Slimming Effect of Bicycling - For Real?

wrote in news:1126884958.959845.66470
@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:

I visited The Netherlands and I noticed something very interesting.
Bicycling is a major mode of transportation there and no one is fat
(actually the offical statistics say 50% less obesity than the US)I
looked in their supermarkets and restaurants and I saw no diet food.
Lots of fatty foods (such as cheeses, meats, cream sauces, etc.).
Portions were the same as the US. A theory I have is that bicycling, as
little as 5 miles a day, causes a profound slimming effect. This effect
is much greater than walking, running, swimming or other aerobic
activities (including stationary bikes?). Why? I don't know why but I
guess there is a different process going on that causes the slimming.
Has anyone else noticed this effect particular to bicycling? Are there
any studies?
There maybe other factors such as the food composition, climate and/or
genetics (a big one perhaps) but if it's just bicycling then that is
one treatment that should be used here in the US.



Length of time per day commuting by car is very highly correlated with
obesity level; If i can dig up the actual study, I'll post a link. Going
anecdotal, the only people I know (including myself) who went from medical
obesity to not-overweight had some kind of regular, fresh-air, reasonably
strenuous exercise such as biking or running. That doesn't mean the same
thing as your question, but it's a piece of data.

Harping on my usual theme, obesity is a heavy (sorry) expense in the US
budget, as are lung diseases, trade deficits, and wasting time stuck in
traffic. Biking = good.

--ag

On 16 Sep 2005 08:35:58 -0700, wrote:

I visited The Netherlands and I noticed something very interesting.
Bicycling is a major mode of transportation there and no one is fat
(actually the offical statistics say 50% less obesity than the US)I
looked in their supermarkets and restaurants and I saw no diet food.
Lots of fatty foods (such as cheeses, meats, cream sauces, etc.).
Portions were the same as the US. A theory I have is that bicycling, as
little as 5 miles a day, causes a profound slimming effect. This effect
is much greater than walking, running, swimming or other aerobic
activities (including stationary bikes?). Why? I don't know why but I
guess there is a different process going on that causes the slimming.
Has anyone else noticed this effect particular to bicycling? Are there
any studies?
There maybe other factors such as the food composition, climate and/or
genetics (a big one perhaps) but if it's just bicycling then that is
one treatment that should be used here in the US.


Everything I've read says it's not so important what exercise you
do as long as you do it. I like cycling because it's varied and
interesting, but now I'm cross-training my upper body with
resistance. AIUI, normally when the muscles want to "feed" they
require insulin to help the glucose cross the cell wall barrier.
But after exercise the receptors are wide open and the glucose
enters freely without need of insulin. Since insulin is the
fat-storing hormone, you're feeding your body and quelling the
sense of hunger, without adding fat.

p.

wrote in message
ups.com...

looked in their supermarkets and restaurants and I saw no diet food.

There's almost no evidence that diet food works.

wrote in message
ups.com...
: I visited The Netherlands and I noticed something very interesting.
: Bicycling is a major mode of transportation there and no one is fat
: (actually the offical statistics say 50% less obesity than the US)I
: looked in their supermarkets and restaurants and I saw no diet food.
: Lots of fatty foods (such as cheeses, meats, cream sauces, etc.).
: Portions were the same as the US. A theory I have is that bicycling, as
: little as 5 miles a day, causes a profound slimming effect. This effect
: is much greater than walking, running, swimming or other aerobic
: activities (including stationary bikes?). Why? I don't know why but I
: guess there is a different process going on that causes the slimming.
: Has anyone else noticed this effect particular to bicycling? Are there
: any studies?
: There maybe other factors such as the food composition, climate and/or
: genetics (a big one perhaps) but if it's just bicycling then that is
: one treatment that should be used here in the US.

I lost 50 lbs this year -- I went from 230 to 180. My main activity was
riding about 12 miles on week days and 20 miles on weekends. I give 50% of
the credit for the weight loss to bikings and the other 50% to improvements
in diet.

