Finding the right weight at an older age

I've been trying to tune my weight for good climbing performance.  I'm 6' tall, 55 years old, and here's the thing:

I recently went from 174 lbs to 158 lbs and I can feel the difference when climbing at my limit (16 lbs matters on the steep stuff, right?).  And my girlfriend loves my chest/abs now, which makes me happy of course.  

But I just saw a friend for dinner whom I haven't seen in about 2 months and the first thing he said, "Holy shit.. you look terrible."  I explained I had lost some weight to improve my climbing and he insisted that I just looked unhealthy at this weight.  Of course when I was 25 I could get away with this because I had fat in my face (collagen) that has declined with age, so now I just look gaunt.

Questions for you folks: how do you balance trying to look healthy with maintaining low body fat in order to climb well?  Would you gladly walk around looking like a cancer patient if you could send 1-2 grades harder?

John RB wrote: I've been trying to tune my weight for good climbing performance.  I'm 6' tall, 55 years old, and here's the thing:

I recently went from 174 lbs to 158 lbs and I can feel the difference when climbing at my limit (16 lbs matters on the steep stuff, right?).  And my girlfriend loves my chest/abs now, which makes me happy of course.  

But I just saw a friend for dinner whom I haven't seen in about 2 months and the first thing he said, "Holy shit.. you look terrible."  I explained I had lost some weight to improve my climbing and he insisted that I just looked unhealthy at this weight.  Of course when I was 25 I could get away with this because I had fat in my face (collagen) that has declined with age, so now I just look gaunt.

Questions for you folks: how do you balance trying to look healthy with maintaining low body fat in order to climb well?  Would you gladly walk around looking like a cancer patient if you could send 1-2 grades harder?

How did you lose the weight? if you feel strong then that was your intention so loose the Vanity and enjoy the send

, and yes I would, (20 pounds really makes a difference) loose more send more !

Keep in mind that just about 20% of adults in Colorado are clinically obese, and >35% are overweight. For your age group the numbers are slightly higher, and for the rest of the US the numbers are also higher. In other words, any adult with a healthy weight is going to look a bit malnourished next to the average American adult. If you accept body mass index as an indication of what constitutes a healthy weight for your height, your starting and finishing weights are both well within the upper and lower limits for an adult male. They're also below average for an American adult male, especially at your age.

If your girlfriend likes the way you look, what are you complaining about?

Answers to above:

How do YOU think you look? I like having visible abs, but my face looks gaunt and I look significantly older because of the low body weight.  But I care a lot about my climbing so that pretty much trumps everything else.  I just worry that maybe I'm getting too fixated on climbing over all else.

"Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels": Kate Moss was vilified for saying that... because it promotes eating disorders, in the eyes of some.

 I say looking like a fever victim and then having all your friends dogging on shit you flashed sounds like a good day out: Thanks for the encouragement, Fish, but my friends can climb 5.14, so the dogging works the other way 'round most of the time.  My weak ass is just trying to catch up before I die. :P

How did you lose the weight? It's amazing what not eating can do for your weight.  Myfitnesspal and some patience (it took like 3 months to lose 15 lbs).

If your girlfriend likes the way you look, what are you complaining about? Of course when I told my girlfriend about my buddy's remarks she jumped on board: "yeah, you probably should put some weight back on.  You look fine, but I worry you don't have any reserves if you get sick or want to do a big day outside."

She's right that long days kick my ass now that I'm lighter.  I doubt I'd want to do El Cap at this weight... I definitely bonked on long approaches when I was dieting hard.  And of course recovering from training is problematic at a caloric deficit.  But it sure feels nice to be lighter on short bolted routes. :)

(I wonder how Jonwong Chon would do on a Baffin Expedition... he'd probably blow away before getting to the base?!)
(Chon is 5'9" and 117 lbs.)

SEE YOU GUYS IN VAIL!

I would say if you are satisfied with the way you look and perform, and you feel good, that's all you need. People have told me all my life I am too skinny, it's less true now that I'm closing in on 40, but I realized a long time ago that these people are projecting their values (often fat values) onto me. Telling anybody else their body isn't shaped right is BS.

