Great story Chris, congratulations. I’m doing the same thing, although I’m a smaller framed guy. I let my weight get up to 220lb, which was a BMI of over 35 for me and knew things had to change. I’ve tried diets by themselves, and gym work but didn’t really enjoy either.
I found the Concept2 Rower and thought it was great and that helped me a lot. I then got into Zwift and outdoor cycling, and that’s when good stuff started happening. Living in the Pacific NorthWest, there are LOTS of very challenging hills though, and I knew I needed to get fitter so that I could tackle steep hills that had traffic on them too. I just wasn’t confident struggling up some hill in granny gear while cars and pickups were whizzing past me. No accidents or stories to tell thankfully, but outdoors was not the right environment unless I loaded the bike up in the the car and went somewhere easier.
That’s where Zwift came in, and I enjoyed the fun, colorful gamey-ness of it, but TrainerRoad’s Sweet Spot Base I and II were what really made the difference. I was trying to kill myself by going at max power the whole time and then wondering why I was exhausted, and I’ve really found the world of HR and power zones, pacing and so on really helpful. I finished SS I and II with an 18% improvement in power/weight (MyFitnessPal and a 1700 calorie goal, with 40% protein, 30/30 carb/fat macros handles the diet side). I’m now just abobe 180 lb, so about 35 lb weight loss since the start of the year.
So now I’m on Sustained Power Build, and with Century lined up for the new year. Goal is to do the Seattle Portland 200 mile, two day event in August 2019.
- Pasta