Help! I'm Fat - *** Official Exercise and Weight Thread ***

[2122]

The body creates glucose from just about anything. Your brain ONLY runs on glucose. If you eat only protein, your body converts some of it to glucose. If you eat only fat, your body converts some if it to glucose. If you don't eat at all, your body breaks down your own muscle and fat to create glucose. Your body creates glucose out of whatever is available.

What your body can't do is turn carbs into proteins or fats. That's why carbohydrates are not an "essential nutrient" like protein and fat are. And while plants do contain some proteins, none of them contain all 9 of the essential proteins. Only animal products contain all of the necessary proteins in a single food source.

Blood glucose will vary day-to-day though. You can't tell much from a single fasting glucose reading. Sometimes it will be fine, other times it might be elevated. A single reading isn’t enough to make a diagnosis. You have to see what it's doing over time. An A1c is basically a "3 month average" glucose reading, but it isn't limited to fasting only. So it may indicate that on average you're fine, but you could have big peaks and valleys which aren't good either.

This is good analysis. However, the body can and routinely (in this era of diet historically high in carbs) does turn carbs into fats, through a process known as de novo lipogenesis, involving the liver. This is how folks get fat eating LOW-FAT stuff like bread, potato, sweet corn, rice, fruit, cheerios, oatmeal, pasta, pop, etc. Excess carbs break down into sugars and the liver converts the sugars into fatty acids, which then move through the bloodstream in the form of triglycerides (can result in high triglyceride reading in your bloodwork) and into the adipose tissue. Often these fatty acids remain in the liver - fatty liver disease.

The tricky thing about blood glucose levels is they can be normal even though a person has been metabolically unwell and insulin resistant for years and years. The pancreas cranks out more and more insulin to combat the flood of carbs, keeping blood glucose in check. Finally, the pancreas can't keep up as the body becomes more and more insulin resistant, and then finally the blood glucose begins to rise and you get diagnosed as T2D - after you've been ill for years and years. People would be better off having their fasting insulin levels checked. A decade or two of elevated insulin (aka insulin resistance) can be damaging.

 

[Cydkar]

Right now, I'm just doing 30-45 minute rides of medium intensity. In a few weeks, I'm going to start exploring power zones. On a side note, yesterday morning I'm doing a 45 minute Yacht Rock themed ride with a 40 something year old female instructor. Everything is pretty chill, listening to Michael Mcdonald, and about 10 minutes in she says "Just think, there is some MF'er on a Yacht somewhere right now pedaling a Peloton". Cussing doesn't bother me at all but I about fell off the bike in shock.

ok, I just looked at my last workout and maybe I'm overdoing it a little.

71% of the time I was in Zone 4. My strive score was 92.2. 286kj Output. Whatever all of that means,

There are power zones and heartrate zones that aren't the same. I have no clue what Peloton uses or how it's established for an individual. I use both but for this discussion it's a heartrate zone although it's actually more complicated than that. Elite athletes measue ot differently and more accurately through lab testing to define their zones.

Ballpark: Zone 2 you can have a conversation without losing breath. Should also be able to breathe through your nose but that doesn't quite work in my case. Zone 2 can feal easier than you think can be working. I suggest going down the rabbit hole on Youtuibe. It's fairly fascinating how it works and that bumping up to Zone 3 is not as beneficial, even though it is more difficult. Depends on your goals but for fat burning/losing weight...Zone 2. It's repeatable daily.
Regardless, I suggest learning about your Peloton and what different workouts are meant to achieve. There is such a thing as junk miles. Granted, any exercise is good and if you enjoy it, that's even better. Whatever gets you to do something is awesome but with busy schedules, might as well make your time as beneficial as possible.

If I remember correctly, the target time for a Zone 2 workout is 45 minutes.

 

[CascadeClone]

Granted, any exercise is good and if you enjoy it, that's even better. Whatever gets you to do something is awesome but with busy schedules, might as well make your time as beneficial as possible.

