Fat and out of shape former Athlete

Step 1 Go for a short run

Step 2 Go for a short swim

Step 3 Go for a bike ride

Step 4 Become hopelessly addicted, pawn off everything you own to buy every tri related product available.

Well first of all welcome. You have picked a great sport and know first off that you belong! Before I got involved I went to watch a race and I was extremely intimidated! Wow did people look to be in incredible shape! After I got over that I looked some more and started thinking there were people there too that kind of looked like me and if they can do it then I can do it! You can too! This sport has incredibly supportive people in it and it is full of people at all idfferent levels. This website is a great resource so first step is to use this site to build a plan. Pick a race and go ahead and register for it - today! Once you register there is no going back and then you really have something to work for. Don't think that you will be running your 5 1/2 min miles right away but start slow and try to be as consistant as you can. You will be amazed at what you can do over time but above all else - have fun. You should look forward to your workouts - if you don't then you are probably working too hard. Good luck!

Here is a question for everyone... At 250 lbs, when should I plan on entering my first triathlon assuming that I train hard? What is a good appropriate weight at 5'10 to be somewhat competitive?

First off Welcome

As others have suggested, I would pick up a Training plan and start training. I would not let body weight factor into decisions to train or race.

I hope that you find the sort of Triathlons as fulfulling as I have...

How much out of shape are you? Do you view yourself as a 180 person covered in 70 pounds of fat? Or a muscley 220 covered in 30 pounds of fat? Losing weight is important, but if a 315 bench is in your past, there's probably still a body prone to carrying muscle in there somewhere that may want to stay at a heavier (but more fit) weight.

There are some real horses on this forum that can get up and boogy. People that are on the big side of 200# and are fairly happy staying there. And that can whip out surprisingly fast miles both running and biking. Many triathlons have a Clydesdale category especially for people built like you. Clydes generally start at 185#.

This is the right place to be for what you want to do! There are lots of people here who have been and may still be in your shoes. And we're all out training and competing.

Start small and stay consistent. Use the training log feature. Add small increments to your training loads and over time good things start to happen! 4 or 5 months of consistent training time should be plenty prior to your 1st event. Sign up for something in April, if that work weather wise for you. I think having a goal to point at keeps you motivated in your training.

Make your start and enjoy this new life style!!!!
JB

This may encourage you. I was 227 lbs and was told by my 4 year old niece that I was Chubby. That effected me so much that I ordered exercise DVD from an infomercial and followed it religiously for 4 weeks. I lost about 25 lbs and felt great. I then decided that I was bored with the DVD program and looked into a "mini-sprint" 1/4 mi. swim, 14 mi bike & 2.6 mile run. I started by looking at this site and gaining what info I could about what to expect. I bought a new MT. bike and began by riding it to my local YMCA (7.5 Miles away), and swimming for 10-15 min at a time, then riding home. I acually enjoyed it. The run was a bit different as I don't enjoy that too much. I just found that having a goal was the most important part of this process. I didn't want to let myself down by not completing what I had set out to do. I researched the previous years times and set a realistic goal for my finish time. One thing I didn't expect was the amount of energy that I had come race day. I completely shattered my 2 hour goal and finished in 1:23 min. My point is that I know that your goal is possible. Now that you have decided to do this, you need to remind yourself every time you don't feel like training. Your first goal should be the triatlon, and not weight loss. If you are serious that will happen anyway. Oh yeah, I'm now 185 lbs and training for my second tri. Good luck.