Thursday, February 9, 2012

Loving Alex through thick and thin

by carol

Weight loss is a hot topic of conversation for Alex O’Loughlin fans these days. No one can deny recent Hawaii Five-0 episodes feature a leaner O’Loughlin.

Is he simply being "method" and losing weight to give emphasis to his character’s recent extreme physical torture and the distress of saying goodbye to his mentor/father-figure? 

If surfing is now his main form of exercise, could his muscle mass be redistributing over his body?

Is he so happy and busy with his personal life that he forgets to eat?  (I know, hard for some of us to imagine being that happy or busy!)

The bottom line for Alex fans is this: Has he lost too much weight and put his health at risk?  

For The Back-up Plan, O’Loughlin worked out two hours a day, six days a week, and was able to get his body fat to 7% with exercise and nutritional advice from personal trainer Jeff Blair. Alex admitted to relaxing his routine after the movie. At that time another trainer estimated his body fat percentage to be around 10%. After season one of H-50, Alex himself said, “In my early 20s, I did a lot of weights. I was huge—closer to 200 pounds,” says the 6'1″ actor, who clocks in today at a solid 175.  
  
Jeff Blair, Alex’s personal trainer, has said that “with training strength, power and hypertrophy, Alex is able to access more muscle fiber and achieve a stronger, more muscularly dense physique."

Alex often refers to himself as an athlete in the way he manages his fitness regime.  And looking at these athletic standards, Alex is doing just fine: http://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com/bodyfatpercentage.html

Average Body Fat Percentage of Athletes
Sport
Male

Sport
Male

Baseball
12-15%

Rowing
6-14%

Basketball
6-12%

Shot Putters
16-20%

Body building
5-8%

Skiing (X country)
7-12%

Cycling
5-15%

Sprinters
8-10%

Football (Backs)
9-12%

Swimming
9-12%

Football (Linemen)
15-19%

Tennis
12-16%

Gymnastics
5-12%

Triathlon
5-12%

High/long Jumpers
7-12%

Volleyball
11-14%

Ice/field Hockey
8-15%

Weightlifters
9-16%

Racquetball
8-13%

Wrestlers
5-16%


A final observation is that cyclist Lance Armstrong has 4% body fat. He watches his weight to within 1 kg when he is competing. I don’t think anyone can argue the fitness of the man who has won the Tour de France seven times.

"I have an ultimate goal: I want long-term health. I want to be fit when I’m in my seventies. The work I do now and the seeds I sow now will pay off later." — Alex O'Loughlin at Time Out event in New York, October 2009

9 comments:

  1. I think he is looking just fine. Each week he keeps looking better and better.

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  2. I love Alex but the sneak peak for this week has me a bit worried. Its his face. He does look very thin in his face. But he's looked this thin before, I'm thinking of around the time he was promoting some of the Back Up Plan. He then seemed to gain weight for the start of shooting of season One Hawaii Five O. He looks better with a tad more weight on his face I think.

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  3. Carol, as always good reseach for the topic. However, Hawaii five-0 is not broadcast on any sport channel that I know and there is no competion for athletes on it. Alex is the main drawing card of a very popular TV show and he is starting to look less handsome on it!! (Die hard fans like myself won't mind what he looks like and we'll follow him anyway because we know he has a lot more to offer than a youthful pretty face)
    I'm not 100% sure about this but didn't Lance Armstrong suffer from cancer (might not be a good example of health, unless his fitness and low bodyfat actually helped him to beat the cancer in the end)
    I actually miss me some Moonlight Meat at the moment.
    And thanks for at least trying to explain it and making the fans feel better about it. (I believe he is in tip top health and just working too hard(as always) and eating too little(too "healthy") to keep weight on at the moment)

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  4. I really hope he can put a little more weight on his face is too thin he certainly looks better abit in season 1 early season 2 than now

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  5. I'm writing because this blog really takes time to write interesting stuff about the person and goes beyond the "omg He is hot" that totally annoys me. Congrats:) About his weight, someone mentioned he was very thin before and I wanted to add the he said in at least an interview that he had botulism in mexico, which is a very dangerous disease. And looking back at his career he never looked like that before, so I guess that he may be healthy but stressed at the moment. Either way, I believe fans just want him to take care of himself:)

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  6. i dont know what is going on with him lately, but for sure he doesnt look good... he had lost so much weight, he has black circles and no cheeks... by having a exercise's program that no contain muscles' exercises doesnt mean you are losing so much weight...unfortunatelly he has not only lost fat, he has lost muscles and weight... i hope that idea of a healthy life does not become an obsession...

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  7. Look at bts photos for ep218 Alex has put some weight on. I think he lost weight to do ep210 to show he had been tortured this shows also in the earlier episodes if you look closer as though he was preparing for this. He is a method actor. Also his angst with the Shelborne storyline. I'm not worried

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  8. I am glad I found some people in here notice the same as I weeks ago.
    That Alex gets thinner and thinner.
    Some times I thought I am mistaken.
    I feel relieved that i am not the only one.
    i am from Germany and all people I know watching H50 doesnt notice.

    But at the other side I wish a was wrong.
    I recaped interviews and remember that Alex works 16 hours a day, his son is living with him now...etc... may be thats all reasons that he lost weight.

    But I notice too that his "normal" look is getting back.

    Hoping his healthy life gets the same healthy life as before ;)

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for your comment. We hope Alex returns to good health right along with you.

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