I'm overweight, and that's been a problem for me since Junior High. It's a psychological issue as well as a physical issue. This is my grade twelve year, and I'm really fed up with being fat. When I'm eighty, I want to be able to look back and say, "Well, I wasn't always old and fat." These are supposed to be the best years of my life, yet I'm wasting them with self-pity and self-consciousness. I'm doubly disappointed, since I think I could be quite attractive if I weren't fat: I'm six foot four, eighteen, and naturally mesomorphic. So, I decided to do something good for myself during the summer.
By the end of July, I was biking 20 km per day, six days per week. I'm somewhat proud of myself, despite knowing that all of you are leaps and bounds past that. My bike is pretty awful, so it was out of commission for some of August. I made up the time by helping one of my friends renovate, and walking for transportation. When my bicycle was fixed, I resumed exercise with less of a numerical focus, and more with the mentality of pushing myself. Although I still keep track of such things, my hub is not some arbitrary amount of circuits or minutes. Today, I decided to push myself a bit harder, but was disappointed when I slowed sooner than I expected. I eventually realized that my tires were so flat that I was riding on my rims.
Results are always encouraging. I've noticed improvement in my heart rate, especially. Although I haven't actually lost much weight, I know that I look less chubby. That's quite important, since I'm doing this for self-esteem (I was never that unhealthy). As juvenile as it sounds, I'm actually very encouraged when I received compliments from my friends. Twice, strangers at the lake-pond (my cycling track of choice) have spoken to me when they've noticed how much effort I put in. Both my cardiovascular endurance, and leg strength have definitely increased.
While I didn't mean for this post to sound so much like a blog, I thought I'd give you guys some framework before I started asking questions. A couple more things. To confirm, I'm male. You should also know that I prioritize losing weight over gaining muscle.
I'm wondering what you guys think of about cycling to lose weight. How much should I be riding? Is it an efficient use of my time and effort? Is cardio the way to go for fat loss? As far as physical activities go, I actually enjoy biking, which is part of why it's my activity of choice. It's a low-impact, highly accessible workout that feels far more fluid than running. Not to mention, it's a practical method of transportation. As much as I'm enjoying my current activity, is there a more effective use of my time?
I'm also wondering what to do during the winter. If there's snow on the ground, is it still safe to ride a bike? If it's thirty below (like it regularly gets up here in Canada), how can I exercise inside my house? Lacking both equipment and space, what options do I have? I'm actually really looking into pushups, though it will take me a while to build up the strength to do them properly for reasonable amounts of time. Are there cardio exercises that can be done inside?
Lastly, how do I involve nutrition? I don't eat badly at all; empty calories are extremely rare for me. I'm getting good at refusing chips and sugar. I don't remember the last time I had a soda. But what can i do to get the most out of a workout with food? Am I supposed to eat certain things before or after exercising? Do you guys have any miracle foods on par with bananas? What food rules do you guys have?
I'm looking forward to the result of this post...
