I exercise plateaued on my exercise bike

5 months ago I got a exercise bike and I have been on it hardcore and everything has been going fine. I kept on going to a harder level because I kept not losing weight. Last week was the hardest level I could go and now I don't know what to do...

Should I just get rid of the bike or will my body be able to use it again and lose weight? I searched the web for information about this but I came up dry.

Does anyone know what I am talking about? I had a real good thing going and I would hate to just throw it out or put it in the basement to gather dust.

I just hope that eventually my body will recover and learn to lose weight again on it. I really hope it is not for the rest of my life because that would be messed up.

Thanks

a reply to: watchandwait410

I'm a bit confused on one thing.

Have you lost weight initially using it and then after a few weeks saw no more loses?

If you lost a significant amount of weight, you sometimes have a lull(lasting pretty long) of weight loss stagnation as the body adjusts.

a reply to: watchandwait410

Your problem is you can't effectively lose weight on exercise alone. You need to properly diet as well. Not only that, when you exercise quite often you end up eating more, and thus completely replace all the calories you've burned.

On the plus side though, you've probably replaced some of that fat with lean muscle, as well as increased your health in other respects.

You were moving, when moving and using muscles even moderately, you are helping circulation which helps to make blood available to the muscles. You may not be losing weight, but you are gaining endurance. I would just keep going on the bike like you have been. Just because you aren't able to raise the goal post does not mean you are not doing better. Maybe if you move the bike away from the Fridge you may lose some weight.

Who are you competing with, yourself?

a reply to: Puppylove

I would have to agree with what you said. Exercise alone most times does not make you lose weight, adjusting the diet along with exercise does work.

a reply to: watchandwait410

I once got horribly injured, had to learn to walk again and couldn't run for about a year (I love running.)

I ended up gaining 45 pounds, which doesn't seem like much unless you started off at 120.

I'm tiny.

Once I could run again, I did it with a vengeance.

I also followed a pretty strict diet... I did a juice fast for 30 days at the beginning, then have done a 5-6 day juice fast every month since then.

I plateaued at 130 pounds and have been the same weight ever since.

However, I'm so toned it's not funny.

I ended up gaining muscle mass.

Don't measure pounds... measure inches.

Upper arms, stomach, thighs and calves.

Also remember that while losing weight you are always going to plateau at some point.

As another poster mentioned, your body will have to adjust and that's normal.

I got 140 pounds off of my neighbor with a little coaching on diet and exercise.

It took her 17 months... she hit a plateau about every 7-8 weeks that lasted for about 2 weeks.

So if it's working for you, don't worry about the lull.

It is just your body changing gears.

a reply to: watchandwait410

Try doing intervals. Your body will adapt to constant similar exercise. If you don’t change the intensity or type of exercise you will plateau.

And I agree with the others. You do need to make sure your diet is on also for most weight loss

Change your clothes. That will change how much you burn.

Wear stuff that's hot. Sweat pants, warm socks, a hooded sweatshirt.

Back in the day, we would do this to cut weight for wrestling.

We'd also tape garbage bags over out sweat clothes and sleep like that.

But be careful with that type of stuff, you can overheat your core if you go too far.

Drink a ton of water before and during working out in high heat, and watch your sweaing. If your sweat starts to slow down or stop, stop working out bevause you are getting heat stroke.

Lol ...maybe you shouldn't take my advise, it sounds pretty dangerous now that I type it out.

a reply to: Mandroid7

Actually, my grandmother told me a long time ago that the best diet pill ever is water.

Coming from a family that has a few sweat lodges...

You can never outrun (or outpedal) your fork. Calories burn unbelievably slowly. You need to restrict calories to lose weight. Cardio can shed a couple hundred calories with a very hard workout, and it does increase your metabolism for a day or so after the exercise. But you can't outpedal your fork.

a reply to: Lumenari

She sounds wise.

I really noticed the power of water back when I quit drinking.

I went from leatherface to supermodel nearly overnight.

My Dad almost thought I was a merman.

originally posted by: BelowLowAnnouncement
You can never outrun (or outpedal) your fork. Calories burn unbelievably slowly. You need to restrict calories to lose weight. Cardio can shed a couple hundred calories with a very hard workout, and it does increase your metabolism for a day or so after the exercise. But you can't outpedal your fork.

Good advise here.

Garbage in, some of it stays.

I came across this video the other day again and rewatched it. This guys story is amazing. He overcame like 7 diseases after crawling out to the desert to fast to death.

A pack of coyotes started feeing him raw meat. He thought they were trying to help him die so he went for it. It ended up giving him more energy than he ever had and he continued what he calls the primal diet.

originally posted by: booyakasha
I came across this video the other day again and rewatched it. This guys story is amazing. He overcame like 7 diseases after crawling out to the desert to fast to death.

A pack of coyotes started feeing him raw meat. He thought they were trying to help him die so he went for it. It ended up giving him more energy than he ever had and he continued what he calls the primal diet.

If he said coyotes came over to him and dropped dead animal carcass for him he's full of expletive. The expletive synonymous with waste. You know when you go on a juice fast or feast as some people call it, yeah, that one.

You believe it? I demand a link to an article where it was proven somehow that a phenomenon like that occurred. Or maybe 5 might help, with the same story about wild feral animals feeding them out of what'd have to be compassion or feelings that they don't have towards humans, other animals, and usually each other except in rare cases.

Nothing came and fed Jesus except.. let's see.. the word of God, hah. Daily bread? There you go. 🤣

Chuck the exercise bike in the bin. Get a real one, or a decent pair of walking shoes/boots. Get in the fresh air and do exercise that takes time, rather than trying to set things at the highest setting. It's a bit cliched nowadays, but walking 12,000 steps a day does actually work, even if it's a long walk to the pub.

a reply to: paraphi

It will help with health, but not weight loss unless you control your calorie intake.

No exercise will result in weight loss if you take in more calories than you remove.

Calories in must not equal or be greater than Calories out or you get no where, or even worse gain weight.

Also keep track of trends and do not let day to day weight bother you. Weight fluctuates. Also weigh self at the same tome every day with the same clothing.

Take today, I weigh more today than yesterday or the day before. I however haven't really had a major bowel movement in that time, I'm aware of this, so it doesn't bother me as I know why.

a reply to: watchandwait410

The trick is, to not eat a pizza while you're on the bike.

I ate only lettuce and smoked salmon for a year, once. I lost weight. Just take up smoking, you lose your sense of taste. It's easy.

originally posted by: Puppylove
It will help with health, but not weight loss unless you control your calorie intake.

Yes. That's a given. Good health is - in my opinion - a sensible diet without excess of fatty foods, alongside a habit of moderate exercise, which (again in my opinion) should be outside in the fresh air. Why take the car to the shops when you can walk, type of mentality.

a reply to: paraphi

Oh I agree on outside when possible, which is not always. I also park in the farthest space when possible etc. I average around 15,000 steps a day overall.

That said I use the gym for muscle building and some of the more extreme cardio so I can get some measure of how I'm doing.

Spend as much time walking out doors when possible. Miss when I was younger and had jobs I could walk or bike to.

So far I've lost over 20 lbs safely with sustainable change and according to doctor if my numbers keep improving like they are I might be able to get off my cholesterol and blood pressure medicine within six months.

a reply to: Puppylove

I used to live a good 45 mins from work. Every day I'd take the walk and not the train, and people who I worked with would drive past, stop and say "Get in!!" and I'd have to say "Nah, I'm walking." those ingrates, with their well meaning intent, would get the hump and think I was being rude.

Can't win for trying, with people...