In addition to my interests in general physical fitness, I also like to consider myself something of an outdoorsman. While I do not profess to be any sort of an expert, a combination of a few years in the Boy Scouts—before the organization got completely neutered—and my parents showing me these activities has given me a lifelong interest in camping, hiking, fishing, and other woodsy hobbies.
Since woodcraft has become somewhat popular in recent years—indeed, you can hardly swing your arm without hitting five “preppers”—this has prompted me to ask a question that has been nagging me about alleged survivalists for quite a while:
Why are so many of these people so goddamn fat?
While having a small layer of fat is likely a benefit in a survival situation (indeed, ancient Roman Legionnaires would cultivate an extra 10-15 pounds of fat on their bellies in case they were lost without food), it seems pretty obvious to me that carrying a debilitating amount of flab on your stomach would only hurt your chances of survival. In other words, I have yet to see evidence of a Legion that encouraged its men to be so out of shape that they were incapable of marching more than 100 cubits before dying of heart attacks.
Something that is impressed upon you in the Scouts is the “rule of 3”: you can survive 3 minutes without oxygen, 3 hours without warmth and shelter, 3 days without water, 3 weeks without food. And from there you have the Maslow Hierarchy of Needs and so on and so forth. The stress of increased body weight, labored breathing, lowered stamina, lowered circulation, higher body heat and a higher degree of perspiration probably doesn’t help that whole “retain oxygen and water” thing, and probably negates the mild advantages one has in the other two categories (I admit that I am just conjecturing here, I don’t believe there have been any studies involving dumping people of various girths into the forest with no supplies. If there have been, please correct me). Clearly, in this case, being obese would be a major negative.
This started a train of thought in my mind: Was there any case where a fat person could give legitimate advice on physical activity?
I see idiots like this in sporting goods stores far too often
Function Over Form
While this problem is most notable in outdoors related fields (at least in my experience), I have noted that in other types of physical endeavors you will sometimes find people who appear to be out of shape giving advice on fitness. And while in an overwhelming majority of the time these people can be ignored, there are times where one has to put forth the age-old “function over form” argument. This article will try to posit a few instances when you can ignore your gut instinct and take Fatty’s advice.
The first instance is if you can prove that his affliction is, in fact, glandular or genetic. Certainly there are overweight medical doctors, who would obviously know what a proper diet is like. And while it is not likely that all of them have glandular issues, if you can prove that this is the case, his advice may be worthwhile.
Secondly, while the stereotype of fat people with overinflated senses of self-worth is one that is oftentimes founded in reality, if he or she (and by that I almost always mean “he”) can truly function despite his (rotund) form, then his advice can be considered to be even greater than that of a trainer with a trim physique. Speaking hypothetically, if you were to find a fat person capable of performing, say, gymnastics at an Olympic level, I would legitimately say that his advice would be worth far more than anything I could give, as the muscular strength and endurance necessary to perform at a high level with such ponderous weight would be, speaking non-hyperbolically, Herculean.
In a much more realistic context, I would also posit myself as a mild example of this phenomenon—while I am not remotely what you would call “obese”, I freely admit that I am on the smaller side of “burly”, and could likely stand to trim down 10-15 pounds—having a day job and bills to pay means that I can’t be as lean as I was when I was a college kid walking several miles a day. However, I am still capable of performing every exercise and technique that I instruct my readers on—hence why I will always use pictures of myself unless I am incapable of doing so for reasons that will always be explicitly stated.
Thirdly, somebody might have been a physical specimen in their youth, but have gotten out of shape in their old age-their body of knowledge is still formidable, and they are still worth deferring to in questions of technique and experience. This can be observed in former athletes-turned-trainers such as many World’s Strongest Man competitors after their competitive days are past.
And finally, some sports do indeed require a bigger physique—namely, sports that require quick exertions of maximal strength such as Olympic weightlifting. To put it bluntly, the strongest men in the world (i.e.: the heavyweight class of strength sports) are not men that are going to be running marathons as well. Lifting heavy weights above your head will create a thick, heavily muscled midsection without doing any supplementary work. In addition to this, their workouts require an enormous caloric intake. There is also some theorizing that having an extra layer of fat on top of the muscles also provides a layer of cushion for the joints when lifting large amounts of weight.
Ignore that this fellow failed his lift.
Conclusion
In general terms, I always advocate the state of being strong rather than looking strong, so the first way to critique a fitness trainer is to see if he is capable of practicing what he preaches. More specifically, the type of training that you are seeking will greatly affect your assessment of the person in question.
So, I will state the blindingly obvious: most occasions where a person appears fat and out of shape, that person is somebody who has no business giving fitness advice. But if you keep an open mind, and put them to the test, you just might find a proverbial “diamond in the rough.”
