My weight and fitness

[Psamathe]

I read (or saw) recently that how you get your calories can affect weight loss. The report was saying that calorie values are calculated by "burning" (or chemical analysis) of the food. So 100 kcal of carrots will burn giving off the same energy as 100 kcal of chocolate. But eat them and it's a different matter as it is a lot harder and more work to get the energy out of the carrots than the chocolate - so you don't get the full 100 kcal (net) from the carrots. One of the few things I remember from my school biology (many years ago) was that digesting protein is very energy expensive and in effect 25% of the energy from the protein is lost in the digestion process.

But, I'm no expert and am just repeating what I remember from this report (I think it was on TV).

Ian

[PH]

Haven't read the whole thread, but: look at any group of non-competitive cyclists. Most of them are overweight, just like the general population. Look at a group of non-competitive runners. Most of them are slim. I do not run...

Don't agree with this but I suppose it depends what constitutes a group.

It's also a very self selecting group of course. It's highly likeley that someone overweight would choose cycling over running for obvious reasons.

[Mark1978]

best not equate exercise to weight loss, if you exercise you will eat more.
Whilst its true an hour of cycling burns around 440 cals, It so easy to eat this amount afterward.
A lot of dieticians are coming round to this idea.

That's why I often thing that doing long bike rides isn't the best thing if you want to lose weight. As if you're doing (say) 4 hours you're going to want to take some food with you, and eat as you go. Chances are this is going to be more calories than you're actually burning off. So my theory is that while long bike rides are great for fitness they are at best neutral for weight loss.

However if you do shorter rides, say, 1 hour max, regularly through the week, but crucially don't eat anything more to compensate, then you should lose more.

6 days into the diet now . 2014 was all about doing 80+ mile rides. 2015 was about increasing my average speed over 50 miles (I failed).
2016 is all about getting my weight down from 85kg (13st 6) to 70kg (11st), I'm actually viewing cycling merely as a tool to help me achieve that.

[Ben@Forest]

6 days into the diet now . 2014 was all about doing 80+ mile rides. 2015 was about increasing my average speed over 50 miles (I failed).
2016 is all about getting my weight down from 85kg (13st 6) to 70kg (11st), I'm actually viewing cycling merely as a tool to help me achieve that.

Blimey, I'm wanting to go from 75kg to 70kg (and I was 70 most recently in summer 2014) and I'm already not enjoying it - good luck!

[Mark1978]

6 days into the diet now . 2014 was all about doing 80+ mile rides. 2015 was about increasing my average speed over 50 miles (I failed).
2016 is all about getting my weight down from 85kg (13st 6) to 70kg (11st), I'm actually viewing cycling merely as a tool to help me achieve that.

Blimey, I'm wanting to go from 75kg to 70kg (and I was 70 most recently in summer 2014) and I'm already not enjoying it - good luck!

For 5'6" (167cm) then 70kg is supposed to be the maximum weight for being 'healthy' and I'm sick of having a belly! Last Spring I was down to below 12 stone then went on holiday and lost all focus once I'd got back.

[Vorpal]

For 5'6" (167cm) then 70kg is supposed to be the maximum weight for being 'healthy' and I'm sick of having a belly! Last Spring I was down to below 12 stone then went on holiday and lost all focus once I'd got back.

Read the article I linked in this post

I recently read a couple of articles that indicate that 'overweight' isn't necessarily bad.

http://qz.com/#550527/obesity-paradox-s ... ur-health/

is one of them.

It seems that there may be some misinformation around about what is a healthy weight.

[Mark1978]

The fact that I'm overweight is not in question. We could argue about what weight I should be. But it's not 85kg

[Mick F]

........ We could argue about what weight I should be ...............

It seems that there may be some misinformation around about what is a healthy weight.

Healthy weight?
............ what about a Happy Weight?

Personally, I couldn't give a toss what weight I am.
I can do what I want to do, I can ride a bike, I can climb stairs, I can fit through door-ways, I don't get out of breath walking or cycling up hills, I can bend over and tie my shoe-laces, I drink beer, I eat chips ................................

It's being happy and active that counts.
Not weight.

[whoof]

........ We could argue about what weight I should be ...............

It seems that there may be some misinformation around about what is a healthy weight.

Healthy weight?
............ what about a Happy Weight?

Personally, I couldn't give a toss what weight I am.
.....

It's being happy and active that counts.
Not weight.

Problem is people may be overweight and happy today but this may lead to being miserable tomorrow. I the last decade there has been a 60% increase of people in the UK with diabetes.
The main causes of type 2 diabetes (in no particular order) are age, genetics and ethnicity none of which you can do anything about, the final one is weight.

