MAMILs - want to look better in Lycra? Start pumping iron!

TOTALLY!
Although it can be hard enough getting men to realise the importance of strength training. And that's without the fear of bulking up that many women have around this subject as well!

Isn't climbing a hill weight-training and aerobic at the same time?
Not convinced weight-training is a massively good thing in general. Too many football and rugby players have been unnecessarily bulked up and it causes them a lot of problems from too much strain on the ligaments and injuries from more powerful collisions. (Micheal Owen anyone?) Even too much hill-climbing can put too much strain on the ligaments. Core exercises are probably the most useful form of cross-training, maybe rowing is the best as it exercises almost everything and won't bulk you up. Free weights, maybe, if you want to improve your sprint.

And as for weight I mainly do aerobic exercise and I have no excess weight at 57 and I know people who weight-train and have put on a bit. That depends on discipline or having a system to lose weight as soon as you put some on. Regulation of weight is a minefield but it's basically down to having a good hormonal system, which regular exercise may help gain and maintain, and what used to be called will-power. Although, personally, I think the best way to do it is to lose any small excess, even 0.5-1kg, asap.

The only easy way to lose weight is not to gain it in the first place.

And this is a new discovery how, exactly?

Diet first. Then any exercise you can do regularly (that usually means something you either enjoy or is part of your day job).

Diet gets you slim. Exercise gets you healthy/mobile.

'A stiff 2 to 4 hour ride on a weekend surely does more to burn fat than any amount of boring gym time?'

absolutely not.

Fat people already do a lot of weight lifting - a lot of food into their fat mouths then trying to walk around with all that blubber around them. Yuk! I hate fat people. Too many of them now it's depressing. Getting like the US.

The main reason people are not lean is not because of not doing weight training, but because they over eat and over eat the wrong type of foods. Portion control is what fatsos have a problem with. They don't know when to stop pigging out.

Btw the best exercise to stay lean is running and chin ups. The latter the more the better.

Does Dr Rania Mekary by any chance have shares in a gym or health club?

Hang on a minute. The study compared people who do 20mins lifting weights with people who instead did 20mins aero. But which readers of this site just do 20min rides?

A stiff 2 to 4 hour ride on a weekend surely does more to burn fat than any amount of boring gym time?

I'm not going to suddenly grab some dumbbells in the sales!

Rule #0 (the rules are neither clever nor funny)

Rule #4

Yep, I'm at MAMIL & hope to be an OMIL There's only one thing with lifting weights though, they're so tedious!

I've no problem with the word MAMIL, it's a perfectly factual description of what I am!

What a dumbass article..must subscribe to 'Obesity' though.

So the survey didn't actually ask anyone if they look good in Lycra? That's just an inference of this article.....

A good athlete will do both disciplines anyway.

Is this article pointing out the bloody obvious or something ?

So basically the best way to keep fit is to put on some muscle because of course that burns more calories than fat and then do aerobic exercise.

People pay for this research ??

As for ronin says about MAMIL spot on, just like CHAV is used to denigrate a group in society. I am a MAMIL but been cycling in Lyrca since 28 ...

I have been saying this for 20 years, but based on performance not on image.. Cyclists should do weightlifting. (Not bodybuilding routines)

To start of with, I hate the word MAMIL. It's stupid and if you think about it, it's a negative acronym that tries to persuade men not to take up cycling. Wouldn't be surprised if it was brain stormed into being by the car lobby.

I think this research seems true from personal experience. A few years ago I practiced martial arts everyday for a year. It's easy to put muscle on like that, but when I was younger and used to run 5 miles 6 days a week followed by an hour or two of kung fu. I was much more lean. Now I have to watch what I eat much more...oh well, that's life I guess.

Now I'm back to cycling, which I guess I found again just in time (some days I like really like cake). However, now I understand what my teacher told me. He said:

Man is incomplete until he is married, then he is finished. In martial arts training terms there's a lot of truth in this.