Read More: Ancient Sparta Showed That Women’s Rights Are A Function Of The Economy
Agree with function over form. People seem to think that being skinny is the end all be all when many skinny people are just as worthless as fat people. Take advice from people who know what they are doing. If you want to be a fitness model then no don’t take advice from the heavy powerlifter but if you want to have a functioning form there is much value to be found there. IMHO a man should train for something other than sheer aesthetics alone and heavier men can provide you with much needed knowledge. When I played football the best advice I got was from burly men not guys with “shredded six pack abs” or whatever is considered the end all be all now. It all depends on your goals on who you should follow.
Does anyone actually think that being skinny “is the end all be all”? It seems to me that “skinny” is a derogatory term used to described people fitter than yourself. I get called “skinny” when I go to America yet I have a BMI of greater than 25! That is far from skinny.
In the article, it suggests that great strength requires a huge calorific input. I’m not so sure. I think it requires good technique as history is replete with examples of a great feats of strength without bulk. Modern performance theory is still based on this calories in = calories out fallacy which in turn dovetails quite well with the “brute force” approach to fitness. This brute force approach breaks your body as any weight-lifter with a shoulder, pec, knee or back problem can attest to.
However, we are learning that proper human bio-mechanics and breath control are what determine strength and power. Not how much food you shovel down your gullet.
No disrespect to the author of the piece but a day job and bills to pay are not a reason to be overweight. They are excuses and repeating them will stand in the way of you becoming lean again.
We look for symetry in faces and bodies as a sign of health. We look for beautiful women because they are usually more fertile. If these men are flabby gobs even if they are the best at something indicates likely disfunction.
Is there studies out to back this up (I know symmetrical people are considered more attractive). Sure I don’t doubt that fertility will be down with the fatties and super skinnies, but otherwise it should not make a significant difference with the main middle mass of people. Does a pretty face on a woman or a handsome face on a man make that much difference to their fertility. It can be somewhat of an indicator for higher T, higher E or higher GH for taller well built people, but unattractive people (assuming it is not due to poor health/diet) should be fertile too. Its not like there are not lots out there and from a evolutionary perspective I can’t see that it would have mattered.
Kratom.
1 oz a day in warm water is proven to increase muscle mass by 150% over a 20 day period and increase the length of a wang by at least 4″Lx2″W.
Noted. *Drops kratom into coffee filter
Good move brother. The coffee will further augment the gains by +25% due to caffeine and electrolytes *if* you add sugar/salt in the right balance (45/55).
Easily the strongest person I know is also fat as a motherfucker. But a professional powerlifter too. He’s a 320 pound primate
There’s no way on God’s green earth he could slim down to some metro, toned 180′ He’d fucking die trying
Of course a LOT of people are self inflicted fat. But genetics plays a huge part too. Some people, even if they can smash 500 sit ups a day, will always have that layer of abdominal fat, unless they outright kill themselves on a crash diet
Situps are worthless. Your abs show based on BF%
Yeah exactly
So if a man starves himself to 10% BMI to get the 6 pack, or 8 pack, how does he build shoulders? I’m natural fit so I was asking the one former power lifter in my gym how he got jacked, and he took one look at my body and said I need 300 grams protein a day. Fuck.
Based on personal experience, it’s not necessary to starve to get ripped abs. It’s more about eating the right things and working out hard enough. Focus on lifting not “cardio” because it burns fat the best.
Light cardio is good for sex life. When I started doing light cardio on my “rest” days in between lifting days, I started waking up in the night with erections like a teenager, and not even dreaming about sex.
You have to be highly disciplined with your diet and exercise if you want to maintain a 10% body fat, since leaving school I have always had a 32″ / 87 CM waist line, weight averages around the 76 kg mark, 176 CM, I am 43 now. There is a glimmer of a six pack, due to a preference for quality beers and wine, that is how it will be, My body fat is around the 15 + range.
I eat clean, no sugars not even artificial, I use coconut sugar on the odd occasion, avoid processed food like the plague, basically I am on a Paleo-ish diet, Fresh where possible, eat real food. Exercise regularly, again depends on your body type, I am not muscular, more athletic, no ways I could be a power lifter.
Anyone who wants to attempt to achieve the ripped beach body could try this website, full of paid freaks who do it for a Job. I have a life, gym and exercise is not the be all and end all.
http://www.simplyshredded.com/
As long as you’re focusing on the lifting (or other resistance training) that sounds accurate to me. I’ve met guys who swear by yoga on off days too.
Is he really “fat” (as in high body fat %) or just heavy (as in literal big bones+lots of muscle=skewed BMI)?
High as fuck. Stomach to rival a sumo. Get real, you think powerlifters are ripped?
The triathlon community has a whole division dedicated to 200+ pound porkers that nonetheless finish long races in repectable timeframes. They call it the Clydesdale Division. Those guys log crazy miles in training and some lumber their way through full Iron Man distance races, but for whatever reason carry a lot of extra weight around.
