I Did My First 12-Mile Ride Today, and Lost 50 pounds!



SierraSlim

Active Member
Oct 4, 2010
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[COLOR= #0000ff]Well, not at the same time, lol. But I did do my first 12-miler today, and on weigh day this week I've now lost FIFTY pounds since July by cycling and eating healthier. I'm really quite excited about both![/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]The 50 pounds is a biggie for me. I've been overweight since I was 24. Before that, I was always slender. In childbirth that year I had my lovely daughter, but my uterus ruptured, I lost 3/4 of my blood, and very nearly died. They did an emergency hysterectomy, which was an emotional blow because I had wanted more children, but I have a son and daughter, so I tried to make the best of that. But, though they repeatedly say that a hysterectomy has nothing to do with weight gain, I started gaining weight afterward, and within a year was 30 pounds overweight. I lost the 30 through dieting -- and regained 35. I lost that -- and regained 40. And thus I dieted my way UP to almost 300 pounds! I've been dieting most of the past 36 years, and was so very tired of always starving myself, feeling deprived, and gaining back the pounds plus some of their friends. But I had never managed to get to 50 pounds off before, so this is a first. And I had pretty much given up that I was ever going to be able to do it -- until along came cycling -- which somehow compels me to eat more healthily so I can keep it up. [/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]It is I-N-C-R-E-D-I-B-L-E to me that cycling was all I needed!!! I had done other exercises while dieting, long walks, Curves gym, Richard Simmons tapes, etc. But I always hated it, and it never seemed to help. If ONLY I had tried cycling back then, I would never have gotten so fat! But that's water under the bridge at this point. At least I've found cycling now, and I will NEVER stop, even when I'm slender again, because I love it. And because I love it and will never stop, I'm confident that I can lose the remaining 75 pounds I want to lose, and feel good about myself again in a way I haven't in 36 years. What a gift that is to me. [/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]The 12-mile ride was hard today. It was cold in spite of my layers -- at least my legs and face were cold -- and it was windy, which of course makes biking harder than normal. So an intelligent or less stubborn person might have taken a shorter bike ride, lol, than trying to go for her longest one ever in those conditions. But when I'm on the bike, something happens and I don't want to stop, even under those conditions. My legs are aching and I'm breathing heavier and I'm cold -- but I just want to keep going, and it feels like a failure to back off at that point. I know that's stupid, and that I should be varying my rides and intensity, so I'm working on a schedule for that. But for today, I wanted to go one more mile... and I did. And it feels pretty good. [/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]I just want to say that my friends here have become a very important part of my cycling journey. When I'm having a bad day biking, I can come on and vent and get consolation and advice or a needed kick in the pants (thanks, Brad, lol). And when it's a good day, I can't wait to come here and share it here with you all. You've become like family.[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Thanks for being here for me, y'all. I couldn't have done it without you.[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Have a WONDERFUL 2011![/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
 
Awesome accomplishment Sierra! I'm a newbie myself as of a week ago and just rode 7 miles today. Planning to double that tomorrow on much easier terrain (less hills). I'm off work until Jan 3 so I'm taking advantage of the free time to put some miles under the tires. Weather was mid 30's here in northwest Tn today with sunshine and tomorrow promises about 42 degrees and sunny so I am definitely looking forward to it. Great info here on the forums. I've learned alot already. I'm already in reasonable health with no weight problems and normally eat healthy foods. The cycling is just going to increase my health even further and in a very fun and rewarding way. I love the outdoors anyway so that's a plus as well.
 
[COLOR= #0000ff]Hi, Disciple, and welcome to the forums! [/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Congratulations on your 7 miles! I remember how excited I was the first time I went 5 -- and it wasn't that long ago, lol. You're fortunate to be having sunny weather. Even though it's cold, it's not as icky as when it's 30 degrees and damp -- yuck! [/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Isn't it exciting how much cycling makes getting healthier fun??? Who knew, lol.[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Thanks for the input. I'll look forward to reading your posts![/COLOR]
 
Congrats!

I hope to ride tomorrow, maybe do a "50"! Should be in the upper 40's so maybe?

