Help a cyclist tone up

Gambisk

Gambisk

Gambisk

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22 May 2013
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1,229
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N. Ireland
Right I'm in need of some of your expert help. I'm 26 and work in a office 9-5 and have done for the past few years, over that time I've started to develop a bit of a belly and would like to nip in in the bud before it become any more noticeable.

Despite sitting on my ass all day at a computer I would conciser myself to be fairly active and healthy. I cycle to work 2-3 times a week (8K each way) and walk the dog most mornings (20min) and most evenings(~1hr). I also go mountain biking most weekends for 1-2 hours sometimes all day.

My biggest problem is not watching what I eat as I tend to eat 3 healthyish meals a day but then snack like crazy in between. I know the snacking is bad but I am working on cutting it down.

So thats the background, so now to the belly, am I better to bulk up all over a bit as I've never really worked out much, or am I better to work on my diet and try to lose the gut that way. I'm the first to admit I'm a lanky git at 6ft 5in and weigh 75-80kg depending on how much/little I've been on a bike. I've never really carried much weight despite eating like a horse as a teenager, so I'm not sure what to do with it now I've acquired some.

I've never been one for working out at gym but wouldn't mind getting my upper body into shape. My legs are in good shape from cycling with mostly muscle and little to no fat. It then goes to hell about the waist up where I'm just scrawny with little no definition and now a bit of a gut that I want rid of.

So how would I best go about loosing my gut and getting a bit of shape up top to match the legs, I'm going on holiday at the end of September so ideally would like to be looking well by then but I realize that this is a long term thing and not just 2 month quick fix. I know I'm never going to be a big power lifter but I would like some shape that isn't just pencil thin.
 
The problem I'm having with the bike is that it doesn't work my upper body very much so I'd like to put a bit more muscle onto my torso and arms.
 
In before the gym rats appear :D

You're 'skinny fat'? Sounds like you need to work on your diet more than anything.
 
Gambisk said:
Right I'm in need of some of your expert help. I'm 26 and work in a office 9-5 and have done for the past few years, over that time I've started to develop a bit of a belly and would like to nip in in the bud before it become any more noticeable.

Despite sitting on my ass all day at a computer I would conciser myself to be fairly active and healthy. I cycle to work 2-3 times a week (8K each way) and walk the dog most mornings (20min) and most evenings(~1hr). I also go mountain biking most weekends for 1-2 hours sometimes all day.

My biggest problem is not watching what I eat as I tend to eat 3 healthyish meals a day but then snack like crazy in between. I know the snacking is bad but I am working on cutting it down.

So thats the background, so now to the belly, am I better to bulk up all over a bit as I've never really worked out much, or am I better to work on my diet and try to lose the gut that way. I'm the first to admit I'm a lanky git at 6ft 5in and weigh 75-80kg depending on how much/little I've been on a bike. I've never really carried much weight despite eating like a horse as a teenager, so I'm not sure what to do with it now I've acquired some.

I've never been one for working out at gym but wouldn't mind getting my upper body into shape. My legs are in good shape from cycling with mostly muscle and little to no fat. It then goes to hell about the waist up where I'm just scrawny with little no definition and now a bit of a gut that I want rid of.

So how would I best go about loosing my gut and getting a bit of shape up top to match the legs, I'm going on holiday at the end of September so ideally would like to be looking well by then but I realize that this is a long term thing and not just 2 month quick fix. I know I'm never going to be a big power lifter but I would like some shape that isn't just pencil thin.
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1. start tracking your calories and diet. Without this information you literally are taking a stab in the dark with results.

2. despite cycling, you still need to train legs. Men don't carry much fat in the legs.
 
Skinny fat is quite a good way to put it, for now the excess fat is limited to the belly area and I plan to stop it there before it becomes a bigger issue.

Regarding the diet tracking I've started using my fitness pal to log meals etc. Yesterday was going quite well until we had a BBQ where I promptly pied out and ate all the meats. Ignoring last night, what I've found is that my snacks are throwing me way over my sugars and fats allowance but only a little over calories. So I plan to try and cut all snacks where possible and just eat 3 square meals a day and maybe a little something in the evening as we tend to eat dinner early due to my wife's family commitments. Should I be looking at calorie reduction or just maintain 2500 a day? I'm not sure as at 75k I'm borderline under weight but would still like to shift that 1-2 kg of fat.

Are there any exercises that I should focus on to speed belly reduction and improve my forearms and chest area? I'm specifying these as last week I had a 2 hour decent on the mountain bike and these parts of the body take quite a beating on the way down, so if I could strengthen them it would hopefully improve my cycling.
 
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6ft5 and 75KG? No thanks Jeff. The reason for your skinny fat state is lack of resistance training. I'd do a full body routine 3 x per week focussing on compound barbell movements for including but not limited to squats, deadlift, bent over row, bench press and over head press. Also pullups and dips. If you eat proper meals you won't want to snack. Post your diet up, I bet it gets an interesting reaction.

:edit: All the info you need can be found in stickies/big threads on here and by perusing workout logs/researching stuff. Working things out for yourself is a vital part of the training experience IMO.

:edit2: never ever use that word again. It makes gymrats cry :p
 
Diet is key to losing weight.

If you always find yourself snacking, start by accepting that you will snack a certain amount, so stock up with healthy snacks. Then try and reduce the amount that you snack.

Cycle more. Why not cycle to work every day?
 
If you want to address your overall physique then you are going to have to get some consistent gym work in. This isn't essential for losing fat, but if you're not careful you'll go from skinny-fat to skinny-gaunt :p

You will also need full control over your diet, which means cutting out all snacking and introducing calculated quality foods throughout the day. This doesn't have to mean strict calorie counting, but it is a good educational tool for someone just starting out.
 
Cheers for the pointers guys, I'm really going to address my diet and try to keep it consistent and healthy.

Weight loss isn't really my goal but rather improving my overall physique which I guess will probably result in some weight gain (no bad thing in my case). I had a read through of the stickies in the Gym Rat thread which I didn't know existed. I'm definitely going to start going and doing some proper training for the first time in my life. There is a good gym near my work with a reasonable pricing plan so I'm going to try and go 2-3 times a week after work and see how I get on.

Wish me luck...
 
Good luck :) 6' 5 and 75 - 80kg is an interesting shape to be!! I am in the same weight bracket and push 5' 8 on a good day....

It shouldn't take long to get your upper body working though for sure.
 
Report back here with the sort of equipment they have before comitting to any contract, and above all else work out a routine based on your goals otherwise you will just go in and throw weights around willy nilly, feel like an idiot, get no progress and then not want to continue.
 
Pendleton, Hoy and co. can't be wrong...

20070326_PENDLETON_VICTORIA_01.JPG

d3f0e-Chris_Hoy_squats.jpg
 
As above, why not cycle every day?

You can't target belly fat specifically.

Lets see your diet.

Get this idea of achieving your goal by September so you have a "beach body". You won't.
 
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