Does being fat affect your game?

nineballsafety8

nineballsafety8

6ft 5" 285, hits 'em hard
Silver Member
This is going to sound silly, but after getting out of the army, and having a messed up back, I have pretty much just given up on working out. I have two kids under 2, a full time job, and I am going back to school full time, so there is hardly any time to go to the gym. Also, I like to eat... ALOT!!!

Thus, I have gained 75lbs or so and am walking around at about 290. I feel as if it may be affecting my play, but cannnot really put my finger onto why though. I know that there are bigger guys who play great (Buddy Hall, Charlie Bryant, Danny Basavich, Shawn Putnam, Larry Nevel etc.) but my question is... hypothetically, would the above mentioned players (myself included) play better if they slimmed down.

I don't mean getting "fit" and working out, I mean strictly by dieting and losing weight.

Do you think that BMI alone has an affect on your ability to play at a certain level?
 
nineballsafety8 said:
This is going to sound silly, but after getting out of the army, and having a messed up back, I have pretty much just given up on working out. I have two kids under 2, a full time job, and I am going back to school full time, so there is hardly any time to go to the gym. Also, I like to eat... ALOT!!!

Thus, I have gained 75lbs or so and am walking around at about 290. I feel as if it may be affecting my play, but cannnot really put my finger onto why though. I know that there are bigger guys who play great (Buddy Hall, Charlie Bryant, Danny Basavich, Shawn Putnam, Larry Nevel etc.) but my question is... hypothetically, would the above mentioned players (myself included) play better if they slimmed down. It caught up with him later.

I don't mean getting "fit" and working out, I mean strictly by dieting and losing weight.

Do you think that BMI alone has an affect on your ability to play at a certain level?
Click to expand...

Buddy played a helluva lot better before he put on all that weight! Charlie Bryant may look big, but he is strong as an ox. Shawn Putnam is more tall than heavy and Larry Nevel is not in bad shape now, and still playing great. Danny Basavich was a freak, he could play good carrying all that weight. Of course he was still young too, only in his 20's. It caught up with him later.

I think if you feel better about yourself it can only help your game.
 
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If you are able to deliver the cue in a comfortable stroke where your weight doesn't hinder the total process than no that part it shouldn't matter about being fat. The part that will matter will be most likely anything related to endurance (long matches, playing all day etc). That might take its toll more on the heavier person.
 
I feel as if the times it "bothers me" are long shots where I am stretched out, and the ability to comfortably shoot behind my back.

I can still do both of them, but it no longer feels natural, and involves much more "focus"
 
jay helfert said:
Buddy played a helluva lot better before he put on all that weight! Charlie Bryant may look big, but he is strong as an ox. Shawn Putnam is more tall than heavy and Larry Nevel is not in bad shape now, and still playing great. Danny Basavich was a freak, he could play good carrying all that weight. Of course he was still young too, only in his 20's. It caught up with him later.

I think if you feel better about yourself it can only help your game.
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I would have to agree about Hillbilly being an Ox! I feel as if I likely fall into this category too though. I have been able to bench press 300+ since 8th grade lol
 
Define fat. One can be overweight, by definition, and be in shape. Every MET-RX strong man competitor is overweight by definition. By definition, I am overweight. I am 225 lbs and 6'-4" tall. I have relatively short legs for my height, right around 33" length pants. After having a lot of sports injuries from school, there are some things I just can't do anymore. I'm far less flexible as I used to be, it's a hassle just to tie my shoes in the morning. Bending over on long reach shots is a huge pain. That's why all my cues have extensions now.

The wonderful thing, about being human, is we adapt.
 
There use to be a guy from El Paso, believe his name was Ralph Gozalez, aka "FAT RALPH GONZALES", he was huge, and his size did not have effect on his ability to take your money at 9 ball. He was kind of a fixture in the practice area at at BCA thing in Sin City. Use to hang out in that area, with his son who I think held the money.

Not sure if he is still alive as he appeared to have some major health problems. Saw him play one night in Phoenix in a place that is gone Northern Lounge. Anyway Fat Ralph came in for some 9 ball, the guy was huge, but moved like a ballerina around a Bar Box, took all takers money, and moved on to the next bar for some more sucker plucking I am sure.
 
