One of those "Get in shape" threads

[Higlac]

Well, here I am. Awake (and slightly drunk) before I leave for a week long, 475 mile bike ride. I've decided that I want to get into actual decent physical shape this summer. Currently, I'm 6'2" and about 215 lbs, or 188 cm and about 95 kg, with a bit of a gut. I haven't had any real serious exercise since high school swimming and I want to cut my body fat % and gain some muscle mass. Hopefully a combination of swimming, biking, and rock climbing can help me do that.

Have some shitty pictures from a shitty phone:

Well the car leaves in 8 hours for this ride, so wish me luck. I'll be back in in about a week with updates and shit.

Oh, and does anybody have any tips for building lean muscle, without bulking up?

 

[JUL3]

Phew, 475 miles? That's quite impressive.

 

[DEATHMASTER]

Eat tons of protein rich foods. Aside from that, you should be relatively fine. I had to walk 3 miles a day to go to classes from my off campus housing. My legs are ****ing lean as hell. I really don't want to lose that so I'm going to be biking now that I'm free.

 

[Robbo]

My advice is either join a gym and tell them what your goal is so they can make an exercise/eating plan for you. Or go to a nutritionist and get them to help you.
Also I know you can find most of this out on the internet but I find that if you put some money and time into doing this you're more likely to succeed. You will also have no reason to second guess what you're doing if you get a professionals help.

Then again if you're determined they you can do most of that yourself, just takes time to research.

 

[Dan]

I think I gained a few lbs on my bike trip. I mostly drank beer and ate gas station donuts though.

 

[Adabiviak]

I've been riding much more often trying to get in better shape myself, except it keeps raining off and on. I've got a seven mile ride to work, then my wife and I go on a 10-15 mile ride afterwards (somewhere fun).

Where are you going on the ride? Are you packing camping gear, a credit card, or do you have a sag wagon for your sleeping arrangements?

 

[MuToiD_MaN]

Good ruck, dude.

 

[Raziaar]

I wish I was that skinny.

 

[Higlac]

Updates, yay. I got heat exhaustion yesterday, (which ended that day 9 miles early,) and a very stiff headwind/crosswind today completely drained me of all riding ability, so I'm going to take a rest day and miss a bit of the ride. Perhaps riding ahead to get a good sleeping spot was a bad idea in the long run.

Anyway, I'm too lazy to do math, so here's the first five day's worth of total miles and average speeds.

Day 1: 32.8 miles, 13.6 mph average. There was strong wind from every direction and I raced a thunderstorm. Flat riding, no hills to speak of.

Day 2: 84 miles, 14.6 mph average. Rode with my 11 year old brother in the morning, and went ahead in the afternoon. Averaged about 18 into the night stop. Strong crosswind/tailwind, and very hot. No real hills. Fairly easy riding.

Day 3: 144.11 miles, 14.4 average. Same as day 2 for weather and ride conditions. Started to get some inclines in the ride route, just means that you couldn't see your destination.

Day 4: 202.36 miles, 14.5 average. Morning went the same as days 2 and 3, but the wind shifted and I lost the tailwind. Hills started to appear just before the lunch stop, made the ride a little more interesting. I got very overheated in the afternoon and was stung by a wasp that flew into my jersey. Bad cramping and nausea ended my day 9 miles early, got sagged into the night stop.

Day 5: 257.29 miles, 14.0 average. Woke up sore and stiff, a painkiller cocktail managed to get me to the lunch stop. Rolling hills and a stiff crosswind/headwind made for some awful riding. I'm glad I missed the last 22 miles of straight headwind.

Yeah, a rest day should do wonders for how I feel and I'll be back on the road on Thursday.

I think I gained a few lbs on my bike trip. I mostly drank beer and ate gas station donuts though.

Yep, I'm 3 lbs up from when I started.

I've been riding much more often trying to get in better shape myself, except it keeps raining off and on. I've got a seven mile ride to work, then my wife and I go on a 10-15 mile ride afterwards (somewhere fun).

Where are you going on the ride? Are you packing camping gear, a credit card, or do you have a sag wagon for your sleeping arrangements?

It's an organized ride across Kansas, trucks for gear, and sleeping facilities (High school gyms) are provided. A bit of it is flat, but it's in 100 degree heat with 25-30 mph wind, so it's certainly not an easy ride.

 

[Adabiviak]

That's pretty cool, man. Will you have pictures at some point?

 

[Higlac]

Most likely, prepare for spandex.

 

[No Limit]

You look like that at 215lbs? How is that ****ing possible? I weight the same, I think I have more muscle than you, and I got way more fat on me. I am slightly less tall at 5'10.

 

[Dan]

Your body will start carrying extra water almost immediately. This is good for 4 or 5 lbs of weight increase. I remember when I started riding I was always thirsty and after I stopped riding I seemed to be always peeing.

 

[Higlac]

While packing my bike into the van that I'm taking to tonight's night stop, I realized that I braked a little too hard after a hill. I wore a patch through to the belt on my rear tire. Oh well, it was near the end of it's life anyway, I just need to buy a $65 replacement.

You look like that at 215lbs? How is that ****ing possible? I weigh the same, I think I have more muscle than you, and I got way more fat on me. I am slightly less tall at 5'10.

I'm four inches taller than you are, and I'm not a small person at all. I have very broad shoulders.

Your body will start carrying extra water almost immediately. This is good for 4 or 5 lbs of weight increase. I remember when I started riding I was always thirsty and after I stopped riding I seemed to be always peeing.

Yeah, and the carb loading probably didn't help too much either.

 

[Dan]

$65 is pricey for a tire. I recommend Specialized Armadillos or Continental Gatorskins. Both are popular, tough and very puncture resistant and about $40.

 

[Higlac]

I've got the armadillos on right now. Where are you getting those for $40? My dad just bought some armadillos and he said they were $65 each.

 

[Dan]

Depends which model you get, but they MSRP between $40 and $65, and usually I look for things below MSRP. I actually just picked up a barely used pair at a garage sale for a dollar and that included a working tube.

 

[Higlac]

I'm back now, exhausted. I'll be back after 5-8 beers with pictures.

 

[Ren.182]

Congrats on finishing. Would love to do something like this at some point. Looking forward to the pics! Bet you're tired!

 

[Higlac]

Pictures and final mileage numbers are in.

Day 8: 371.94 miles total, with long rolling hills, moderate temperatures, but high humidity.

Day 9: 412.42 miles, long rolling hills, hot, humid. I hit 41 mph on the bike though.

First three days looked like this:

MMMM, carbs...

MMMM, hydration...

Don't see a beaver in the road every day.

Hot, dry and windy.

My brother popped me with a towel.

Cold morning start.

Rode through some really beautiful countryside.

Barely made it up this big ass hill on the last day.

Bus ride home.

 

[DEATHMASTER]

I like how that guy behind you is also in that position.

 

[LibDem]

I like how that guy behind you is also in that position.

And the guy behind him, creeping out.

 

[Gargantou]

That final image is indeed hilarious!

Anyway, well-done Higlac!

I'll start biking over here again if the discussions of making it legal for bikers to ignore red lights becomes a reality!