This summer has been very good to me so far. I got my old job back and couldn’t be happier in that respect now that I have a title (Web Developer) and received a nice raise over the winter. I have also been very grateful to have the time to put a sublime amount of miles on my bike. I am fast approaching having it for a full year and have already put on well over 2000 miles. In fact, here are the stats:

Totals from 08 August, 2008
Time: 283h
Kcal (Calories): 111 161
Odometer (Miles): 2184.91
Max Speed: 42.5mph
Max Cadence: 130
Ride Time: 133h

Anyways, being able to put so many hours into being on the saddle and just enjoying the ride has taken a serious toll on my weight. On 25 February I decided that at 240 pounds, enough was enough and realized that I could be a serious cyclist within a year or two if I poured everything into it. No fancy tricks, no secret diets; nothing but extremely long hours on the bike whenever I could and reducing the consistency of junk food. It has been 103 days since that day and I have lost roughly 25 pounds. As you will see I didn’t lose it all at once; the first few weeks were really rough as I couldn’t always get on the bike but now that my diet is balanced and my body is used to consuming large quantities (faster metabolism) I can slack off a bit during the week due to work and still lose weight.

The ultimate goal would be 180-185 pounds and if I achieve that I will certainly reward myself with some nice Zipp 808s but I keep in the back of my head the knowledge that at a certain point I will stop dropping body fat and my weight loss will seriously plateau. The other problem is that it is already June and the Winter is fast approaching. I haven’t decided what I am going to do when the snow hits and I can’t ride every day, but I plan to seriously reduce the amount I eat every day when my metabolism slows down. The realistic goal right now is somewhere between 190 and 200 would make me very happy and I would be okay with 200 on the dot.

I have also seen some major changes to the basic physique of my body. Obviously my stomach has gotten quite flat but I have also lost quite a lot of muscle and fat on my arms which was a welcomed change from the days of throwing shotput and discus.

My bike has also changed a lot since I got it. I just recently installed new bar tape, got a new chain (Dura-Ace 7900!) and have dropped the handle bars about 1-1.5 cm from the stock position. The goal with that is to never be comfortable on the bike for weeks while there is still a more aero and powerful position to be achieved by dropping the bars further. Also, I love that pro look of a huge drop from saddle to bars.

I think the best part about this sort of “diet” program is that it is long lasting because I enjoy doing it not just for the fitness aspect but the simple enjoyment of riding and feeling good as well. If only I could solve the dilemma of having to work in a cubicle for 40 hours a week…