On 16 Sep 2005 08:35:58 -0700, wrote:

I visited The Netherlands and I noticed something very interesting.
Bicycling is a major mode of transportation there and no one is fat
(actually the offical statistics say 50% less obesity than the US)I
looked in their supermarkets and restaurants and I saw no diet food.
Lots of fatty foods (such as cheeses, meats, cream sauces, etc.).
Portions were the same as the US. A theory I have is that bicycling, as

well fat does not make you fat anymore then any other food. how much
junk food and pre prepared food on the shelves?
Knight-Toolworks
http://www.knight-toolworks.com
affordable handmade wooden planes

"gds" wrote in message
oups.com...
Actually there are lots of studies on this. The key variable is
exersize. Walkers, runners, swimmers, skiers, hikers (and so on) all
get benefits and if you do the activity regularly for reasonable
periods of time you tend to burn enough calories to stay slim (fit!).
About 35 years ago Kenneth Cooper published "Aerobics" which included a
fair amount of the results of his research which compared the "aerobic
effect" of many different forms of activity. He major conclusion was
that it made no difference what you did as long as you did it. (This
conclusion had to do with aerobic fitness, obviously there are other
types of fitness and weight lifting and runnng will have differing
impacts on upper body strength, etc)


This goes with what I said several years ago when Tae-Bo started becoming a
craze/fad. People would talk with me about it and I'd point out that all it
was was simply "doing something". There's no trick to it all and there's no
"miracle exercise plan" which makes someone fit or lose weight. I've heard
the figures that someone should exercise for a minimum of 20 minutes
continuous a day. I like to push my workouts to a minimum of 1 hour. When I
ride, I plan for this minimum of 1 hour too.

Now when people ask me about good "lose weight" videos, I point them to the
regular movies and tell them all about the good plots and how good the
acting is and so on. They look at me funny and say "I was talking about
workout videos". I then point out how they'll get just as much of a workout
from any other movie, and be more entertained. After getting a silly look
again from the person, I then point out that the idea to those workout
videos is to have you sitting in front of a television and people tend to
watch them more than workout and then after a couple times of viewing, they
end up at the back of the video collection. If those people want a good
workout, I point them to good sneakers and tell them to invest that money
they'd have spent on the video into a good pair of walking/running shoes and
turn off that television while getting a good exercise program.

wrote in message
ups.com...
I visited The Netherlands and I noticed something very interesting.
Bicycling is a major mode of transportation there and no one is fat
(actually the offical statistics say 50% less obesity than the US)I
looked in their supermarkets and restaurants and I saw no diet food.
Lots of fatty foods (such as cheeses, meats, cream sauces, etc.).
Portions were the same as the US.

Yeah, but that's real food. What most Americans eat is basically poison. I
have a feeling the amount of trans fat, salt, sugar and chemicals (that
you'd only be able to decipher if you had a degree in chemistry) is
magnitudes greater over here.


A theory I have is that bicycling, as
little as 5 miles a day, causes a profound slimming effect. This effect
is much greater than walking, running, swimming or other aerobic
activities (including stationary bikes?). Why? I don't know why but I
guess there is a different process going on that causes the slimming.

I believe it's the rate of calories expended overall not which activity
causes them to be expended. It gets complicated too, because if I go out
and ride for one hour at 22 mph one day and then 3 hours at 14 mph another
day I may get more calorie consumption on the shorter day because my
metabolism stays higher for the rest of the day.


Has anyone else noticed this effect particular to bicycling? Are there
any studies?
There maybe other factors such as the food composition, climate and/or
genetics

Genetics may play a role in the diferences between one individual and
another, but the trend of obesity in this country has risen dramatically in
just the last few years. A quick rise like that has for practical purposes,
nothing to do with genetics. (If you want to argue karma, I'd go with you
there)

Talk about the effects of genetic engineering and you might be on to
something


(a big one perhaps) but if it's just bicycling then that is
one treatment that should be used here in the US.

It's simply diet, exercise and overall lifestyle. (stop driving so much,
stop watching so much television, stop buying what the television tells you
to, start having some discernment about what constitutes food, stop
poisoning the environment, etc....) Living systems are not linear, the
health of them is, while simple, not based on just one element.

In article
.com,
"gds" wrote:

Brian Kerr wrote:


You're forgetting the most important factor (no not genetics) is
METABOLISM. Even after you've exercised your body continues to burn
calories at a higher rate than a person with a slower metabolism.

Don't you think that one's basic metabolism is due to genetics? Sure it
is effected by activity but... .

