Whats a moderate ride speed

Albert Fisher said:

I have been told by my doctor to lose some weight, so I
have decided to buy myself a mountain bike. My question to
this newsgroup is, whats a moderate speed I should travel
at to acheive weight loss.

And what distance should I ride, and how often ? In short
can someone give me a exercise guide.

Thanks heaps...

If your doctor thinks you should lose weight, he should be
able to tell you what sort of intensity to start with.

Average or cruising speed for your purpose is a bit
pointless I think because it depends on many factors. eg.
terrain, your bike, your weight & fitness, etc.

I think if it's your doctor's suggestion, then any amount at
any speed which is challenging, will benefit you.

Just start riding and gradually increase your distance/time
as you feel comfortable. You'll probably find it really hard
at first. Try to get over that hurdle and you'll find your
speed and distance will increase anyway.

The sad thing is, you'll realise how many years you have
wasted not riding 😉

--
Nick

Albert Fisher said:

I have been told by my doctor to lose some weight, so I
have decided to buy myself a mountain bike. My question to
this newsgroup is, whats a moderate speed I should travel
at to acheive weight loss.

And what distance should I ride, and how often ? In short
can someone give me a exercise guide.

Thanks heaps...

I took up triathlons 2 years ago after the better part of
10 years without exercise. For the first 4 months of
training I had one aim and only one aim - don't get
injured. It applied to running but also to the cycling.
Start out slow. You're better off taking it easy for the
first few months while your body gets used to exercising
again than to go hard, get hurt, and give up. Also, if you
have dodgy knees stay off the hills initially if you can.
Anyway that's my 2cents worth. Apart from broken bones I've
been pretty much injury free.

DaveB.

"Albert Fisher" <[email hidden]> schreef in bericht
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Quoted message said:

I have been told by my doctor to lose some weight, so I
have decided to

buy

Quoted message said:

myself a mountain bike. My question to this newsgroup is,
whats a moderate speed I should travel

at

Quoted message said:

to acheive weight loss.

And what distance should I ride, and how often ? In short
can someone give me a exercise guide.

Thanks heaps...

- be carefull, you're learning to ride
- choose light gears only
- heartbeat not over 120/130 depending on age to stimulate
your body to burn fat.

--
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"Albert Fisher" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

I have been told by my doctor to lose some weight, so I
have decided to buy myself a mountain bike. My question to
this newsgroup is, whats a moderate speed I should travel
at to acheive weight loss.

How long is a piece of string? The harder you work the more
calories you'll burn. Just don't blow it by going home and
stuffing your face full of doughnuts. Cycling is not a
panacea. It will help you get fit and it will help burn some
calories but your diet is still the key to your weight loss.
It took time to put the fat on and it will take time to burn
it off. 500 calories below maintence is 1lb of fat loss per
week, which is a sustainable and safe rate of loss. If you
are obese you may be able to lose weight even faster.

Quoted message said:

And what distance should I ride, and how often ? In short
can someone give me a exercise guide.

Your goal, as a recreational rider, should be ten hours per
week. Try working up to this split or something similar:

Monday: Rest day. Tuesday: 90 minutes. Warm-up, put in some
sprint work or short intervals. Get the heart pumping.
Wednesday: 120 minutes. Emphasise endurance. If necessary,
do 2x60 minute sessions, one hard session before work and
one easy one after. Thursday: 90 minutes. Maybe a group ride
or training race. Friday: 60 minutes. Take it easy.
Saturday: 60 minutes. Take it easy. Sunday: 180 minutes.
Endurance. This is ideal as part of a group ride.

Ten hours per week is ideal for recreational riders to
optimise their genetic potential but it's a goal - you have
to work your way up to it. The numbers might sound
frightening but they're not really. For example, I live in
St Kilda. Riding to Sandringham and back is a reasonable 60
minute (25k) ride for me. 25k is not an outrageous distance.

Of course, if you're going to weight train as part of your
body recomposition program then that changes everything.

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Albert Fisher said:

I have been told by my doctor to lose some weight, so I
have decided to buy myself a mountain bike.

Good decision. A MTB is versatile, comfortable, perfectly
geared and suited to the intended lose weight/get-fit task.
To make the exercise fun which is important, buy something
with (Shimano) Deore/Alivio kit as a minimum, and fit a set
of 26 x 1½" semi-slick tyres intended for road and bike path
use. eg: Michelin City or Continental Town & Country.

Quoted message said:

My question to this newsgroup is, whats a moderate speed I
should travel at to acheive weight loss.

Forget "moderate speed". Exercise associated with maximising
weight loss is all about intensity + duration. If that's
*your* goal you *need* to buy yourself a heart rate monitor.
A basic, inexpensive one for around AUD$80- such as a
superseded Polar Tempo or Beat will do. An expensive one
with fancy 'bells and whistles' is superfluous.

Maximising weight loss *safely* means riding at *your*
sustained 60-70% MHR several times a week *every week* for
extended periods. Between 1 & 2 hrs per session is ideal
when starting out. This is relatively low intensity. Your
aerobic fitness will improve naturally in conjunction with
your initial program such that as you lose your weight and
improve your overall fitness, you can refocus to target
improving your aerobic fitness with a higher (80%+) MHR and
increase the duration/intensity as required.

Quoted message said:

And what distance should I ride, and how often ?

2 hours at 60-70% MHR 3 preferably 4 times per week
*minimum*. Your average speed and distance travelled will
vary depending upon local terrain, ie: hilly or flat, your
bike setup, ie: tyres and pressures, and your own
fitness/potential.

