My Cycling Weight Addiction: The Tragic Fallout 

"The hardest thing to do was to let go of the aesthetic that you THOUGHT was your goal" "The biggest performance gain you will ever have as a cyclist is to just accept who you are and get the most out of yourself" CHRIS Thank you ! It's SO GOOD to hear that !

As a dietitian to athletes and recreating individuals, I appreciate this truth-telling SO MUCH. Thank you for being vulnerable. More people need to hear this. Undernourishing will always jeopardize performance, and when chronic, can jeopardize longevity and health. Thank you Chris. I am glad that you are speaking up about this, and the probable exaggerations online.

"Once the fat kid always the fat kid"

Been there, done that and I now I have to have medical treatment to make me better, both physically and mentally. Cycling is meant to be a love, and I did love it at the time, but I was digging this hole which at the end was so deep I couldn't get out of by myself. I'm now healthy, fitter than I have even been in my life and actually enjoying food & lots of it.

Very good point when you say it feels normal. Had the same with an overtraining period. I trained every week 20 -25h with a full time job, ate less to become leaner etc... I was tired every day, had bad sleep, no motivation, couldnt do anything at work. It was so bad that i thought i got some serious illness or whatever. Cuz of an injury i had to back off 1 week and after that i lost all motivation to go on the bike. After 6 weeks of doing nothing i finally started to feel like a normal person... and also wanted to ride my bike again. It's crazy Thanks for Sharing your story. It really helps other people, when they see they're not alone with their problems!

"The biggest performance gain you will ever have as a cyclist is to just accept who you are and get the most out of yourself." Chris, you will get a lot of respect with this honesty and expression of vulnerability. Great advice too. This sport and recreation we call cycling has many facets and many ways to have fun and succeed. Even at world tour level there is a lot of variation amongst the athletes. And there is way more variation at amateur level. We can all do amazing things on a bike. In large part it's about finding what is most enjoyable for "me". Genes and interests play a big role in what that might be.

whilst Marathon training in my mid 20's the best piece of advice I was given was ALWAYS EAT TO TRAIN. I fell into the same trap you did and all I can say about those other RU-vidrs is they will end up as lethargic as you - its impossible to keep that regime going. The volume you require to train hard means you can eat almost anything (I even ate 5 large shish kebabs in 1 day (it just happened through the day/evening meeting various mates etc) but I was marathon training) ALWAYS EAT TO TRAIN and you'll find that your body will find its own level, it knows when its fit because even when you start a training day and feel awful it very quickly goes away and there's no better high than being fit.

Thanks for your insight! Many cyclist blame poor performance on weight when many times its underfueling trying to mimic an influencer on social media.

Great Video, there are many people desperately trying to improve. Dropping weight and improving FTP is the holy grail, a higher PTW ratio means you go faster, but genetically most of us can't do that. Age, training load, work/life commitments and diet are all factors and unless you are a Pro with a team round you to monitor every facet it is incredibly difficult to reach those levels. I am now 48, 79kg with an FTP of 235 and you know what? I am settling with that, it is OK, I am not going to win any races and it takes me 6.5 hours to do 100 miles but so what, I have come to terms with it and now focus on enjoying my cycling. Yes, I would love to have a higher ftp, faster average speed on the bike and better PTW ratio but the time and effort required to move on from where I am isn't worth the gains. I am training 6-7 hours a week, eat the odd pizza, drink the occasional bottle of wine and do OK on my sunday rides. And that's OK. @MarkLewis says it best, being above average is within most people, being exceptional takes much higher levels of time and commitment and good genes and you have to decide if that extra time and commitment is worth it.

I was always an avid cyclist and quite lean. I am 172cm tall and at the height of my problem weighed 48kg and all I could see was the tiny bits of body fat. Body dysmorphia is very difficult to explain to people that haven’t experienced it. Now we’ll on my way to recovery weighing 56kgs and a healthy bmi and much better relationship with food

I have no idea why you don't have a million subscribers Chris! Brilliant honest content as always 👍

Don’t usually comment on RU-vid videos but thought I had to after watching this one. Seriously one of the best you have made (ie the best). Raw, honest and one that I think will get many views and will influence others. Congrats 👍

I’ve only just discovered your channel and I think it’s amazing. Thank you for your honesty. This needs to be talked about more. This is a real issue in sport and everyday life. I won’t get into my own issues, but it meant a lot to me to see this addressed in a public forum. It feels like such a taboo topic and I agree with you - I think any people aren’t sharing the truth. Lying? No. Denial? Definitely. Delusional? Possibly. Keep up the amazing content.

