View Full Version : Big Guy needs Backpack
I'm 6'1", 280 #'s, and have been struggling to find a good pack. The issue is my belly. I'm very strong and muscular, but also carry quite a bit on the stomach so it affects the way the hip-belts fit. Any suggestions? i've knocked off about 15#'s since November so one day I won't have this issue. BTW, I backpack about 6-8 times a year and usually go for 2-4 nights. AT in 2011(contractual obligations). Thanks!
I think you might be happy with a pack with interchangable hipbelts. (Non-sewn in.) You will need to go to a shop and try them on. Good luck.
You are only 300 or so miles from here in Damascus, Va and there is one guy here in town who can fit you to the pack that you need and his name is Jeff Patrick, owner of Mt Rogers Outfitters. If you can afford the drive, then I would suggest you pay a visit......
Wise Old Owl
04-05-2008, 13:44
I have the same issue at times - frustrating-& painful for the lower back, there are very few solutions. Other than weight management, joining a helpful class - which worked for me or a treadmill in front of a TV, which worked for my brother. He would get up for a half hour each morning and watch the news. I like the adjustable hip belt solution in the previous post.
I am just puting this out there.....
On a side note about belly fat - A very overweight girlfriend once told me and I found it to be true, that alcohol suppresses the metabolism or the ability to burn calories, beer is laden with empty calories and sugars. If you remember the old westerns - the west was full of skinny hard working people. They didn't have beer. beer wasn't available to ship until Budwieser built factories in major cities that could connect to western railroad towns. They all drank Wiskey or Bourbon because it would keep when being transported those distances. Not as many empty calories. - No belly fat. In my weight loss class ten years ago most alcohol was off limits - but a wine or Wiskey was still ok.
Big Terrapin
04-06-2008, 22:05
Hey know the feeling, I'm actually a little larger then what you wrote and I'm leaving for Springer this coming weekend......go to a local store when it's quiet and the salesperson is knowledgeable.....find a pack you like...I got an Osprey ather 70... but really you can use any pack and make a belt extender......you basically need a strap and two compatible clips.....take the strap and slide the two compatible clips on to the loop so that one will fit a reciever on the original strap on each side. then heat seal the loop together....you should be able to find something at a store to do this.....in reality since the strap has so much plastic..you can hold the ends together and run a bic lighter over the ends and melt them together....you now have a belt extender similar to what they do on most airlines if you're too damn big for that belt to fit around your gut......the beauty of this means you can get almost any pack you want to use as long as you can configure the straps and the clamps......
I would suggest going as light as you can until you lose some more pounds. You will be able to hike more hours that way and loose weight that much faster. If you go light the hip belt is not so critical. Consider a pack like the JAM2 and many others. You can carry 30 pounds in it comfortable if you pack it well, but its waist belt is more suited for 20 pounds. I wouldn't neccessarily switch to carrying more once I lost the weight either, except more food maybe, to hike longer between resupplies.