{"id":13523,"date":"2025-03-05T23:50:09","date_gmt":"2025-03-05T16:50:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/?p=13523"},"modified":"2025-03-05T23:50:09","modified_gmt":"2025-03-05T16:50:09","slug":"koe-wetzel-dropped-30-pounds-as-he-helps-carry-country-music","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/?p=13523","title":{"rendered":"Koe Wetzel Dropped 30 Pounds As He Helps Carry Country Music"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-dkrFOg sZiLj jRkFtP\">\n<div class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-lbVpMG sZiLj daeigB\">\n<div id=\"message-cell-01JNK7THTWKPFSFJ618KDA9ZP2\" class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-dkrFOg sZiLj jRkFtP\">\n<div class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-gswNZR sZiLj cwUxRt\">\n<div class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-gswNZR sZiLj cwUxRt\">\n<div class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-dkrFOg sZiLj jRkFtP\">\n<div class=\"_markdownGlobal_4p52c_1\">\n<p>Koe Wetzel has been laser-focused on continuing his current country music success. He\u2019s achieving it by showcasing the same intensity and ferocity onstage as he displayed while chasing down quarterbacks during his days on the football field. He\u2019s also taking on a new challenge: maintaining his music momentum while regaining his pass-rushing physique.<\/p>\n<p>The former college linebacker\u2019s popularity has taken off with the 0-60 speed of a Ford Mustang Shelby, the classic muscle car whose creator resided in the same East Texas town as the 32-year-old musician. At the same time, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/koe_wetzel\/\">Wetzel\u2019s ascent up<\/a> the charts can be considered unconventional by country music standards. He\u2019s selling out venues nationwide while refusing to sell out his Texas roots.<\/p>\n<p>He now resides in the larger Fort Worth region, but Wetzel and his bandmates maintain the down-to-earth mindset they had when they performed for 30 people at local bars, earning enough cash for both beer and gas to get to the next gig. In other words, Wetzel takes creating music seriously while refusing to take the fame that comes with success too seriously.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe still talk about how bad we suck,\u201d Wetzel chuckles. \u201cWe\u2019re still that band that\u2019s continuing to get better. The fame is really badass and cool, but I don\u2019t think we ever really looked at it like that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In 2024, Wetzel experienced a breakout year. His single \u201cHigh Road,\u201d a collaboration with Jessie Murph, spent five weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart and was also named the 8th best overall song of 2024 by the LA Times. Additionally, last year\u2019s <em>Damn Near Normal<\/em> tour was successful enough to warrant the release of a full-length live album, <em>Live from the Damn Near Normal Tour.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Wetzel is far from your cookie-cutter country artist. Though classified as country, he blends rock, hip-hop, and even grunge\u2014thanks to early influences from groups like Nirvana\u2014which has allowed him to connect with broader audiences and amass over 3.7 billion streams alongside a million-plus followers on social media.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe were kind of outsiders\u2014nobody really f***ed with us,\u201d he reflects. \u201cWe just went in our lane and did everything the way we thought it should be done. And it\u2019s worked out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As his popularity continues to soar in 2025, Wetzel is also focused on downsizing his waistline. Amazingly, for someone known for songs about drinking\u2014and having been arrested for it\u2014he\u2019s lost as much as 35 pounds during the tour\u2014and is working to continue the trend. \u201cI\u2019m hoping to stay around 245 whenever we\u2019re touring,\u201d he says, \u201cjust so I\u2019m not a complete fat a**.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While he hasn\u2019t sworn off alcohol completely, Wetzel, whose setlist includes alcohol-infused anthems such as \u201cDrunk Driving,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=zA_mq8igj1Y\">\u201cCasamigos,\u201d<\/a> and \u201cFebruary 28, 2016,\u201d attributes his weight loss to a significant reduction in beer and liquor as well as a recommitment to the weightroom. Lighter and leaner, Wetzel has seen noticeable changes not only in his physique but also his shows. \u201cThat was the routine I followed throughout the <em>Damn Near Normal<\/em> tour,\u201d he explains. \u201cIt helped me a lot with my voice and performance, and I think it was the best tour we\u2019ve had so far.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The road to fitness hasn\u2019t been completely smooth; he admits to have gained a few of those pounds back over the holidays. However, his new focus on rest, improved nutrition, and cutting back on late nights has been critical for Wetzel to deliver standout performances night after night during his current tour.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m back in the gym, getting after it,\u201d Wetzel states confidently. \u201cI feel like I\u2019ll get down to 245 and stay on top of it this time.