Thank you for having the courage for sharing your deeply personal journey.

Love this mate, the humility you show in you and your highs and lows shows how human you are. I’m in your mindset at the moment, have a major injury and waiting for surgery to fix it I am just flat on the bike. Hoping it will return once I’m out of rehab.

As a junior cyclist I used to take these to the limit also, with eating very little after 4 hour endurance sessions or not eating at all. Luckily I’ve seen it now and I’m starting to get better Chapeau for you recognising this and giving it the light it needs

Thank you. Great video, I completely agree. Proper fueling and rest are key for health and performance to my experience. When I think I get a bit too heavy I do some more low to mid intensity, long rides, but I don't underfuel.

Thanks Chis, always been a challenge for me being a taller cyclist, trying to lighten the load for the hills. Appreciate the honesty. Keep up the great vids 👍

Thanks for that!!! I myself was thinking of shedding a few pounds. I'm sitting at 24.9 (ish) BMI. At the top end of "normal", I feel healthy, I'm 65 years old, and I'm finishing the training and races that I enter. So, I appreciate your journey and words, and I will keep this ballast, and the ability to hold steady in crosswinds, and enjoy what I have!

I said enough is enough when I started having nightmares and jolting every time I was just about to fall asleep. My body was so stressed and my blood was just filled up with so much cortisol from the deficit it made it impossible for me to fall asleep. Never again.

Thank you for sharing Chris! Super important subject to talk about. Stay safe!

Hi Chris, I don't usually comment on videos but thank you for sharing this. I've been struggling with weight and food intake for a while now. It's refreshing and reassuring to hear someone in the public space talk about their relationship with food. Keep up the good work.

one of the best and most honest videos on health and nutrition ive seen. bravo!

Wow Chris, congrats! This is the best video I've ever seen about nutrition obsession. RU-vid have recommended me this and I have clicked it so. I've been 2 o 3 years in your same position but the last 4 months of last year was the worst I've been. I'm 1.82m, I was 59kg, I couldn't train for days, I couldn't do anything without getting exhausted, I WASN'T WHO I'VE BEEN BEFORE, really. I didn't recognize myself but at the same time accepted what I was doing with my body. It's like a cloud in with you aren't conscious about and you lie yourself. I fell into a depression, all was negative, I didn't feel like doing anything, I didn't want to wake up in the morning. Worst times I've lived. It was difficult and hard weeks to go out of that situation and with the help of my dad I can say I'm almost out. But it's a hard constant mental work to do, the thoughts about counting calories and don't eating much than you think you should, are always in mind. You have to understand that eating much than you should sometimes is a good way of refueling your body to train harder and it's good for you. Now I'm 64 kg, I'm in the best shape of my life and training harder than ever and feeling like a strong young person that could train every day. I subscribe Chris, thanks man for the video. Hope you're well🙏🏼💪🏼

nice one Chris. def not over sharing. your authenticity, perspective and personality are key reasons why we keep coming back. that, and those shredded calves. #thestuffofdreams

One of your best videos. Transparency is how you make impact in peoples lives. Great job!

Thanks so much for sharing Chris, no doubt you've really helped some folk who are struggling with the same issue. Actually my story is kind of similar but the opposite: I was always the skinny kid (ie. rake thin). I scoffed food, inhaled cakes, yet I struggled to put on kilos or do well at any kind of sport. Inside I must have been a wreak, borderline anaemic, always bruising etc. Turns out I'm a coeliac and can't digest gluten, which I found out many years later. A similar thing happened to me again as an adult after I started cycling, I was shedding a LOT of kilos but always ravenously hungry. My heart rate started going up and up on rides and my power went down, I got palpatations just sitting at a desk at work, always feeling hot a sweaty in the middle of winter. Turns out I had hyperthyroidism. The point of my story is a) don't trust any aesthetics because a thin cyclist could be in a total mess health-wise, b) someone else's diet is often irrelevant. They could be telling the truth about living on a daily detox juice, bone broth and a steamed bun, but then fail to tell you about some other weird hormone condition they have. Folk on social media are very selective about what they share, you rarely get to see the full picture.

