# Happy, Healthy and Heavy **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 15, 2009, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233 "2009-09-15T21:16:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![MissIntent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/97f17d/32.png) [@MissIntent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissIntent)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/141 "2009-09-17T19:58:00Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > Maybe Nicole can lift 80-lb bales of hay and I can’t. However, I can break the bale into blocks, and I can lift those. I guarantee you that horse would rather have me on its back, though. Do you know how to ride? I’m kind of doubting it, as most people don’t. And if you don’t, no the horse would probably prefer the over weight person who knows how to balance and has soft hands to a thin beginner who yanks the horse in the mouth and slams on their back because they don’t know any better. And if her 80lb bales are anything like the bales I work with, breaking them into blocks isn’t really an option unless you want a big mess. ---
**Author:** ![Unintentionally\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unintentionally_blank/32/5418_2.png) [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/142 "2009-09-17T20:08:46Z")
a HA! I finally found the tape measure I was sorting around for. Yes, my waste is 43 in non-supportive shorts, There’s a 10" area above that that’s 44" around. And I’ll agree, that’s some weight right there. But it’s not _70_ lbs worth. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/143 "2009-09-17T20:08:56Z")
> [@MissIntent](#): > > Do you know how to ride? I’m kind of doubting it, as most people don’t. And if you don’t, no the horse would probably prefer the over weight person who knows how to balance and has soft hands to a thin beginner who yanks the horse in the mouth and slams on their back because they don’t know any better. I’m guessing she meant “all things being equal, the horse would rather have a lighter person on its back”. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/144 "2009-09-17T20:10:19Z")
> [@Unintentionally\_Blank](#): > > Bear all the news you think you should, but 42" at 6’5" is sitting on my hip bones. My paunch is above it. If I lost the weight, it wouldn’t appreciably shrink my waist size. > > It’s damnear impossible to buy jeans. Everything they have ends at 42x30, maybe 42x32. Nobody expect you to be 42" around and tall. I wear 42x34, but only in certain brands. I’ve also shrunk a bit from when I needed a 36" inseam. I know what you’re going through - my husband is the same height and measurements, and a bit over the same weight. He doesn’t go up in waist size unless he’s **seriously** overweight, like when he was over 300 lbs he was up to a 44" waist. His complaint is that “big and tall” stores are really “big **or** tall” stores. We’re both working on weight, me to lose 10-15 lbs and him to shed as much as possible. I go up a pants size if I put on about 5 more pounds, so even though my BMI is still within the normal range (24.4, top of normal is 24.9), I don’t consider myself to be at a “good” weight. Unfortunately he finds himself in the “I can eat more because I’m more active” mindset, and he is, but he’s at a maintenance level of exercise. ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/145 "2009-09-17T20:10:38Z")
> [@Unintentionally\_Blank](#): > > Bear all the news you think you should, but 42" at 6’5" is sitting on my hip bones. My paunch is above it. If I lost the weight, it wouldn’t appreciably shrink my waist size. :dubious: You wear your pants above your hip bones, unless you are a teenaged black male, which I have photographic proof that you are not. ---
**Author:** ![Unintentionally\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unintentionally_blank/32/5418_2.png) [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/146 "2009-09-17T20:18:16Z")
> [@treis](#): > > :dubious: > > You wear your pants above your hip bones, unless you are a teenaged black male, which I have photographic proof that you are not. Which Black males are YOU looking at, and how close you lookin’ at em, they wear um under their buttocks! My pant size hasn’t changed in 10 years. My weight has been between 265 and 270 for 10 years. I’m not in as good a shape as I was 10 years ago. I’m also pushing 40. And my dog ate my homework. That said, I’m pretty happy with where I’m at, so long as I can maintain 150 bpm for 40 of a 60 minute exercise session. Rather than using MPH, or miles travelled, or calories burned…or body fat percentage. I’ve picked heart rate as the indicator I’m interested in. The abovementioned article on eating more after working out is interesting though, and something I’m going to have to chew on. So to speak. ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/147 "2009-09-17T20:28:41Z")
> [@Unintentionally\_Blank](#): > > It’s damnear impossible to buy jeans. Everything they have ends at 42x30, maybe 42x32. Nobody expect you to be 42" around and tall. I wear 42x34, but only in certain brands. I’ve also shrunk a bit from when I needed a 36" inseam. > **[Made To Measure Custom Jeans For Men & Women, MakeYourOwnJeans®](https://www.makeyourownjeans.com/)** > > Tailor made custom jeans, suits & leathers, MakeYourOwnJeans is the leader in providing custom clothing for Men and Women! ---
