwalbe Marathon and a track pump.
A nice, well built day tourer with hub gears, mudguards, a carrier and bottle cage is the option.
Hub gears are a better option for a beginer as they are much less fiddly and easier to change. These days, Shimano make really good reliable hub gears.
Ortler Monet comes up and costs around £450.

[greyingbeard]

dont worry about technicalities. Get something like a second hand steel framed mountain bike, or a postmans/elephant bike, they are super sturdy. No saddle is going to feel great to start with. Just get out and do a mile at a time, take it easy, build up. Avoid heavily trafficked roads till your confidence grows. Start today ! weather still nice. Good luck !

[profpointy]

When I was cycling daily: a 7 miles each way commute, I certainly lost weight despite stuffing my face. Granted it was merely middle aged spread in my case but I needed a belt to hold trousers up that had previously been snug. OK for a big lass like yourself it might not be an instant miracle but I'm convinced it'll help, particularly if you can build up to doing a moderate distance.

Regarding bike strength, and this is based on my instinct rather than real knowledge, I'm not sure I'd worry too much about bike strength. You may be a lot overweight, but in engineering terms it's "only" 30% more that a big strapping lad. I knew a maybe 20stone rugby type guy who rode a normal bike and he was pretty strong and rode a lot. The main weak point would be the wheels so so get something with a relatively high number of spokes. The other thing is to make sure the gears are low enough. I'm assuming you are unfit so hills will be a painful struggle otherwise. Even for OK weight people hills can be a struggle for non-athletes.

Unless you're going off road, I'm not convinced there's any value in bike suspension - in fact I think it detremental.

[alanesq]

I was around 19stone and cycled every day for some years and found the only real issue to be the wheels. I would find that after a while a spoke would break and then if I replaced the spoke others would soon follow. The solution was when I broke a spoke either have the wheel completely rebuilt by a good wheel builder of buy some decent new hand built wheels for my bike.