Sis got me some real cycling gloves for Christmas, see how they work. I would
never pay $50 for gloves.
 
you are best, i appreciate you,
be honestly i can not do cycling like you, if you have your any video then please put here, thanks
have a nice day.
http://www.pakhot.com
 
[COLOR= #0000ff]Hi, Shanzaymalik.[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]You are very kind, and I thank you for your kind words. Anybody can cycle like I do; the first day I started, I could barely go for a mile. It just takes a lot of practice, lol.[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]I'm sorry, but I don't have any video for your site.[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]You have a nice day, too![/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
 
Way to go, Sierra!

It won't be long before you find that you can tack 5, 10 or 20 miles on to your previous longest ride and think nothing of it.

I do have a a couple questions for you, though. I recall reading here that you recently got a new bike. Is it a multi-speed bike? Also, what is your typical pedaling cadence?

Jason (needing to get on the trainer soon...much too cold and snowy lately to do any riding outside)
 
[COLOR= #0000ff][SIZE= 10pt]Hi, Jason, and thanks![/COLOR][/SIZE]
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[COLOR= #0000ff][SIZE= 10pt]I was wondering if I would ever be able to tack on more miles easily as you said, because right now, that last mile is always a buggar for me. Heck, on yesterday's ride the last few FEET were hard for me, lol.
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[/COLOR] My legs felt shaky at the end, and I was remembering as I got off that my sister overdid her workout one day, and broke her arm when she fell off her bike while mounting, because her legs were shaky (after an 11-mile speed walk).
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[COLOR= #0000ff][SIZE= 10pt]I do have a new bike, a Raleigh Calispel I-8. She has an 8-speed internal gear hub. Dear Hubby says that on this hub it is actually more like I have 20 speeds or so, because the gears overlap in a wider range or something. (I never know if he knows what he's talking about with regard to bikes, but he at least says it with conviction, LOL.)[/COLOR][/SIZE]
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[COLOR= #0000ff][SIZE= 10pt]I actually don't know my cadence. My bike computer tells me my speed and distance, the time it took, and how many miles I've totalled since it was put on the bike. If there's a button where it tells me cadence, I haven't located it yet, but I don't think there are any I haven't messed with. I've noticed that I'm really happiest/most enjoying the ride in 6th gear, at about 12 mph. When I want to push myself, I go faster than that for a short intervals and move up to 7th, but can't keep that up for very long. It also actually seems very hard to make myself go slower than that, which was a revelation to me -- why should it be hard to go slower?? But it is. I was reading about cadence on some posts here, and wondered how you guys knew yours. I may need a different computer, lol.[/COLOR][/SIZE]
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[COLOR= #0000ff][SIZE= 10pt]It's supposed to rain all day again for the next several days, so I'll have to put Lizzie on the trainer to get anything accomplished. It's also surprising to me how much less I like biking on the trainer than I do outdoors. I figured before I bought the trainer that as long as it was in front of a television with a movie on, it would be great -- but it's just not the same, and the hour I spend on it seems like 3 or 4, compared to when I'm outside. But we do what we can, eh?[/COLOR][/SIZE]
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[COLOR= #0000ff][SIZE= 10pt]Have fun on yours![/COLOR][/SIZE]
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[COLOR= #0000ff][SIZE= 10pt]Sierra [/COLOR][/SIZE]
 
Congratulations SLIM. That is really exciting news. I hope to lose about 40 pounds with cycling as well. Good luck as you continue.
 
[SIZE= 10pt][COLOR= blue]Brad,[/COLOR][/SIZE]

[SIZE= 10pt][COLOR= blue]How's it going? [/COLOR][/SIZE]

[SIZE= 10pt][COLOR= blue]I don't spend a lot of money on biking clothes, either, seeing as how I always fear that I'll turn back into the old Sierra and decide that movement is for absolute necessity only, lol. So I was outraged when I figured out that biking gloves were $50 --- to the point that I refused to buy them, and just paid $12 for a pair of glove liners, instead, which I wear beneath my short-fingered biking gloves. When I put them on, I think, "This is what bag ladies look like!", so will probably give up and buy the more expensive gloves, lol, but it seems silly when it's just not that cold here -- at least, I won't be RIDING when it's very cold here.
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[SIZE= 10pt][COLOR= blue]Have a good one.[/COLOR][/SIZE]

[SIZE= 10pt][COLOR= blue]Sierra [/COLOR][/SIZE]
 
[COLOR= #0000ff]Thanks, KSwiss![/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]It's exciting for me, too, lol. Finding out that exercise can actually be so much fun that I don't want to stop doing it is just miraculous, in my book! You'll lose those 40 pounds, and we'll both be healthier and happier! [/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Good luck to you, too. [/COLOR]
 
Wow, good for you Sierra! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/icon14.gif

You have really dropped that weight quickly. Do you realize you are only 12.5 pounds away from the halfway point! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/cool.gif

Keep on pedaling....

