There seems to be as many opinions and misinformation floating around about personal weight that I thought we might share and perhaps open our minds a bit. Here are the questions that I feel will provide useful info:
Age
Sex
Height
Present weight range (many people vary 3-4 lbs over a day)
Ideal weight range for optimum health (your opinion)
Ideal weight range for optimum swimming performance
What steps are you taking, or will you be taking, to lose or
gain the weight difference between present & optimum.
I'll start
54
M
6'1"
220-224
190-194
182-188
Drastically cut down drinking & desserts; resume active training
Parents
Former Member
39
F
5'3
110-112
110-115
115-120 (guessing)
I think for overall health, and for my other activities (running and yoga) I'm at a good weight. However, I do open water distance swims and for those, I think some additional buoyancy, insulation, and muscle would help. I'm fine with one or two mile lake/ ocean swims where the water temperature is 70 or higher, but for the longer swims (probably with colder water) that I want to do next season, I think I'll gain five to eight pounds (about half muscle and half fat would be ideal). Hopefully the muscle will come with some weight training, but I have a fast metabolism so the challenge will be to gain a few pounds by eating healthy foods (more lean meat, fruits, veggies, and grains) rather than the junk food I devour now.
39
F
5'3
110-112
110-115
115-120 (guessing)
I think for overall health, and for my other activities (running and yoga) I'm at a good weight. However, I do open water distance swims and for those, I think some additional buoyancy, insulation, and muscle would help. I'm fine with one or two mile lake/ ocean swims where the water temperature is 70 or higher, but for the longer swims (probably with colder water) that I want to do next season, I think I'll gain five to eight pounds (about half muscle and half fat would be ideal). Hopefully the muscle will come with some weight training, but I have a fast metabolism so the challenge will be to gain a few pounds by eating healthy foods (more lean meat, fruits, veggies, and grains) rather than the junk food I devour now.
