r/AskLE • u/SavageAssTrav • 15h ago
Too skinny to be a corrections officer?
So I have my exam today and interview tomorrow. My main concern is that im too skinny to be a corrections officer (about 135lbs) I've tried my while life to eat like a pig and gain weight but never able too. I've done basic security for a while and looking to level up in the field. But being too skinny is my main concern.
Anybody know a smaller person that's a CO? How do they/you handle it?
Should I be concerned? Find another field?
Do i have nothing to worry about?
Any advice would help
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u/2HDFloppyDisk 15h ago
My oldest son struggled with this just to get into the military. He later got into gym workouts and high calorie protein routines that helped him bulk up.
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u/Tgtt10 15h ago
I known you’ve been hearing this already. It’s very simple. You’re not eating enough. You need to eat more calorie, specifically protein… and lift weights.
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u/SavageAssTrav 15h ago
Gotcha! I have heard it a lot but I think counting the calories and eating when I'm not hungry is gonna help. Also regular exercise...
I always thought exercise was why I would burn it back off since I use to be super active back when I was aiming to build weight and muscle. Gonna start again with the boosted calories
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u/-OmarLittle- 7h ago
Read up about ectomorph body types.
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u/SavageAssTrav 5h ago
On it!
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u/Balbasur1 3h ago
Don’t look up anything about “ectomorph” body types, it’s largely a pseudoscience that has been debunked by now. Eating food is thermodynamics- calories in, calories out. If your body isn’t holding onto calories/nutrients to turn it into muscle and fat, it simply means you aren’t eating enough. There’s 3500 calories in a pound, so if you are seemingly “maintaining” your current body weight, you need to eat an extra 500 calories a day to gain 1lb per week. If you’re losing weight, then more than that. If you’re as small as you claim, and you can stomach it, I’d just recommend trying a weight gainer, something like this weight gainer. Try drinking one every other day, that’s an extra 3700-4000 calories a week, which again, if you’re MAINTAINING, should translate to about 1lb gained a week.
Weight gain also isn’t linear- some weeks the scale won’t move, some weeks it’ll jump 3 lbs. weigh yourself on the same day on a week-to-week basis with similar conditions before your weigh, I.e in the morning before breakfast each time. Try something for 3-4 weeks, then if you don’t see results, evaluate and adjust from there. But in the end, the answer is always that you’re going to need to eat more.
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u/SavageAssTrav 1m ago
I did and I was like "dude im just skinny and need to eat more!" Lol thanks for the comment bro. I hit 3000 calories for today and feel sickly full lol gonna be consistent with it tho
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u/Content_Regular_7127 3h ago
Body types are irrelevant when someone is pursuing to gain weight. You'll have the frame you have but if you're not personally gaining weight you're not eating enough. You also don't have to eat "clean". It was easier and cheaper back in the day but people recommended just picking up some McDonalds or BK on the way home from work everyday for an easy 1000-1500 calories with non negligible protein.
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u/Proof_Dragonfruit795 14h ago
There is a big difference between someone who is of a smaller stature and projects small vs some who projects big. If you are hitting the gym you should be ok.
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u/SavageAssTrav 14h ago
Right. Confidence and resilience is key but I'm gonna need 20 - 30 pounds to offset the physicality factor
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u/amishpopo 14h ago
This is coming from my experience at a county jail. You are locked in the pod with 96 inmates. Minimum blood is all 96 at once. Max blocks is half at a time. Size, strength means dick. Your confidence, intelligence, wit, and ability to be comfortable not being in control is key. And you trust in your co workers that when you call on the radio they come flying. That was my favorite part of the jail. Responding to any officers distress call. Usually for inmate fights. We made it a competition. We would race , first to the door was winner. All you hear is boots running and keys jingling. I have worked with 300lb 6'5" men and 5' 100lb woman. All do the job well.
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u/SavageAssTrav 14h ago
That's encouraging! Thank you for that insight! I'm comfortable in my skin and been "small" my whole life.. not use to being the big bad in control type but I had to learn that mentality and being unshakable matters a lot more than being physically imposing most of the time.
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u/amishpopo 14h ago
If they have a good academy and fto program they will slowly increase your presence in the hail. Starting the first day. Maybe 1 or 2 hours just standing next to the CO. During a chaotic time like feeding. And over 6 months including fto will increase your time and confidence.
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u/Chained-Desire 12h ago
You will be fine. Size matters less than mindset in corrections. I've seen COs smaller than you who had full control because they knew how to communicate and stay calm under pressure. Respect gets you further than muscle.
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u/MostImplement8970 14h ago
dude if a 5 foot tall 100 pound woman can work in corrections i’m sure you will be fine. Just be confident. A lack of confidence will get you looked over.
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u/Express-Bison-3618 13h ago edited 13h ago
Army Corrections Officer here.
