fat skiers?

not sure I have an exact question, except to say that as I get older I meet more overweight people who are no longer skiing (or riding) for reasons x, y, and z but really because they are too fat. My main ski buddy is now pushing this limit; he's a goaty climber but gets much more winded and sweaty and skis worse as his gut stretches. On the current course in 10 years he'll be another "oh I'm a skier but ..."

Same thing happened to most of my surfing buddies but sooner in a sport that is much less tolerant of excess weight (other than fooling around on a long board in slop).

any thoughts? I'm 6'3" and 208 right now and really should get back to 200 but am not feeling any ill effects of my little spare tire yet adn hope that I never do ...

When I skied at Hood in June I noticed a group of kid racers with their instructor at the top barking orders with an Austrian accent. His wife was standing to the side on skis and she was quite rotund. Shaped like a balloon. 300+lbs? After the group was gone she pushed off and I followed. Most graceful skier I ever saw. Age, even without the weight, calls for lowered expectations for most yet some want to be "as good as they once were, once".  But that's not always an option and peer pressure sucks the joy out.

Anyone?

www.turns-all-year.com/skiing_snowboardi...ex.php?topic=18566.0

This is a serious health issue in our country. Diabetes and premature heart disease are soaring right now - world wide - though USA is leading - naturally. In our country - men in normal BMI range are accused of being underweight, women under 200 pounds at end of pregnancy are considered thin, live expectancy is declining for the first time in American history.

Calculate your own BMI with this link:
www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/.../bmi_calculator.html

Here are some weight ranges for normal BMIs (men AND women) National Heart Lung and Blood Association 1998.
5'2" 105-135
5'4" 110-140
5'6" 115-150
5'8" 125-160
5'10" 130-170
6' 140-180
6'2" 145-190
6'4" 155-200

Remember, upper limits are for WELL-MUSCLED men and women. Researchers are probably coming out with even tighter recommendations for Asians in the near future.

Alisa

PS if you are having shortness of breath you might want to talk to consider your cardiac risk factors with your doctor and make sure you are not at risk for heart disease.

Thanks Alisa.

The problem I've always had with BMI is that, at 5'9" and 170, it says I'm "overweight". Barely, granted, at 25.1 on the scale, but BMI has its flaws, I think. It's not like I'm a hulking muscular person, but overweight I'm definitely not. I've always found BMI a bit misleading because of findings like that.

...  I'm 6'3" and 208 right now and really should get back to 200 but am not feeling any ill effects of my little spare tire yet adn hope that I never do ...

I hope you never do as well, but you would be well-served to lose weight, and you may be in position to do so with strict dietary and exercise discipline.  Every part of your system will sooner or later be negatively affected by excessive weight, even if you are very physically active.  You may not be successful, but it is worth trying.  After years of trying (and talking with my nutritionist daughter-in-law), I'm convinced that at a certain age you reach a set-point and your weight will revolve around that with your metabolism varying to maintain homeostasis (never mind appetite, etc.). 

I'm mid 60s, 230 lbs (since I worked in an ice plant starting at age 18) and have for short periods of time been able to get my weight down to 190-210 when I was under 40 and 210-220 after 40 (i've been physically very active all my life) using extreme discipline (Atkins diet, once and a specially developed behavior modification program another time).  My spouse is 98 lbs and eats twice as much as I do    I exercise 45 minutes (including working with weights) and walk 4-6 miles/day, ski bc, climbing 1,000-2,000 vf or more 3-5 times per week, depending on weather and snow conditions (hike and bike in the mountains in the summer), etc. etc.  I have cut my average calorie intake by probably 40% since my 40s.   I guess I could stop drinking my glass and one-half of merlot each night, and the occasional 2 bottles of beer after an especially energetic day.  With the Aktkins diet, I could get down to 215, maybe, but last time it resulted in a host of intestinal problems; it is not worth to me it at this point.

... at 5'9" and 170, it says I'm "overweight".  Barely, granted, at 25.1 on the scale, but BMI has its flaws, I think.  It's not like I'm a hulking muscular person, but overweight I'm definitely not...

Precisely Marcus!

You are a well-muscled person, so you SHOULD be at the top of that range, maybe even a little over. But CULTURALLY you are almost "thin" (I bet you get called that in the non-athlete community all the time).

In your grandfather's day you would have been a rather hulking guy.

Just goes to show you...