[Closed] Why are MTB'ers nearly always a bit tubby?

bored Gary?

I'm a triffle over weight and had noticed thats not that unusual in my age range on a bike (44 years old 97 kg 1.93m tall BMI 26, don't look that over weight but in the days when I ran and rock climbed I was 12kg lighter)

I wonder if like me they had ended up on an MTB in the hope the excercise would do some good. Perhaps more importanlt its an out door pursuite where weight carries less penalty than some but still gives a good grin factor.

because nearly all [b]people[/b] are a bit tubby ??

bored Gary?

waiting for the cricket to finish then going for a ride. 🙂

I have definately noticed that mtb'ers are getting porkier though,
however those mtb'ers who have taken to the road* have all lost their extra chins and got a lot fitter.

*happens to a lot of them when they reach 'middle age' the bike to work scheme probably has a lot to do with it

cake & beer

thepodge +1

because nearly all people are a bit tubby ??

Bloody cheek Barnes! It's a 'winter belly'.... 😳

Generally, far too many people in the UK eat too much and don't exercise enough. Hence, you're gonna see a fair few portly folk out there on the trails. Mind you, I know some 'well upholstered' bods who are very fit and healthy, so there you go. I'm svelte because I smoke cigs and worry a lot.

I worry that Barnes will be cruel about my Winter Fuel Allowance.... 🙁

So that average folks like MidlandsTrailquestGraham can come better than mid-pack?

So that average folks like MidlandsTrailquestGraham can come better than mid-pack?

.....LOL 😀

I have noticed that a lot of the clothing for sale in the classifieds are usually XXL 😉

I worry that Barnes will be cruel about my Winter Fuel Allowance...

I'm more indiscriminate than that 🙂

i think the tubbiness comes from celtic ancestry, when people had to store up food like camels to get them thru the winters. look at rooney - super fit but even he's a bit tubby.

also cycling doesnt exercise your torso much. for mtbing, its all about the buzz, so you get the kind of people that like to indulge, meaning lots of booze and lots of food.

I'm a bit tubby because I like eating pies and drinking beer.

Not entirely sure there is any correlation between my tubbyness and my enjoyment of mtb riding though. 🙂

Because every time they **** your wife she gives them a biscuit?
(paraphrased from a famous cricketing sledging exchange) 😛

She gives me the packet 😀

We ride because we like it .

We drink beer because we like it .

We eat what we want .

We grow have leg hair because we are to busy drinking beer to shave .

We enjoy life in many aspects without caring what anyone else thinks .

Ever seen a shaven roadie on a $400 bike fitting in with the crowd ? Welcome to mountain biking where anyone getting out there and riding is welcome among us, judging a person on glistening calves and carbon dura-ace is a bloody sad affair .

well said ozzy

here here ozzy!

Anyway, I'm not tubby, I'm fat 🙂

Two hour stop-start ride, with climbs taken at a sociable pace = an excuse to eat bacon sarnies before and cake after, while chugging energy drink during?

Imagine working all week and turning up for a Sunday 12 noon ride all pumped and thinking your mates you are riding with are holding you back because they are hungover 😯

Stop - Start - Chat is great ! everyone is friendly , everyone is welcome , no one frowns at the noob who is 5 mins later arriving ... and still give him time to catch his breath. Thats MTBing 8)

Bit like people who have a gym membership
i have a membership but dont go
i have a mtb but dont ride it
but coz i have an mtb means i can eat lots of cake and beer and not feel
guilty l.o.l 😛

BTW , i came 3rd in my class 2 weeks ago (bronze medal too) and have a race next Sunday , i carry probably 10-15kg (gut area) more than i should and im sucking a beer as i type .

Be kind to all MTBers folks , they share the same passion as you 8)

Speak for yourselves porkers! 😉

Because it's not a sport as much as a leisure activity these days, with much more in common with rambling/walking than any form of competitiveness.

When I started it was about racing, and the rides we did reflected that. Now people take their wives and girlfriends out, for goodness sake!

