All fair comments. However; Being obese is a very real health issue, and it is totally preventable.
A doctor friend of mine said that fat on the belly has a very poor prognosis. As fat builds up around the body, it also builds up inside the blood vessels. This can cause many problems such as heart failure, stroke and organ failure. Why would anyone risk doing that much damage to themselves?
A pilot is required to have a certain (good) level of fitness so that the chances of their body failing is low. It is not an exact science yet - genetics are involved, and a thin person is not immune from cardiac arrest - but being obese can definitely cause one.
Day to day flying is relatively low stress, but when problems occur such as EFATO, rapid depressurisation, diversion on low fuel, etc. the stress increases rapidly. If one is fit, then stress can be endured, but if one is unfit, one's stress threshold is much lower.
(Mr Swarzenegger had a heart valve operation some years ago, so a body weight of 245 lbs might have been too much for him?)
The BMI system is not a perfect measure of a persons fitness - it doesn't take the percentage of body fat and muscle into account, but it is a good starting point.
What I don't understand is how these folk get through their Class 1's - we are all weighed as part of our medicals.
Last edited by Uplinker; 29th Sep 2013 at 09:31.