Anybody who isn’t handicapped can walk a marathon.
True, but some of those guys are logging sub-three hour times in Olympic distances. That’s nothing to sneeze at.
Guess that’s what they mean by “You can’t outrun a bad diet”.
This dude doesn’t look like he would fit in the doorway of that fitting room.
That’s how many of the “outdoorsmen” frequenting the Academy sports stores where I live look like. Even a big number of cops and deputies look like this.
I don’t get the fat cop thing at all.
Good God. That lad is not right, is he? Without causing offense to American posters, sure, we have some fat enough folks here in Europe, but the level of fatness in America is on a completely different scale. Here, you see mostly guys who’ve gone fat on their bellies and mostly its from beer and poor diet, but, you rarely see men like this guy above, who is fat everywhere on his body.
That’s true. I don’t think I ever saw an American-sized specimen here in Munich.
Absurdly most overweight Scots and Paddies have just the typical beer belly from the stout and lager, while having skinny little pict legs from walking a million times a day between the bookies and the pub!
However, once they have to loose the weight under doctor’s orders it comes off quickly and generally it shaves ten years off their appearance.
Heh. It’s funny. My legs also look pretty damn fine. Even got complimented on my buttocks by a girl. But above the waist-line, it is an aesthetic disaster.
No use being offended by the truth, and what you say is true. A few years ago I got back from working overseas for just under two years and was shocked to see that Americans were noticeably fatter than when I left, and they were already staggeringly fat before.
In my area it’s all to common. The other day I thought i’d take a mental note of the body types in my surrounding area. I had to stop counting , there were so many out of shape people, fat people, and morbidly obese people, I couldn’t count them all…it’s sad really. At one time the body types were as followed:
Majority= Thin average build, slightly muscular.
Minority= Strongman build,very Muscular,Bodybuilder
Rare= Fat , out of shape, Obese
Now the body types occur as Follows:
Majority= Fat, out of Shape, Obese
Minority= Strongman build,very muscular,Bodybuilder
Rare= Thin average build, slightly muscular.
(Depending on where one lives)
I like this observation, but, I know from visiting the States that the level and scale of overweight people is much larger than in Europe. Even , when I was walking around my home city last week there was a bunch of very large people coming my way and I knew before hearing their accents that they were Americans. Strangely, I did some of this obesity accords with their mental outlook, a kind of lethargy, incurious air about them.
I tell my children that those sorts were not to be found when I was young. I don’t remember noticing a significant percentage of obese here (Deep South, USA) until about 15 years ago. It’s a real shame.
I don’t think he’s normal either. An emotionally healthy person would not allow himself to become that large. I bet he hasn’t seen his penis in 8 years.
Oh come on. Don’t be so uncreative. He can walk through it perpendicularly!
You mean, perpen-dick-ularly…
Hm. Good idea, but does not fit too well in this context.
Idk, fat is surprisingly compressable.
Neandertal/ Devonian cold adapted genetics will be found to play a role in fat guys who also pack a lot of muscle at some point in the future, I reckon.
Cold-adapted Neandertal genetics will one day be found to play a role in the genotype of fat guys packing a lot of muscle, I reckon. Everyone in the world except Africans carry about 1-6% of Neandertal DNA, after all.
“while I am not remotely what you would call “obese”, I freely admit that I am on the smaller side of “burly”, and could likely stand to trim down 10-15 pounds—having a day job and bills to pay means that I can’t be as lean as I was when I was a college kid walking several miles a day. ….”
This sounds just like me. Currently I am (if you believe BMI scales) 15 pounds overweight. Admittedly, that extra weight has affected me. However, besides the fact that I am back in the gym, I am still pretty functional physically wise.
Cold-adapted Neandertal genes will one day be found to play a role in the phenotype of some fat guys who pack a lot of muscle, I reckon. Most of European descent carry about 1-6% Neandertal DNA, after all.
I kind of noticed that recently in some of the younger groups I meet when I’m out hill walking. Often, there are men, probably in their late 20s who lead the groups,who are quite overweight and seem to perspire and be breathless even after mild enough climbs. They’re always wind bagging away too about stuff and you hear them coming around the bend before you see them. There’s always something a bit bombastic about them too, like they’re self appointed experts about everything around the mountains. On one occasion I lit up my pipe near a vantage point I love near the top of a particular mountain after climbing it at a gingerly pace, and, one of these corpulent know it alls came over to me and told me to put it out as I could cause a bush fire. Needless to say, I ignored him as damp bogs are pretty difficult to ignite in hill rain.
Like this guy?
I have to say, I find him fucking amusing. As long as I can click the Pause button anytime.
Fuck, he’s an annoying bastard. One minute max, had to shut him off.
The funny thing is that he is being annoying about annoying shit. I love this. But I don’t love it so much that I would watch it twice!
