NoGaBiker

I ride my 15 pound titanium race bike, I ride my 3x-pound LHT. Enjoy them both. Unless you just want the pure joy of crisp, sportscar handling, or unless you have a reason for needing to actually go a certain speed, you don't need the faster geometry. Again, you may just enjoy it (driving a Porsche is very fun when I feel like it, but since I don't get paid to go fast I don't need one). Or you may be (eventually) riding with group riders who'll be able to go 1-2mph faster than you if they are on a race bike and you're on an LHT, and things are otherwise equal. 1-2mph will leave you behind the group in mere minutes.

On the otherhand, if you aren't pretty sure you'll do truly loaded touring, with the whole camping, self-supporting thing, then an LHT is overkill. Nothing wrong with an LHT even if you don't load it down. Nothing at all. It rides like a dream empty or full. I suspect that with as little riding experience as you have (no offense intended) you wouldn't have much of an idea of what the difference between an LHT and a slightly sportier but still touring-capable bike felt like anyway.

A lot of rambling, I know -- sorry. But in the end an LHT would probably suit you fine. leave the front rack and all the panniers and the fenders and lights and bells and GPS off of it and use it for sporty rides with not-hyper-serious road riders. You'll do fine. Load it down a lot or a little and commute and tour on it. It's a great choice if you only get one bike. In my opinion, it's easier to press an LHT-type bike into duty as a fitness or group-ride bike, than it is to press a race bike or even a "sporty geometry" bike into duty as a long distance heavily-loaded tourer.

Eventually, you'll either be content with the LHT for everything you do, or you'll add another, sportier bike to your stable. Then you would have two bikes that each did something really well, rather than one bike that does everything acceptably.