**Author:** ![overlyverbose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9dc877/32.png) [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/148 "2009-09-17T20:28:50Z")
> [@Unintentionally\_Blank](#): > > Yes, but muscle is heavier than fat. Without a body composition analysis, you wouldn’t know that you’d lost 20 lbs of fat and gained 16 lbs of muscle. How did your clothing fit? > > ETA: I mean nothing slacious about that comment, merely, you carried the weight differently. No worries - I didn’t interpret any salaciousness. The clothes fit pretty similarly - I noticed the biggest change in my lung capacity and efficiency when running rather than in my clothing. Perhaps I ate more than I thought I had been, but I kept a food diary and was careful to keep tabs on myself. Oh, well. Weight loss and fitness has gotten more difficult the older I get. After losing that 25 pounds, it was much easier than it had been before, but it’s still not nearly as easy as it was just 7 or 8 years ago. Right now I’m 8 months pregnant and it’s all I can do sometimes to haul my sorry butt out the door at night or onto the treadmill to get in a walk. But doing it almost always makes me feel better - better sleep, less heartburn and I can still breathe easily with this one whereas I wasn’t working out much this time last pregnancy and was having sleeping and breathing troubles. With respect to BMI, I think it varies widely depending on who you are and how your body is built. For me, I think I would need to be in the upper end of the weight range for my healthy BMI. Trying to hit smack dab in the middle would make it too hard for me to maintain long term, but I think that the upper end of that range is doable (with a lot of work) and reasonable. ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/149 "2009-09-17T20:39:02Z")
> [@treis](#): > > :dubious: > > You wear your pants above your hip bones, unless you are a teenaged black male, which I have photographic proof that you are not. Erm… you wear your pants at your hip bones, unless you have oddly placed hip bones or you’re into Grandpa pants. ---
**Author:** ![Unintentionally\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unintentionally_blank/32/5418_2.png) [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/150 "2009-09-17T20:50:50Z")
> [@ENugent](#): > > [makeyourownjeans.com](http://makeyourownjeans.com) BWAHAHAHAH! I said I wanted _jeans_, not skillfully handcrafted bits of artwork. 😃 Costco carries kirkland jeans for $12 a pair in 42x34. I was a happy happy boy when I discovered this. Previous to that, I was paying $40 a pair for Harley Davidson jeans. (Figures they of all people would be concerned about providing jeans to the less than waif-like) ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/151 "2009-09-17T22:43:10Z")
> [@Dangerosa](#): > > The problem - and it seems to be particularly important for women - is that as we age an extra five pounds a year ‘suddenly’ is 40 pounds sitting on your hips. This is why I’m much more concerned about _maintaining_ my weight than losing. I weigh the same I did in high school 25 years ago. I _didn’t_ gain those 5 pounds a year, so I never had to take them off, either. Which hasn’t been easy, either (it does require paying attention and exercise), but probably easier than deciding to take off 50 pounds next decade. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/152 "2009-09-17T22:56:01Z")
> [@overlyverbose](#): > > Anyway, I did all the marathon training without adjusting my eating and lost a grand total of 4 pounds over 4 months of training. It was incredibly disheartening. But, after I had my son, I managed to lose 25 pounds over a 6-month time frame just by eating better and doing more moderate exercise. Go figure. Did you breastfeed? Because some of that “baby weight” you put on while pregnant is intended to be converted to calories for the baby. Breastfeeding definitely burns calories and if you did that it might have been a factor in your post-baby weight loss. Or, if you didn’t, congrats on losing 25 pounds through sheer willpower and better habits. ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/153 "2009-09-17T23:05:30Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > This is why I’m much more concerned about _maintaining_ my weight than losing. I weigh the same I did in high school 25 years ago. I _didn’t_ gain those 5 pounds a year, so I never had to take them off, either. > > Which hasn’t been easy, either (it does require paying attention and exercise), but probably easier than deciding to take off 50 pounds next decade. That’s where I am as well. Though I’m within “normal” BMI - for me the trick is to stay at the weight I am (give or take five pounds). When I was in my twenties, my girlfriends and I were all “positive body image” feminists. You didn’t have to appeal to some MAN’S idea of beauty. If you carried a little extra weight or didn’t shave your legs, or had mousy hair - it was fine to just be who you were (and, it was fine to reasonably diet, shave, and dye your hair red or black - but really only red or black - blonde would have been catering to men’s ideals.) I wish “accept me for what I am” wouldn’t have been “and I’ll accept any weight that comes along next year without fighting it.” Because when I did need to loose 15 pounds, it was HARD - and I can only imagine what 40 would have been like - or my girlfriend who dropped sixty a few years back. ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/154 "2009-09-17T23:06:45Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Did you breastfeed? Because some of that “baby weight” you put on while pregnant is intended to be converted to calories for the baby. Breastfeeding definitely burns calories and if you did that it might have been a factor in your post-baby weight loss. > > Or, if you didn’t, congrats on losing 25 pounds through sheer willpower and better habits. Oh, the breastfeeding diet was wonderful! Sit on your ass, eat what you want (within reason), and watch the weight melt away. Trade sleep and sore nipples… ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/155 "2009-09-17T23:37:32Z")
