Any experiences here of roadies or TTers who’ve gone to tri (particularly mid/long distance) as to what happened to weight and body composition? I’m guessing most people put on a little weight from the upper body muscle due to swimming, but then again if you look at runners they have less muscle mass than cyclists so is there a change there when switching to multisport?
I’m guessing there are consistent changes but these vary with individual. What prompted this was I noted Kienle is an inch shorter than me and yet 5kg more (at 73kg) but then if you look at someone like Frodeno he looks more like a runner and is probably taller AND lighter than I currently am.
Any experiences here of roadies or TTers who’ve gone to tri (particularly mid/long distance) as to what happened to weight and body composition? I’m guessing most people put on a little weight from the upper body muscle due to swimming, but then again if you look at runners they have less muscle mass than cyclists so is there a change there when switching to multisport?
I’m guessing there are consistent changes but these vary with individual. What prompted this was I noted Kienle is an inch shorter than me and yet 5kg more (at 73kg) but then if you look at someone like Frodeno he looks more like a runner and is probably taller AND lighter than I currently am.
Take a look at pictures from Kona. Unless you’ve got Andy Schleck-like body composition you’re not going to gain that much muscle switching to triathlon.
IMO the reason weight gain happens with triathlon, specifically in bigger blocks of training, is that people aren’t able to control their appetite. If you ride for 3 hours, and burn 2,000 calories - that doesn’t mean you should need to eat a whole pizza at night - especially if you learn to fuel properly before/during/after training. I have been guilty of over-rewarding myself, but when I focus on nailing my nutrition, and replacing the calories that I burn while training within a reasonable window, it’s very easy to manage my weight. (6’2", 175lbs)
I lost weight when I switched to triathlon from cycling.
My bike racing weight was ~152-155. My tri race weight is ~148-150. My upper body also developed more…a bit more size and much better definition.
Reason - simply more training. I could get by on 150 miles max when bike racing (Cat. 3, Masters). So roughly 7-8 hours / week. When I started training for tri, not only did my bike mileage go up, i added swimming and running to the mix.
It seems to me that GC contenders and climbers have roughly the same build as marathon runners. (The cyclist having slightly bigger legs).
Riders that specialize in flatter stages (or sprinters) are heavier. They are probably similar in weight to triathletes. (Bigger asses but smaller triceps and back muscles then most triathletes).
Bottom line- the elite in all three sports are the same-
Low body fat and muscles proportionate to the activity at hand.
If you swim you need muscles to swim fast (not to look good).
If you are a cyclist sprinter- you need hugely powerful legs (again you do not need muscles to look good).
Cycling on the flat and swimming are more forgiving of excess weight. Most triathlons are flattish and running only makes up 30% of most triathlons.
Weight of elite athletes lightest to heaviest:
Distance runners
GC contenders and climbing specialists
Short course triathletes
Time trial riders and flat stage cyclists
Long course triathletes
Cycling sprinters
Swimmers
Running sprinters
Sports most forgiving of excess weight:
Swimming
Cycling in a bunch on flat ground
Cycling time trials
Long course triathlon
Multi stage cycling
Long course triathlon
Short course triathlon
Distance running