Oh, and you can buy lots of nice gloves for less than $50. Below is a link to some of Nashbar's gloves and I bet plenty of other stores have them on sale now, if you need a pair. From reading your 1st post, it sounds like you need something to keep your legs and face warmer moreso than gloves.

http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/SubCategory_10053_10052_200494_-1_200275_200341
 
Sierra, That is FANTASTIC!! We seemed to have started about the the same time, although I used to run and cycle a lot of miles a few years ago. I ride quite a bit farther (550-600 miles a month) usually between 25-50 miles a day, but I so far haven't got the 50 off. It seems that the avg. speed and cadence goes up even tho you don't seem to notice it much. I try to ride 85-95 RPM and 15mph avg. Sometimes it will be more sometimes less. Rain is not a problem in West Texas but the wind blows pretty much all the time between 20-35mph. Good Luck, but with your attitude I don't think luck will have anything to do with it!!!


Dean
 
Congrats sierra, great job with the weight loss and the cycling. Nice way to start the new year!
 
[COLOR= #0000ff]Hey, you 3!![/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Encouragement like that is why I keep coming on here, though I'm probably the slowest, most inexperienced, and fattest of the bunch! Because y'all are an AWESOME bunch to hang with![/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Paramount -- I actually had NOT stopped to figure out that I'm only 12.5 pounds from the half-way point! I'm actually teary-eyed thinking about it, because it seemed so impossible a few months ago. So when I've lost 63 pounds, I will have officially rounded the corner. Holy COW, that's exciting!!! I won't say I've topped the hill at that stage, because I know that the last pounds come off much harder than the first ones for practically everybody, but still.... I walked into that gastric-bypass surgeon's office feeling like a total failure for giving up and deciding to do it, 5 months ago -- and here I am, almost half-way there, without the surgery! I really am gonna cry now, lol. (And thanks for the link. Will definitely check it out.)[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Dean, you probably had a lot LESS to lose than I did, when we started, and that's why you haven't hit 50 yet. The fattest people almost always lose the fastest, fortunately for them (because they have the farthest to go!). I suspect that the last 50 will take me a lot longer, too, but as long as it's coming off, that's okay. I'm not in a race, I'm just trying to get healthy. And if you're doing 25-50 miles a day, GOOD JOB with that!! The pounds will come off, and you'll be as slender as you are nice, which is really cool!! (And you have to fight wind??? Gawwwwd, I hate that even more than rain... probably because I make a pretty big sail, lol. But good for you for going out in it!) I have noticed my speed gradually increasing; for a long time I seemed to average 10 mph, and now it's 12, so I'll catch up with you yet, lol.[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Calico, thanks a bunch! It IS an exciting way to start 2011, having finally hit the 50 mark. And as Paramount pointed out, almost halfway there! YaaaaHOOOOOO!!![/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Have a great one, y'all. You've made my day![/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
 
Cadence is fairly easy to figure if you don't have it on your computer. I'm sure that your computer has a stop watch or at least a clock function on it. Start riding as you normally would and then start counting the revolutions of your crank for one minute. That is your cadence. I normally start my count when my right pedal is at the 12:00 posistion, but you can pick any pedal reference point that you are comfortable with. The next time that my pedal is in the 12:00 posistion is one revolution. Counting the number of revolutions for one minute gives me my cadence.

There are those who say that cadence of 90+ is the most efficient for racing and 75 - 85 is most efficient for touring. The best thing for you to do is not to get hung up on cadence and just keep on doing what you are doing because it is working. My average cadence is only around 75 but I'm old enough now that I just ride for the enjoyment of it, my racing days are pretty much over.
 
Congratulations on your two milestones. Your lifestyle is paying off with big dividends. As KD has posted continue to do what you are doing and dont worry about cadence. Thats one feature I have never bothered to get on a computer. Just find your groove and enjoy your ride. I also want to add that I never paid fifty bucks for a pair of gloves in my life. You can get decent riding gloves with good padding for under twenty at bike nashbar as has been suggested by Paramount.
 