I guess that unlike the roadies we have lots of reasons to stop and gas, rather than just grind out the miles - therefore not as fit/svelte.

And, as said - few people starve in Western societies.

What crikey says. For the majority (myself include) it's an expensive version of rambling. Hence all the fat faces, wobbly bottoms and baggy clothes that fail to hide the chub.

Maybe there is enough folk for another forum
such as
chubby bikers .com
actually i bet that ones already gone 😯

So smiling and enjoying it is wrong now, I'd rather be tubby and happy than a skinny miserable twit who needs to post on forums boasting about his size zero physique

Classic trolling, that.
Combination of things - mtb'ing is an expensive hobby (at the level we do it), so the riders have to be slightly older to be able to afford it, hence more susceptible to podge.
And as someone said, mtb'ing is about fun, where road biking is a bit boring, so the only excitement is seeing how fast/ how far you can go.

Because we like beer and cake we talk endlessly(to avoid riding) about our fuel ex but rarely get on one. we ride downhill on our focus fat boy and hope one day to have an orange or maybe 5. Maybe its all a bit inbread

It's all down to a simple misunderstanding.
I thought I was supposed to be eating five portions of fruit and veg in every meal.

so the riders have to be slightly older to be able to afford it, hence more susceptible to podge.

rampant ageism 🙁

You don't see many serious mountainbikers with fat legs though, however much of a gut they've got. Any sport you do sitting down isn't going to be great for the six pack.

I think a lot of people ride primarily for the fun/social aspect of it, with the exercise coming a fairly distant second.

Ultimately though, who gives a sh*t?

It's all down to a simple misunderstanding.
I thought I was supposed to be eating five portions of fruit and veg in every meal.

I made the same mistake. At least I've been able to keep up with drinking the recommended 21 units of alcohol a day.

It's a decision on my part so I can make better use of newtons second law on the downhiils.

MrSmith - do you deliberatly attempt to come across as a self righteous ****er in the majority of your posts on here?

What a KNOB, most of us ride our bikes for the social side, not to be going full tilt round the forest, mountains etc, we all have busy lives with work and family, and maybe some may have a few extra pounds BUT they are getting of their butts at the weekend and doing something about it. I myself am skinny but have to watch the colestral level and I need to get out on my bike just to make me feel better in myself

Cos we're proper blokes like.........

not 14yr old school boy wannabees

I am a fat **** but can at least ride a bike and climb pretty well. But I'll ****in squash anyone who calls me tubby though!!! 😉

MrSmith - do you deliberatly attempt to come across as a self righteous **** in the majority of your posts on here?

no. it's a genuine question, i definitely noticed it recently. it was the bike radar thingy a few weeks ago, i was sat on a stand in the shade watching the cycling world go by.
it was obvious that the MTB'ers had a higher proportion of slightly overweight but happy people.

Never seen Diet Stella Artois or Low Cal Raspberry Jam Doughnuts 😉

Although I am 2 1/2 stone lighter than about two years ago.

Have seen plenty of roadies with pot bellies bulging under tight lycra!

Unless you're very committed it's hard to stop the march of time, even for the skinnies. I'm guessing mtbing is reaching maturity as a sport, all those who started back in the day are now in their late 30/early 40's. Life does get more complicated but as long as you're still smiling so what !

If someone said to you they were a footballer - you'd assume they did it for a living. The fat beer swilling baldies who dress up like their hero players on a Sunday and play at least have the decency not to call themselves footballers. Sadly, the mountain bike equivalent dress up and call themselves mountain bikers - a bit like when we at primary school and got to play with the dressing up box

I'm only 9 stone & in the very low 20's BMI-wise, so definitely not 'chubby' 🙂

Did see the most amazing backside on a lady cyclist today though. She was a roadie heading down into Hebden from Peckett Well & going very slowly, i sat behind for a few seconds admiring the view then felt like a dirty old man so shot past her with a red face!

Beautiful black girl on a road bike - not something you seee everyday unfortunately 🙁

You overtook her though. That's the important thing.

