An Endurance Athlete’s View On Weight

I was originally drawn to Endurance Sports for the challenge, but if I’m being honest, I also like how the race calendar gives me targets where I need to be in-shape.

As I’m writing this blog I’ve completed 6 full distance triathlons, 15+ marathon distance runs, and I can’t count how many races shorter than those distances. Do you know what? I still struggle with the scale.

Last year I went through a full distance training cycle. I was monitoring my weight daily and it was coming down. I was consistently losing about 2lbs per month. I was on a solid training schedule which I was executing and seeing results. On paper everything was going great. Despite this, the number on the scale was in my head. Why am I not losing more weight? It came to a head two months ahead of the race when I had to stop weighing myself altogether. I have no idea what my race day weight was, but I was at peace once I ignored it.

Key lessons I’ve learned along the way.

• Trust that your consistent training and proper nutrition will get you to your ideal race day weight.
• Your ideal race day weight is different from everyone else’s.
• You look awesome even though you may not think so.
• Do not pay attention to social media.
• Never compare yourself to other athletes.
• The only time your weight matters is if you weigh too little.
• Never, ever, under fuel a workout(s).
• Your body will only adapt to your training if you are appropriately nourishing it. Do not cut calories to lose weight while training.
• Expect your weight to fluctuate.

My personal experience.

Personally I see big weight fluctuations throughout the year. Sure, my diet is less strict during the off season, but I never really stop training (although my training hours cut back). Below are facts about my personal weight that I’ve never fully understood, but I wanted to include in case it can give anyone else some peace!

• My “fit for cycling” weight is about 10lbs lighter than my “fit for running” weight.
• If I’m going through a triathlon training cycle I initially gain a significant amount of weight.
• I typically don’t see any weight loss until I begin to add intensity sets to the bike. **This holds for me if I’m training for triathlon or just focused on cycling.
• I never feel like I’m actually in-shape even when other people tell me I am.

These bullets can be frustrating at times, but years of training and racing has taught me that losing weight does not lead to performance success. Success is only built from consistent training paired with consistent proper nourishment. Focusing too much on weight is all-to-easy to do and it can derail your goals. Let your natural race weight be a byproduct of executing your training plan.