[COLOR= #0000ff]Hey, KD and Dave![/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Thanks for the info on how to count cadence, KD. That sounds so simple, I think even I can't mess it up, lol.[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]But I won't get hung up on cadence because, as you both said, what I'm doing is working for me, and if it ain't broke, I don't mess with it -- for fear of making it so! If I stop losing weight or it quits being fun or something, I may pay more attention to things like that, but until then, I'm just goin' for a ride. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]I went back to see the bariatric surgeon today. Even though I'm not having the surgery now, I see him every couple months for encouragement and support in making sure I stay healthy as I lose the weight. He looked at my weight loss and said, "Hasn't this been empowering for you?" And I almost started to cry because it so definitely HAS. I feel like this isn't just about the weight loss any more, though that's what started the process and continues to be a part of it. It's more about accomnplishing something so monumental for me that I'm learning that I can do anything I really want to do. Failure is contagious.... but so is success -- and I'm liking the successes better, lol. [/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]The surgeon said, "People like you are why I love my job. I get the ones who come in and don't get it, they just want me to fix them, to sprinkle some sort of magic surgery dust on them and make them healthy, and of course that's not the way it works. But then I get people like you, people who GET it, and I get to watch the light bulbs go on over your heads, and I get to sit back and watch you get empowered, watch you take control of your life, and change it for the better. I love it."[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]So do I. [/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Thanks for the input, y'all. [/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
 
Let me clarify a bit on the cadence thing. I only asked because of how you said you felt towards the ends of your rides. It's very common for those new to cycling to push a big gear and use a very low cadence. That can be good for building strength, but it can also be hard on the knees and will wear you out much more quickly. A cadence of 60 isn't a bad place to start, and it's easy to keep track of--just count off seconds, and make sure your left or right pedal is at the same position each second. If you do have a computer and can (briefly and periodically, don't forget to watch the road!) watch the seconds, just shoot for something like your right pedal being at the bottom of the revolution when the second ticks off.

Personally, one of my goals in cycling (after I got a computer that could do cadence) was to get my cadence up from about 70 to 90. I came close, thought I haven't been on my bike in a while due to work and weather. I found that by using a smaller gear and higher cadence, I was able to easily go much farther, and it was more enjoyable, though pushing the cadence much above 95 was uncomfortable if I did it for more than a few seconds. I seemed to settle into about 85 on flats. Next year, I'm going to work on getting that above 90--just because. ;)

Sierra, that's great that your bariatrician(is that a word) will encourage you like that. It's good that he realizes that his goal should be to not be needed...!

Jason
 
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[COLOR= #0000ff]Hi, Jason.[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]I knew you were getting at something like that, not to worry. I do find things like that really interesting, whether they're 'necessary' for my type of biking or not. And it will be good to check and see if I'm doing too high a gear at too low a cadence or whatever, if that could be why I get so tired. (I always assume it's just because I'm so darned out of shape, and it takes more than a few months to undo 50 years of recliner surfing, lol.)[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]You said that by using smaller gears and higher cadence, you can easily go much farther; knowing that is really cool, if it works for me. My question about cadences would be which way burns more calories, because for me that's the biggie right now, with at least 70 more pounds to go. But I also need to work on just being able to stay IN the saddle for longer periods of time, because for my tour in June they recommend being able to ride for 3-4 hours daily. [/COLOR][COLOR= #0000ff]As for the 12-mile ride, I think I could have done a couple more miles if I had just gutted through it, but a) that takes away the fun aspect, and b) my bottom was just so tired of being on that seat, lol. That too is improving, because in July I could hardly stand to be on it for 15 minutes, and now it isn't bothering me until after about 45. [/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]I do love my bariatric specialist. He is so very encouraging and full of helpful suggestions -- much like most of y'all, here! I think it's an indication of what a fantastic guy he is that if he were only after the money, he would be pushing me to have the surgery because that's where the money is, for him -- far more so than the every-other-month office visit I now do. But he genuinely seems thrilled to be able to help me get slender and healthy this way, instead, and I look forward to seeing him each time.[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Just like I look forward to hearing from my buddies here.[/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Thanks for the input![/COLOR]

[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]