Atleast hes not spouting off about how the world should accept how fucking fat he is and that hes proud of it like all the bitches that are that big.
Yeah. Fucking loved how he made fun of himself, heh.
13 seconds, what a retard
That speech impediment…
…is even his tongue fat?
It’s actually a fake voice for his alter-ego “Francis”. He doesn’t sound like that unless he’s doing his character, which is meant to sound idiotic. He’s quite intelligent and articulate when he wants to be.
That fatty does some semi acting
I think Victor Pride says in his lifting book (forgot the stupid name) that you use low reps for strength, mid reps for big muscles and high reps for endurance.
Following that logic and if one shares your values, does anything speak against simply focusing on low-rep while retaining a rather lean look?
Body of a Spartan.
Yes, that’s it.
I’ve heard great things about it but don’t have it myself. I do have his 30 Days of Discipline and it’s solid. Seems absurdly simple but very effective if you actually do all his steps.
Yeah, I have it too, I think. CBA to do it, though. Also, I do not see the point in empty discipline if there is no real passion or goal behind it. Although that depends on the reader, I guess. Anyhow, I am rather skeptical about that one.
…
I dare say she’d look fat in everything.
You must have read my mind
Is that Fatwoman, the newest superhero?
Maybe don’t get downwind from Fartwoman. She never gives her GI tract any slack at her size.
She fights evil with the righteous might of her Super farts!
She’s the feminist reboot of superman.
Or Catwoman. Because Halle Berry is giving men unrealistic expectations.
Big is okay when your under 30 but as you age; all that poundage is going to cause health issues – knees, feet, heart etc. Count on it- I have never seen it any other way for the most part. ……I would rather be sleek but keep just enough muscle up top for some power….I am middle aged and weight gain/muscle loss is the enemy. You gain weight looking at food. …… ….For chicks- all you men are welcome to the fatties- have seconds, thirds – 5ths if you want.
Although it is better to practice what one preaches, the fact that one does not does not invalidate the message of the sermon. One should still listen to an alcoholic medical doctor who advises one to refrain from drinking 10 beers every night.
In fact there is a certain validity to the “Do this or else you will become like me” type of argument.
I used to be very obese (around 290 pounds) in my teens. Then I lost quite some solidly and was around 200 for a while, slowly going down to some 180. Then I overdid it and dieted myself down to around 160 and that was somehow too much and now I regained a lot of weight and am quite chubby right now at some 200 pounds. I am not particularly unhappy, as it is not a key concern in my life right now, but I really look forward to shedding all that fat again. 🙂
Would you not just join a gym? I’m in one of those 24 gyms and sometimes love going around 11 or 12 at night when it’s mostly empty. There’s a few dudes around sometimes, but, mostly its peaceful and I love doing a few weights and some cardo stuff then in perfect concentration. It’s a completely different vibe to the daytime when its full of women and teenagers who are mostly not even using the gym properly (chatting and texting).
The trick is not to make it a chore, go a couple of times a week, when it suits your whole person. The nights work best for myself as mentally that’s when I often feel my best. I think it’s key to know this when you work out.
Three reasons why I am not doing that.
1. I am currently more doing the spiritual and healing work on myself. This is more important. But I feel I will be through, soon, then this argument will fall away.
2. I am in high debt and keep getting unpaid bills etc. No company will take my debit anymore and my credit card does not work anymore, either. Truth be told, as much as it breaks my heart, my old gyms that I kinda liked to go to are suing me because I could and did not pay my bills. I have to go apologize some day.
3. To lose fat, all you need to do is eat little. It is completely unnecessary to do any amount of sports. Caloric deficit is all that matters.
“To lose fat, all you need to do is eat little” True, but, this doesn’t necessarily make you healthier and more energetic, in fact it’s often the obverse.
I know you said that you’ve problems with bills and credit cards, but, surely you’ve municipal (free) gyms and pools in Munich that you could join. Apart from anything else, especially, if you’re not working, it’s good to have a routine a few days a week where you work out.your body. It’s get you out of your mental frame of reference for a while too. Besides, it’s also a social outlet and you get to know people over time, which, can be of great help.
Not sure if we have that. Might look into it once I am done with point 1.
I disagree about healthy, though. At least back when I lost the biggest heap of weight, I did so simply through healthy food. The reason why I failed the last time was because I ate terribly shitty food.
Once I lose the weight, I can still start doing something for my health, you see. Doing sports while trying to lose weight is frustrating, because you kinda need to eat to have the energy to do it – but still want to lose fat. Besides, you also become disappointed when all the effort you put into it does not result in any gain of muscle due to the caloric deficit.
“The reason why I failed the last time was because I ate terribly shitty food” The words that come out of our mouths can only be as wise as the food we put in it!
Haha. Now, how does that response fit into the conversation. Hm.
