How badly does being fat jeopardize a physical?
Posted by JackdawTime@reddit | flying | View on Reddit | 34 comments
Hey all! I’m new here, so I hope this is the right place to get some answers lol.
So I’ve been wanting to get my Private Pilot’s License since I can remember. My dad flew for Delta for half his life, so I’ve had an interest since I was a kid. However, I have also been fat since I was a kid. Started my first diet at 9, considered a gastric bypass at 13. I hardly eat, and I try to get to the gym regularly, but it’s incredibly difficult to even stay at one weight.
I’m currently 335, which…is pretty damn bad, yeah. But I’m down almost 40 pounds in the last few months, so I’m working on it :)
I occasionally try to find clear answers on whether I’d ever be able to pass a physical, but I never find anything conclusive, so I was wondering if anyone here might be able to help me out.
I’d love to be able to fly within the next few years, and I’ll continue doing anything I can to lose weight no matter what, but I guess I just need to know if that’s even a reasonable goal. Any help would be appreciated so that I at least know what to expect!
Guysmiley777@reddit
Calories in vs calories out. It's hard but your body isn't a physics anomaly that bypasses the laws of thermodynamics. And calorie dense food not withstanding - soda, boba, Starbucks style coffee (liquid candy bars) make it way too easy to get insane amounts of calories without eating a single bite.
JackdawTime@reddit (OP)
Absolutely, I think a big part of my issue is the amount of sugar and calories in what I drink. I’ve started to realize how bad most drinks are with sugar, so even if I try to be better with what/how much I eat, it’s tough. Gotta drink more water and less Gatorade lmao.
Anyway, I’ll keep working towards my goal weight, but I’m just not sure how long it’ll actually take before I could pass a physical
KBC@reddit
Diet soda brotha.
Carlito_2112@reddit
Unfortunately, diet soda is just as bad for you as regular soda, and does not have any meaningful effect on weight loss.
Several-Village5814@reddit
Diet soda is literally just carbonated water, flavors, and zero calorie sweetener which’s safe for humans in any reasonable dosage.
M2K-throwaway@reddit
Diet soda has no calories, that's literally the whole point. So yes, if someone is taking in 500+ calories of soda per day, switching to diet soda would make a HUGE difference for weight loss
_Gizmo_@reddit
Something else to consider is being able to physically fit in certain training aircraft and being able to get in/out of them.
JackdawTime@reddit (OP)
That’s a good point! I flew a Beechcraft Sundowner back when I was 13 or so, and I remember it feeling a little cramped even then. Either way I need to lose the weight, but it’s difficult trying to pinpoint when I’d be “safe” to go for it.
_Gizmo_@reddit
Look at the weight limits for common trainers like the C172 and Cherokee to give yourself an actual number. Let's say an instructor or checkride examiner is 200 lbs and you have full fuel. If you were 240lbs you'd be right on the light of the legal flight envelope for a Cessna 172.
x4457@reddit
These are incompatible statements. As someone who was once over 300, you don't realize how much you're actually eating and how much you don't need to eat to survive.
Anyway - you're at a weight where the FAA will almost certainly require an OSA sleep study, which you will likely fail and will likely result in a prolonged process to get your medical.
Lose the weight. Get on a GLP-1.
JackdawTime@reddit (OP)
I understand what you’re saying, and I’ll admit I probably consume more calories than I’d like to, but I mean volume-wise I probably eat a little less than a lot of average people, usually just a light meal sometime during the day, sometimes even every other day. I just need to work on making those meals healthier, which I am trying to be better about.
Like I said, I am working on getting down to a less dangerous weight, and I’ll continue to do so :)
Ok_Witness179@reddit
Volume and frequency of meals is irrelevant. It's amount of calories you intake vs amount of calories you burn.
Volume and weight are irrelevant. Doesn't matter how many cubic inches or cups, or how many ounces or pounds of nuts or Oreos you ate. It matters how many calories of those things you ate. And drinking counts too. Soda, sweet tea, Gatorade, all FULL of calories.
Meals are irrelevant too. You could eat 0 meals ever, if you otherwise eat or drink more calories than you burn, you'll gain weight..
x4457@reddit
You don't. You think you do, but you don't.
Trust me, I would know. You genuinely have no idea how much you're eating until you start actively tracking it.
Harry73127@reddit
Yeah eating 2000 calories of Oreos and eating 2000 calories of lettuce are two very different volumes of food. One fills you up and one will have you eating another 2k with other non-filling snacks. I’m overweight too, it’s a battle for me as well
VileInventor@reddit
Congrats on your weight loss
x4457@reddit
Thanks, I'm hoping not to find it again. The last time I found some of it was when I started flying for money. Turns out that shit is stressful!
But hoping to have permanently rehomed it now.
VileInventor@reddit
Most of the people at my school who were overweight chose the nicotine route to lose weight. I’m on the heavier side for 152’s and currently feel like i’m withering away eating 1600 calories a day. My stepdad has been flying for a good 30 years and the weight always manages to find him again. All that to say, I understand. I’m rooting for ya.
