This Man’s Love of Cycling Helped Him Drop 75 Pounds
Age: 56
Occupation: Retired police officer
Hometown: Dighton, Massachusetts
Start Weight: 310 pounds
End Weight: 235 pounds
Time Since Starting Cycling: 50 years, two years very regularly
I was a police officer for 35 years, and I started a bike patrol in our police department. I rode at work when weather and manpower allowed—but other than that, I was mostly sedentary. Coupled with a bad diet, my weight was constantly fluctuating. Throughout my life, I’ve always been a yo-yo dieter, but I’ve been 70 to 100 pounds overweight since my early teens. I’d drop weight, then in a few months pile it back on.
When I retired in July 2018, I weighed about 310 pounds. But I also had a ton of free time, so I decided to get off the couch and ride regularly as many days as I could year-round.
I love riding because to me, it’s freedom. It helps clear my mind and soul. I enjoy smelling the smells, hearing the sounds, and exercising without even knowing it. One bonus, of course, is the weight loss that comes with a stricter, more intense riding routine. So, the benefits only increase for me now that I’ve bumped up the routine, the distance, the cadence, and the time on the seat. For me, it’s still is the most enjoyable way to exercise without dreading the actual activity.
I also focus on eating the right foods on a regular basis—I look at it as a lifestyle change, not a diet. I asked myself, ‘How much more crap can I eat?’ I’ve tasted pretty much everything, so I decided it was time to get serious about a nutritional eating habit. I realized how much sugar I was consuming daily prior to cutting it out. It was scary!
It was easy for me to drop the amount of carbs I was eating down to about 20 to 25 grams a day. I’ve always been a meat-and-potatoes guy; I still eat meat, but I eat roasted radishes instead of potatoes. And, I’ve found there are many low-carb groups on Facebook where I can find great low-carb recipes that are simple to prepare. And now, as of April 1, I’m down to 235 pounds. I attribute it to cycling and cutting out most carbs and sugars.
I now ride five days a week, around 15 to 20 miles a day. When COVID-19 became a global pandemic and shut down gyms nationwide, my local bike path became overcrowded with walkers and riders. I began riding the road again, but I am very cautious due to so many distracted drivers, so I was only riding about three days a week. Now that I’m figuring out a routine, I'm back up to four days, hopefully soon back to five, and I’m splitting my time between early mornings on the bike path and less time on the roadway.
For my diet, it’s a day-by-day deal. I try not to stress out if I gain a pound or two, or if cheat once in a while. I get right back on the horse (bike). I’ve pretty much settled into the low-carb life. I can go to restaurants and enjoy a great meal with low carbs.
Most restaurants—and even fast food joints—have low carb options that are very satisfying. I mostly focus on eating fresh veggies and chicken. I’m also trying to switch my source of protein away from meat to plant-based protein. I'm about 50 percent there now. Both my wife and son are vegetarians; I’m not sure I can totally give up meat, but some of the products on the market now are good substitutes.
I used to be a heavy weightlifter, but I had a serious rotator cuff injury on duty in 2014. The surgery did not take, so my shoulder is lacking three tendon connections. Now, any weightlifting I can do is very limited unless I opt for another surgery, which I have decided not to do at this time. Instead, I recently started jumping rope, and I walk 4 to 6 miles 3 to 5 times a week. I use resistance bands for workouts.
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Overall, bicycling was key for my health. I have a bum knee, so running is not an option. There is nothing like the freedom of a bike ride. My vehicle has a permanent bike rack on it and I bring my bike along whenever I can in case I come across a bike-friendly location.
I love the ease of it and the way it brings back your childhood with every ride. I make sure each ride includes a few hundred feet of hands off the handlebars. “Hands off” was a fun way to enjoy a little childhood thrill again during the rides. But in actuality, due to my shoulder injury, while riding I do have to come off the bars every now and then due to numbness up my arm, so I just would sit upright and release the bars. I’ve modified two of my four bikes with Jones Loop H-Bars to reduce the leaning over and the pressure on my shoulder. Best move I ever made for a bike modification.
I hope to continue riding for years to come. You are never too old to do it, and when riding a bike, we all become kids again, weaving between the hash-mark lines, trying to pull a wheelie, going “hand-less,” and tucking in when heading downhill to get it going as fast as we can. I’ve loved it for more than 50 years now and never intend to stop.
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