Kyle King in full-on beast mode during his days at Eastern Washington University.
The next time someone calls Kyle King chunky, it’s probably going to be the first time.
The Coupeville High School grad, a five-time state track champion during his days as a Wolf, is built perfectly for what he is these days — a scholarship cross country and track runner at one of the biggest Division 1 college programs in the country.
Lean and sinewy, King, who is wrapping his college career at the University of Oklahoma after three standout years at Eastern Washington University, may not be on a “diet” per se, as he doesn’t actually have to drop weight, but he does have to know, in precise detail, what he eats on a daily basis.
It’s part of the price he and younger brother Tyler, a sophomore runner on scholarship at the University of Washington, pay to compete at the highest level of their sport.
Anyone who watched the King brothers relentlessly train during their days on Whidbey, running every day come rain, sleet or wind storm, knows they are super-dedicated.
It’s that commitment, along with a healthy dose of athletic talent (older sister Brianne was one of the best athletes in the history of CHS) that has carried them to a level of college sports few Coupeville grads have even dreamed of reaching.
For Kyle, that dedication starts with accepting the diet guidelines handed out by his OU coaches.
Fast food is forbidden, treats are a no-no (though King admits to breaking that rule) and beer and soda are four-letter words.
“Nothing too crazy really. You just have to be very conscious of what you are eating and not too much of it,” King said. “I usually cave once or twice a week and go and get a milkshake with a teammate.
Oklahoma’s runners are encouraged to eat red meat three to five times a week to keep their iron levels high, with ample mounts of fresh veggies tossed in for variety.
Want carbs? It’s brown rice and don’t even think about the white stuff.
King starts most days with oatmeal, topped with nuts and frozen berries. Some days he adds a fruit smoothie with yogurt and more frozen berries.
Lunch is light (a sandwich with one piece of bread or a tortilla with lots of meat and hummus with some carrots and an apple or banana), while dinner is generally steak or a chicken breast with brown rice and teriyaki sauce and steamed veggies or salad.
It’s all to fuel what might seem to an outsider like non-stop workouts. Workouts that often start at the crack of dawn to avoid the Oklahoma heat.
“I haven’t slept past seven o’clock since I have been in Oklahoma,” King said.
There are “easy days” — a nine-mile run, ab work (three 10-minute sessions interspersed with medicine ball sit ups and crunches, push ups, pull-ups and dips) and a second workout (either another 7-9 mile run or an hour of cross training).
And then there are “hard days,” which King actually prefers a bit.
Those days consist of hyper-intensive speed workouts, but allow King and his teammates a chance to have the afternoon off.
“What’s good about those days is we don’t have abs or a second workout, so I can actually relax the rest of the day,” King said.
Oklahoma is ranked fourth in the country in the NCAA preseason poll (behind defending national champion Wisconsin, Oklahoma State and Brigham Young).
The chance to compete at the absolute highest level of his sport, while finishing his college education, is what drew King, a fifth-year senior, to transfer from Eastern.
“The team atmosphere is very different, as each person is incredibly dedicated,” King said. “Everyone here is very excited and willing to make the sacrifices that it takes to be one of the top teams in the nation.
“It is definitely a lot different than running at EWU.”
Oklahoma is top-heavy in talent, with six fifth-year seniors, four of whom transferred in from different schools.
King and the other three newcomers, who jumped from the University of Delaware, University of Maine and Montana State University, all dominated in their former programs, but are now looked at as role players who will likely fill the third through sixth slots on the Sooner squad.
“Each of us were the number one runners from our former schools,” King said. “So we are all getting used to being in a pack and not being up front in the workouts.”
One year to be one of the best of the best. Maybe that milkshake can wait, after all.
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