I and others have said it before, but just bears repeating every few dozen pages. The BEST exercise is the one you actually do, and that's going to be the one you ENJOY doing. It doesn't have to be hyper-efficient, fat-burning, gainz-producing, or even trendy. As long as you are doing something, it's a win.

 

[ScottyP]

For me, the exercise part is just focusing on making sure I get a little bit every day. With three young kids, finding time to exercise is difficult. I try to treat it like it is part of my daily routine (brushing my teeth, putting in my contacts, etc). During the week, I might only get a 20-25 minute workout in and then bump it up to 30 minutes or more on the weekends. Even if I can't get an intense workout like HIIT, I can at least try for a 15 minute walk. It helps knowing that walking is one of the better exercises for fat loss. Walking also has numerous other benefits such as helping you think clearer and improving mood.

 

[KnappShack]

For me, the exercise part is just focusing on making sure I get a little bit every day. With three young kids, finding time to exercise is difficult. I try to treat it like it is part of my daily routine (brushing my teeth, putting in my contacts, etc). During the week, I might only get a 20-25 minute workout in and then bump it up to 30 minutes or more on the weekends. Even if I can't get an intense workout like HIIT, I can at least try for a 15 minute walk. It helps knowing that walking is one of the better exercises for fat loss. Walking also has numerous other benefits such as helping you think clearer and improving mood.

I used to include sex as a workout, but after two kids I had to eliminate that from consideration

 

[cowgirl836]

I used to include sex as a workout, but after two kids I had to eliminate that from consideration

Consequences are too dire.

 

[cowgirl836]

For me, the exercise part is just focusing on making sure I get a little bit every day. With three young kids, finding time to exercise is difficult. I try to treat it like it is part of my daily routine (brushing my teeth, putting in my contacts, etc). During the week, I might only get a 20-25 minute workout in and then bump it up to 30 minutes or more on the weekends. Even if I can't get an intense workout like HIIT, I can at least try for a 15 minute walk. It helps knowing that walking is one of the better exercises for fat loss. Walking also has numerous other benefits such as helping you think clearer and improving mood.

How old are they now? We've been tossing ours in the bike trailer (that has a wheel! cheap double stroller!) and pushing them around the neighborhood. Has the plastic front to keep them warm, they fight and scream much of the time but we get outside. They got flashlights for Xmas so that's been a good distraction for them to play with while we walk.

I was reading too that if you do your exercise earlier in the day, it gets your metabolism going more (something like that). I've definitely shifted to late afternoon workouts post covid but I'd like to get going after we get the kindergartner out the door at 7am. Go for a walk right then and eat breakfast. But my toxic trait is reading on my Kindle til 1am so I'm not inclined to wake up well rested and ready to go.

 

[MJ29]

How old are they now? We've been tossing ours in the bike trailer (that has a wheel! cheap double stroller!) and pushing them around the neighborhood. Has the plastic front to keep them warm, they fight and scream much of the time but we get outside. They got flashlights for Xmas so that's been a good distraction for them to play with while we walk.

I was reading too that if you do your exercise earlier in the day, it gets your metabolism going more (something like that). I've definitely shifted to late afternoon workouts post covid but I'd like to get going after we get the kindergartner out the door at 7am. Go for a walk right then and eat breakfast. But my toxic trait is reading on my Kindle til 1am so I'm not inclined to wake up well rested and ready to go.

I would LOVE to be a morning workout person. But I already get up at 5:15 just to get us out the door by 6:30ish. I am realistic in knowing I cannot get up at 4:30 to work out. So I do a lunch walk and another 20-30 minute workout after work.

 

[ScottyP]

How old are they now? We've been tossing ours in the bike trailer (that has a wheel! cheap double stroller!) and pushing them around the neighborhood. Has the plastic front to keep them warm, they fight and scream much of the time but we get outside. They got flashlights for Xmas so that's been a good distraction for them to play with while we walk.

