Kyle Wellwood is playing better with extra ‘weight’

This one is just too good to pass up. There are so many gems in this story I’ll just let the quotes speak for themselves.

Kyle Wellwood is learning to love his body. Even the slightly flabby bits.

...

“At the start of the year, I was a real lean 181,” Wellwood said. “Now, I’m not thick, but I have a little more weight. Right now, I feel great. My body feels good. I’m healthy. I’m happy out there.”

...

The problem is Wellwood played better when he was fat.

Wellwood’s name had become synonymous with fat jokes the past few years, ever since he showed up out of shape and lethargic to Vancouver from Toronto. What’s sad is that he actually made a concerted effort to lose weight -- around 20 pounds -- and he actually played worse. Hey, he might have been overweight but he did score 18 goals last season.

But he’s now scored twice and has four points since the Olympic break, and he attributes it to not getting into better shape but actually gaining a bit of his weight back. Hey, Wellwood has always been a bit chunky (for a hockey player) and he’s done alright; why not try and get back to what was working before.

Wellwood says he feels more confident and comfortable with the added weight but that he’s not exactly going to revert to the chunky mess he was before. It’s all about finding balance, but he’s not going to be the gym rat he was trying to be before the Olympic break when he scored just eight goals in 54 games.

Perhaps the first time I’ve ever heard a hockey player try and gain some “extra weight” --not muscle-- to play better. Only Kyle Wellwood could pull it off.