Think it's at least partly to do with core temperature. Swimming in cold water lowers core temperature, which raises appetite (if my only exercise was swimming I'd find it almost impossible to lose weight, especially open water swimming). Running raises my core temperature the most, followed by cycling (wind effect in cycling helps to mitigate the rise), hence running suppresses appetite the most. Jiggling the gut up and down is also a factor, as is sheer cal/hr burned (again, for me the calorie output is running>cycling>swimming).

Last factor is the mental one of how much it "feels" that weight is holding you back. For me, this is more of a factor with cycling, since I tend to do a lot more hills on the bike than the run, and I tend to do a lot more rides either in groups or at least on routes and at times when lots of other cyclists are around. So I get much more of a feel for how my pace on the flat compares to my pace up a hill relative to other cyclists, which emphasises any weight loss/gains. Conversely, for swimming it appears that excess weight makes almost no difference (might even be a slight benefit floating higher in the water). As far as I can see, the only incentive for a swimmer to lose weight is the fact that you do all of your training topless in front of other people...

I feel my weight most running and I get very hot running, I hadn't considered core temperature.

Only thing I don't agree with you on is wouldn't fatter = more drag swimming?

Fatter means a less streamlined hull, but that's offset by floating higher in the water. Certainly based on observational data of myself and swimmers at my local pool, carrying a few extra pounds seems to have negligible effect on speed, certainly nothing like the cost of carrying weight on the run or bike.

Instead of trying to so small things, why don't you make losing 10-15 lbs a sole focus for one month - do it now before Thanksgiving/Christmas. I have always found its easier to maintain weight with regular exercise and a few diet rules. Don't mess around, just get it done. a 30 day focus of eating completely clean - no sugar, no processed food, no alcohol. The staples will be veggies with every meal, eggs, fish, lean cuts of beef, some fruits and healthy fats. Work out, but not too much, its the off season. The first week will suck, you will have headache, you will be hungry, but by day 7 you will feel better, be regular and on your way. Then come the holidays, you add a bit of volume to cover the over eating.

http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/losing_weight/eating_habits.html


This is as useful for the high strung athlete as it is for the tv-remote type. You cannot force your body to *just* lose fat, either, although it will be the predominant mode if you maintain a good training load.

Weight loss is all about calories in vs calories out, but the greatest impediment is psychological.

As has been stated before--tracking is an effective way to self-guilt (writing it down is a somewhat painful experience) into not eating crap and may help to tease out unhealthy eating patterns. Even then, after a big workout, crap food is just freaking amazing. Just not too often or too much. Organic or not is ultimately immaterial to the health of your meals (and I'm ready to be taken to the task for that one, but no one reads the scientific papers that demonstrate a paucity of difference between "inorganic" and "organic" produce). Getting a lot of fruits and vegetables, in whatever state is convenient for you to get down, is the greater importance. If fruits and vegetables look appealing, they probably are.

Choosing foods that leave you with a sense of feeling full. A 500 calorie breakfast of oatmeal will generally leave you satisfied until lunch, whereas you'll be starving by 8:30 with 500 calories of doughnuts. Eating slower rather than inhaling food (as to give time to your brain to realize it's happy with the present intake) and drinking more water during a meal might help with portion control. Replace certain food habits with lower calorie options (but maintain the ritual). Win your battles at the grocery store rather than in your pantry (it is awfully difficult to eat Nutella that does not exist in your house).

A healthy focus on lower intensity, higher volume training will also help with losing weight. While it may be "suboptimal" (although that's arguable too, as it's just another component of a greater training plan), it does sustainably give you LOTS of time to burn calories. Make sure to eat within a window shortly after working out, as much for recovery as to minimize feeling absolutely voracious later. I generally eat my meals as close after workouts as possible--although that's much more a result of circumstance as it is deliberate.

Be good about your sleep hygiene, too. Not only does willpower go out the window when you're tired, but you'll probably have a snack as an ostensible pick-me-up.

Adjust your lifestyle so that it's as easy as possible to be in a very slight calorie debt (like 100-200 calories/day) while maintaining the desired level of training/activity and give yourself a long time to slowly come down (in a manner that is more subconscious). Compliance will be your biggest challenge to losing weight. By and large, if you're training 10+ hours per week and filling your mouth with (mostly) food that is filling and has a pretty straightforward lineage from the ground to your mouth, you'll slim down reasonably. Don't target an ideal weight unless you have a penchant for misery and failure. Think of it less as a winter project as a lifestyle change. Off season is the best time to start, as the early adaptation might be tough and have a negative impact on training.

Good luck.

