Well, I have been training for almost ten years, including two world championships, and I am still getting passed by "bigger people", especially on the bike
(I am about 115 pounds
)! Triathlon is unusual in that you see people do well with a range of body types, because the demands of each sport are somewhat different. You tend to see swimmer/ bikers who are bigger and more powerfully built
(having a very lean, runner-type build is not really an advantage on the bike, at least on a fairly flat course, because heavier riders will have higher absolute power
), and then people from a run background
(or at least that kind of physique
) who tend to be leaner/smaller. Look at a pro start or at Kona age-groupers and you will see that even there
(where, clearly, no one is carrying too many extra pounds
), there is a wider range of body types than with, say, elite swimmers or marathoners.
In addition, even lean runner-types may end up getting passed on the run by people who look chunky, if their bike fitness is not up to snuff. There is a big difference between having the physique/training to run fast, and being able to pull off a strong run after a hard bike. This has been one of the hardest things for me to learn in triathlon!
Edited by Hot Runner 2018-04-08 8:37 PM