Regular activity does make a difference.

http://www.drlenkravitz.com/Articles/genderdiffer.html

FFA = free fatty acids
TG = triglycerides
________________________BEGIN_____________________ ___
Mobilization and Metabolism of Fat
The mobilization of fat refers to the process of releasing fat
from storage sites in the body, whereas, metabolism of fat is the
complete biological breakdown or oxidation (which means loss of
electrons) of fat into energy that can be used by the body. There
are two main enzymes that regulate the mobilization of FFA:
hormone sensitive lipase (HSL) and lipoprotein lipase (LPL). HSL
is located directly in the fat cell and is stimulated by the
hormone epinephrine. When HSL is stimulated, it acts to break
apart TG in the adipose tissue and release three FFA and glycerol
into the blood stream. This process is called lipolysis.
Epinephrine, which is released by the sympathetic nervous system
during exercise, is the primary stimulator of lipolysis (Rasmussen
& Wolfe, 1999). Epinephrine binds to specific receptors on the fat
cell, which in turn, activate HSL. An individual?~@~Ys
physiological state can affect the body?~@~Ys sensitivity to
epinephrine. For example, during aerobic exercise, HSL
responsiveness to epinephrine is enhanced due to an increase in
body temperature and a greater concentration of epinephrine in the
blood stream when compared to rest. In an endurance-trained
individual the HSL responsiveness to epinephrine is further
enhanced, such that HSL can be activated by a lower concentration
of epinephrine when compared to a non-endurance trained
individual. Therefore a metabolic training effect of aerobic
exercise is an enhanced receptiveness to mobilize and break apart
TG for energy use. In contrast, obesity blunts the HSL
responsiveness to epinephrine, meaning a higher concentration of
epinephrine is needed to activate HSL in obese individuals
(Rasmussen & Wolfe, 1999).
[...]
What Exercise Intensity Burns the Most Fat?
During low intensity exercise the majority of energy (kcals) comes
from fat. As exercise intensity increases, the percent of energy
derived from fat decreases. However, the absolute amount of energy
derived from fat is actually increased! As exercise intensity
increases, so does total energy expenditure (caloric expenditure).
Even though a smaller percentage of the energy expenditure is
coming from fat, more kcals of fat are burned because there is a
greater absolute energy expenditure. Therefore, expressing energy
derived from fat as a percentage of energy expenditure without
considering the total energy expenditure is misleading.Another
consideration is the effect that exercise has on energy
expenditure after exercise. Following a high intensity exercise
bout, the rate of metabolism is elevated for a slightly longer
period of time (when compared to a lower exercise bout), and more
energy is expended as your body returns to homeostasis (resting
conditions). With regular aerobic exercise, this post-exercise
energy expenditure will positively contribute to weight loss goals
.._________________________END____________________ _____

--
Michael Press

as a type 1 diabetic i see this in myself. i week of bike commuting
and i have much lower blood sugars and HAVE to eat more to maintain
normal blood sugar, and even cut back on long term (24 hour) insulin.
most diabetics don't modify long term often, just short term insulin
with meals, which i rarely need to take if i've bike commuted several
days in a row (9 miles each way)

On 16 Sep 2005 08:35:58 -0700, wrote:

I visited The Netherlands and I noticed something very interesting.
Bicycling is a major mode of transportation there and no one is fat
(actually the offical statistics say 50% less obesity than the US)I

Yeah, but it's not that we are particularly thin. *You* guys are just very
fat. We're about average for Western countries.

looked in their supermarkets and restaurants and I saw no diet food.
Lots of fatty foods (such as cheeses, meats, cream sauces, etc.).
Portions were the same as the US. A theory I have is that bicycling, as

Not restaurant portions, for sure. Even the McD has smaller Larges than
you do (and it serves Small, medium, large, rather than medium, large,
xtra large). Restaurant portions when I went to the US were pretty damn
large by my standards.

little as 5 miles a day, causes a profound slimming effect. This effect
is much greater than walking, running, swimming or other aerobic
activities (including stationary bikes?). Why? I don't know why but I
guess there is a different process going on that causes the slimming.
Has anyone else noticed this effect particular to bicycling? Are there
any studies?
There maybe other factors such as the food composition, climate and/or
genetics (a big one perhaps) but if it's just bicycling then that is
one treatment that should be used here in the US.

It can't hurt. It's also a way to get yourself a lot less dependent onb
foreign oil.


Jasper