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The question of who is right and who is wrong has seemed to me always too small to be worth a moment's thought, while the question of what is right and what is wrong has seemed all-important.

-Albert J. Nock

God forbid someone around here suggests lifting some weights! If done correctly you can certainly shred some body fat and gain some strength to compliment your tri training.

I'd get Matt Fitzgerald's Book Racing weight and read through it as a start. I don't necessarily agree with everything 100% but almost everything he says is sited from scientific research. There is a ton of advice on how to be faster and loosing fat mass will help. But if you're going to be serious about it don't just listen to a few random people on the internet with a few sentences of advice. Matt's book is where to start. That being said almost everything thing in this thread is advocated in some way but it's important to have a system not just something some one told you.

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Joel Rosinbum
President, USA Triathlon Board of Directors
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If you are not racing for a while, then you can run pretty significant deficits. It will make training super crappy though.

If that is the route you choose to take. I recommend plenty of Z1 bike rides (I can't ride harder than that, or run or swim when I am running big deficits more than a week or so).

Eat some, but you need to be OK with being hungry. When you do eat, eat healthy filling stuff. Big leafy salads with lean protein. A go to for me when I am in get lean mode is egg whites with salsa and low fat sour cream. I also will have enormous bowls of stir fry vegetables (no oil).

You will be shocked at the volume 500 calories takes up in the form of egg whites or plain vegetables.

Do that for a while, you will drop weight.

When you plateau, eat less, then repeat.

Be prepared to be in a crappy mood and exhausted all the time.

Keep in mind being healthy is no the same as being skinny or lean or at race weight.

I would probably be healthier at 5 to 10 pounds heavier than I am now, my wife certainly thinks I look better . . .my goal is to go fast though, so screw all that noise.

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Ironman Certified Coach

Currently accepting limited number of new athletes

A huge range of replies and almost as many different suggestions! This, then is about finding out what works for you amongst the myriad of options.

What's worked for me is cutting out processed/added sugars and processed carbs and going back to real foods where possible. So lots of fruit and veggies (no juicing - your body is designed to digest whole foods!), proteins (meat, chicken, pork, fish, eggs) and full fat dairy (I.e. full fat milk, full fat unsweetened Greek yoghurt, cheese).

I wouldn't have a clue how many calories I'm consuming but haven't counted calories since I started this regime a couple of years ago - have lost 14kg and never feel hungry (thanks to the natural fats I'm eating). Bread, rice and pasta no longer form the significant part of my diet they once did - I'd have a flour-based product only very rarely, and I no longer miss these foods.

But - that's what's worked for me and it might not be your thing.

On the exercise front, I'd agree that running is the best activity for dropping weight. I also get super hungry when riding and swimming, but can cope with anything up to a 2hour run with no additional nutrition. If nothing else, then, that would be a good starting point.

Good luck!

I'm sure you can find 'evidence' out there to support consuming local produce versus produce grown and shipped further out (and vice versa). But, the only evidence you need is to test it yourself. It may not be so much as seeing a difference in your body composition, but how you feel.

You're right about the fiber. That's why juicing should be in addition to whole fruits and veggies and not a replacement.

Fiber important. but drink enough water!

Also consider the GI of your foods. The more stable your blood glucose, the less fat your body will store (by fat I mean excess energy in any form, stored in adipose tissue).

High GI = blood sugar spike = signal to pack energy sources into fat store, followed by overcompensating insulin, which will make you very hungry 1-2 hours pst initial spike.

Yeah, I eat pretty much anything for meals. But chop up a handful of greens to mix in, for every meal.

I really need a food processor to enable laziness.

-Reduce overall caloric intake slightly
- reduce carb intake moderately
-replace carb intake with protein, healthy fats, etc
- lift heavy weights (stimulates testosterone production, opposite of what happens in long endurance training)
- high intensity training should take a premium

Just reducing caloric intake is a stupid way to loose weight because often if you have extra body fat there is a larger nutritional issue than just too much in. I am not pushing a specific diet but something such as the paleo diet for 6 weeks could have some drastic effects that you are looking for. This diet essentially cuts out all processed crap, most high GI items, and in general if focused on healthy fats, protein, and alternative carb sources (sweet potatos and quinoa). If you want something more basic here is what i follow to loose 5-10 pounds before the road racing season:

-No processed foods except for protein bars during long rides or coke/red bull
- Do not eat out at all
-make a meal plan every week and stick to it
-buy groceries each week for that meal plan and nothing extra
-drink a large glass of water before each meal and start with a serving of protein, you will be amazed at how full you will feel and not gorge on the carbs.

Or, you can just reduce your caloric intake..

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"Good genes are not a requirement, just the obsession to beat ones brains out daily"...the Griz