Hey all - I am 67 years old, 6’2". At one time I weighed 258# by eating myself big. When I hit my 60’s I could no longer maintain the bulk, nor did I want to - gradually over the years I dropped weight - sometimes reluctantly as I liked being “big.” Now I am down to 210#. I only got serious about really losing fat since Sep 2022 by cutting carbs/sugar increasing protein but still working out 3-4 days/week - trying to maintain strength, etc.
Now it seems like I’m skinny-fat.
My waist relaxed is 41.5",sucked in 38" - neck is 16.5" so Navy calculator says I’m 26% BF - Obese (!). This doesn’t seem right - as I don’t think I look that fat - but maybe I’m in denial.
1st pics are from last Sep, then pics from December and finally a few from today. Still have quite a bit of fat around the belly/love handles and chest - moobs - the rest of me there is virtually no fat. Its tough, and depressing - I still work out hard and follow all the “cutting” rules - trying to maintain strength - but when you get to my age the payoffs are tiny, if at all. I am wondering if I am actually obese - I suppose according to my measurments I am - but there’s got to be some muscle under there. I guess to get down to 15% BW I would need to lose about 30# and get my waist to 35" because gaining muscle is now a uphill battle - and that does not seem appealing to me at all - psychologically - being so “small.”
Sep 2022:
At 67, you are super unlikely to make it to 15%BF. and if you do, the drugs you’ll need to take to get there are not wise to risk your health on.
Are you “obese” maybe, but so am I according to the BMI chart. You’ve made amazing progress, stick to it until you’re reasonably satisfied with where you’re at, and pat yourself on the back for making it as far as you have.
Thanks - that takes some of the pressure off, then! I didn’t realize that would be an unrealistic goal at my age - so that is of great help and reassurance. The hard part - as I age - is accepting how the body changes and the diminishing results (natty), but I still get that “high” from lifting. My wife says “don’t go by numbers - go by how you feel and how you look in the mirror…” -wise advice which I often forget - and yes I am grateful for all the years I’ve spent lifting - its made me strong in many ways. Cheers!
You’re making really good progress man. Just lift hard and eat quality meals based around protein and eliminate garbage and your body will keep looking better. If you’re going purely for aesthetics and good health, don’t get super focused on any numbers other than increasing the ones on the bar in my opinion.
I hope you know how inspiring it is to see someone of your age still lifting and still trying to better themselves. I’d like to try and give some vague rubbish advice like “keep doing what you’re doing”, but it looks to me that you’ve already got it nailed.
Thanks for the kind words! Evaluating where I’m at I am probably not getting enough protein - so I’m going to focus more on that. I think I’ve also been doing too much lifting too frequently - and am going to cut it back a few sets here and there - ala Coach Thibs approach when “reducing.” My goal is to get my squat back up to 300#. Never had a good structure for squats but its the lift I’ve always liked the most. If I can comp. squat 300# at 200# bw by age 70 I think that would be a great achievement. Cheers!
Thanks man! I don’t know your age but I’ve never felt “old.” In fact I abhor the term. I love to lift and still doing the powerlifts - mostly partials in the rack these days - to keep the poundages up and I no longer need to max out in competition style. I throw in some bodybuidling stuff - less weight, higher reps. Mentally - you’re always the same “age” because you’re still the same person, so to speak - but your strength DOES decrease just like they say, recovery needs more attention and injuries happen a bit more frequently. More warm-ups and stretches with the stretch band - more attention to the shoulder stability moves, etc. There’s nothing quite like the high I get from lifting - I never got that strong or muscular but I never gave it up - I plan to lift right up to the day I leave the planet for that Power Rack in the Sky. Cheers!
