I was wondering what's the best route to go. I'm 277 pounds as of this morning and I need to lose weight. I'm getting closer to fifty and my DR. Suggested biking as a fun way of losing the spare tire. My concern is that the majority of bikes can't support my weight and the websites I've looked at don't have weight limits posted on the bikes. Does any body know who would make a plus sized bike and whether or not I need special/under inflated tires to do it. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you guys Roy
Dude, 277 isn't a concern if you're looking at a mountain bike. Road bike, not so good, but doable. No special gear needed, although disc brakes would be a plus. Is this just for street/bike paths/maybe dirt trails? And what's your budget. Weight limits are not posted for liability reasons. If they say 250, you know some guy weighing 240 is going to break a bike, hurt himself, and sue someone. On that note, the same bike that will last you forever riding around town might fail in 30 minutes of off-road abuse at the hands of some 100lb kid. So we need to apply a little common sense and use the correct tool for the job.
tell us more about where you want to ride.... street ...bike paths ... off road (dirt) and then a little about how much you want to spend then we can help
Roy, welcome to Two Spoke, if you give these guys the info they will help you find the right bike and even help you with the training to get a handle on your weight. Industry Hack is a good source of info, so you might pay attention to what he has to say, I'm sure he won't give you bum info, pretty much any of the moderators also help. And I think your Dr is right, it is a good way to loose weight without heavy impact which can be a problem. Good Luck, DrB
I don't know what wanted to do. That's kinda why I just threw it out there. I think by the comments mountain Biking seems to be the route I'm going to go. So then the next question is what Bike? I have about $600 I could spend more if I had to.
Are you looking to buy locally, or online? BikesDirect would probably be your best source for online, but it may be prudent to build a relationship with your local bike shop. If I had to choose a durable bike for just getting around, it would probably be something in the Giant Boulder line, but it looks like they no longer offer a Boulder disc model.
Whatever gets me the better deal. Thank you for your help guys. Do I need to be worried about tires/ tire pressure?
I'm a big guy, any where between 200- 230 now, and I never had to deflate the tires. I haven't had to buy a special bike either I just work with what's comfortable and ride it till it dies.
If you're lookin' to spend under a grand, I'd recommend that you stick to a hardtail. Full suspension bikes at that price point just aren't that good. The Kona line has a pretty good reputation for durability and they make the Hoss specifically for bigger riders. I think they list for around $1000, but you may be able to find a deal on an 09.
Good call on the Hoss. Although, if he's not doing any off-road, it may be overkill. I did reviews of most of the Kona line earlier this year, and totally forgot about the Hoss.
You got it. I can ride any type but I'm riding for weight loss. Do you guys think that a particular style of bike would be better for this?
At one point I weighed 220 pounds at about 5'-9" or 5'-10". But I got down to 160 with diet and exercise, gained back 15 pounds of muscle, and I've kept the weight off for 3 years now. So with that in mind, as a side note, be sure to go nuts with a healthy diet, otherwise exercising will be much harder, and much less rewarding. I studied nutrition for about a year prior to making a lifestyle change. It isn't one of those things you can really jump into with no background knowledge. It's a good way to get sick. Not that I'm implying you don't know anything about nutrition, or that you aren't already eating well, because obviously I don't know you, but just sayin' in general. And about your original question about weight, even someone who weighs more than you can often get away with using high pressure kevlar road bike tires pumped up to capacity. Some of the fattest road riders I've met have to do this, or they keep having pinch flats. But you're probably not heavy enough for that to apply, so don't worry about it.
Well I am 240# and I ride A Jamis explorer 2, I have put over 1100 miles on it 4 months. I only ride on the road and it came with a tire that took 70# worked for me. I have since put some city trecking tires on it and I keep them at 87# the max thay recomend. The longes ride I have taken was 62 miles. I was walking 2 to 3 miles a day befor I started on the bike but I realy enjoy the bike. Good luck on your bike hunting.
My Doc says I don't have to change what I eat, just how much I eat. I eat fairly healthy I do just shovel it in though. I was reading and saw something about after you start losing weight your energy level goes up. Any truth to this? In any ones experience that is.
