Has anyone (scientifically or based on the fastest pro’s bodies…or otherwise) found a certain body fat percentage to yield the greatest power/speed produced per pound?
Or I guess to reword…Has anyone found a certain lb./inch measurement to yield the greatest power/speed produced?
I may not have worded that correctly but…at what point is too light too light?
I sincerely hope the ideal body fat % is close to 20%, cause otherwise I am in trouble.
When I comes to body fat or racing weight, I subscribe to the Scott Tinley way of thinking.
Since all peoples are different he said
“get in shape and weigh yourself” or in this case measure yourself
-5%
.
As far as ideal weight goes… "The trick is to keep losing weight until your friends and family ask you if you’ve been sick. then you know you’re within 10 pounds. if they start whispering to each other, wondering if you’ve got cancer or aids, you’re within 5. When they actually do an intervention, you’re at race weight.”
for male triathletes this works pretty well:
0.90
.
Matt Fitzgerald’s book, Racing Weight, talks about this. The average male pro body fat percentage is 6-10%, and the average female pro is 12-16%. In one 2007 study, the average age grouper female was about 27% and male was 17%. Generally speaking, when they matched body fat percentages to finish times, lower was faster.
I would definitely recommend the book - it’s a great read.
BF is not the entire picture in my opinion…Its important but overall body mass is most applicable to being fast. I know plenty of guys who have low BF but have way too much mass to be as fast as possible for their body. Think body-builders…low BF …way too much mass.
I’d be interested in those stats and what the correlation coefficient is for body fat % and race times. ie how much of the variability in race times is predicted by variability in body fat.
for male triathletes this works pretty well:
0.90
I’m about 2-3kg over that weight now, but it actually lines up almost exactly with what I think my ideal would be. Just haven’t gotten there because of beer and french fries and such:).
for male triathletes this works pretty well:
0.90
I’m about 2-3kg over that weight now, but it actually lines up almost exactly with what I think my ideal would be. Just haven’t gotten there because of beer and french fries and such:).
That’d be pretty farking skinny.
I race at ~70kg (5’10"), my Tanita lies and tells me I’m around 6% bf, +/-.5% - and I get the “eat a sammich” routine from everybody when I get more than a lb or 2 lower than that. I also seem to get weaker and have difficulty w/ recovery when I’m too light.
Racing at <66kg, as per that formula?? Well, I’d be lighter… dunno if that’d be “ideal” or not however.
I’m unlikely to ever find out - beer and I just have too much history together.
Unfortunately, the book doesn’t go into much more detail, although here is a link to the study that Matt Fitzgerald referenced:
http://www.amssm.org/body-composition-analysis-p-15.html?StartPos=40&Type=
That link is just an overview of the study, but maybe it’s a starting point if you want to find more data.
The lowest you can make it and not be sick.
If your family thinks you just came out from an hunger strike and you look like you’re about to disappear, then you’re good to go.
If your family thinks you just came out from an hunger strike and you look like you’re about to disappear, then you’re good to go.
Right. But if you’re female and look like Magali you can stop right there 
thanks!
0.90
That’s a little high… I’m at 140 right now and eating til my stomach hurts trying to put some muscle on. I’m a girly man on the bike right now but I feel fast on the run. I’m guessing it’s not gonna get any better for me in next month as I’m hitting the peak of my training.
I’m also 5’10".
To the OP, if you’re a strong cyclist right now at your current mass but struggling on the run try losing 5 lbs and see how it goes? If you’re a stud runner right now and your cycling needs a little help, try upping the protein and add some muscle(this is what i’m trying without much luck right now).
As far as ideal weight goes… "The trick is to keep losing weight until your friends and family ask you if you’ve been sick. then you know you’re within 10 pounds. if they start whispering to each other, wondering if you’ve got cancer or aids, you’re within 5. When they actually do an intervention, you’re at race weight.”
Hahahaha! Love it!
for male triathletes this works pretty well:
0.90
That is spot on my current weight, but at 5’9", I would say I am 5-7 pounds above ideal right now.
Definitely have to be down in single digits as a male, low teens for a female.