I was reading too that if you do your exercise earlier in the day, it gets your metabolism going more (something like that). I've definitely shifted to late afternoon workouts post covid but I'd like to get going after we get the kindergartner out the door at 7am. Go for a walk right then and eat breakfast. But my toxic trait is reading on my Kindle til 1am so I'm not inclined to wake up well rested and ready to go.

My kids are 8, 3 and 8 months old. We do have a bike trailer that we can use next summer hopefully.

My eight year old went with a walk with me on Monday and we ended up finding a trail to hike in our neighborhood (our has backs up to a small wooded area). We got a double-stroller and did lots of walks this summer.

Good idea on the flashlights.

My wife and I wake up at 5am during the week. My wife is still pumping milk so we get up and do a morning prayer together while she pumps. We usually do our workout at 6 or so.

The bad part of getting up so early is that I'm falling asleep by about 9 or 9:30.

 

[cowgirl836]

My kids are 8, 3 and 8 months old. We do have a bike trailer that we can use next summer hopefully.

My eight year old went with a walk with me on Monday and we ended up finding a trail to hike in our neighborhood (our has backs up to a small wooded area). We got a double-stroller and did lots of walks this summer.

Youngest is a trickier age for this but a lot of weekends I toss ours into the unfinished basement to run amock while I workout. Bonus if I put on a Taylor Swift/Encanto playlist and my oldest will dance and sing. I used to workout in front of the swing to entertain them as babies or let them crawl or be my weight while I tried to hurry before they'd start crying too much. But I absolutely have to treat it as part of my routine too, or it quickly falls to the wayside. Spouse is pretty supportive because everyone notices that my irritability goes up if I've had zero time to myself.

 

[ScottyP]

Youngest is a trickier age for this but a lot of weekends I toss ours into the unfinished basement to run amock while I workout. Bonus if I put on a Taylor Swift/Encanto playlist and my oldest will dance and sing. I used to workout in front of the swing to entertain them as babies or let them crawl or be my weight while I tried to hurry before they'd start crying too much. But I absolutely have to treat it as part of my routine too, or it quickly falls to the wayside. Spouse is pretty supportive because everyone notices that my irritability goes up if I've had zero time to myself.

The 8-month old just started crawling a lot this last week. I had him with me in the basement because he woke early. I had to be careful not to step on him during my workout.

 

[KnappShack]

The 8-month old just started crawling a lot this last week. I had him with me in the basement because he woke early. I had to be careful not to step on him during my workout.

My kid just did an absolute face to pavement move this morning from the back row of the truck.

They're durable. My kid has a pretty good frame. He needs to pick up a weight and get after it

 

[dmclone]

There are power zones and heartrate zones that aren't the same. I have no clue what Peloton uses or how it's established for an individual. I use both but for this discussion it's a heartrate zone although it's actually more complicated than that. Elite athletes measue ot differently and more accurately through lab testing to define their zones.

Ballpark: Zone 2 you can have a conversation without losing breath. Should also be able to breathe through your nose but that doesn't quite work in my case. Zone 2 can feal easier than you think can be working. I suggest going down the rabbit hole on Youtuibe. It's fairly fascinating how it works and that bumping up to Zone 3 is not as beneficial, even though it is more difficult. Depends on your goals but for fat burning/losing weight...Zone 2. It's repeatable daily.
Regardless, I suggest learning about your Peloton and what different workouts are meant to achieve. There is such a thing as junk miles. Granted, any exercise is good and if you enjoy it, that's even better. Whatever gets you to do something is awesome but with busy schedules, might as well make your time as beneficial as possible.

If I remember correctly, the target time for a Zone 2 workout is 45 minutes.