Well, it’s obvious! QED. The role of good nutrition is as vital to our mental lives as carbon dioxide is to all green plants….(I always think the role of photosynthesis/respiration in plants is one of the greatest miracles we take so much for granted).
“3. To lose fat, all you need to do is eat little. It is completely
unnecessary to do any amount of sports. Caloric deficit is all that
matters.”
You might want to rethink that. All the fitness gurus I follow say eat a lot and lift (or do some kind of resistance training) to build muscle and burn fat. Trying to cut fat by dieting alone is futile, in my opinion.
I dont really care what a “guru” says. The scientific background is pretty clear. Also, I did it very successfully.
I am following this conversation with great interest. Though most of us have heard the ‘secrets’ of fitness again and again, it never hurts to hear it…again! Good luck in the fitness quest a brother Tom, been there and still there brother!
I got pretty ripped by lifting a lot and eating whenever I feel hungry, which is a way easier in my opinion. Plus, with my way you build muscle while cutting fat. Of course, spending all day trying not the think about food works too, if you have the willpower.
I dropped from 117 kilo down to 68 kilo on diet alone. You are, obviously, very wrong.
Just look at any anorexic nutter – diet works.
It’s exercise that risks being futile if you can’t control your diet.
Well, technically, you can not cut fat while building muscle, unless you alternate caloric deficit and surplus.
Nah, I cut significant amounts of fat by eating every time I felt hungry and lifting weights a lot. That seems much easier to me than just starving yourself and thinking about not eating all day, plus you build muscle while losing fat. Granted, I wasn’t obese when I started, just somewhat overweight, but I think it would work for obese people too, if approached correctly. The caveat is that you have to eat healthy stuff, not sugary processed garbage. I think one of the main things that prevents people from losing weight is this idea that you have to be hungry to do it. Besides, who wants to look like an “anorexic nutter”?
Still, even if you eat tons of garbage and lift hard, you’ll get bigger and stronger, just also fatter. So I wouldn’t call it futile, depending on what your goals are (think NFL linemen or sumo wrestlers).
In my experience if you eat whenever you feel hungry and lift hard you will do just that. I never counted calories much but maybe my body was naturally telling me what it needed. When I say lift though, I mean short but devastating workouts where it’s difficult to stagger out of the gym afterward and you feel sore a lot of the time. If you’re out of shape, you want to build up to being able to handle that kind of thing.
Hm, interesting. I do like the idea that the body knows exactly what it needs, so it does make sense to me. Now that I think of it, the first time I lost a lot of weight, I did not count calories either. I just listened to my body telling me how much and when and what to eat.
That’s a good way to do it, I guess! You convinced me. I like the “living in the moment” kind of thing a lot lately.
Unless you’re on a cycle and not natty, you can’t burn fat and build muscle at the same time.
I’m sure you also lost several kilos of muscle also though
This just doesn’t correspond with what I’ve experienced personally and read from experts. Now I’ll admit I’m no white Ronnie Coleman, but by lifting hard and eating a lot and never being hungry (but eating very healthy) I’ve had my waist size go down as my quads, shoulders, and chest get bigger and everything get more defined. Right now, I’m about 6’2 and 195, with a 32″ waist, with a build I’d describe as “pretty good for a middle-aged guy.” That is, I don’t look ridiculous with my shirt off. When I started working out hard five years ago or so, I was around 205 with a 35″ waist. Not obese, but overweight and would not have wanted to take my shirt off in public. I’ve been down as low as 179 with a 30″ waist when I was focusing on HIT and not eating enough (way too skinny, I looked like a marathoner) and everywhere between my starting point and where I am now, which I think is near my genetic potential at this age.
I guess what you’re saying about it being impossible to do what I’ve done (burn fat and build muscle) might apply to some body types, though. Still, I believe that lifting hard and eating a lot (but only healthy) is the best strategy for the vast majority. Going hungry is counterproductive and an almost certain recipe for failure for most people.
Good luck, man. Like I was telling someone else in the comments section, I think going hungry is counterproductive and harmful. Seems to me that the stupid idea that you have to starve to lose weight is one of the main things that is keeping people fat.
There was an article on here a few years ago about some guy telling his Swedish girlfriend he’d dump her if she went to McDonald’s. She sobbed and went hungry instead. I wanted to punch that guy. I’d imagine that girl is on her way to being fat by now. He should have bought her a salad and some lean chicken instead, then gone on a walk with her or to yoga class or something.
Yeah, that’s quite crude. Often we keep doing harmful things to ourselves simply because some part of us does not feel loved. Then somebody shames us for doing these things on top of us doing them out of shame in the first place, and we only slide deeper into the darkness.
I did, but I’m sexier, healthier, and happier now.
Look at it like this. Hossein Rezazedah was obese despite lifting weights ALL day at 7 days a week at maximum heavy levels. This is because he didn’t curb his diet. Yes, he got strong as fuck, but you cannot lose weight without lean diet. Absolutely cannot.
