BikeRider56
New member
I'm new to this forum, but I know a lot about exercise and weight loss through my own experiences. I'm 54 now, and not overweight. Male. At 32 I was about 30 pounds overweight and decided that I needed to start exercising. I was never a runner and jogging didn't work for me. I had bought a simple Schwinn bike (not even an Air Dyne), about 2 years before, but had not used it. One day my father-in-law told me that I needed to start using that bike and stay on it until I lost some weight. I tried it. At first I couldn't work out for very long...maybe 30 minutes, but I kept at it, and eventually worked up to 90 minutes. In 70 days, I went from 188 pounds to 155. I've managed to stay between 150 and 165 for nearly 22 years, except for about a year in 2001 when I developed bone spurs.
After I had x-rays and determined that the spurs were not because of riding the bike, I was back to normal in about 3 months. I bought a Schwinn Air Dyne in 1990 that I still use today after having to completely rebuild it. In 2003, I started using a treadmill and eventually worked up to 7 miles per day at a 12% incline. Treadmills don't hold up as long as bikes do, and I went through one every 2 years.
Recently, I developed "plantir faciitis" and I've had to stop using my treadmill and go back to the Air Dyne after laying off of it for almost 7 years. Again, it was hard at first, but I am getting used to it again after a few weeks and I'm back up to 75 minutes per day.
Bottom line for me...dieting alone never worked. I had to learn to combine exercise with limiting calorie intake, but when you burn 800 or 1000 cals per day, then you don't have to be as careful. The key to exercising for me was to combine TV watching time with exercise. For example, I just watched every game of the World Series while exercising. When I first started, in 1988, I watched MTV videos (not possible now – I can’t stand MTV). You can also watch DVD’s or Netflix (but it’s harder to hear and you will trash a set of head phones).
Well, I hope that I’ve given some of you some help. It’s really quite simple. Reduce your caloric intake to what it needs to sustain your weight, then add lots of exercise. When you get to your “goal”, keep up the exercise and INCREASE your caloric intake. When you are trying to lose weight quick, you need to exercise every day. After awhile, you can cut it back to 4 or 5 days a week, but they need to be good workouts. Remember, 3500 calories burned, is one pound.
After I had x-rays and determined that the spurs were not because of riding the bike, I was back to normal in about 3 months. I bought a Schwinn Air Dyne in 1990 that I still use today after having to completely rebuild it. In 2003, I started using a treadmill and eventually worked up to 7 miles per day at a 12% incline. Treadmills don't hold up as long as bikes do, and I went through one every 2 years.
Recently, I developed "plantir faciitis" and I've had to stop using my treadmill and go back to the Air Dyne after laying off of it for almost 7 years. Again, it was hard at first, but I am getting used to it again after a few weeks and I'm back up to 75 minutes per day.
Bottom line for me...dieting alone never worked. I had to learn to combine exercise with limiting calorie intake, but when you burn 800 or 1000 cals per day, then you don't have to be as careful. The key to exercising for me was to combine TV watching time with exercise. For example, I just watched every game of the World Series while exercising. When I first started, in 1988, I watched MTV videos (not possible now – I can’t stand MTV). You can also watch DVD’s or Netflix (but it’s harder to hear and you will trash a set of head phones).
Well, I hope that I’ve given some of you some help. It’s really quite simple. Reduce your caloric intake to what it needs to sustain your weight, then add lots of exercise. When you get to your “goal”, keep up the exercise and INCREASE your caloric intake. When you are trying to lose weight quick, you need to exercise every day. After awhile, you can cut it back to 4 or 5 days a week, but they need to be good workouts. Remember, 3500 calories burned, is one pound.