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Best Triathlon Race Weight Calculator

Ideal Triathlon Weight – Best Triathlon Race Weight Calculator

Whatever be the source of inspiration, a training friend, a magazine article or a diet book, it is a fact that triathletes are usually concerned about their weight. Such an obsession generally comes from the American culture that recommends women should be thin and men should have six pack abs. Triathlon is a great way for people to lose weight and stay fit.

They can focus on intense physical training and diet to achieve an ideal weight for racing. While the body type for running, cycling and swimming varies, triathlon expects you to excel at all the three. An ideal weight provides the heft you want in water, lightness helps you run faster and enough lower-body mass powers you through the bike course.

Determining the weight that is right for you demands some trial and error and attention to how you feel when you train. In this post, we try to learn about the ideal triathlon weight and how you can calculate the right race weight.

Ideal Triathlon Weight

Ideal Triathlon Weight – UPDATED 2020

Research suggests that body composition plays an important role in the performance of a triathlete. A very low triathlete body fat percentage can affect performance while you are likely to fall ill and lack energy if you are underweight. The ideal triathlon weight depends on one’s gender, age, body type, size and genetics.

Men are bigger and weigh more than women. Moreover, taller people are heavier in general. Triathletes also vary by body type. Endomorphs have a bigger bone structure and find it difficult to drop body fat while mesomorphs have low body fat levels and are medium-sized. Ectomorphs, on the other hand, are thin and long. All these types of people feel different at the same weight so it is not possible to set an ideal triathlon weight that fits all.

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The perfect weight for a person to race in triathlon is the one that makes him feel strong while running, cycling and swimming. If you feel you lack energy and strength to bear intense workouts, you know you have got too light. Your body experiences fatigue during the workout when you take inadequate calories. This is why you should pay attention to the way you feel rather than on scale numbers. Moreover, you should focus more on fat loss and not weight loss. Professional triathletes generally have a body fat percentage of 5-12% for men and 10-15% for women.

Triathlon Race Weight Calculator

Triathlon Race Weight Calculator

The primary factor that determines the ideal triathlon race weight is the body fat. So the best way to determine the race weight is to calculate your weight after reducing the body fat percentage to the optimum level. The optimal body fat range for men in the age group 20-29 is 3-10 percent while for women, it is 10-16 percent. You can easily analyze your current body fat percent, figure out the desired fat and then calculate how much you will weigh when you achieve the target body fat.

Here are some simple steps to calculate your triathlon race weight:

1. Calculate your body fat mass by multiplying the current weight by current body fat percentage.
2. Calculate your lean body mass by subtracting fat mass from current weight.
3. Calculate the goal weight by dividing the current lean body mass by goal lean body mass percent.

While factors like general performance and race distance affect the end race weight, calculating this way is a good starting point for beginners.

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Triathlete Diet To Lose Weight,

Triathlete Diet To Lose Weight

Triathletes create a calorie deficit to lose weight by either exercising more or eating less. Those who need to lose weight should make some efforts. Firstly, they should ensure they eat three meals properly. Then, they should avoid any small snacks and keep eating regular meals. The next thing to take into consideration is the amount of simple carbs you intake.

Also, consider how the total calorie intake is distributed among the meals throughout the day. Keep 2-2.5 hours gap between two meals. Make sure you go to bed somewhat hungry to have a longer time between your dinner and breakfast. If you snack at night, replace carbohydrates with a protein or healthy fat. Another important thing is to monitor the portion size. The key to losing weight is to take a portion in a meal and not eat any more than what you take in the plate.

Instead of reducing calorie intake, you can focus on eating wholesome healthy foods. Try replacing junk and processed foods with balanced meals made of fruits, vegetables, lean protein and healthy fats. Avoid items that contain added sugar. Replace white bread and white pasta with whole grains. Also, take more lean proteins like tofu, green vegetables, white fish and chicken. Ensure proper timing for your meals. You may want to take more carbs before a workout to get enough energy and take healthy carbs and proteins after a workout to help recover.

Stillman Weight Tables

Dr. Stillman weight tables are helpful at determining the ideal weights based on the triathlete’s sex, type and height. These tables have been used since earlier times for the suggestion of weights for runners.
They provide effective guidance and formula to determine a runner’s ideal weight. The values they give are in line with that seen in elite athletes. This is true because the suggested values are based on real-life weights and heights of professional runners.

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Here’s how the ideal weights of triathlon can be determined using Stillman weight tables.

For men
50kg is allocated to the first 5 feet height
2.45kg is allocated for each subsequent 1 inch height

For women
45kg is allocated to the first 5 feet height
2.3kg is then allocated to each subsequent 1 inch height
A lot of us may be within or outside the ideal triathlon race weight and might want to achieve it. However, it is important to understand that lighter is not always better and the ideal triathlon weight is when you perform at your best. Body fat percentage is the best way to determine the perfect triathlon weight.

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