3rd time I’ve watched and I get something new out of it every time. Great message and love the honesty. 👌🏻

Great video Chris. More of this honesty is what's needed on platforms like RU-vid. Keep it up!

I bit late to this. A very good video. It mirrors the struggles I experienced as I lost weight due to riding more. I still worry about putting on weight, even though I know I need to do so. Thanks for sharing. It's good no know others have the same concerns as I do.

Seeing this at the perfect time! Really appreciate you sharing this 🙏

Thanks for sharing. I battle weight issues as well. It's taken me 3 years to recognize if i lose another pound my performance starts to suffer. I also am told I look Ill, which is truly embarrassing. I know people on this thread will understand. Thank you again Chris.

Great video Chris.. thanks for being so open and honest.

Thanks for sharing and discussing this topic! I've also been down that rabbit while many years ago, and realized that I was chronically underfuelling. Jesse talks a lot about proper fueling and carbohydrate intake going by advidce like this has massively helped and improved my performance on the bike. It's weird since it intuitively makes so much sense that you need fuel for performance but still many cyclists (including me) have failed at that. That's why it's so crucial to Talk about these things.

Thanks for your experience. I’ve been nearly 4 weeks off the bike and on the couch because a motorist kindly put me off my bike, my right patella exposed in 2 places. Nothing to do but watch the Tour and snack, now I’m a kilo up on my usual active weight and panicking, planning drastic fasts. Maybe now I’ll wait and let nature take its course when I get back on the bike next week.

Thanks for sharing this, excellent video mate! Given me plenty to think about

Awesome video Chris, thanks for giving an honest informed opinion, not like a lot of mis- information provided by other You Tubers like the one mentioned in your vid Chapeau.

Great video! This is the same for running! Fueling is everything. Thank you for sharing!

Thank you for sharing. I also had a similar problem and I still sometimes struggle. At the start of the year I had an injury and I had to be of the bike for almost a month. During that period I made myself eat less because I wasn’t training and didn’t want to gain weight. When I started training again I was already used to eating less and therefore carried it on. I lost a lot of weight and with that came other issues. Now I am trying to focus on eating enough but it’s still sometimes hard. It’s encouraging to see that other’s have also had similar problems and were able to overcome them. I wish well to anyone struggling with similar problems and thank you again for sharing your story.

Diving into the cycling world and filling your head with all kinds of content can really twist your sense of norms. Everything you said was totally reasonable. Good on you for spreading the message. Means a lot to a lot of people coming from you (potentially more than hearing it from a dietitian).

This is a problem I do not have! I need to get off the food this winter. Thanks for sharing Chris

Love the honesty Chris, amazing you feel you can share this stuff.

We need more messaging like this in cycling.

Good vid Chris, keep pumping them out!

Thank you for sharing all this valuable information! GOOD LUCK!

Awesome that you shared this. And as you say in a later video it can be dangerous to follow advice taken from the internet.

Bravo Chris. Such a strong courageous and important video. This is an issue so under reported especially in sport and 100% in cycling. Like teenagers we see our stars and want to emulate them. Plus we are constantly told about performance equals power weight ratio. I see guys who are no well but believe they are in great shape. Thank you for talking about this because it is real and it is dangerous. Also you described the way eating disorders creep into a person’s life very accurately so you are one of the few who can recognise the signs and turn it around. I’m afraid 99% of sufferers do not and continue down the path to compromising their health, hospitalisation and in too many cases death. I should know because I sit on the Board of Directors for Eating Disorders Queensland.

Thanks for the courage to make this video, many good points that hit home for me...

Great video, something I think every cyclist has to deal with. Really good to hear a top rider and RU-vidr talk about it.

