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10-07-2005, 04:53 PM
In an effort to get healthier and lose some weight, I bought a stationary bike and have committed to using it 6 days a week for 1/2 hr. I love the way it keeps track of the calories your burning off, and I can watch TV while working out. Is this enough of a workout to acieve weight/fat loss? (I am about 30lbs. overweight)
NorCalJosh
10-07-2005, 04:56 PM
yes and no. cardio wise, that should be fine. doing a HIIT workout ~4 times a week instead of just cycling for half an hour 6 days a week would probably be better though. just my personal opinion.

but fitness and weight loss is a whole body transformation. in order to be certain that you're burning fat, switching up your diet and at least a small amount of weight lifting is pretty necessary.
BradleyT
10-07-2005, 04:57 PM
You need to hit a high heart rate and maintain it for XXX seconds. Just going slow on a bike for 30 minutes isn't really that beneficial.

Maybe someone whose actually fit can tell you more though - I'm about 40lbs overweight.
IndieMatty
10-07-2005, 04:58 PM
[ QUOTE ]
yes and no. cardio wise, that should be fine. doing a HIIT workout ~4 times a week instead of just cycling for half an hour 6 days a week would probably be better though. just my personal opinion.

but fitness and weight loss is a whole body transformation. in order to be certain that you're burning fat, switching up your diet and at least a small amount of weight lifting is pretty necessary.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm running out. But give these guys an explanation of HIIT? I think a lot of people would find that interesting.
JihadOnTheRiver
10-07-2005, 04:59 PM
sure w/a good diet
bwana devil
10-07-2005, 04:59 PM
[ QUOTE ]
Is this enough of a workout to acieve weight/fat loss?

[/ QUOTE ]

not enough information provided.

how many calories are you taking in a day?

what's your average heart rate (how fast are you riding) when youre on the bike?
Grisgra
10-07-2005, 05:00 PM
I believe that weight loss on a stationary bike is something like 300 calories/half hour -- and that's not at a leisurely pace.

So that'd be 1800 calories/week, or about a half pound/week. Eh, better than nothing . . . you'll have a lot more success dropping your weight by cutting calories, though.
Cancer Merchant
10-07-2005, 05:03 PM
HIIT description and tables (http://www.musclemedia.com/training/hiit.asp)
10-07-2005, 05:06 PM
I haven't really counted the calories. I've only been doing it for a week. I've eliminated fast food, pizza, bread and have restricted my beer to Sunday during Jet games ( I can't watch the Jets sober this year).
I figure I've probably cut a good 1,000 calories/day from my diet.
NorCalJosh
10-07-2005, 05:08 PM
yeah. for those who are to lazy to go to the link... essentially, HIIT stands for high intensity interval training. in its most basic form, its essentially busting your balls for 30 seconds-1 minute followed by going about 50% for 30 seconds-1 minute of your work out. there are various other methods... going like 40%-80%-60%-90%-40% etc in cycles...

basically, its more effective than a standard low intensity workout. it boosts your metabolism, which helps you burn energy after you've quit working out. it burns fat at a fairly high rate.
NorCalJosh
10-07-2005, 05:11 PM
as a sidenote, a site i found a while ago while browsing some workout forums might be interesting to you. www.johnstonefitness.com. (http://www.johnstonefitness.com.) basically an average guy who got fed up with being fat, started busting his ass. pretty remarkable change, look at the picture archives.
10-07-2005, 05:17 PM
[ QUOTE ]

what's your average heart rate (how fast are you riding) when youre on the bike?

[/ QUOTE ]
I've ridden 11 miles in 45 mins and I usually crank up the resistance pretty high 7 on a 1-10 scale.
10-07-2005, 05:17 PM
thanks for the various links.
Grisgra
10-07-2005, 05:19 PM
[ QUOTE ]
I haven't really counted the calories. I've only been doing it for a week. I've eliminated fast food, pizza, bread and have restricted my beer to Sunday during Jet games ( I can't watch the Jets sober this year).
I figure I've probably cut a good 1,000 calories/day from my diet.

[/ QUOTE ]

Sounds about right . . . just cutting out alcohol & between-meal Doritos (etc.) is an easy way to cut out 500 cals/day, or a pound a week. If you're cutting out 1000 cals/day then obviously that's more like 2 pounds/week. The workout on the bike doesn't really come close to that, but every bit helps, and it'll help tone you up some as you take the weight off. (You might want to consider spending 15-20 minutes/day doing a little weight training instead.)