> [@Mighty\_Girl](#): > > I couldn’t lose those 20 lbs. because when I starved myself to try it I felt like crap, couldn’t run worth a shit and [looked like a prison camp survivor](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2489/3814138358_0ff94c30ba.jpg), and I only lost 10 of those!. You look normal to me. Comparing yourself to a prison camp survivor is ludicrous and a bit offensive. ---
**Author:** ![overlyverbose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9dc877/32.png) [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2009, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/156 "2009-09-18T03:14:12Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Did you breastfeed? Because some of that “baby weight” you put on while pregnant is intended to be converted to calories for the baby. Breastfeeding definitely burns calories and if you did that it might have been a factor in your post-baby weight loss. > > Or, if you didn’t, congrats on losing 25 pounds through sheer willpower and better habits. Thanks for the congratulations! Actually, I did breastfeed, though I only lost the weight a year after my son had quit nursing. I got a nasty wake-up call when I found out that my cholesterol was at 274. I’ve never had normal cholesterol - it’s always hovered at 190-200 no matter what shape or weight I’ve been. But it was terrifying to think that I could be so close to a heart attack without even knowing it. I joined Weight Watchers online the next day and lowered my cholesterol more than 70 points by that weight loss alone and had exponentially more energy. Right now I work out about 4-5 days a week to help me sleep (I sleep like a rock now, even though my pregnancy is fairly advanced) and to keep me toned for delivery. My last one was 32-hour ordeal after four days of irregular contractions. I was really weak afterward because of complications, which were probably compounded by the fact that I wasn’t in as good shape as I could’ve been and because I’d been awake 48 hours. I doubt it’ll be that long again, but this time I _need_ to be ready. I have a son to take care of and a husband who loves me in addition to the new baby, and I can’t afford to be part of the problem if I have issues recovering. That’s pretty much my current take on fitness and healthy eating. I do it because I have to and it makes me feel good. ---
**Author:** ![Weedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/weedy/32/301_2.png) [@Weedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weedy)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2009, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/157 "2009-09-18T04:04:31Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > So are there any thin people who say that the BMI charts are faulty and shouldn’t be used, or is it only those who are overweight? My brother is pretty thin. He has been slightly to severely underweight his whole life. His lowest BMI was around 13, at which point he had health problems (tiredness, fainting and dizziness). It is still less than 18, but his health is fine, and doctors don’t find anything wrong with him. I don’t think he would say BMI shouldn’t be used at all, but he doesn’t have a problem with being outside the ‘healthy’ range. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mighty\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Girl)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2009, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/158 "2009-09-18T11:54:50Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > You look normal to me. Comparing yourself to a prison camp survivor is ludicrous and a bit offensive. Since when is hyperbole offensive? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2009, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/159 "2009-09-18T17:49:27Z")
> [@Dangerosa](#): > > You are a very attractive woman. > > If you stay 5’3" and 135, your BMI is normal - at 145 you’ve crossed into overweight. (You cross at 141, by the way, at 140 you are still “normal.” However, of course, there isn’t a shiny bright line that at 140 you are the picture of health and you have a piece of cheesecake and balloon up to a weight where small children point at you. And you don’t hit obese on the BMI scale until you are 170 pounds.) > > So, be comfortable with the body you have - - but if you inch much over that 145 lb mark, don’t become complacent. Its easier to lose ten pounds than forty. And its easier to loose it in your twenties than when you hit menopause and all sorts of shit happens. > (And I’m a 5’6"ish 43 year old “hourglass” shape. So I’m familiar with 'but ten pounds of that are in my chest!") Thank you. Yes, I could probably get rid of about five to ten pounds. I just haven’t gotten as much exercise as I should – I keep meaning to go walking with my dad when he takes the dog. (Strangely enough, I don’t eat nearly as much junk food now as I did when I was working. In fact, I actually LOST some weight. Go figure.) And I wasn’t making excuses with the “hourglass” comment, just in case anyone thinks so. I was a really scrawny kid – then I hit puberty and started busting out. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2009, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233/160 "2009-09-18T19:10:53Z")
> [@MissIntent](#): > > And her horse did appear to be a draft or draft cross. However, she also appeared to be doing dressage, where draft’s are a little more common (compared to other sports). Uh-huh. And she was doing this out of a preference for dressage, or because that’s about the only option when you’re draft-hoss sized? Do I take it then that girls who can ride, say, hunters or showjumpers are incapable of pitching fodder? I didn’t know. But I guess being able to puff yourself up for being able to tote a \*whole \*bale at one go makes up for a lot. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-healthy-and-heavy/510233.md?page=9)