Complications associated with type 2 diabetes:
Heart disease and stoke
Nerve damage, at present on average 135 people a week are undergoing amputations due to diabetes.
Diabetic retinopathy which can result in loss of vision
Kidney disease
Sexual disfunction

I wouldn't be too happy with any of these.

[NUKe]

best not equate exercise to weight loss, if you exercise you will eat more.
Whilst its true an hour of cycling burns around 440 cals, It so easy to eat this amount afterward.
A lot of dieticians are coming round to this idea.

That's why I often thing that doing long bike rides isn't the best thing if you want to lose weight. As if you're doing (say) 4 hours you're going to want to take some food with you, and eat as you go. Chances are this is going to be more calories than you're actually burning off. So my theory is that while long bike rides are great for fitness they are at best neutral for weight loss.

However if you do shorter rides, say, 1 hour max, regularly through the week, but crucially don't eat anything more to compensate, then you should lose more.

6 days into the diet now . 2014 was all about doing 80+ mile rides. 2015 was about increasing my average speed over 50 miles (I failed).
2016 is all about getting my weight down from 85kg (13st 6) to 70kg (11st), I'm actually viewing cycling merely as a tool to help me achieve that.

for What its worth I think your going about it in the right way. My tip would a food diary and exercise diary. I usually do this when my weight gets out of hand. just keeping a record helps modify your behaviour.
Also I'd say that's a huge drop take it slowly if you want to keep it off. otherwise you will yo-yo

my own problem is I love food and I love cooking.

[jamesoneil]

Something I used to track my calorie intake was a phone app called myfitnesspal, whilst it has some shortcomings with the activity tracker, the calorie counter was very helpful. It also shows a breakdown of the recommended daily allowance of carbs/fats/protein.

A steady weight loss would be around 1 - 1.5lb (~0.5kg) a week. That should be possible without too much of a drastic change, providing you were at a steady weight before, and not getting heavier. That would mean cutting out 500 calories a day with no additional exercises.
Of course, depending on body fat % that could be higher. This is especially true to start with, when its easier to see results.

[Mick F]

The main causes of type 2 diabetes (in no particular order) are age, genetics and ethnicity none of which you can do anything about, the final one is weight.

No it's not.

The final one is being overweight for your body size ................... not weight. Taller people are heavier than shorter people? Wider people are heavier than narrower people?

I said a Happy Weight. It's being happy and active that counts. Not just "happy", because you can be happy and obese. You need to be happy AND active.

Basically, you need to know what your weight is, but there isn't a specific weight that you should (or must) be. Tell Geoff Capes that he was too heavy when he was at the top of his game.

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
For men its easy as all the weight is around your middle, pinch an inch is a good guide.
If your stomach has a mind of its own when you jog across the road, its telling you something.................

[AMMoffat]

Reading this thread makes losing weight sound overly complicated. It is really not necessary to get obsessed with counting calories and constantly weighing yourself when trying to lose weight and gain fitness. I find that doing any of that just makes me think of food all the time. What works for me is to eat less (of mainly the same things), cut down (sometimes even cut out ) chocolate (which is my main vice) and do more exercise. This approach even allows me not to worry about the odd day of overdoing things - such as fish and chips or something else calorie dense, so it's not all self-denial. Also, when I am losing weight I weigh myself just once a month. This gives a real measure of weight change, rather than obsessing over daily/weekly fluctuations that are probably due more to fluid changes than any permanent weight change.

Currently I'm recovering from major knee surgery and will be pretty much inactive for a couple of months so the "do more exercise" option is not available. To ensure I do not put on weight, and to guarantee that I eat less, my dinner plate has been shrunk and is now 1/3 smaller - this is the first time I've tried anything this systematic but is because my OH is largely doing the cooking and filling my plate whilst I'm out of action. This measure will of course not work fully until all the Xmas chocolate has been consumed

Try not to get obsessed folks or you could end up eating more as all you'll think about is food

[PH]

Reading this thread makes losing weight sound overly complicated. It is really not necessary to get obsessed with counting calories and constantly weighing yourself when trying to lose weight and gain fitness.

What I get from reading this thread is an insight into how we are all different, both in terms of what works for our biology and as a strategy.
For me, getting obsessed about it is very effective, writing everything down, planning meals, counting calories, weighing everything, planned exercise.
It's good to see all the different approaches, maybe try a few and find what works for you, less good to have anyone tell you there's only one way to achieve what you want.