I think it makes sense to turn your body into the tool you want it to be. The points about your energy reserves are more relevant, IMO.

I did look like a cancer patient when I was 160 lbs at 6' and 45 years old.  Of course, I was a cancer patient at the time and lost 60 pounds in about 3 months of treatment.  But when I was out of treatment and got back into physical activity, I think I looked great at about 170 lbs.  I like food and alcohol too much, so I am at 195 right now, but still feel strong and am climbing well.  I'd like to get back to about 180, which is probably a good balance for my frame, but I'm not willing to sacrifice to do it.

Of course someone who has not seen you in a while is going to be shocked by a big weight drop.  The key is how do you think you look and how do the people you see regularly think you look.  If the folks you see on a daily basis are

John RB wrote: 
Of course when I was 25 I could get away with this because I had fat in my face (collagen) that has declined with age, so now I just look gaunt.

Grow a beard, or a bigger beard.

IMO climbing is less about how much you weigh, but more about strength to weight ratio. The 2 extremes to improve this ratio; stay the same weight and get stronger or lose weight while at the same level of strength. I personally feel that, unless you are overweight, improving strength is the healthier of the 2 options.  Starving yourself to lose 15 lbs in 3 months is no way to improve your overall physical fitness.  our bodies need nutrients and calories to recover and get stronger. 

John RB wrote: Of course when I told my girlfriend about my buddy's remarks she jumped on board: "yeah, you probably should put some weight back on.  You look fine, but I worry you don't have any reserves if you get sick or want to do a big day outside."

She's right that long days kick my ass now that I'm lighter.  I doubt I'd want to do El Cap at this weight... I definitely bonked on long approaches when I was dieting hard.  And of course recovering from training is problematic at a caloric deficit.  But it sure feels nice to be lighter on short bolted routes. :)

(I wonder how Jonwong Chon would do on a Baffin Expedition... he'd probably blow away before getting to the base?!)
(Chon is 5'9" and 117 lbs.)

You could always get a DEXA scan to know your actual body fat percentage, if you're clocking in at the low double digit range you have MORE than enough fat to fuel yourself for any big day in the mountains (extended high altitude expeditions not counted). At my lightest I clocked in with ~10lbs of fat, had an 8 pack and was getting the same comments you are from friends who hadn't seen me in a bit. I stil had 35,000 calories available from fat......I was perfectly fine doing 27 hours car to car eating minimal food on a grade IV route with a big approach. 

Now training while trying to reduce weight or staying in a calorie deficit on days you are climbing hard in season, that has bad idea written all over it. You DO need to provide your body the nutrients needed for recovery. They aren't triple cheeseburgers and 5 beers though.  

this thread is worthless without pictures

How sustainable is your current weight?

IMO we all have an ideal weight, the weight we can maintain without much effort, without feeling like we are constantly starving and agonizing over every calorie. For two people of the exact same height, that ideal weight can easily differ by 20 lb or more
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So if 158 is your normal weight, the weight you had maintained for many years, and you had just recently plumped up to 170, and then lost the 16 lb, I think your gaunt look will subside/improve once you are no longer trying to lose weight, and you will be happy that you lost it. If 158 is an extreme lean for you, as low as you could possibly go without resorting to more drastic measures, and the weight will come back on as soon as you stop starving yourself... then maybe putting couple pounds back won't be such a bad idea. Even as little as 2 lb can make a difference in how gaunt the face looks.

And of course, regardless if what weight you will try to aim for, make sure that you are eating healthy foods, lots of vegetables, lean protein, yadda-yadda. Helps with good skin tone and beauty look at any age. :)

mark felber wrote: In other words, any adult with a healthy weight is going to look a bit malnourished next to the average American adult.

I'll second this.  I lost 65-lbs about 10 years ago, and then lost another 25-lbs training for an ultra-marathon a few years later (have since regained the 25-lbs back).  My experience is that most Americans have a completely skewed view of what "healthy" actually looks like.  Being lean is getting so rare now that it is seen as anorexic by some.