As a very general guide, if on starting out you can
achieve a 17kph average on a MTB riding as described,
you're doing OK.

Quoted message said:

In short can someone give me a exercise guide.

As above. Keep it simple. Eat right and stay hydrated, but
more importantly don't overeat. Stay focussed. Help yourself
in doing this initially by finding a mature group with
similar goals to ride with which will make the activity
social and less lonely until it becomes fun and naturally
addictive. If you don't now, you will come to understand
what I mean by "addictive". Until then riding in a non-
competitive group will assist in maintaining your motivation
on the "I don't feel like doing this today" days.

PS: Polar publish inexpensive easy read booklets
containing focus activity related training guidelines
for Running, Cycling, etc. They are available from
most Rebel Sports stores.

K

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by Albert Fisher
I have been told by my doctor to lose some weight, so I have
decided to buy myself a mountain bike. My question to this
newsgroup is, whats a moderate speed I should travel at to
acheive weight loss.

And what distance should I ride, and how often ? In short
can someone give me a exercise guide.

Thanks heaps...

Just get out and ride for a few weeks at a very easy pace.
(where are you?)
Learn how to enjoy it, above all else. after a few weeks when you start to get 'your cycling legs' (dont gauge things by your first half-a-dozen rides) you will notice you can push a bigger gear on the flat or go up that hill just a bit easier. And then your hooked😄 !!!

Above all else dont get sucked into thinking that the bigger gear you can grind, the better it is (for you or your speed).
If weight loss is your aim 'twiddling one smaller gear faster will get you there faster every time!

PS is commuting an option for you? (will give you easy access to 'ride' time, get you fitter/lighter and is most likely cheaper!)

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by Albert Fisher
I have been told by my doctor to lose some weight, so I have
decided to buy myself a mountain bike. My question to this
newsgroup is, whats a moderate speed I should travel at to
acheive weight loss.

And what distance should I ride, and how often ? In short
can someone give me a exercise guide.

Thanks heaps...

Hi Albert:

If you are to gain, first you have to minimise the risk. You haven't mentioned your age and how obese are you. Besides, the length of time you've been obese has a role in your current physiology and cardiovascular condition.

My advice is not to take any unsolicited advice on exercising. Starting a sport in high 30's (if this is the case) should be approached with care. All advice here is relative depending what is your ideal pace and what's your perception of comfortable exercise. Pushing before it's time can do you more harm than benefit. The best person to talk to first is your GP. Depending on your age, you may need to take a stress (exercise) test to evaluate your cardiovascular fitness. All your exercise options can be planned from there.

Riding is a low impact exercise and is a very enjoyable one provided that a few criteria are met. You need a bike that suits your need, and fits your body properly. A good local bike shop can help you with choosing the right equipment. Your initial need may be dictated by your physical/medical circumstances, so I'd suggest you consult your GP and work that side out before rushing to buy the bike.

Walking is practical in the interim so long your heart beat is maintained at the rate determined by your doctor. So a reliable heart rate monitor could be a must one way or other.

Good Luck,
Amir.

Albert Fisher said:

I have been told by my doctor to lose some weight, so I
have decided to buy myself a mountain bike. My question to
this newsgroup is, whats a moderate speed I should travel
at to acheive weight loss.

Really irrelevant.

Firstly, you should take it very easy. for the first few
weeks it is important that you are not doing any damage to
yourself. You will need to spend a bit of time adjusting the
bicycle to you, wearing in the saddle, carrying adequate
water, etc.

Also give a little effort to keeping your cadence up
(pedalling rate). Definitely over 60, if you can. This means
you are spinning the pedals rather than pushing. Pushing
with a badly adjusted seat will cause long term damage to
your knees.

To start off with, try to do 30 - 60 minutes. This puts you
into the aerobic exercise range. Just take it easy. Do not
worry asbout distance.

After a few weeks, you will find that easier and easier to
do, if you are doing it at least three times a week.

You can also start taking your heart rate from the
beginning. Go for a ride, stop and instantly record your
heart rate for 15 secs. Wait a minute and then record again.
Over time, you will find the recovery rate improving.

Other stuff follows on from this basic beginning, but riding
speed is not a training effect.

"Albert Fisher" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

I have been told by my doctor to lose some weight, so I
have decided to buy myself a mountain bike. My question to
this newsgroup is, whats a moderate speed I should travel
at to acheive weight loss.

And what distance should I ride, and how often ? In short
can someone give me a exercise guide.

Thanks heaps...

hi, when i first started out i was 120+kgs and just started
riding for a bit of fun. (in jan 2003) I was happy if i
stayed around 15-20kph on bike paths (riding an older
shogun mountain bike). i started out riding around 7km's
and then over a few months built up to 10 to 20km rides. I
didnt really set out to acheive any weight loss..it just
happened. then i wanted it to continue happening🙂 I found
that my overall speed improved faster than my endurance for
distance riding.

I rode every few days? sometimes 3 or so days straight and
then not ride for a few days? this was during a summer when
it was still light after work. nowdays i usually ride to /
from work and on weekends i'll do a 70-100km ride.

i'd say, just dont bust your ass on some long / hilly ride
to begin with, otherwise you'll have pain that'll put you
off riding for a while..

"flyingdutch" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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[...]

Quoted message said:

Above all else dont get sucked into thinking that the
bigger gear you can grind, the better it is (for you or
your speed). If weight loss is your aim 'twiddling one
smaller gear faster will get you there faster every time!

It's better for your knees too.

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