I agree. I think we’re basically saying the same thing. What I’m saying is that you don’t have to go hungry to cut fat. If you’re working out properly, you can eat as much as you want, just not whatever you want. Those are two very different things.
Are you a guy or a chick????
I’m a man!
Unless you’re talking about rabbit food then nah.
When I was 117 kilo, I was doing Olympic weightlifting for about 3 hours 6 days a week (not including warm up or anything – 3 hours of hard lifting). I was on an organic diet of home grown rice, chicken and eggs, and vegetables, and locally produced pork.
It was very healthy and no processed foods. I could put on a kilo a month on that diet (that’s how I got to that weight).
So a healthy diet and a professional training regime still produces fat.
That’s why most super heavyweight strongmen and Oly lifters are fat asses. They all eat healthy as Hell, but they just eat so much.
After I stopped lifting, I went on a diet and shed about 2 kilo per month from diet alone.
Now I’m 186 cm tall and 68 kilo. I have a great body now with a 6 pack, nice quads, and good chest and shoulders. I do mostly push ups, sit ups, weightless squats, and long distance walking now. But to maintain this physique I have to eat small meals and skip lunch. The long distance walking is great fat burning exercise, but even with that I’ll put on weight again if I eat too much…
Maybe I’m just lucky with my metabolism, or you’re unlucky. I guess you’ll have to go around telling people they need to go hungry, I’ll tell them eat and lift and look like me. I reckon the world will be better off if people listen to me…but realistically people aren’t going to lift, so I guess it’s a moot point. Heh.
Well, it depends. How do you look? Tell the truth, do you have all 6 of your 6 pack muscles perfectly defined?
If so then, by all means, what you’re doing obviously works.
However, if you don’t then you need to cut fat and carbs from your diet until that changes.
That’s all that matters.
It’s a true thing that guys with v-shaped torsos are more attractive to women. This, by necessity, requires to make your waist as thin as possible to make your shoulders as broad as possible by comparison, and then do push ups or bench press to work your shoulders out even further.
A v-shaped torso signals athleticism and good health and even higher levels of testosterone (which in turn signals greater social dominance and fighting ability). This is why women have evolved to be more attracted to it – it signals good genes for their offspring.
Men with v-shaped torsos have hotter wives, or if they engage in short term mating then men with v-shaped torsos get more casual sex. That’s what evolutionary psychologists – the science – found. So any man interested in improving his value in the sexual marketplace needs to cater for this dynamic.
Good luck!
I thought of that, that maybe we’re talking about different levels of fitness and physical appearance. I’m well into middle age and would assess my appearance as “pretty good for a middle aged guy.” That is, I have flat abs and a cut chest and do not look ridiculous with my shirt off. However, I will not be on the cover of a fitness magazine anytime soon. You might be on that level, and I would agree that for that, past a certain age, you have to have a meticulous diet, but that goes far beyond just being at a healthy weight and body fat level.
Doesn’t working out at midnight fuck your sleep cycle?
Being heavy is always useful for self-defense… as long as it does not penalize agility.
Also makes you harder to abduct.
Generally speaking if I’m doing my regiment at the gym and need advice and no trainer is around, I’ll try to find someone who is cut and looks really fit because guys like that know what they are doing.
I would guess that most, if not all fitness centers make it a point to hire trainers who are fit and toned. I’ve never seen a fat guy trainer at any club.
A gym I used to go to had a very thick black girl who did the aerobics classes. She could really move though, probably better than I could have if I were into aerobics. I guess her obesity was partly genetic, partly due to a terrible diet.
Ha! Move to a big city and you’ll be shocked. Up until recently, almost every gym I been inside of had an out of shape (and not old) trainer, some fatty women too!!
I always see these fat survivalist types and get a good laugh. They would literally stroke out and die if they had to walk 5 miles, yet they think they have what it takes to survive a SHTF situation. SHTF is simply survival of the “fittest”.
A couple of years ago, I looked at some ‘prepper’ videos & noticed a significant percentage of the ‘preppers’ looked overweight & out of shape. I came away with the impression they were mostly just a guns & gear frat because if one is preparing for times of deprivation wouldn’t the easiest & most affordable step be to accustom one’s self with some level of voluntary deprivation before it becomes involuntary?
Its evolutionary biology. Men and women carry weight differently. Its less bad for a man to be overweight than a woman. A male who is 40lbs overweight can look good and be lineman in the NFL making bank with groupies. A female who is 40lbs overweight is pretty much not in anybody’s game.
Bullshit. Girls highly prefer v-shaped torsos, which by default require a lean waist from a lean diet.
Doesn’t take away from what he said.
Why? Being lean DOES improve a man’s attractiveness.