This is a good one for me. Thanks for the share. I too am looking to get to race weight but need to be aware of fueling training properly and take my time.

Thank you for being so open! I came to the same conclusion after trying to optimize nutrition for cycling but weight training as well bei g a hybrid athlete myself. All the best🤙😎

This just popped up in my recommandation. I'm no cyclist but do a little bit of various sport and notice this problem impact so many people across the board, from the various videos I've watched, be it horse riding, climbing, running. I also watched a lot of fitgirl content 7 or 8 years ago and it's rampant as well. What you said about not following someone else's nutrition or training plan is on point. Wishing everyone going through it to get better.

thank you for sharing this! you are right.. i see this way often and have also been way too light myself at the begining of covid... thanks for talking about this.. as a coach now i have learned its better to be strongest for what your body workes best at. Love the videos Chris!

Love your honesty Chris!

I had the same thing when I first started cycling, also it did lead to a eating disorder, many thanks for raising this issue

Thank you so much for sharing, this is a brave video!

Excellent video Chris!! Always appreciate your honesty... Next trip to the US, maybe come visit Fort Collins, CO 🙂

Always keeping it real Chris. I’ve generally always been overweight because of my lack of consistency riding and always felt that to keep healthy the key was eating a little better without counting and just getting on the bike. Operating in a deficit imo is never good unless drs and dietitians are supervising. We are complex and need a balanced healthy diet overall

Courageous and appreciated! I think your point of getting the most out of your body/run your own race is most important in all things. We are all different and aspirations/ambitions are good but not at the cost of healthy self care which has ramifications into not only your chosen sport but personal life, mind and body.

Brilliant video mate and thanks for being open 👍 🙏 any cyclist who is truly trying to improve battles thus, me included. Its hard for us all to get the right balance... thanks 👌

Extremely good and well expressed video, I love the candour and I have gone through a fairy similar situation putting lower weight before other things.

Thanks for the encouragement!

Thanks Chris. Well done you for sharing.

A very powerful and pertinent video, Chris 💯 ✊

Very brave and awesome info! Great to bring this topic up, it is more common than we prob believe.

Thank you Chris. It was very interesting to hear your story. I've made a couple of reflections on my behaviour in this area as well. We have one body and on how well we will treat it our future depends.

I completely understand you as a 20 year old elite cyclist I got it in my head lightest is best but by doing this I lost so much power and because of this I became useless and riding in a easy chaingang became a challenge I’m now just getting back to where I was and I’m just going to keep getting more weight on because power to weight only really matters on 30 plus climbs more weight means more power means more speed and hopefully more results great video for highlighting it 👍

My respect for you has gone to a new level…. Great video thanks

This conversation needs to be had much more; thanks for pressing it and opening up. I'm chronically unhappy with my body as I'm measuring myself against an impossible standard and this is wonderful to hear from another human cycling nut. Thank you. Subscribed.

Great video ! Went through something similar (161 Lbs with low BF %) dropped to 150lbs and I didn’t listen to anyone (family or friends) who expressed concern about my health I chase weight loss vs. staying healthy and getting fitter. Glad to say I’m back to my natural weight and feeling better plus having better results too Thanks for sharing

Amazing video. Thank you. Losing weight is extremely addictive. Your video hit home mate.

That one hit home, thank you Chris! Just do you, don't copy anyone else.

Man this is so similar to actions I’ve taken always thinking I need to get slimmer but getting worse in areas like sprinting and struggling day to day sometimes with energy and constantly thinking of food.. I’ve now started to fuel more and hope to get back on track.. thanks for creating this makes me realise I’m not on my own..🚴🤩👍👍

Great video I don’t know of any cyclist that is happy with their weight! I’ve struggled all my life with what a cyclist should look like . It’s even harder having a full time career and family to find a balance when it’s not your day job just a memory from the past we hold onto and think we can still achieve!!

Fantastic share, Chris - big kudos.

Great video Chris. Chapeau

I'm focusing only on my fitness and not on my fatness. Lot more fun.

