got fat sence i got out of the army, need to start doing cardio again, help please

posted this in cafe to but i think that was the wrong spot

well in the last year i have gained a lot of weight sence i have gotten out of the army and its getting out of control, i tried to run again but just can't get very motivated i looked around at other forms of cardio excersises and they say the next best thing for weight loss under running is either bikes, or the nortic trac machines. well with winter coming up in the next few weeks here (im in michigan) i really can't be riding a bike outside. so im thinking about buying an indoor bike machine just for winter and if it works well starting riding bikes again in the summer. i was just wondering what you guys though, is riding a bike much cardio compared to running? does it burn a lot of calories? is an indoor bike ok for the winter for burining calories? how do yoiu think biking compars to running or other forms of cardio?

thanks,

 

first off, im a triathlete so i alwasy find ruuning really hard cos i have just hauled ass on a bike for the last 180km. That said, i think running gives a more consistant cardio strain where as a bike has interval style benifits with the flats and hills. We have these thigs at the gyms here called "Spin Classes" where you get on an exercise bike and ride till you drop, it's alot like riding a bike in a rave party for an hours burns heaps of calories to doof doof music, with cool lights. i find i burn more calories running than cycling but i enjoy cycling much more. if you alredy have a bike have you thought of an indoor trainer www.cycleops.com or just get some tour de france DVD's or training DVD's and sit infornt of you TV on your exercise bike and follow the work out. You can get the DVD's at all good bike shops and some crap one too.

goodluck with the weight loss....................remember its diet too, not just cardio!

 

Hello:
I took up cycling 2 years ago when I gave up smoking and put up a lot of weight quickly. I did about 150 to 200 miles per week, mainly over hilly terrain, as I built the cycling into my daily commute. With some friends I also did a 5-day 400 mile trip in Ireland last April. I thought this level of exercise would knock off some weight and would cancel out the extra snacking I was doing to make up for the cigarettes. However, thsi didn't work and while I'm aerobically fitter and my legs are more muscular I've added about 7 pounds to my initial weight. Make sure you combine a healthy diet with any cycling you do otherwise you'll just bulk up more. I've started the GI diet and hopefully will get back to fighting weight soon.
Don't forget that you have to burn 3600 calories to lose 1 pound, that's about 7 hours of flat-out cycling. If you could reduce your intake by 500 calories a day, you'd lose the pound in one week.
Best of luck,
C.O'D.