I agree with the original poster. Being 40lbs overweight as an ectomorph might not be a great look but for the mesomorphs & endomorphs it is not as bad especially if its well distributed. i am a harsher judge of women being overweight then men. I guess its very much related to the fact I evaluate women on their sex appeal whereas thats not the case with men. i also feel men tend to distribute the fat better than women (not including beer belly dudes) where it tends to go to their belly/hips/butt/thighs. Mass tends to add to masculinity, but detracts from femininity…assuming the guy is not a rolly polly low T high E.
For women mid 20s under yes they are hot for the V torso. The pop culture media focused on young people does focus on that lean buff look. As women get older though and lose their slim girl figure they are a bit intimidated by that look. Yes they are still DTF for those guys if he shows interest in her, but the dad bod guy or beefy guy is not a turn off for many women. If they have put on a bit of weight they feel comfy with a big dude. I know beefy/stocky build (like rugby backline) who do well with women in late 20s/30s/early 40s.
Somatypes are a myth.
Yeah, keep telling yourself that, fatty.
Wrong assumption. My BF% is currently < 10 and i go to gym/swimming 5 days a week. My observations is of those that I know in my fat city. Compared to being thin, having the lean V torso was good for me, but at 6% or %18BF I get treated better with more bulk.
I was a chubby kid around 12 and I decided to crash diet and lost a ton of weight but I was lanky.
It too a lot of willpower to actually begin eating to build muscle. Truthfully, now that I have added muscle, the little bit if excess fat doesn’t look as bad, and I know how to cut now so if it gets to high I can lose it pretty quickly.
I’d take a bit fatter and strong over a 6 pack but a balance between the two is kind of my goal. Not a lard ass, but not ottermode
I am curious to know your cutting technique. I am not being a wiseass, have always found it easy to gain a lot of poundage in no time whether fat or meat but trouble losing anything. Am in better shape than most people I know, can lift better than almost everyone I know well and out-bike most of them. So far only low-carb has shown any effect. Many assume I’m an out of shape asshole until we go hiking together, they are panting and I’m fine and they start saying “This isn’t a race, you know…”
When I cut I try to get the same amount of protein as when I bulk, do more cardio, and eat at 500-800 Cal deficit. It gets harder as I get older, but I have an easy time gaining/losing weight
Ok thank you I will try that.
Testing the waters for the coming #FATPRIDE movement?
It be #fat18s&>
Please, that only applies to fat women.
Actually, in the UK you get alot of beer using, pie eating fat blokes insisting they’re the “real men” and that taking care of yourself and working out is somehow gay.
There you have it. Another layer of social engineering designed to coddle and celebrate ugliness and weakness and and cause a contrived polarity shift of the natural order, ie:
Dumb is the new smart
Weak is the new strong
Ugly is the new beautiful
Trashy is the new classy
Gay is the new straight
Fat is the new fit
etc..
These kinds of things are why I have been forced to go from generally being live-and-let-live, to doubling down on being a blatantly outspoken hardline insensitive prick, with a dash of dry humor for good measure – their heads explode when the awful stinging truth is also funny.
Besides the aversion to working out, I kind of like how the femi-cunt sluts are getting the taste of their own medicine
“I don’t believe there have been any studies involving dumping people of various girths into the forest with no supplies.” On this weeks episode of ‘Survivor: BMI’…
There’s a dude at my gym who is ‘fat’ but you can tell by looking at him that he had enormous physical strength. His calves look like they’re almost the size of my thighs, his arms were thick and muscular and his head is huge. He’s just a large, thick dude. In fact, the only fat on him that I could see was on his belly. He always wears a t-shirt that says something to the effect of “I may not be ‘in shape’ but I know I’m stronger than you.’”
Anyway I’m doing squats and I see this guy walk in with a bunch of dudes who are yoked. I had my headphones on but they were all listening to what he had to say. I later found out he was the coach of the power lifting squad at the gym and competes regularly in competitions.
I never saw him in action until I saw one of his students struggling with a deadlift. 4 plates on either side, the dude couldn’t get it up. Coach Fattie walks up, says a few things to him, points, and appears to be talking about form. He then stands above the bar and deadlifts these 4 plates like they were nothing….and he did it while talking to the dude watching and pausing to show form.
I could tell this dude was strong the first time I saw him and it makes all the sense in the world now that he’s a powerlifting coach/competitor.
There are 2 Polish guys like that at my gym who I see occassionally. Not lean body builders by any means, but raw muscle.
“Fat” doesn’t seem like quite the right word for the guy doing the one-arm hand stand. Maybe “burly.” He definitely looks powerful. His build reminds me a bit of
Fedor Emelianenko. Not the kind of guy I’d want to mess with.
Yeah, I believe that body type is called endomorph. They have a round, semi-fat look no matter how much muscle they gain.