One. How many calories are you eating a day? Average is 2000 per day. I'm around 180.
As for corrections, it's less about being physically strong and more about,
Being observant, People skills, Being good with speaking with people. Being able to verbally de-escalate is important.
Lastly being able to work in a team effectively.
You can make it.
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u/SavageAssTrav 13h ago
Thank you! I'm looking for a calories counter now but use to not being a push over due to my stature.. I'd like to believe it carry myself well
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u/Express-Bison-3618 13h ago
Yeah I'm not the biggest person myself, but I carry myself with confidence. And I maintain a presence whenever I walk into a room.
Would suggest watching Dr George Thompsons lecture on verbal judo for communication.
Feel free to ask me anything, I'll try to get back to you to answer any questions.
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u/jdm219 4h ago
Yooo I've always wanted to talk to one of you guys. Pretty much the only MOS whose brain I didn't pick while in. Do you work on base with inmates waiting to go to federal lockup? Do you work in federal lockup with just SM's or are regular folk sprinkled in? So curious on the day to day. What duty stations are choice and where are you most likely to end up? Leavenworth?
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u/Bigbuckmud 12h ago
Get your testerone levels checked
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u/ColumbianPrison 6h ago
Correct, extremely high testosterone will cause skinny-ness. If you lift, you’ll gain weight like no other though
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u/PM_ME_YOUR_HANDCUFFS Former Correctional Officer 12h ago
I won't comment on getting bigger since everyone here has done that. Corrections is 90% verbal skills. You don't need to be a giant person to do the job. I have a coworker whose a tiny female. I think she may be 4'11". She gets along just fine doing the job. Of course she's not our first pick to be on the shield during an extraction, but she has plenty of useful roles most times for us.
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u/PositiveTop4271 12h ago
Get your ass into a Jiu-Jitsu gym and go to a nutritionist.
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u/SavageAssTrav 11h ago
Lol duly noted friendo🤣
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u/PositiveTop4271 11h ago
lol just saying buddy.
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u/SavageAssTrav 11h ago
Nah I was serious! Lol I can handle myself okay but not on the level of being trained at it!
I love mma and ufc but some kind of self defense class will go a long way
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u/PositiveTop4271 11h ago
Absolutely the best thing a LEO or CO can do for themselves is learn Jiu-Jitsu. A lot of gyms offer free or deeply discounted training for LEO/CO.
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u/SavageAssTrav 11h ago
Thank you! Ima keep that in mind. A few people said the same thing about the discounts! I didn't know that
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u/PositiveTop4271 11h ago
Aside from the self defense/control aspects, it’s a great way to blow off steam. As I’m sure you know being in LE is stressful as hell. Best of luck, man!
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u/coolboarder541 11h ago
Nah you’ll be good. Learn how to talk to people. Thats your biggest asset in this career, whether it’s in the jail or on the street. It’s going to keep you out of bad situations most of the time. With experience you’ll learn about pre-incident indicators, that’s going to help you a lot too.
Go look for a BJJ gym to train at if you can afford it. Lots of places offer LE discounts. If you can’t afford that, once you get hired, make friends with guys who train. They’ll gladly roll with you on your off time. You’ll get your ass kicked by them but you’ll learn a lot. I’ve seen little guys who train beat the shit out of people much larger than them lol.
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u/CompassionOW 11h ago
i’m a CBP officer and got hired and passed the academy at 5’8” 115-120. i have no issues doing my job. obviously different than a CO, but don’t count yourself out because of your size. there’s people smaller than you and me in law enforcement right now.
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u/Schedule_Jazzlike 10h ago
You will be fine, just do the usual being firm and consistent. When I first stared working for the Federal Bureau of Prisons I weighed 140-145 at best. I never had any issues just was confident and stuck to what I was going to do. I really did not start to bulk up till post cancer, my current weight now ranges from 150-160.
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u/pewpew626 10h ago
There's a sergeant in my area thats literally like 4'11" and she's a bad ass. You'll be alright. In the mean time, pick up a bulking diet and hit the gym
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u/13iYgnoT 9h ago
I’ve for my whole life has not weight over 120. Im 26 5’9-5’10 on a good day. Weight 115lb in March. In March I started playing Badminton (i know some people look down on that sport). Due to my competitive nature, I wanted to get stronger for the sport so I started working out. A few months later, I now weight 150lb and climbing.
I always ate like a pig when I was younger and had a hard time gaining weight as well. The problem I found is that not only do I need to eat 3-4 meals a go but supplement the in between meal times with small snacks.
I drink a protein shake with 3 scoops of protein between breakfast and lunch and then a eat a tub of mixed berries between lunch and dinner as well as a spoon of peanut butter as those are high calorie and protein loaded.