Av8torryan@reddit
OSA is pain in the ass for the FAA. I got a diagnosis of mild at 7.5 , and got a dental device and lost near 40 lbs and retook the home sleep study and was a less than 1.5 . Still on special issuance and have to due a in lab and fill out a shot ton of ppwk for a condition that is resolved .
Loose the weight! GLP-1’s work when combined with diet and fitness . They are life changing.
Flat-Barracuda1268@reddit
Getting into a training aircraft being obese is not a good place for you or the CFI. 172s are the most common training aircraft, and I'd say a couple guys at 225 is about the max. You get a small CFI and maybe 250 is workable, but past that you're going to be uncomfortable.
Shoot for 200, start getting ready at 250.
Gor-Gor_Returns@reddit
It's the complications of obesity that are going to be a problem. There are plenty of fat pilots.
Some airlines have a max BMI in the low 30s. A private pilot's is probably much higher but size wise you gotta fit in a small plane with another human next to you and safely move everything.
JackdawTime@reddit (OP)
Right, I’d need both my and an instructor to be comfortable, so I’ve definitely got a long ways to go. I assume if I could pass a physical, I’d be able to physically fit in the plane and vice versa. My first goal is 250, but I’m hoping to be able to get lower than that in the future. Quite a daunting task, but it’ll be worth it if I can get there
Negative_Swan_9459@reddit
I fly with people all the time who say they “don’t eat anything” and I watch them inhale 4k calories a day.
Everyone says get the shot (which I guess works for many) but you should start eating healthy and moving your body. You need to cut at least 100# to be comfortable in training airplanes and probably 130-150 to avoid weight and balance issues.
A bunch of airline pilots are super fat and have terrible routines/discipline. You need to have a massive lifestyle adjustment.
unable_compliance@reddit
Being fat itself isn’t disqualifying, but it’s all the other health issues that being overweight is a risk factor for, can be.
Track down an AME near you, and book in for a general consult. Do not book it as an actual aviation medical examination. They’ll be able to give guidance on what you can expect, run tests, and figure out if you would have any disqualifying factors without running the risk of failing it and having that follow you around for life.
In the meantime, keep your the good work. Keep losing the weight. Assuming you have a clean bill of health you will still need to be able to fit in a training aircraft, with a CFI and fuel in the tanks.
JackdawTime@reddit (OP)
This is really helpful advice, thank you! I didn’t even consider a consultation, that might be just a little bit more productive than asking on Reddit lol. I’ll give it some time and then hopefully if I can drop another 40 or so I’ll hunt down an AME and see what they have to say
VileInventor@reddit
Get on a GLP-1 and fill out this when you go to get your medical. https://www.faa.gov/ame_guide/media/CACI_weight_loss_management.pdf
EliteEthos@reddit
Yeah but why are you fat?
classysax4@reddit
Lose the weight. GLP-1s will help a lot. Then fly.
RevolutionaryRun7744@reddit
Talk to an AME.
flyingron@reddit
The obesity itself isn't necessarily an issue, but it raises all sorts of things that the AME is required to look at:
Hypertension, Diabetes, Cardiac Issues, Obstructive Sleep Apnea, etc... all which can be quite serious and be disqualifying or send you down the special issuance rathole.
JackdawTime@reddit (OP)
Yeah that’s essentially what I’ve heard so far. I haven’t had issues (at least nothing my doctor has mentioned) with anything serious like that, but of course I’m keeping an eye on it. Hoping I can lose the weight before I develop anything serious, but I guess only time will tell, and I’ll just do what I can
KCPilot17@reddit
Weight itself doesn't matter in the slightest. It's the things that come with it. Heart problems, diabetes, etc.
JackdawTime@reddit (OP)
That’s what I’ve heard, but I’m still nervous I suppose haha. I’m lucky to not have any serious health conditions beyond my weight, so I’m hopeful that I can lessen the risk if I lose it early enough.
Computerized-Cash@reddit
Sleep apnea
rFlyingTower@reddit
This is a copy of the original post body for posterity:
Hey all! I’m new here, so I hope this is the right place to get some answers lol.
So I’ve been wanting to get my Private Pilot’s License since I can remember. My dad flew for Delta for half his life, so I’ve had an interest since I was a kid. However, I have also been fat since I was a kid. Started my first diet at 9, considered a gastric bypass at 13. I hardly eat, and I try to get to the gym regularly, but it’s incredibly difficult to even stay at one weight.
I’m currently 335, which…is pretty damn bad, yeah. But I’m down almost 40 pounds in the last few months, so I’m working on it :)
I occasionally try to find clear answers on whether I’d ever be able to pass a physical, but I never find anything conclusive, so I was wondering if anyone here might be able to help me out.
I’d love to be able to fly within the next few years, and I’ll continue doing anything I can to lose weight no matter what, but I guess I just need to know if that’s even a reasonable goal. Any help would be appreciated so that I at least know what to expect!
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