Which is more important, a light bike or light body?

[swampy1970]

Well, a light bike is good for people that like to do all those crazy bike tricks. But the body weight is important if you're one that rides tough terrain and harsh elements. You'd need to be heavier then.

The lighter you are the faster you get through tough terrain.

Modern clothing is a wonderful thing. No need to stay fat like a seal in order to keep warm when a good jacket that weighs a few ounces will do the job better.

If you fall off, being fat or muscly isn't gonna help you stop breaking a collarbone or getting other injuries. The extra weight may even play against you. 180lbs hitting the deck or 145lbs. I know which id rather be. I've been both an life is better at 145lbs.

 

[kylerlittle]

If you're not light in weight then youre better off losing a lot of weight.

Figure it this way: if a regular guy/girl sets their mind to it they can loose 2lbs a week with ease if they're above 10% body fat. Do that for just a month and you've lost 8lbs. If you have a fairly heavy (by today's standards) road bike at 23lbs and you want to lose 8lb off the bike then it's gonna cost north of $5,000 to do that.

A month off the mars bars and an hour a day, everyday, on the bike going hard or $5,000?

It all comes down to how much you really want to be lighter.

If you're already below 8% body fat then you're gonna have to spend a bit of time losing a bit off your body and taking some weight from your wallet too...

It makes sense. I used to be overweight and when I became lighter than I used to be, it was much easier.

 

[Corzhens]

This thread reminds me of my latest trip to Hongkong. In the train station, I noticed a guy holding a folded thing that turned out to be a bike. Yes, it is a foldable bike that he brought along inside the train. And after the train ride, he said he would be using the bike on the road. It amuses me no end because I had dreamed of that bike before. Now, when I inquired on the cost, never mind, hahahaaa.

 

[kylerlittle]

This thread reminds me of my latest trip to Hongkong. In the train station, I noticed a guy holding a folded thing that turned out to be a bike. Yes, it is a foldable bike that he brought along inside the train. And after the train ride, he said he would be using the bike on the road. It amuses me no end because I had dreamed of that bike before. Now, when I inquired on the cost, never mind, hahahaaa.

I know right!

 

[Jcycle]

A lot of us can afford to lose some weight and keep it off. I would think that cycling would help with this.

 

[LaikaComeHome]

I think both are pretty important!

 

[ZXD22]

Body weight is most beneficial since it can improve body functions and power output while being light. Having both a lighter bike and a lighter body is the best mix up though.

 

[swampy1970]

Light body, heavy wallet.

From eyeballing my frame, my pecker won't fit in the seat tube when the seat post is removed and my better half doesn't get too frisky when being told I spent $6 grand on a bike...

 

[Uawadall]

There is tons of talk about losing weight, but what about gaining muscle?

I'm 6'4" 165-170 pounds and 7-10% body fat. Will putting on a little muscle make me faster?

 

[JSWin]

A loaded question. Not sure that I understand why a biker who wants to maximize would be eating cake in the first place. Empty calories in that. You will not get any strength or endurance from it. I would say the bike as light as it can be is the best option. Muscle as we know, weighs more than fat. Leaner and stronger, but not necessarily lighter. You can maintain a body weight but loose inches and become leaner. So, muscles tight and bike light.

 

[AtlantaSports]

90 percent of us can afford to lose some weight but buying a new bike is not in our future.

This is so completely true.

 

[mayasupernova]

Well, since I am not a very strong female, having a heavy bike is a nightmare. My bike is lighter than my dad's and in case I have to carry it around or something, it is not that much of a problem. Whereas, if I wanted to carry dad's bike, I would die from exhaustion. Maybe I need to train more, or perhaps lose some weight, but I'd rather have a lighter bike than a lighter body. After all, what is a light body? It is so relative.

 

[jimmy484]

1. Drop the body weight first. Being overweight is problematic in and of itself, and until you're "there or thereabouts" weight wise, you are never going to be competitive in the seat anyway.

2. Once you've taken the weight loss to its logical conclusion, then look at trimming the hardware on your bike.

3. If 1. & 2., then you can go really crazy and lose even more body weight, but this will be a targeted, serious task which will require knowledge and dedication. Good luck.

 

[warhawkp4]

Light body. Having a light body is so much more beneficial than being heavy and spending 10k on a ultra light climbing bike. When I was only cycling (now I race triathlons) I would always fly by guys on brand new Pinarello Dogmas and I had an entry level aluminium Trek. I was 140 lbs then and could hold 5 watts per kg for 30 min then. It's all about power to weight in cycling, light bikes don't account for too much to most riders.

 

[djcycling]

If you want to climb faster on your bike, you need to lose weight from somewhere. We set out to answer where you should lose this weight from. Should you cut back on the cake and lose a couple of kilos? Or will shedding the pounds from your bike be more beneficial? GCN's Daniel Lloyd and Greg Foot of Headsqueeze went up to the University of Bath to find out.


How To Climb Faster - Light Bike Or Light Body?



Which is best: lighter bike or leaner body? (With GCN) - Greg Answers

I would go for a leaner body instead of a lighter bike. It would mean that I would be more capable of cycling longer and have more stamina.

 

[anhquoc90]

What’s even more comfortable when you are enterining after a day of hard work.

 

[Bicycleman]

I have seen some fairly heavy guys, who could out climb me any day of the week and ride me into the ground to boot. I think it's all in leg strength and probably heredity. Ever heard the phrase, "natural born athlete"?

 

[CAMPYBOB]

I'll take, "power to weight ratio", for $1000, Alex.

 

[Uawadall]

This is probably the simplest way to put it. A tour de france competitor from a 100 years ago would beat anyone here. Cycling equipment has improved leaps and bounds since then and have shed many pounds. When you put it like this, it can't be the bike.

 

[Bicycleman]

I think some of the bikes can actually be too light. I used to ride a Kestrel. The bike weighed about 4 lbs with components. I remember riding with a strong tail wind. My friend and I were hitting 40 mph, but my bike felt like it wanted to fly away with me, a very frightening experience. I think if I had wings, it would have taken off like a glider. Now, I ride a heavier titanium frame and sometimes I wish I still had the Kestrel when I hit those washboard rough patches in our roads.