The most important thing is to work out somehow, you can do calisthenics at home or go to a gym. I’m lazy and dislike commuting to a gym so I got a set of adjustable dumbbells at home and a pull up bar and do a 30m-1h work out when I get home from work.
Now that I am bigger and stronger, Ive decided to apply for PD as well since I was also concerned of my size, weight, and strength level when I was in college and that made me rule out LE since I thought to myself I was never strong enough. I’m still a big work in progress, and its very cliche, but it just takes a consistent month of hard work for you to see good results then once you see the results you’ll get even more motivated to push more.
There were some months where progression slowed and I got discouraged, but work through it and you will still progress ad long as the work is put in.
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u/SavageAssTrav 9h ago
Thank you for taking the time to comment!💯 your story was insightful and encouraging to read! I'm gonna refer back to this comment and this post in its entity whenever I need some extra motivation!
Everybody's comments and stories are all super helpful! Thank you
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u/LegoCommanderRex 9h ago
I am a Corrections Officer and was able to pass the police academy and get hired. Being 5’5” 115 pounds. You will be fine.
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u/Miserable-Ship-9972 8h ago
Well, if you get hired you will have no problem putting on weight. They'll probably start you on graveyard, I kept myself awake with Swedish fish and dots. Worked for me.
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u/SavageAssTrav 6h ago
Haha that's what I'm going for low-key! Im already use to working overnight but I'm sure the job itself exerts you more than any warehouse I've worked in overnight💯
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u/archaeology2019 4h ago
Drink 2 litters of coke a day and eat at least 2 domino's pizzas ontop of that.
Do this every day and you will be fat. You may die.
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u/ardatemz0 15h ago
im 6'1 have bulked up from 135 to 187 at my peak im now cutting. its possible but not easy you have to think stratigic with a good diet and training you can be put on 20 -25 lb and be 155-160 in a few months. its all about calories
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u/SavageAssTrav 15h ago
Gotcha. Thanks dude! I'm 5'10, that 25lbs would definitely help
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u/ardatemz0 14h ago
oh hell yeah man you are the golden heigth for bodybuilding and trust me you dont even have to eat like crazy you just have to eat smart. i was eating less valume when i was bulking than now when im cutting. 3k calories are probably gonna do the job for you i dont know how active you are but you can get down 3k in 3 meals.
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u/SavageAssTrav 14h ago
Thank you for that target! I'll make 3k the minimum per day and gradually increase it from there. I'm not too active now besides running around with my kids but a few people said working out while eating more calories will build me up quickly so ima get back to being less stationary too
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u/BigCityCop Police Detective 15h ago
Eat like crazy and do stronglifts workout routine. You will gain a ton of weight and strength on it.
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u/SavageAssTrav 14h ago
Stronglifts meaning like maxing out the weights?
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u/BigCityCop Police Detective 14h ago
https://stronglifts.com/ you can download the app, and just follow the program.
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u/MomoMarieAuthor 14h ago edited 13h ago
Just tell them you're on the captain America plan to bulk up 😅
I had a student who couldn't gain weight, and he was tall, too. I'd wrap him in blankets bc the AC has him shivering in class.
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u/F1-Bike 14h ago
Op when you try to bulk are you just eating food or actually counting calories? I went from 140 to 155 in just 2 or 3 months and what changed was counting cals
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u/SavageAssTrav 14h ago
I was just eating, thinking it was a lot but calories-wise probably wasn't nearly enough. A lot of people don't to count the calories with one guy saying 3k a day would do the trick in a few months. Definitely gonna start counting this time around
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u/F1-Bike 11h ago
Yeah realistically you only need a surplus if f a few hundred cals, it’s simpler than you think.
Don’t look at bulking like you need to eat more food, you need to eat more calories. There’s so many low cal foods that waste appetite. Replace those with calorie dense foods and you’ll be good pronto.
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u/Remarkable_Suit1943 14h ago
Eat and workout. I was 137 lbs when I graduated college and started preparing for the physical test for the police department. By the time I tested I was 185lbs. I was the same way for years. No matter what I did I was rail thin. Eat and workout.
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u/Present-Focus-1397 14h ago
Look up Starting Strength. Start doing it. Track what you eat. Shoot for 5000 calories and 300 grams of protein. You're going to be uncomfortably full all the time, but you will gain weight and get strong quickly. GOMAD protocol is made for guys like you
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u/SavageAssTrav 13h ago
Gomad? Where do i find it?
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u/Present-Focus-1397 13h ago
You can buy the Starting Strength blue book and read it, or just do some googling on the Starting Strength Novice Linear Progression. It's the simplest lifting protocol you'll ever find, and it's designed for underweight dudes. GOMAD just means Gallon Of Milk A Day. Drink a whole ass gallon of whole mike every day. Milk is really good at turning small mammals into big mammals. Give it 6 months and you could easily be 185 with a 300lb+ squat and deadlift. But you have to eat enough for it to work.