No. He has a high amount of body fat, but also huge slabs of muscle. This is a common strongman look, where they get their bulk from eating heavily and training hard (as opposed to bodybuilding, where they eat lean).
No. He has a high amount of body fat, but also huge slabs of muscle. This is a common strongman look, where they get their bulk from eating heavily and training hard (as opposed to bodybuilding, where they eat lean).
I’m pretty sure that’s legendary strongman Doug Hepburn. Broke god knows how many weightlifting records in his time, including being the first man in history to bench press 500 lbs (before steroids era)
Before steroids, it was next to impossible to get as big and strong as that dude while maintaining very low body fat.
Sports where they truly test athletes on a regular basis – football and Olympic lifting – have the “fat” looking strongmen.
LOL at testing in football and olympic lifting….
these dudes are on steroids in high school….in china and the former soviet union they give the kids juice before they teach them the olympic lifts…..if you get caught taking PEDs in the nfl you get banned for like 2-3 games…give me a break.
Only bodybuilders are using steroids for appearance, everyone else is using them for peformance.
Hepburn, a good role model for us Canucks. 5ft8 and 300lbs. I’m 9 inches taller and weigh slightly less! That was one big boy.
His bp technique was legend.
http://breakingmuscle.com/strength-conditioning/the-doug-hepburn-bench-press-success-formula
I have always been more impressed with physical capability over physical appearance.
A fatty is a fatty. It’s ugly. Ignore them all.
“being strong rather than looking strong” Do you suppose one can get a great muscular and lean body without getting strong? Please.
If you look strong you are (i dont mean those skinny kids who consider themself muscular).
Come on let’s be serious…
Fat american football players are just functional to the role, if two men impact at the same speed the most heavy one wins, doesnt matter how strong is the other one.
About weightlifting, look at london 2012, the guys with a bodyweight of 94kg (and not fat) had a total lift of 410-420kg.
The winner of +150kg category (who weights 190kg) lifted 450kg. The double of bodyweight to lift 30 kg more. Ok powerlifting is not about aesthetic but would you trust a trainer with a dad bod? If you dont look like an olympic athlete, looking fat is just all fat and lack of muscles and so power.
“Muh experience”
You may have a lot of experience but maybe is the wrong kind.
Fucking fat people is everywhere
When you see one of those huge NFL linemen that basically look like a total fat ass its important to understand the level of fitness they actually have. You are talking guys who are North of 300 pounds with a resting heart rate under 70 and who can exert immense amounts of strength very quickly. If you ever want to be really freaking impressed go watch an NFL center running wind sprints.
friend played whichever position that pulled out and ran upfield to block for the RBs. tackle I guess? He was 300 plus pounds and quick as a mofo
Guys are scary as fuck. I used to teach at Hofstra University many many moons ago. The NY Jets did a training camp there when I was teaching a summer class. I used to stand near the gate and watch them run drills. It isn’t until you see what these people can do that you get a real appreciation for how athletic they are.
getting pancake-blocked by a freakishly fast, yet fat, 300 lb man is NOT on my bucket list
“Guys are scary as fuck.”
I have a friend who played one season as a lineman in the NFL in the 70’s. He has stayed in shape and towers at 6’6″ and despite pushing 60, could still rip my arms off.
“would you trust a trainer with a dad bod?”
Like, say, Mark Rippetoe? Yes.
He is old now, he was not fat.
The worst attitude towards obese people is to feel sorry from them, like they’re helpless victims, this makes them even worse. You have to motivate them and even set goals from them to reach and also critically change their mental perceptions of the world. Get them interested even in pursuits like wildfire conservation, working on cars, or perhaps even stuff like playing a musical instrument. The underlying issues and low self esteem they often have stem from low energy mental states which have to be changed.
My friend’s little brother is a rotund tub of lard, and all the rest of his family wants to coddle him and say “he can’t help it”, so my friend straight up told him get off your fat fucking loser lazy ass and get in shape, stop drinking pop and eating twinkies, do you ever want to make friends or get laid?
Sure enough, being “mean” was the only thing that motivated the dude and now he’s lost a respectable amount of weight and gained confidence.
We need to bring back fat-shaming with a vengeance. It’s the best cure for obesity.
When I played rugby, we would get 2 kinds of fat guys trying out. Fat guys like the one with the pistol (Mac-10?) – when you pushed then hard, there was nothing under the fat except more fat and eventually, I assume, bones and organs. They didn’t last long.
Then there were the guys like the powerlifters and hand-stand man. Right under that outer layer of fat was a whole lot of muscle. “Welcome aboard, you’re our new Prop”.
“Certainly there are overweight medical doctors, who would obviously know what a proper diet is like. ” No the average doctor has a shorter lifespan than you..why would you trust him with your health?
Being fat myself, the best thing to take from fat people is the warning not to do things that would get you fat.
Sage advice: Never listen to someone who hasn’t accomplished what you want to accomplish.