I am 54 years old and have lost 68 pounds in eight months. The main dietary change is not what I eat, but how much. I still have red meat, but insted of an 8 oz rib eye, I only have 4 oz. I do reduce fat where possible, but I do not eliminate fat entirely. I eat whole grain bread and pasta instead of white bread and regular pasta. Instead of putting sour cream and butter on my baked potato, I use skim milk and low fat cheese. I have reduced alcohol consumption to three nights per week. The biggest change, though, has just been the serving sizes. All things in moderation.
The other change in my lilfestyle was to increase the amount of physical activity. When it comes to loosing weight, how far or fast one rides is not nearly as important as how long one spends riding. From January until May, I spent one hour per day, four days per week on the trainer. At first, I was going 10 miles per hour. By the end of April, I was going 15 miles per hour on the trainer. In May, I started riding on the road for one to three hours per day, three days per week. Depending on the terrain and who I am riding with, I average between 13 and 15.5 mph, but again, that does not matter. What matters is that I am spending the time on the bike.
I started out at 265 pounds. My goal was to be 200 pounds in 12 months and 180 pounds in 18 months. It only took seven months to get below 200 pounds. I am now 197 pounds, and I have no doubt that I will make my goal of 180 pounds.
One of the problems I have encountered after loosing the weight is that I now must eat more while I am riding. I can go 15 miles without eating, but anything longer requires food along the way. I bonked 38 miles into a 40 mile ride, and that was a very unpleasant experience. Loosing weight should not mean starving onself. I now eat more while I ride. I can go longer and am still loosing about 1.8 pounds per week.