I have always struggled with the dichotomy of achieving a desired weight on the scale and achieving a specific performance goal with my running. That’s not to say that hitting a certain “race weight” has its benefits in your performance (optimal VO2max for one). The problem with my past obsession with the scale is that I found myself restricting my calories in order to lose weight during my training season. There are two problems with this:

Restricting calories during training can leave you depleted during your runs and affect your ability to replenish glycogen stores in time for your next run. In other words, you aren’t going to feel good while you run and your performance will suffer due to inefficient fueling.
What does a number on a scale represent anyway? I have found that if I am eating for performance vs achieving a look, I always end up happy with how I look and optimize my ability to perform to my potential. I find a more satisfying self respect when I place my focus and value in respecting what my body can do vs how it looks. Food is fuel and if you can remember to eat clean and sufficient for your training needs, you will always look and feel better.

Sometimes our obsession with a number on the scale doesn’t align with our desires for ability and performance. Remember that in the end, our bodies are incredible machines that can perform more than we think capable if we focus on what we can do vs what we weigh. And the reality is that oftentimes our idea of “ideal look” doesn’t even align with whatever number we decided was “ideal” on the scale. If you’d like more guidance on how to focus on proper eating for performance and help with kicking that scale to the curb, MTN RDY has a team of professionals ready to help including a registered sports dietitian.

Tailwinds,
Coach K