Only because she was down in the drops & dragging her brakes a lot. Obviously a nervy beginner, would never catch let alone pass a roadie on that hill otherwise.

also cycling doesnt exercise your torso much. for mtbing, its all about the buzz, so you get the kind of people that like to indulge, meaning lots of booze and lots of food.

exercising your torso or not has little to do with fat storage, it's the amount of exercise and the calories eaten that are the biggest factor.

do you really think there is a correlation between the buzz of exercise and overeating? only most obese people get a buzz out of eating, watching trisha and sitting on the sofa not partaking in thrillseeking sporting activity.

pootling around a hill and then having a pie and a pint is hardly the mark of an addictive personality but perhaps just somebody who eats too much of the wrong food?

Because most mountain bikers are only mountain bikers for three of four hours on a sunday and do **** all exercise the rest of the week. That's not a good way to keep the pounds off.

Just like footballers only play for 90 mins on a Sunday

Unless you're very committed it's hard to stop the march of time, even for the skinnies

I think it's more that, as vanity wanes, selfindulgence becomes more attractive (to oneself)

interesting how people are saying it's the amount of exercise that's the reason instead of the calorie intake.

Does this forum make my bum look big?

Truth is, I like cake. It's a balance and this is where I'm happy balancing. I could shift a load of weight but then I wouldn't fit into a lot of expensive cycle clothing.

I guess it isn't a case of mountain bikers being overweight per se, it's overweight people pretending to be mountain bikers

johnny_met - Member

I guess it isn't a case of mountain bikers being overweight per se, it's overweight people pretending to be mountain bikers

lol 😆

Unless you're very committed it's hard to stop the march of time, even for the skinnies.

* You wont keep a flat stomach if you ride and dont do core excercise either.

I guess it isn't a case of mountain bikers being overweight per se, it's overweight people pretending to be mountain bikers

i guess people who don't live in the north are just pretending too, what with there not being any mountains anywhere else.

"Sadly, the mountain bike equivalent dress up and call themselves mountain bikers"

What strange and bitter life experiences produces such bile toward fellow men!?

0/10 for troll above OP:roll:
Would say you must try harder but in your case you could not, You just need to get better, much better.

oldie but a goldie
[img] [/img]

[i]"Only because she was down in the drops & dragging her brakes a lot. Obviously a nervy beginner, would never catch let alone pass a roadie on that hill otherwise."[/i]

As long as she had a higher Food Chain Number than you, it still counts.

"What strange and bitter life experiences produces such bile toward fellow men!?"

I generally have such contempt towards all liars fat or not 😉

Doesnt help that because of the stenuous nature of MTBing most mountain bikers probably only get out for 20 miles or so often at a high heart rate. Not very good for fat burning but good for building a bit of muscle (which appears to beef you up even more) If you are roadie you get out for 4-6 hours at least and do 50 miles plus, most of it at a steady rate suitable for burning fat more readily.
Plus it has to be a bit of a lifestyle thing as well. Most roadies i know dont drink, watch the rubbish food intake and have early nights! Mtbers (myself included)like a drink, like a packet of pork scratchings...... Roadies get their kicks from the endorphins inspiring them to go harder for longer, most mtbers get their kicks from adrenelin where you just need a big pair of bollox and the extra ballast doesnt really effect that too much 😀

0/10 for troll above OP:roll:
Would say you must try harder but in your case you could not, You just need to get better, much better.

there was no effort involved, i just had to put down in words the procession of cyclists that were in front of me, it was a valid assessment especially as nobody has argued that most mtb'ers aren't a bit chubby and only made excuses for their weakness for cake.
EDIT: (apart from what's just been posted above)

obviously there are the racing snakes out there but they seem few and far between

There's your answer, they're too busy riding to be on here!

Quod Erat Demonstrandum

Society has better targets for your contempt than a few jolly but slightly older, tubbier folk who happen to wear appropriate clothing for the little bit of sport they enjoy.

Is trail riding really that strenuous? OK riding up hills is more intense than hiking up them, but overall it's much less effort than fell-running, aerobics, boxing etc.