Peloton
Heart rate zones

• 
  
• Zone 1: Very light intensity (50-60% of max heart rate): This zone is primarily for warm-up, cool-down, and recovery exercises. It helps increase blood flow, improve cardiovascular health, and promote active recovery.
• Zone 2: Light intensity (60-70% of max heart rate): Training in this zone enhances endurance and aerobic capacity. It promotes fat burning and improves the efficiency of oxygen utilization in the body.
• Zone 3: Moderate intensity (70-80% of max heart rate): This zone improves cardiovascular fitness, enhances endurance, and increases lactate threshold. Training here helps improve performance for longer-duration exercises.
• Zone 4: Difficult intensity (80-90% of max heart rate): Training in this zone increases anaerobic fitness, improves speed, and builds muscle strength and power. It is beneficial for interval training and improving your race pace.
• Zone 5: Maximum intensity (90-100% of max heart rate): This zone is for maximum effort and high-intensity interval training (HIIT). Training here improves peak performance and develops speed and power.

​

Peloton
Power Zones

Peloton Power Zones are output ranges—that is, they’re a measurement of how hard you’re working at any given point during a ride, measured in watts and calculated by a combination of cadence (speed) and resistance (how heavy the flywheel feels). There are seven Power Zones, with each zone representing a target output range.

How Are Peloton Power Zones Calculated?​

Your Functional Threshold Power, or FTP, is key to Power Zone Training. FTP is the highest power a rider can maintain for one hour on the Bike. With Peloton, you'll identify your FTP via your average output over a 20-minute maximum effort test (which you can find by filtering Cycling classes for Power Zone class type that are 20 minutes in length). It may only be 20 minutes, but it’s one of the toughest rides you’ll do, and it offers an accurate picture of your fitness at any given point in time.

n any Power Zone class, you’ll start with a warm-up that’s longer than your non-Power Zone warm-ups (typically, 10 to 12 minutes). The warm-up will include spin-ups (quick accelerations) and will finish with a build (a steady increase in output).
There are a few different types of Power Zones rides, each serving a different purpose.

• Power Zone Beginner rides are perfect if you’re new to cycling in general, or have never taken a Power Zone class before.
• Regular Power Zone rides are challenging but steady. They tend to include intervals in Zones 3 through 5, with recoveries in Zone 1.
• Power Zone Endurance rides require you to hold longer periods at lower outputs—only Zones 2 and 3, with recoveries taking place in Zone 2. You’ll still sweat plenty, but you likely won’t tire as quickly in an endurance ride. That could make it an excellent starting point for anyone dipping their toes into Power Zone training—and it just might sell you on the idea.
• Power Zone Max rides can include any of Zones 1 through 7, but typically focus on Zones 4 through 7. You’ll work through hard-charging intervals with long recoveries in Zone 1.

 

[cowgirl836]

The 8-month old just started crawling a lot this last week. I had him with me in the basement because he woke early. I had to be careful not to step on him during my workout.

they must always be right under your feet. always.

 

[Cydkar]

Peloton
Heart rate zones

• 
  
• Zone 1: Very light intensity (50-60% of max heart rate): This zone is primarily for warm-up, cool-down, and recovery exercises. It helps increase blood flow, improve cardiovascular health, and promote active recovery.
• Zone 2: Light intensity (60-70% of max heart rate): Training in this zone enhances endurance and aerobic capacity. It promotes fat burning and improves the efficiency of oxygen utilization in the body.
• Zone 3: Moderate intensity (70-80% of max heart rate): This zone improves cardiovascular fitness, enhances endurance, and increases lactate threshold. Training here helps improve performance for longer-duration exercises.
• Zone 4: Difficult intensity (80-90% of max heart rate): Training in this zone increases anaerobic fitness, improves speed, and builds muscle strength and power. It is beneficial for interval training and improving your race pace.
• Zone 5: Maximum intensity (90-100% of max heart rate): This zone is for maximum effort and high-intensity interval training (HIIT). Training here improves peak performance and develops speed and power.

​

Peloton
Power Zones

Peloton Power Zones are output ranges—that is, they’re a measurement of how hard you’re working at any given point during a ride, measured in watts and calculated by a combination of cadence (speed) and resistance (how heavy the flywheel feels). There are seven Power Zones, with each zone representing a target output range.

