6' tall and 180 lbs., just turned 53 y.o. When I was young, (20s/30s), I weighed about 160 on the same frame. I'd like to drop about 5-10 lbs. but it's not easy. I like to eat and don't exercise enough.
I think that the people who claim genetics and the people who say that it's all diet are both partly right. One's diet absolutely affects weight, and other health areas, but genetics are huge in determining body type. I eat like a pig at times, and always too many bad calories compared to caloric output. If I had a different metabolism, I'd weight 260 lbs. Guaranteed. Steak, potatoes, ice cream, more meat and bread, you name it. I never get above 180 no matter what. My Dad was never overweight, even when he drank a quart of Scotch every day. When he got married at 25, he was ex-military and had a 29" waist and a 16.5" neck. I have the same physique but eat a hell of a lot more than he did.
For that reason, I have a lot of sympathy and even empathy for overweight people. I would be quite fat if I had different genetics. That said, people who are overweight really need to figure it out and get slim if they care at all about their health. The human body is an amazing thing and can take a lot of abuse, (how much depends on genetics, again), but eventually it will say *FAH Q* and leave you on the side of the road holding your AAA card, so to speak. Whether it's cigarettes or bacon, eventually you pay the piper.
Genetics and body type are a hand we are dealt. Can't do a thing about it, just need to play the hand you're dealt as smart as possible. I feel so sorry for people who need to diet and exercise every day of their life to avoid obesity, it would nearly kill me to not eat what I want. But compared to carrying around an extra 50 lbs., which is like carrying 4 huge bags of groceries with you
everywhere you go, everyday of your life, I'd figure something out.
Lastly, if you are putting 250+ lbs. in the drivers seat of a 911, you are not having the same driving experience as the rest of us. Same with riding a MC, being on a sailboat or small powerboat, etc. You are balast, and not in a small way.
