June 22, 2012
Barrel Chested?
We had a meeting last Sunday for the pacers for the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon (more on the meeting another time). The gentleman in charge was giving out some old shirts as random prizes, but he said the mediums he had wouldn’t fit me because I am too “Barrel Chested.” I’m sensitive about my body shape so that comment has stuck with me for a while.
I took some measurements and figured out that I really am barrel chested, but not in any way I could control. Being barrel chested means that a person has a deep chest, leading the upper torso to be round like a barrel. I’ve heard that people living at high altitudes get barrel chested because they develop big lungs in the thin oxygen. But I grew up at the same elevation as Lake Ontario. Why am I barrel chested?
Regardless, I don’t think there’s anything I can do about it: I can feel my ribcage not far below my skin all the way around. It’s not fat accumulation which gives me that shape. By contrast, the shape around my midsection is determined by my “spare tire” but I’m working on that.
I can’t help but to think back to my body shape before I started exercising. I really had a “barrel-shaped” torso, and that was something I should have controlled. I was so fat I even had “man boobs.” I used to hunch over to hide it. Even though I’ve burned them off, my posture still hasn’t recovered from the habit.
Popular media suggests that the ideal, heroic, fit male has “broad shoulders” and the “triangle-shaped upper body.” These unrealistic proportions that are supposedly desirable and what all men should strive for! Right? Is a body shape like this even possible?
I suspect these kind of broad shoulders are only true in exaggerated art and professional body builders. Looking at the actors wearing spandex on Power Rangers, they actually look kind of scrawny compared to the exaggerated “ideal.” Dan Ewing who played Dylan on Power Rangers: RPM doesn’t have broad shoulders, but he must have an aesthetically pleasing body shape that some people find desirable because he’s an underwear model now!
I think I can start to see signs of weight loss on my face and body frame. I’m also starting to realize that weight loss may not change my shape much. For example, my face is quite wide and I suspect a tall, slim face is supposed to be desirable. But I’m realizing that my face is wide because of my jaw shape and cheekbone locations. No amount of weight loss or exercise will change that. Similarly, my ribcage shape and shoulder width are set, and no amount of weight loss or muscle building will change me from being Barrel Chested.
I think I will learn to love the body I’m in. No skeletal realignment or surgery needed. I am who I am, wide jaw, high cheekbones and yes, barrel-shaped chest.