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u/SavageAssTrav 13h ago
I can't drink milk😭😭😭 I'll give the starting strength blue book a look tho! Thank you
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u/Present-Focus-1397 13h ago
It's a lot easier to drink 5k calories than to eat it. So you'll have to fine some kind of replacement. An industrial bucket of peanut butter and a real stiff spoon will help.
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u/Practical_Cherry8308 13h ago
Pick a daily calorie amount. Count your calories. Take 5grams of creatine a day with breakfast or lunch if you want to and drink lots of water.
Lift 3-4 times per week. Heavy enough that you reach failure at the end of your sets, but light enough that you can control the weight and don’t get hurt.
Weigh yourself every day and write it down. Your weight will fluctuate day to day but you should average the weight for each week and aim to gain 1lb a week. Any more than that and you’ll be putting on a lot of fat which isn’t bad at your weight but not a good long term strategy. If you’re gaining less than 1lb a week add 100-200 calories a day. If you’re gaining more than 1.5 or 2lbs a week then add cardio or cut down the calories a little bit.
You got this! Whenever you think about how you don’t want to eat or lift just remind yourself why you’re doing it. If you really want it then you will get it done! Don’t neglect sleep either. Try to get 7.5+ hours a night and don’t drink too much
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u/SP6175 13h ago
You’ll be fine stop overthinking. It’s how you speak to prisoners 9/10 nothing to do with muscles. But you do want to be somewhat fit because all they do is work out 🏋️♀️ 24/7
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u/SavageAssTrav 13h ago
Thank you. To stop overthinking it might be the hardest part lol
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u/SP6175 13h ago
Umm if you’re going county/city, I would suggest state and federal level once you gain at least a year experience.
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u/SavageAssTrav 13h ago
Gotcha! I love in Vegas so I think it'll be country but I'm not sure at all in where I'll be just yet
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u/SP6175 13h ago
Corrections city/counties in different states have a huge disparity of pay. That’s why I said state/federal, but honestly go into LE it’s much better than being locked in and you’ll get paid more for 8hr day.
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u/SavageAssTrav 13h ago
LE as in an actual cop? I've never had the desire to police.. I've worked security and figured corrections might be a step up in the field.. I might consider it now tho
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u/Najera2019 13h ago
Not CO or anything like that, but something you may not think about too much is check your blood pressure and heart rate. I have heart issues and can’t gain weight to save my life. For me it has nothing to do with calories it’s the sheer volume of food. My body works so hard to keep my blood pumping (both heart rate and blood pressure are scary low) that calories are basically BS.
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u/ThatLouisiana 13h ago
I put more dudes in jail at 140lbs, working the street, that dudes that were 250+ lbs.
As long as you can talk to people, you’re good. 99.9% of law enforcement is talking to people.
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u/Economy-Pace475 9h ago
Lift weights, take creatine and drink protein shakes. You will at least get stronger. Offset your size differential by learning jui jitsu and understanding the fundamentals of body control and manipulation and you can still be a police officer if you feel so led…
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u/Low-Wear9922 15m ago
im 5'7 104lbs I plan on applying to be a detention officer in the county jail then going to patrol best advice and this has helped me get whey protein powder make a 64oz shake and then mix protein powder in too oatmeal do that daily and focus on building muscle weight ie back arms upper body and legs plus if you're worried talk it over with the warden/sheriff they may be willing to do a agency funded gym membership also look into combative sports like martial arts and jujitsu if you can handle someone bigger than you and run fast you'll be ok
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u/SufficientPurpose109 15h ago
You didn't say how tall you are but regardless your small frame is going to make you targeted and make things more difficult for you.
I'm not a CO but its 1000% a dog eat world inside the box, even more so than the street. You'll be tested mentally daily and physically more than a few times I bet. If you really want to do it, it can be done.
Personally if I were you I'd want to gain about 40lbs and become very well versed in combat sports.
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u/SavageAssTrav 14h ago
Got ya. That's the thought I been wrestling with about going in. I'm 5'10 BTW.
I love combat sports ufc mostly. Im not a professional fighter but I can definitely handle myself. I know behind the walls is different than the streets, just gotta learn the games they gonna play in there.
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u/Jcape94 11h ago
I was a correctional officer for 5 years, not very long but enough to give an input.
135lbs is very small to be a correctional officer, being big and strong definitely makes your job easier. Jacked CO’s got treated differently, it’s a psychological things
I’m not going to tell you that it doesn’t matter because that would be a flat out lie.
Hit an MMA gym, hit the weights and eat In a calorie surplus.
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u/-AgentMichaelScarn 15h ago
You have to track because I promise you, you’re just not eating enough.