Point being, don't base your health on how someone thinks you look.  Is your BMI in the healthy range? Is your blood work in an acceptable range?  Do you have symptoms of under eating such as dizziness/light-headed, irritability (hangry), difficulty sleeping, etc.?  Have you developed symptoms since you lost the weight?  Use actual medical measurements of your health to determine your health not someone's opinion, even your girlfriends.

I recently experienced this as well, losing about 35 lbs in the last four or five months (I’m 5’7 and went from 178 lbs to 144). I was overweight before and am now very comfortably in the healthy range for my height, but have received some comments from people along the lines of “you look sick” or “you looked better 10 or so lbs heavier” or “are you taking this too far” etc.  I think what someone else said about the average American being overweight rings true here in what comparison looks like for fit people, and it can be shocking to others to see a dramatic weight loss in a short time period (and the less you weighed to begin with the more it shows.) Sometimes jealousy is at play too, because weight loss is something many many people want to achieve but find it difficult to succeed in doing.

My two cents is that if it’s showing in your climbing positively, you FEEL good, and it’s sustainable (aka you are not starving yourself) then go ahead and rock on with your bad self, and you know, fuck ‘em and stuff. But if you feel depleted of energy or find yourself wanting to binge eat or anything else concerning, bump up the calories a little bit until you find your happy medium. It’s not worth being a few pounds thinner if you can climb hard but can’t do a long day or are gonna pass out on an approach. I intend to lose some more weight, as I’ve seen definite real increases in my sending ability (especially on steep overhanging routes, the less weight there is to pull up the better) but will stop if it comes at another cost or becomes a problem.

Who wants to grab their partner's ass, waist etc, and be touching loose skin over protuding bones?!  Ugh.  

The more underweight you are the older and unhealthier you will look.  Looking like POW isn't worth the jump in grades. 

Jplotz wrote: Who wants to grab their partner's ass, waist etc, and be touching loose skin over protuding bones?!  Ugh.  

The more underweight you are the older and unhealthier you will look.  Looking like POW isn't worth the jump in grades. 

For what it’s worth, I’ve lost 120 lbs overall and I only have a small amount of loose skin. Losing 25 or so pounds is unlikely to result in any loose skin at all.

Kate Blume wrote:

For what it’s worth, I’ve lost 120 lbs overall and I only have a small amount of loose skin. Losing 25 or so pounds is unlikely to result in any loose skin at all.

It sounds like John's baseline was much different than yours.  I'm assuming he was already lean to begin with.  

Maybe he could post a before/after photo so we can all judge him fairly. 

Kate Blume wrote:  Sometimes jealousy is at play too, because weight loss is something many many people want to achieve but find it difficult to succeed in doing.

Jealousy can definitely be a factor. I've gotten some surprisingly negative reactions from co-workers because I chose to walk a short distance (1/4 - 1/2 mile) instead of using a motor vehicle, or because I rode my bicycle to work. The co-workers involved could have benefited from a little more exercise. I'm happy to say that I've found a new set of co-workers.

There just might be an element of jealousy or resentment behind the reaction the OP got from his friend about his weight loss.

Your height and weight put you at 21.4.

Underweight: Your BMI is less than 18.5.
Healthy weight: Your BMI is 18.5 to 24.9.
Overweight: Your BMI is 25 to 29.9.
Obese: Your BMI is 30 or higher.

You're 55 and still worry about what other people think of you?

Leave that to the teenagers.

curt86iroc wrote: IMO climbing is less about how much you weigh, but more about strength to weight ratio. The 2 extremes to improve this ratio; stay the same weight and get stronger or lose weight while at the same level of strength. I personally feel that, unless you are overweight, improving strength is the healthier of the 2 options.  Starving yourself to lose 15 lbs in 3 months is no way to improve your overall physical fitness.  our bodies need nutrients and calories to recover and get stronger. 

The problem we older folks have is that its almost impossible to put on muscle with declining T levels.  I have been working with a trainer, and he told me to go see a doctor to get Testosterone levels checked because I wasn't showing any gains.  Sure enough I had a free T level of 136, which is super low. Shots now, and I have been able to climb and train much harder and am cutting weight, which is easier to do after 50 than get stronger. 

My old sport climbing buddy used to say that sport climbing is all about not eating.