Does being fat affect your game?

So far everybody posting has talked about the physical effects that being overweight might have on your game, while I think most would agree that pool is 90% mental. It's pretty well established that exercise and diet have a profound impact on mental and emotional clarity. I think being overweight is going to take its toll on your game, through the limits on your physical stamina, but perhaps more so on your ability to concentrate and focus your mind on the task.

There's another thread right now about how Earl has seemed to improve over his level of play in the past. I could be wrong about this, but didn't he adopt his intensive exercise regimen later in life?

The thread you speak of is actually what prompted me to post this one LOL
 
From a hack's perspective. I'm 35. I started dieting around March. I'm down 25 lbs with no excerise. Dropped from 220 to 195. Should be more but I have cheat meals here and there and lost my grandmother and went into F*** it mode for a couple weeks around that time.

I don't feel like I'm playing any better, but I do have more confidence in myself overall and I'm sure that helps on the pool table. I didnt start doing it for pool, I started because I hated that doughy, gut, look. Still got some dough but the gut is gone and I dont mind looking at pics of myself now. Crazy how much your face changes as well with a little bit of weight loss. :grin:
 
hey man i respect your for all your hard work with being out of the military, kids, school and pursuing pool etc.

my personal opinion is that it can be a state of mind when playing pool. if you let it bug you, then it will bug you.

but gaining weight is something that always bugs me, and i have gone through my ups and downs with maintaining good weight. everyone does. especially whenever you get an injury. which i have had a few, and i am still keeping some of mine under check. i recently developed lower left back pain this year, and it got bad there for a little bit to where it affected my walking. but ive got it under control now and have been jogging now for a few months.

everyones injuries are different, but here are some things that helped my back pain. some stretches i found on youtube helped a lot, and i found that sit ups helped my back pain a lot as well. i have heard yoga can be really good for back pain, i was personally doing capoeira angola, my buddy is almost a master, and i trained with him for a few months, and my back pain would go away every single time i went in. its kinda like a slow moving yoga. i think my back pain is more of tightness rather than a sharp pain though.

since it sounds like you have a busy schedule, and if you cant find time to get a consistent work out schedule going, then i would highly recommend dieting. which you said, you love eating. i love eating too, i personally think that dieting is harder than working out. i boxed amateurs for 7 years and i come from a family of heavy eaters, and it is very hard to diet in my house hold. i would have to lead by example, and personally go out of the way to spend more time in the vegetable section, and cut down on the breads,meat, dairy, and carbs. all of which i love dearly.

to conclude, i think that when people say pool is a game, which i mostly agree with that it is a game. but i also think that a person who is physically in shape, has an advantage when playing. i think you will be less stressed, not as worried about a loose gut hanging on the table. look at earl stirckland, i think he is playing a lot better because of the weight he lost and he is working out a lot. just a lot of benefits in life to being in shape and dieting well.
 
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Well most of my life I have been "fat"or slightly overweight. Except for my time in the Marines. I'm 6'3 and currently about 280. Do I think it affects my game? No not right now, I'm 42. But it will sometime down the road because I have been having back issues for 10 years or so and I know those are not just going to go away.
 
I would not want to be bending over and walking around the table for hours with a belly.

There was also a very funny line a commentator used (against himself as it was a player review match), he said he was "belly hooked" LOL His belly got in the way of allowing him to bend over to reach a shot.
 
How your weight affects your game is not the important thing. It's the two kids under two that you should be concerned with. They are going to want to have you around as long as possible.

Lose the weight for them by what ever means, exorcise or dieting but lose the extra weight. You'll feel better about yourself and your game will show it.
 
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so this is what I consider to be my "best playing shape"
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View attachment 349268

and this is me in my "current shape"
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75 pounds sucks LOL

Not only does it suck, it's unhealthy...period.

Yes, you can be overweight and improve your game via practice and time at the table, but that's not the point. Being overweight is just plain unhealthy, it progresses to diabetes, heart and breathing issues, and it WILL catch up with you sooner or later.

It's not only lack of exercise, it's also improper diet and overeating.

Sorry to butt in and rant.

J
 
I don't know if "effects (affects?) your game" is the way I'd put it, but I think I do understand what the OP is asking. Speaking as a fluffy guy , there are times that it gets in the way, but I think being short has a greater effect than being fluffy.
As they've aged it seems to have had a effect on Buddy Hall's game and had a similar one on Mizerak's game as well, they just never seemed to carry the weight very well. You can be large and healthy,. Far to many of our contemporaries are over weight and too far out of shape. I'd love to be thinner. I think if you feel better, you play better, if you feel like crap, you usually play that way. Dropping a few lbs and being a little healthy certainly can't hurt your game. So if you get winded and sweaty from one trip around the table, I'd say your weight is having a negative effect and you might want to order a salad (and a light beer) instead of that triple cheese burger from the pool hall kitchen

Just remember, as a fluffy guy, even in the APA and even if you're a 6 or a 7, you don't get laid as much the ball bangin' 3 or 4 that is thin
 
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When I am over a shot, my belly hangs down and lowers my center of gravity. Makes fir a more solid stance.
 
