American's weight and height: then and now [Archive]

Slater

11-01-21, 15:57

We're definitely getting bigger over time. Didn't realize that 60 years or so made such a difference:

"The average American man 20 years old and up weighs 197.9 pounds. The average waist circumference is 40.2 inches, and the average height is just over 5 feet 9 inches (about 69.1 inches) tall.

As time wears on, American men are increasing in both stature and weight. In the 1960s, the average man weighed 166.3 pounds and stood at 68.3 inches (just over 5 feet 8 inches) tall.

American women are also reporting an increase in height and weight over time.

In the 1960s, the average woman weighed 140.2 pounds and was 63.1 inches tall. By comparison, the average American woman today weighs 170.6 pounds, has a waist circumference of 38.6 inches, and is just under 5 feet 4 inches (about 63.7 inches) tall."

https://www.healthline.com/health/mens-health/average-weight-for-men#_noHeaderPrefixedContent

Honu

11-01-21, 16:47

jsbhike

11-01-21, 16:56

I don't recall many people in the 1980s being very big.

Inkslinger

11-01-21, 17:44

Sadly the weight is not healthy ! And even being slender you can have tons of visceral fat that is not healthy
Our current SAD = Standard American Diet is just that :) modern food is garbage and causing all kinds of issues

While I agree that the SAD is nowhere near healthy, but that’s not why they are fat. It’s laziness and inactivity. I eat healthy, I’m very active, and I could probably eat garbage every meal of the day and not be fat. I’m 46 years old, 6’-1” 175lbs, and I need to eat 38-4200 calories a day just to not lose weight. That’s hard for me to do, and there are many days I miss the mark by 1-1500 calories. There are many nights where I end my day of eating with a protein shake and a pint of ice cream.

Honu

11-01-21, 17:59

diet is more important :) yes being lazy is no help but diet is the main thing this is why you see construction workers that work a lot with a big ol gut ! And many others as example DIET is most important :)

You eat garbage you wont be in metabolic shape no matter how much you work out :)
you might kinda look Ok but you will have softness and massive visceral fat etc... TOFI :)

Age for sure under that 35 or younger you can get away with a lot but have some damage or again be a TOFI etc...

While I agree that the SAD is nowhere near healthy, but that’s not why they are fat. It’s laziness and inactivity. I eat healthy, I’m very active, and I could probably eat garbage every meal of the day and not be fat. I’m 6’-1” 175lbs, and I need to eat 38-4200 calories a day just to not lose weight. That’s hard for me to do, and there are many days I miss the mark by 1-1500 calories. There are many nights where I end my day of eating with a protein shake and a pint of ice cream.

duece71

11-01-21, 18:28

Garbage in, Garbage out. Funny that women have gained 30 lbs as well. Don’t tell them that! Lol.

Honu

11-01-21, 18:37

Garbage in, Garbage out. Funny that women have gained 30 lbs as well. Don’t tell them that! Lol.

Does this dress make me look fat ?

NO !
the fat makes you look fat :)

Disciple

11-01-21, 19:02

What is the median weight and height? A relatively small number of severely overweight people will bias the simple mean.

DG23

11-01-21, 19:30

Sadly the weight is not healthy ! And even being slender you can have tons of visceral fat that is not healthy
Our current SAD = Standard American Diet is just that :) modern food is garbage and causing all kinds of issues

Not all of us metabolize that stuff the same way.

Personally - I 'need' that stuff to keep from wasting away. A pure lard IV would suit me just fine and I would thrive on it without EVER gaining a single lb of fat anything.

Breakfast of champions:
https://i.imgur.com/CR1rvjK.jpg

My fat ass x wife on the other hand could gain weight just by SMELLING food. Has got to be some sort of genetic disorder and hoping that Darwin takes her out sooner vs later before she can crap out more hatchlings with the same problems.

DG23

11-01-21, 19:35

There are many nights where I end my day of eating with a protein shake and a pint of ice cream.

A single pint would piss me off. If I am sitting down with something like ice cream I want the entire gallon AND all of the good topping to load it up with. Caramel, nuts, whole milk, bacon bits, etc...

:)

Honu

11-01-21, 19:54

I am for animal fat :) big time !!! Like 2-3 lbs untrimmed ribeye with the cap still on :) OH YEAH and that sandwich throw out the bread and YEAH !

Not the same kind as visceral :) if anything most Americans need way more animal product and fat !

Canola oil safflower that kinda oil/stuff is utter crap and pure garbage IMHO :)
Breads and pastas made with refined or fortified or processed flours are also garbage which many eat :)
And avoid sugars :)

Not a veggie fan but if folks love it sure with some meat :) same with fruits not a fan but great desert or treat with meals

Really its about eating REAL food as it is IMHO that is healthy nothing from a box or can or package :) WHOLE foods no grains no sugars no industrialized oils IMHO

Not all of us metabolize that stuff the same way.

Personally - I 'need' that stuff to keep from wasting away. A pure lard IV would suit me just fine and I would thrive on it without EVER gaining a single lb of fat anything.

Breakfast of champions:
https://i.imgur.com/CR1rvjK.jpg

My fat ass x wife on the other hand could gain weight just by SMELLING food. Has got to be some sort of genetic disorder and hoping that Darwin takes her out sooner vs later before she can crap out more hatchlings with the same problems.

DG23

11-01-21, 20:05

I am for animal fat :) big time !!! Like 2-3 lbs untrimmed ribeye with the cap still on :) OH YEAH and that sandwich throw out the bread and YEAH !

