Hi,

I've done a variety of exercises including a lot of running, cross country running, skiing, and some gym exercises, the basics and maybe a class of pilates or something.

I recently put all my weight back on, so I am going to buckle down on the food, I am on my daily plate too, so I know the food thing is important. I recently got a mountain bike and we have several miles of rugged trails across the street. Today was my 6th time out this year, and I already can jump some logs, ride over tough patches of rocks, manage some hills, and I go out for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, I have some work to do. After doing some reading on mountain biking and weight loss it seems like you can burn a lot of calories, I'm hoping maybe it will give me a boost. It also gives me a very relaxed feeling. Can any one give advice on what else they might add to my mountain biking, and has anyone lost weight just by mountain biking a few times a week?

My husband is an avid mountain biker, it is his primary form of intense aerobic exercise. He successfully lost weight when he picked up the sport some years ago, and has maintained his weight successfully with biking. He also plays golf, kayaks and hikes, but he considers mountain biking to be his "main thing". At one time he was racing at the sport level locally (the level between beginner and expert) and regularly placing in his age group. But, right now, he just does it for exercise.

Like any form of exercise, the calories you burn depends on intensity and duration. He goes flat out for up to 2 hours at a time, and keeps his heart rate very high, so it's an intense workout. He goes 3 times per week, usually. He's in good shape and attributes it to the biking, so it works for him!

I've dabbled in mountain biking, but it scares me, I'd rather stay on my own two feet! DH, on the other hand, thinks runners are nuts. That's what makes our marriage work.

Yeah it is a little bit scary. I fell on rocks a couple of times and bumped and scraped my legs and arms. BTW it was my husband who started me. He drops weight quickly when doing it, and he is quite good. He also is the type who tries to get me to ski the black diamonds, I have tried, with some success. Yes DH hates running. But I have to say the biking really pushes me, and seems to be more intense than other exercises, and its kind of fun when you say hey I made it over those rocks.

I've been doing road cycling for a while. I took up mountain biking a couple years ago for a switch, went on hiatus with the pregnancy, and have basically started over with it in the last couple months. At first things were slow going as I built some technical skills, but now I can get in a workout as challenging as I can on the road bike. It requires more strength, upper body strength too, and more finesse so the stabilizer muscles get worked a lot more, so it is a different kind of workout. It also tends to be more like an interval set for me, with high intensities on the uphills and lower on the downhills or real technical sections where I'm going slower.

Anne

Yes Dranne you make some good points. It really is a totally different kind of exercise, and something that gets me quicker results than walking or even running. It requires a lot of strength to pedal up those rocky hills, and it does seem to work your upper body and abs too, and its great for balance, and when I can't make it I get off and push the bike up the hills and even that is a challenge, and the technicals are a blast, and you just get stronger every time, I'm shooting for 4 times a week and maybe some running in between, I sometimes run the trails, my legs are sure banged up though!

Ha, sorry I had to laugh. My husband took up mtn. biking 2 yrs ago and thought he'd lose weight. Well, he hasn't...because.....he thinks if his heart monitor says he burned 1200 calories then he can go to Longhorn steakhouse and have a HUGE meal....because he EARNED it-LOL!!!

Good luck to you

Haha my bf and his friends are really good mountain bikers and I get dragged out sometimes. It's amazing fun! There are so many trails near where I live... But I always end up taking quite a few spills. Thank God for my full-face and armour lol!
It's a great workout, something to compliment it would be yoga I think. It would add that stretching factor, as well as further increasing your strength.

My df bikes regularly, and his legs are in wonderful shape because of it. However, he's always complaining that it did nothing for his core or arms (or at least, not as much as he'd like), so I would recommend adding in other exercise as well.