😛

Well I'm fat but I ride to lose weight as well as have fun. So I'm always slimming down (gradually), maybe I'll be an xc race snake eventually.

I like the way a simple comment on an observation, with no judgement about whether being "a bit tubby" is a good or bad thing, has to turn in to another argument with phrases like "What a KNOB..." and "Society has better targets for your contempt..." aimed at the person who made the observation.

Nobody's denying that it's true, so should he just have pretended he didn't see it ?

Gave up mtb (hardtail rigid marin back then)when the kids came along. Working a non strenuous job from sun up till sun down, eating the wrong things on the fly took its toll.
Eating like i was still training etc on days off then took up drinking and enjoying life again when the kids got older. I got about a stone heavier then my fighting weight in that time so decided since i liked eating rich food and micro brewery beers i needed to start taking more energy out then i was putting in to enjoy life while not getting heavier.
So took up mtb again.
Stayed at the higher 15.5, stone but it was muscle instead of fat until last november when weather and and a series of injuries cut down my riding, excercise and mobilty. Got to 17.5 stone around april, but because i was now pushing extra weight around, instead of dropping weight my legs built up muscle while the midriff stayed. If i'd have kept this up i would only got even heavier.The only answer is a reducing diet, im hoping first to shift the midriff and then loose a bit of the muscle mass from my legs, but im not delusional i'll ever see 14 stone again!

i definitely noticed it recently. it was the bike radar thingy a few weeks ago, i was sat on a stand in the shade watching the cycling world go by.

Impressively rigorous research there...

What gets me about this site is EVERY TIME I have an idle look at clothing in the classifieds thinking "oh maybe it's my size" it is always size L-XXL. Never anything in "normal size".

Chubby ****ers. Ride more. Eat less.

Impressively rigorous research there...

it's an internet forum about bikes. not The Lancet or a research paper.

but overall it's much [s]less effort[/s] [b]more fun[/b] than fell-running, aerobics, boxing etc.

fixed that for you 🙂

Probably more to do with the crap English diet than anything else

Probably more to do with the crap English diet than anything else

but what does that mean ? We can eat any way we like unless we think we have to copy other people...

I ride a bike to have fun.

The fact that it's good for me is of no consequence whatsoever, although I do like the fact that it allows me to eat more without becoming morbidly obese.

If bikes were bad for the health (say, in the same scientifically provable way that cigarettes are) and carried an appropriate health warning I'd like to think I'd still ride (although I have given up motorcycling due to the fact that I became convinced that it would eventually kill me).

no. it's a genuine question, i definitely noticed it recently.

Me too, starting to think MTBing might be a "fat person sport". Like darts or, as some other people have said, walking.

Because most mountain bikers are only mountain bikers for three of four hours on a sunday and do **** all exercise the rest of the week. That's not a good way to keep the pounds off.

Or often, even less then once a week. And then they are surprised/come up with a load of excuses why they can't keep up.

OK riding up hills is more intense than hiking up them, but overall it's much less effort than fell-running, aerobics, boxing etc.

Dunno, I've got my heart rate up to 211bpm on the bike. Don't think I've ever got it that high in boxing (not that I measure it). I think the problem is a lot of people see a hill as hard work that just leads to the next descent. Rubbish. Climbing is fun. People who flee to the comforts of their granny ring at the slightest hint of an upward incline are kinda annoying, they just hold up everyone else because they don't want to try?

I've lost 1/2 stone in a week. FACT. 😀

Well this is interesting.
I have never once thought or heard any of the chaps I ride with state that riding keeps your weight down, what I have heard very often that after a few consequetive rides we notice fitness levels changing and start to feel rather good... we have 168 hrs in a week, even if we rode 2 hrs per day over seven days we would only ride for 8% of the week - so what are we doing the other 92%? probably doing sedentary type work? eating and sleeping...

hmm, don't know about tubby but many of the mtb men I've seen look pretty good to me - nicely built in all the right places. Can't be doing with a skinny fella 🙂