One of my friend loss weight, over 20 kg in couple months, and he said that now he don't feel very good at the table, he thinks that he more stable before :) But now he is more at the gym than at the pool hall :)
 
Weight

I find that it is not the playing but the stamina that hurts me. I can play for much longer periods when my weight is lower. I was at 290 and lost to 225 in 2012. Everything changed and I stopped exercising. On father's day, I weighed 270 and decided it was too much so I'm headed back down. I've lost about 10 pounds and have about 20 more to go. I'm a big tall guy and have no desire to be 200 pounds again. I don't think the weight hurts my play at all but I struggle late in tournaments or sessions that last more than 3 hours.

BTW, when and if you decide to drop the weight, cycling is the best thing I've found. If I ride 1 hour 2-3 times per week, I can't eat enough to gain weight. It is crazy what riding a bike for a few hours per week does for my weight. Also, I improved very rapidly cycling versus running, etc.

Good luck either way...
 
nineballsafety8 said:
This is going to sound silly, but after getting out of the army, and having a messed up back, I have pretty much just given up on working out. I have two kids under 2, a full time job, and I am going back to school full time, so there is hardly any time to go to the gym. Also, I like to eat... ALOT!!!

Thus, I have gained 75lbs or so and am walking around at about 290. I feel as if it may be affecting my play, but cannnot really put my finger onto why though. I know that there are bigger guys who play great (Buddy Hall, Charlie Bryant, Danny Basavich, Shawn Putnam, Larry Nevel etc.) but my question is... hypothetically, would the above mentioned players (myself included) play better if they slimmed down.

I don't mean getting "fit" and working out, I mean strictly by dieting and losing weight.

Do you think that BMI alone has an affect on your ability to play at a certain level?
Click to expand...

If you played and learned at a certain weight and then gained 75 lbs. then of course it affects your game. You tend not to get down as low because your belly restricts your breathing. This throws off or at least changes your line-of-sight and affects your aim. The result is usually a lower level of play.

ONB
 
I've been thin, I've been fat, and I've been just right in weight. Thin to just right is better for me in pool. Johnnyt
 
answering your question could be assisted by playing with the words a bit.

Does being fat improve your pool game?

Of course, this is merely playing devil's advocate but sometimes looking at something from a different perspective can help add clarity to an otherwise muddy situation.

In a long race, I don't think there is a question that the more overweight man will fatigue faster with all else being equal.
 
short careers

jay helfert said:
Buddy played a helluva lot better before he put on all that weight! Charlie Bryant may look big, but he is strong as an ox. Shawn Putnam is more tall than heavy and Larry Nevel is not in bad shape now, and still playing great. Danny Basavich was a freak, he could play good carrying all that weight. Of course he was still young too, only in his 20's. It caught up with him later.

I think if you feel better about yourself it can only help your game.
Click to expand...

Mizerak's career was also shortened by his weight.

But it's not just how well you play, it's how long your career lasts. I've known many good to excellent players who not only couldn't play as well, but died in their fifties, after gaining 100 lbs. or more.
 
Ask Steve Mizerak and Buddy Hall now. One is no longer with us and the other literally can't bend down to pick up the bridge, and holds onto the table rail as he walks from shot to shot. I saw that with my own eyes at DCC 2 or 3 years ago.

They both were the best of the best, but as they aged, their same generation peers whom were not obese could still play fairly close to their peeks.

Being fit and lean has the potential to improve every aspect of your life.
 
Sorry but I got stuck on the part about "two kids under 2" ...

All of a sudden ...diaper flashbacks from hell....

*runs screaming from the room*
Nooooooooooooooo!
 
so this is what I consider to be my "best playing shape"
218787_726449587418_3207766_o.jpg
playing shape.jpg

and this is me in my "current shape"
playing shape not so much.jpg

75 pounds sucks LOL
 
if your weight gets really out of hand you can get "belly hooked" on some shots, lol. Your belly keeps you from getting close to the table. Fat Ronnie had this problem so he started playing cards instead of pool.
 
CocoboloCowboy said:
Define what "FAT" is".
Click to expand...


Let me take a swing at it for you coco.

There were some fat chicks in my Friday night APA league that couldn't play a lick.
A couple of them were so fat...if they were a foot taller, they would be round.
That is what I call fat, and it had to affect their pool playing ability in too many ways for me to mention at this time.
 
it affects some more than others.

IMO I don't think being fat affects the abilty to make balls but I have tried to play some shots to intentionally "belly hook" my opponents.
 
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