How Are Peloton Power Zones Calculated?​

Your Functional Threshold Power, or FTP, is key to Power Zone Training. FTP is the highest power a rider can maintain for one hour on the Bike. With Peloton, you'll identify your FTP via your average output over a 20-minute maximum effort test (which you can find by filtering Cycling classes for Power Zone class type that are 20 minutes in length). It may only be 20 minutes, but it’s one of the toughest rides you’ll do, and it offers an accurate picture of your fitness at any given point in time.

n any Power Zone class, you’ll start with a warm-up that’s longer than your non-Power Zone warm-ups (typically, 10 to 12 minutes). The warm-up will include spin-ups (quick accelerations) and will finish with a build (a steady increase in output).
There are a few different types of Power Zones rides, each serving a different purpose.

• Power Zone Beginner rides are perfect if you’re new to cycling in general, or have never taken a Power Zone class before.
• Regular Power Zone rides are challenging but steady. They tend to include intervals in Zones 3 through 5, with recoveries in Zone 1.
• Power Zone Endurance rides require you to hold longer periods at lower outputs—only Zones 2 and 3, with recoveries taking place in Zone 2. You’ll still sweat plenty, but you likely won’t tire as quickly in an endurance ride. That could make it an excellent starting point for anyone dipping their toes into Power Zone training—and it just might sell you on the idea.
• Power Zone Max rides can include any of Zones 1 through 7, but typically focus on Zones 4 through 7. You’ll work through hard-charging intervals with long recoveries in Zone 1.

This looks "correct". Zone 2 is an endurance zone. The Peloton Power Zone Endurance seems to include Zone 3. There is debate on the usefulness of Zone 3 relative to other zones. I couldn't begin to discuss that on here. It's easy to find.

Elite endurance cycling athletes utilize more Zone 2 than anything.

 

[SCNCY]

I would LOVE to be a morning workout person. But I already get up at 5:15 just to get us out the door by 6:30ish. I am realistic in knowing I cannot get up at 4:30 to work out. So I do a lunch walk and another 20-30 minute workout after work.

I tried doing a morning workout when I was working from home for the year my wife and I lived in New Jersey. I am a person who is a moderate morning person, but not early enough that I need to be in order to do a morning workout.

 

[dmclone]

This looks "correct". Zone 2 is an endurance zone. The Peloton Power Zone Endurance seems to include Zone 3. There is debate on the usefulness of Zone 3 relative to other zones. I couldn't begin to discuss that on here. It's easy to find.

Elite endurance cycling athletes utilize more Zone 2 than anything.

I'll let Peloton know everything looks good from their end.

 

[madguy30]

I and others have said it before, but just bears repeating every few dozen pages. The BEST exercise is the one you actually do, and that's going to be the one you ENJOY doing. It doesn't have to be hyper-efficient, fat-burning, gainz-producing, or even trendy. As long as you are doing something, it's a win.

Kinda sorta why I don't do exercise classes at my fitness center.

I find it much more enjoyable when it's self guided.

 

[simply1]

This looks "correct". Zone 2 is an endurance zone. The Peloton Power Zone Endurance seems to include Zone 3. There is debate on the usefulness of Zone 3 relative to other zones. I couldn't begin to discuss that on here. It's easy to find.

Elite endurance cycling athletes utilize more Zone 2 than anything.

I’m not sure sticking to zone 2 is ideal.

I’m sure others can chime in the general concepts of interval training and mixing up workouts as your body can become very efficient if you just repeat the same thing.

I find I need to do some hiit/tabata, Morton and Wilpers power zones of course, climbs.

 

[CloniesForLife]

I’m not sure sticking to zone 2 is ideal.

I’m sure others can chime in the general concepts of interval training and mixing up workouts as your body can become very efficient if you just repeat the same thing.

I find I need to do some hiit/tabata, Morton and Wilpers power zones of course, climbs.

Zone 2 is really beneficial cardio for heart and cardiovascular health. Definitely something that should be consistently incorporated into a workout schedule. I believe there is a lot more research out there now on it's benefits.