Life Insurance Coverage and Muscular Bodyweight

[Mike Corlett]

My son, age 30, was really upset that he was put in the category of "obese" for life insurance purposes. He is 5 foot 9 and weighs 210, and if he lost 10 pounds, he would be pretty lean (when he dabbled in power lifting a few months back he weighed 25 lbs more than he does now).

He spoke to some power lifters at the gym, and they said "yeah, it's horrible, it's terrible", etc concerning the generic tables Life Insurance Companies use.

Other than shopping agents, companies, etc, is anyone aware of any Life Insurance Company that makes some sort of real concessions for Strength Athletes? You mean to tell me that Olympic-style Weightlifters pay what fat unhealthy men pay for their premiums?

[Bill Crawford]

Well Mike that is the way the cookie crumbles. My BMI is 37. I'm toast according to the tables. Obese, period. But, I have a 19 inch neck and can lift some pretty heavy stuff. Sound familiar to you guys?

I had a guy call me once and say he was half Korean and half Scottish and asked if he could compete in Highland Games as he wasn't fully Scottish. As background he was a college discus thrower in a Div I program and was a specimen from what he was telling me. I chuckled and said "Heck yeh!" As I see it we are our own race of people, we brothers, we happy band of brothers.

If your cholesterol is good, your blood pressure is controlled and you are lean, then the bodyweight is secondary. We are a heavier weight by bone density and the thick sinew and muscles attached to those bones. I don't care that I do not fit into the "ideal" person. Isn't that the idea? We do not want to be normal. Not me anyway, as normal is weak and pale.

Bill

[Stephen Abramowitz]

My girlfriend is an Insurance Agent, and writes a lot of Life policies... there is always a way to get life insurance, question is how much and at what cost...

She and I had an extensive conversation on just this topic, as I was hoping to find a way to help guys get some life insurance... found out some interesting details. BMI and the charts are an factor, but so is how much life insurance you are looking for and your financial situation... if you are making $50,000 a year, have $10,000 in assets and want $1,000,000 in coverage, going to be a problem no matter your BMI or health.. best bet is to get a good general agent (who can shop you), discuss your situation and needs; to see what options are available... there is also SBLI insurance through most savings banks, this is not a term policy, so rates can change annually... but as a stop-gap it is an option, although costly... the other way to go is check with any organizations or groups you might belong to, many have deals for discounts with some carriers or opportunity to get a low cost small policy, if you can get two or three small policies, may meet your needs. My dad belonged to a the Mathematical Association of America, and had a small policy from them for very little cost.. but it came in handy when he passed...