I’m betting the vast majority of people watching this video will see themselves in it - I certainly have. Massive kudos for being so candid. As you said, is 2.5 - 5% weight drop REALLY worth the misery, moodiness and unhappiness it causes??? Not for me, nor you by the sounds of things. Top man 🙌

You hit the nail on the head there Chris, I've been unable/struggle to hit my numbers (as Ben can attest) recently, always feeling like the week leading up to sickness - where the legs feel weak, unable to recover sufficiently, and out of energy easy (feels sleepy earlier than usual). The only lifestyle change I made was eating a lot less than I use to eat after I had a stomach bug, never resumed my previous eating habits because I want to lose weight... And as it happens, that was when I started to feel weak and could not recover...

Brillant stuff, the personal experience is always the most valuable for us subscibers/followers🙏🏾👍🏾👏🏾👌🏿🤗🚴🏾‍♂️

Well said it’s a constant battle I can relate so much to this.

Thanks Chris appreciate your honesty.

Great video and honesty Chris. I could never back up a big day on the bike with another one until I got a coach who had me record my food the same way you did and gave me target calories as well as carb, protein and fat ratios. Since then I've eaten a lot more carbs, lost weight and do so much better on back to back rides

Fuel for the workout. I personally have never looked at how many calories I burn on a ride. Then again I don't use cycling as a fat loss tool. I keep an eye on my weight am i completing my workouts. I don't understand the mentality go for a ride then eat your calories after. We don't expect our cars to go with no fuel. Yet we expect our bodies to. Just because we can do doesn't mean we should

Thank you so much. I'm saving this one.

Wonderful!!! Best advice.

Agreed. The obsession with loosing weight and doing what others do can backfire

Hi Chris, glad to have watched this, thanks for sharing. You talk about the dangers of deficit’s, my assumption would be that it’s okay to be in a deficit on an off day though? Love to know your thoughts?

Surprised you could do anything with a 1500 calorie daily deficit. Last year my body stopped processing calories (not fun), lost over 5kg in 4 weeks, but could barely get out of bed during that time. I rate this as your best video yet, thanks for being so honest.

I know this is an older video, but I found this in my own way, I had lost quite a bit of weight but felt weak and just felt out of sorts. I put on 25 lbs and felt so much better and my riding and everyday life just improved overall. Now I don't really pay to much attention to the numbers on the scale as I can tell how I am doing in other ways and over the last 2 yrs, I have been able to maintain +/- within 5 lbs

This is very interesting video and something to think about. I was 61 Kg in June and now I cut it down to 55-56 Kg BMI of 19,6 the real issue is that once you go down it is absolutely painful to gain any weight back, because you feel you are getting bulky and flabby. I don’t think I feel out of energy, but I am quite sure that more often than not I push myself not to fuel enough during my rides and runs just because I want to keep the weight and this does effect performance in the later part of it. This mental barrier is really difficult to break, but I guess it had to be done.

Love this video. Thank you!

On a quicker timeline, I went through the same thing a few weeks ago. During a partial rest week before a race featuring climbing, I decided to lose a little more weight. That bit me on the butt a bit. Fortunately, I had enough time to correct things before that race.

Thank you for sharing!!!! Very important!!!!

Well said mate ! I have fallen into the same trap and ended up completely giving up cycling till I found a coach whose main focus was on nutrition and insisted not to focus on aesthetics- (pro look ) just as you said

Great advice Chris, not an over-share at all, in my humble opinion. I also spent a significant period in calorie deficit &, as life’s cycles ebb & flow, having put on a bit of weight & being in a more positive energy balance, my performance has improved significantly, as did yours. The same theme is permeating through the pro peloton, the shift is real 😂 Your mention of mindset at the time is also bang on - at the time one is in this calorie deficit one cannot see the wood for the trees @chris milller

Can't love this video enough!!!!

Can really relate to this. Raced National series in late 90s, early 2000s. Saw all the guys coming back from Europe lean, so I thought time to look at weight. Few months later, down from 71.5 to 67 something. The power went with the weight. Couldn't hold a wheel in the hornsby to Swansea. 2 weeks of kfc and it came back. Weight always being a battle from skinny to heavy. Interesting watch.

Great vid, definitely not over-sharing.

great video chris