How do you know when you have the Optimal Physique

I believe the old joke goes that you are approaching race weight when your mom is worried you’re sick and/or tries to stage an intervention!

In all seriousness, I believe Matt Fitzgerald discusses this in his book Race Weight, although it’s been awhile since I read it. You might want to try picking that up.

Loaded question...

Fine balance of healthy vs body image distortion.

Just don't get obsessed.

I know 200+ guys that are built like trains that get 10th overall at full IM races. They are NOT lean and NOT light.

They kill it despite what their physique is.

It's what best optimizes your strengths.

My optimal physique is when it's "better" than my Season of Eating (you know, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas parties, Christmas, New Year's Eve, Super Bowl, and finally ending at Valentines Day) physique.

When you are doing your best times in training/racing, but able to stay healthy to handle the training load. It's normal for weight to drop a bit as the season progresses, but too low and you will notice in terms of increased fatigue, delayed recovery from workouts, and less resistance to illness/injury. What that physique "looks" like will depend on the person's build--for some, "optimal" might looked ripped. For others, a little chubby. (There was a pro woman that for years the less politically correct called the "Chubby Bunny"!). For others, thin enough that their mother would complain. It just depends on one's body and how it functions best. Better to focus on performance and well-being than numbers on the scale and appearance in the mirror.