I’m wondering if there are any out there on the boards who are overweight, yet push themselves to ride anyway. I can see a benefit for health reasons, but it can be quite a chore lugging an extra 30 pounds up my driveway. Sometimes I think I should lose the weight first and then ride…
I learned while being a bit chubby about 1 1/2 years ago, but my legs really feel the burn now.
Any thoughts and/or anecdotes on this issue…?
Keep riding… Put in 30 minutes every day and in a month you will only be carrying an extra 20 lbs up the driveway. 
It doesn’t have to be crazy intense, just get out there for 30 minutes and try and do it every day (this is the key). You’ll get way better at riding and your pants will start to fall down…
Pretty much win win
I used to carry around much more, riding a little every day really helps and it’s not that hard.
You can even challenge yourself to ride everyday for a month! very doable.
Terry Peterson (the unigeezer) started riding again to lose weight and check out his video’s now! https://www.youtube.com/user/ttt8699?feature=
ALL EXERCISE is good! Over weight people doing more intensive exercise will lose weight faster then those lawly gagging on a bike…
I’m a 40-something who started riding pretty seriously on a 36er about two years ago at 260 pounds. Within a very few months, I was 220 and taking up muni. I hover between 200 and 210 now and ride at least a couple of times a week. A 40-something riding buddy had a similar experience - dropped from 230 to 180 (both of our current weights are now height-proportional).
As others have said - any exercise is good, assuming no underlying health conditions.
YMMV.
I am more than 30 lbs over weight and I ride everyday I can. I am pushing myself harder and harder as I want to lose a lot of weight by the nationals. I have already dropped quite bit of weight in the past year.
Unicycling is the only sport that has managed to get me interested in exercise. I used to rock climb, bike race, play racquetball, ski, and then I stopped. Nothing interested me anymore. Biking took to long to get a good workout and running was just too boring.
Unicycling has really caught my interest. To me it is a life saver. So lose the weight by riding. Don’t wait. And when you lose that extra weight everything will seem so easy.
I’m not exactly ‘light’ either and I ride every day (when I’m not ill). I expect it’ll cause weight to drop off me eventually, but the main thing it seems to be doing at the moment is building muscle on my thighs 
I bought a QUAX for the extra wheel strength (double rim and 48 spokes) as I am aware that most unicyclists are around 50+ pounds lighter than me. I doubt I’ll ever be as well toned as Roger or Terry, but I can see the fat is burning off, even though the weight is fairly constant.
i learnt when i was ~40lb overweight as well… as much as it can be more of a chore to get yourself going, the effect that riding has on weight is dramatic.
When the weight comes off, everything gets easier, and so you feel even better about loosing the weight as you can FEEL the effect on your riding.
I learned as a lightweight teenager and then quit for almost 2 decades. By that time, I was at 225 lbs, which is 60 pounds overweight for my height. I started riding again in late '08, and my poor old Schwinn couldn’t handle it. I have bought a few Nimbuses(Nimbi) since then and I now hover between 160 and 165. Unicycling didn’t take off the weight for me. Eating better (cuttting out the processed foods) did that. However, unicycling was one of the big things that motivated me to lose the weight and it is certainly helping with keeping off the weight. Watching all these inspiring athletes on here will certainly push you to be a better human being! Good luck and trust me, you can do it too!
Ok, so I’m odd. I initially lost weight, then gained it all back. I think in my case I just ended up replacing fat with muscle. I’d love to convert about 10 more pounds though.
I am still a bit over weight its nice being able to throw the uni around with ease
I have gained 100 pounds since I started riding a unicycle.
Proof!
I’ve been riding for over 10 years. Continuously. And I haven’t lost a pound.
Maybe I should stop pouring beer into my Camelbak.
In my mind, I am a ripped hunk o man. My wife tells me that I am a
discusting fat body. The creaking uni and screaming spokes are arguments
in her favor.
As far as losing weight, I ride 3-4 miles per outing which helps me achieve my
goal of one day actually being ripped! 
I was cheering for the guy at the end!
If he can, we all can!
I would recommend aerosol cheese as “fuel” during rides. It goes well with Camelbak full of beer. A can of easy cheese fits nicely in a bottle cage on your unicycle frame.
(NSFW language)
This is some serious gourmet sh*t!
Here’s yet another slightly overweight older man unicycling his way to health. 230 lbs at just over 6ft. Looking to hit 210 by the end of summer. I love riding, love the burn, love the sweat. Slowing down and riding less is not an option.