I feel for ya Buddy. After the vehicle accident 2 years ago, I have gained a ton, whereas I used to walk 7 miles a day just at work.

I try and lean over the table and my tummy kind of bounces off the rails.

Yet, I play a guy in league that is so huge that his tummy almost hangs down to his knees. he uses the table to hold himself up as he walks around.

But still, he will run yer butt out at anytime. He does look so uncomfortable in doing so tho.

At this point, I am not very comfortable so can feel for anyone bigger than I am, and I am only a little over 200. I used to be at my peak at approx 175.
 
I just posted a video of me playing a new practice game I invented.

http://youtu.be/ahMX85EytCA?list=UUZ6LRTdgsjAtwAb_Nq025jg

I am right there with you on weight, 285 pounds myself.

In the video, you can see I can still deliver a good stroke on the cue ball and an accurate hit.

Having said that, I definitely feel the extra weight in my abilities and stamina at the table. It's just physically more difficult to play now.
 
Since we are talking about health, I will take this opportunity to highly recommend a Paleolithic Lifestyle. I've been on it religiously for 5 years now. Went from 20% bf, to 10% bf in the first year. The next 4 yrs I've maintained that 10% bf level the entire time.

Good health to all. Being healthy is "predominately" a choice you make yourself.
 
Yeah Buddy. Thanks again for all that info you sent me. Life has been a bit too hectic and haven't gotten into it yet but like the fact that I can still eat much of the food that I am used to, cutting out the crap that I usually tried to cut back on anyway.

Just have to make a bit more concerted effort in some of those foods.

I don't eat much for bread or wheat products anyway. Not a huge desert or sweets person either.
 
Yes it Does affect your Game

I can say from personal experience it does affect your game at least it does with me

I have always been a big guy even though I am short , My optimum body weight when I feel my best is about 195Lbs .

Over the past 10 years I have put on a ton of weight at my heaviest 354lbs I was lucky to be able to play through a two hour set ,

It affects the stamina for me most of all , those 18 hour marathon sessions are out the door , even now I have dropped to about 315lbs , still way overweight but I can feel the difference , my game has improved but still a long way from where i want to be

I am playing an easy 2 balls under what I did when I was 200lbs

I agree with what Jay Helfert said , when your in good shape. not only is the physical aspect of the game better but the mental as well improves because over all you feel better and feel better about yourself

I am hoping to shed another 100 lbs in the next year

Right Now I could give Danny Basavich ( Kid Delicious ) a run for his money in the round category
 
Green to you.

How your weight affects your game is not the important thing. It's the two kids under two that you should be concerned with. They are going to want to have you around as long as possible.

Lose the weight for them by what ever means, exorcise or dieting but lose the extra weight. You'll feel better about yourself and your game will show it.
 
BMI and fat aren't exactly the same things. I wouldn't use BMI as an accurate measure. However, I would suggest that being fat would definitely affect your back during play, and would likely affect your endurance. You should still be able to shoot as straight otherwise though.
 
yes, it does effect your game, which is why your lower back hurts, your feet are sore at night, why you are tired more often now than when you were younger. its the reason of several why insurance premiums are high, bc we eat shit food and don'\t excersise, and all this eventually leads to high blood pressure, which leads to strokes and heart attacks and gout and unexplained pains in your body which leads to you getting prescribed piils which leads to stomach ulcers and liver damage and kidney failure which leads to hospitalization which leads to more weight gain because you don't have it in you to eat properly and not excersise which leads to weight gain which leads to your lower back hurting and your feet getting sdore and having no energy which leads to heart desease and this desaese and tha t desease which leads to..................................etc.............you get it, so eat your veggies and fruits, stay away from red meat and take a good walk daily with pace chubby, otherwise it will lead to weight gain which leads to........lol................and than the worst thing of all, no, not death dummy, you won't be able to play pool...................... P.S. I purposely did not use punctuation, so don't try to correct my grammatical skills.


edit; hahahah look at that, the guy above me just proved my point and I didn't even know that was there. muaahahahahaaaahhhaha
 
yes, being overweight hurts a little

You have lesser stamina for long races.
Your legs gets tired easily
Your belly rests on the table. sometimes unknowing on a OB
Your fat fingers bumps into OBs when making a bridge inside a cluster

feel free add onto the list
 
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