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Oct 13

Pedal power: Losing it with Peter Calcagni

Diets that Work Comments Off on Pedal power: Losing it with Peter Calcagni

Padded shorts might be the most important piece of weight loss equipment Peter Calcagni owns. He says theyve been key to the daily commute a 60-km round-trip bike ride between his Waterdown home and his office near Confederation Park thats helped him drop 63 pounds since 2010.

It started as a strategy to lose weight, but cycling has resulted in some considerable gains as well. Calcagni, 53, says he has increased energy. He saves money on gas. His doctor has decreased his cholesterol medications by half and reduced his thyroid treatment as well. He loves the quiet mornings spent cycling along East Hamiltons Beach Trail. Weight loss is still part of the plan, but hes realizing all kinds of additional benefits, too.

I feel a lot better, he says. Its just wonderful because I bike home and I feel good and kind of too tired to be stressed out about anything me biking to work has got nothing to do with getting to work and back. I really just enjoy the time in between.

The Motivation

In 2010, Calcagni turned 51. At the time he weighed 271 pounds and was on cholesterol and thyroid medication. I thought, OK, I have to do something, he says. If I dont do something now Im going to be 65 and Im going to be 300 pounds which isnt good. I figured I was in trouble,

Hed tried diets that worked, but only for a while, and hed been a member at the Waterdown YMCA for a year and a half, but his schedule wasnt always compatible with class times. In the end, he turned to cycling because it was something hed loved as a kid, and lost time for as the responsibilities of adulthood took over. Marrying young and shuttling six kids around to their own extracurricular activities meant he didnt have time for many of his own.

The Approach

Calcagni started small, taking his hybrid bike out for 15-minute rides. He tacked on additional minutes as he gained stamina. In the spring of 2010 he introduced cycling to his morning commute. At first it took an hour and a half to bike the 25 km to work and he had to walk up the Escarpment on his way home. Eventually though, he was making it to work in an hour and invested in his current Specialized road bike. He started riding every day instead of just twice a week and the pounds dropped off. In 2012, when he hit a point where he was no longer losing weight, he lengthened his daily route by 10 km.

Calcagni says cycling works better for him than simply focusing on diet or going to the gym because its something hes able to incorporate into his day-to-day life. He has to get to and from work anyway why not make exercise a part of the process rather than an extra task he does at the end of the day?

It helps that he honestly enjoys it. If you want to succeed at your exercise or at losing weight I think you have to get passionate about what youre doing, Calcagni says. You have to like what youre doing or its not going to work.

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Pedal power: Losing it with Peter Calcagni

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