Heck yeah! :)

When I cook meats around here I will generally toss some scraps towards the dogs. The parts with the good fat are MINE! :)

SteyrAUG

11-01-21, 20:39

Slater

11-01-21, 20:46

If you're 5'8" and weigh 166, I would imagine your waist wouldn't be much over 34.

AndyLate

11-01-21, 21:14

I wonder how many kids get turned away by the recruiter for being underweight these days?

Andy

Don't Tread On Me

11-01-21, 21:18

I’m 5’8” with a 34” waist and weigh in at 190lbs fully clothed and I feel like a fat ass. Then again, my better half says I suffer from body dysmorphia.

jsbhike

11-01-21, 22:27

What was the average waist circumference in the 1960s? Because weight doesn't mean shit.

People in very good shape usually weigh more than people in bad shape. Based upon height and weight guides, Bruce Lee was a fatass.

Yeah the BMI thing can give a very distorted picture. I wonder why there wasn't a waist measurement also, but I'm not finding anything from searches either.

Find some 70s and 80s pictures of some place you have been recently to compare then and now. All the better if the photos were taken in the summer time with the shorter shorts and tighter cut of the clothes of that time period.

Averageman

11-01-21, 22:51

I’m 5’8” with a 34” waist and weigh in at 190lbs fully clothed and I feel like a fat ass. Then again, my better half says I suffer from body dysmorphia.

I'm 5'10", 33 inch waist and 210lbs.
In my defense, I really don't look fat, more Neanderthal. 50 inch chest and 18 inch arms. I dont feel too bad about it, hell, I'm 60.

SteyrAUG

11-02-21, 00:06

If you're 5'8" and weigh 166, I would imagine your waist wouldn't be much over 34.

The guy was probably more like a 26. He was cut like a bastard and according to BMI over weight.

Slater

11-02-21, 05:47

When I joined the USAF way back in 1978 I weighed about 120 going into Basic and I had a 29 waist. Left Lackland weighing 126, since (back then, anyway) most people gained weight during those six weeks. I was 17 at entry and turned 18 during training.

Averageman

11-02-21, 06:30

Don't Tread On Me

11-02-21, 07:49

Back in the day, the Army took all skinny guys and fat guys.
The Drill Sergeants would team up a skinny guy and a fat guy together, they called them Mutt & Jeff. Mutt & Jeff went through the chow line together, the skinny guy got all of the fat guys carbs scraped off of his plate. It worked really well.
Nothing like a starvation diet on one hand and 4000 calories on the other. Pretty much if you weighed in good at Graduation, you're good to go.
If you think a hungry fat guy is funny, you need to look over at a skinny guy who's got gravey on his chin and is in pain from eating too much.

I had never heard of this technique and I can't stop laughing. When I went through, the fat guys just had "the meal plan" which basically meant they didn't get to eat any hot chow until the end of OSUT. My best friend to this day laments having to choke down some terrible sandwiches (think the sandwich scene at the chicken ranch from the movie Napoleon Dynamite). He definitely lost weight though and his double chinned baby face was more square jawed and stout looking afterwards.

Averageman

11-02-21, 08:01

I had never heard of this technique and I can't stop laughing. When I went through, the fat guys just had "the meal plan" which basically meant they didn't get to eat any hot chow until the end of OSUT. My best friend to this day laments having to choke down some terrible sandwiches (think the sandwich scene at the chicken ranch from the movie Napoleon Dynamite). He definitely lost weight though and his double chinned baby face was more square jawed and stout looking afterwards.

Every meal the Drill Sergeant stood at the end of the chow line with a butter knife, he would scrape potatoes, gravey, any breaded meat off of one plate and on to another. Even drinks weren't immune, chocolate milk would give a Drill Seargeant seizures. Cofffee or Water.
I think we had one Guy lose like 75 lbs in 13 weeks. I know he got new pants 2 x.

Disciple

11-02-21, 14:59

Based upon height and weight guides, Bruce Lee was a fatass.

If I recall the documentary I watched he was only about 135 much of his life; he bulked to 155 but felt it made him slower?

P2Vaircrewman

11-02-21, 15:16

I played high school football on a 1958 state championship team, no one was over 210. Today high school teams regularly have 300 lb+ linemen.

The LSU Tigers won the 1958 national championship of college football with two players over 200 lbs, 230 was the heaviest.

Leonidas24

11-02-21, 23:19

Every meal the Drill Sergeant stood at the end of the chow line with a butter knife, he would scrape potatoes, gravey, any breaded meat off of one plate and on to another. Even drinks weren't immune, chocolate milk would give a Drill Seargeant seizures. Cofffee or Water.
I think we had one Guy lose like 75 lbs in 13 weeks. I know he got new pants 2 x.

Dang I remember going through OSUT in 2007 at Benning and losing 40 lbs in 16 weeks without the fatbody diet. Went in at 210/36" waist and left at 160/32" waist. We weren't allowed cake, chocolate milk, or any of that. The regular meal plus a glass of powerade and glass of water was all we got, and if you didn't finish by the end of chow, tough shit.

SteyrAUG

11-02-21, 23:35

If I recall the documentary I watched he was only about 135 much of his life; he bulked to 155 but felt it made him slower?

Kinda. He started a weight training program but realized too much size made him slower so he modified to develop fast twitch muscles with greater definition. He averaged out at about the same weight but was way more cut.

During filming of Enter the Dragon (his final film) he lost weight but not from any training regiment, it was all stress, working too many hours and missing meals. He knew Enter the Dragon would be his breakout film it it was a success and it really took over his life. Ironically a life that ended a month or so before the premier of the film. One of the greatest tragedies is Lee never saw that he became an international star that people would talk about decades later.