Getting Started

I've been thinking about this for awhile. I'm terribly overweight and I have decided that I need to combine a diet regimen and exercise program to get fit. I don't actually know how much I weigh, probably around 285 pounds. I'm 6' 2" and I'd like to get down to 180 pounds.

Some years ago, I was in pretty much this same position. I started running and got in aerobic shape. I then intentionally reduced my caloric intake. The pounds came off. In about 6-8 months I lost about 85 pounds. I ultimately ran two marathons. The problem, though, was once I had lost the weight I started eating more and more. I could get away with it mostly, because I was still burning a lot of calories running. But then, after a few years of pounding the pavement, my knees started to get very sore, and I was intermittently having severe cramping problems in my calves and thighs. Without thinking about it, I one day just gave up running. But I didn't give up eating. And as a result, over about 3 years, my weight returned to what it was before I started running, around 285 pounds.

My intention, therefore, is different this time. I not only want to lose weight and get in shape, but I want to design a program for myself which will help me keep off the weight permanently. To shed pounds, I will reduce my food intake and I'll regularly ride my bicycle. I'm calling the plan, The Bicycle Diet. What I hope will be different from my last experience of losing weight and regaining it is that I have in mind a long-term plan, what to do when I come off the diet.

I am convinced that in order to lose 105 pounds or so, I need to go on a short-term diet, one which will last about a year. I think that is enough time to greatly reduce my size. However, I am also convinced that I will need to strictly follow some dietary rules for the rest of my life, once the one-year period is up. And unlike with running, I know I can bicycle for the rest of my life. Other than some saddle soreness and a little muscle fatigue, bicycling is a low-impact aerobic exercise. My joints won't fail from riding my bike. I don't expect to ever give it up.

In short blog entries like this one, I will explain in detail the rules I must follow for the bicycle and for the diet. I will also keep a log of everything which I do in regards to the bicycle diet for the next year.