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"wp-caption \">\n<div style=\"padding-bottom:75.02254283138%;\" class=\"ratio-based-placeholder\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.muscleandfitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/motiontheorymedia-407-e1740954290457.jpg?quality=86&amp;strip=all\" srcset=\"\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" alt=\"Koe Wetzel\" width=\"1109\" height=\"832\" data-fallback-img=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.muscleandfitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/motiontheorymedia-407-e1740954290457.jpg?quality=86&amp;strip=all\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"credit\">Motion Theory Media<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3>Football and Music Were Always Intertwined for Koe Wetzel<\/h3>\n<div class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-dkrFOg sZiLj jRkFtP\">\n<div class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-lbVpMG sZiLj daeigB\">\n<div id=\"message-cell-01JNK94YS9PPN1896QW0MR0M4Z\" class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-dkrFOg sZiLj jRkFtP\">\n<div class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-gswNZR sZiLj cwUxRt\">\n<div class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-gswNZR sZiLj cwUxRt\">\n<div class=\"sc-bcXHqe sc-dkrFOg sZiLj jRkFtP\">\n<div class=\"_markdownGlobal_4p52c_1\">\n<p>As a linebacker at Texas\u2019 Tarleton State University in 2011, Wetzel\u2019s gameday program had him listed at 6\u20191\u201d and 220 pounds, nearly 50 pounds lighter than his starting weight on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DGdn_7URel_\/\">Damn Near Normal<\/a> tour. The \u201cGood Die Young\u201d singer was leaner, faster, and stronger, thanks to a weight-training regimen that often had him in the gym up to three times a day. The football-specific workload allowed Wetzel to consume thousands of calories without accountability while still remaining athletic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was pretty yoked up,\u201d he shares. \u201cI know you can\u2019t probably tell now, but in college, I was pretty big.\u201d Wetzel says he was all legs and could squat close to 500 pounds. When it came to upper body strength, he admits to struggling slightly. \u201cI don\u2019t think I ever hit over 275 [on the bench press],\u201d he admits, \u201cbut I could throw it out of the room on the squat.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At Tarleton, the kid who grew up idolizing Brian Bosworth and Clay Matthews was honed in on smashing quarterbacks. \u201cI was, like, filling the gap and then hitting people in the mouth\u2014that was my outlook,\u201d he says. Unfortunately, his season\u2014and obsession\u2014with football ended after a brutal ankle injury. \u201cI watched the video once or twice and almost threw up again,\u201d he recalls. \u201cI was like, no, I can\u2019t be doing this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While he fell out of tune with football, Wetzel began picking up extra cash singing country tunes in local bars. Having grown up singing and playing guitar, he and a teammate, a bass player, formed a small band and started playing more often. \u201cWe were playing music a lot more than games. Then I said the hell with football. I went to school for another year, and then they kicked me out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Wetzel\u2019s transition from football to country music isn\u2019t unique. Artists like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.muscleandfitness.com\/athletes-celebrities\/interviews\/chase-rice-used-his-college-football-mindset-to-help-conquer-country-music\/\">Chase Rice<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.muscleandfitness.com\/athletes-celebrities\/riley-green-has-built-a-home-gym-and-a-music-empire\/\">Riley Green<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.muscleandfitness.com\/athletes-celebrities\/pro-tips\/tucker-wetmore-from-all-state-football-to-all-things-country\/\">Tucker Wetmore<\/a> were also standout athletes before turning their attentions to music. He\u2019s starting to understand the appeal and connection between music and sports.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t realize that was a thing until about five or six years ago when I started looking around at my buddies. They all played either baseball or football, and when that didn\u2019t work out, they went into country music,\u201d Wetzel reflects.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h3>\n<figure class=\"wp-caption \">\n<div style=\"padding-bottom:75.02254283138%;\" class=\"ratio-based-placeholder\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.muscleandfitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/motiontheorymedia-377-e1740954265689.jpg?quality=86&amp;strip=all\" srcset=\"\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" alt=\"Koe Wetzel\" width=\"1109\" height=\"832\" data-fallback-img=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.muscleandfitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/motiontheorymedia-377-e1740954265689.jpg?quality=86&amp;strip=all\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"credit\">Motion Theory Media<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/h3>\n<h3>Diet and Discipline Made the Difference in Koe Wetzel\u2019s Weight Loss<\/h3>\n<h3>Koe Wetzel is All-around Muscle<\/h3>\n<p>Koe Wetzel may have scaled back his training at one point, but he has always been about muscle in one way or another. He is the proud owner of Mike\u2019s Motive, one of the more powerful bulls on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/pbr\/\">Professional Bull Riders<\/a> circuit. This bull is one of eight that Wetzel has partnered with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/sharpbuckingbulls\/\">Blake Sharp,<\/a> a well-known stock contractor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c[Blake] met me in Mississippi at a concert and said, \u2018Hey, have you ever thought about buying a bull?\u2019\u201d Wetzel recalls. \u201cAt that time, I had started making a little money, so I said, \u2018Absolutely.\u2019 It just kind of snowballed from there. I\u2019ve always been a fan of bull riding. It\u2019s been really cool to be involved and put my stamp on it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One of Wetzel\u2019s passions also includes American muscle cars. It\u2019s fitting given that Carroll Shelby, the creator of the iconic Ford Mustang Shelby, built his home in Pittsburg, TX. Wetzel currently owns a \u201970 Oldsmobile Cutlass, and while he hasn\u2019t purchased a Mustang yet, he made sure to feature a classic model in his introspective video, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=zA_mq8igj1Y\">\u201cCasamigos.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Shelbys were the cream of the crop,\u201d he says. \u201cIf you had one of those, you were doing something right. I plan on getting one soon. Since we\u2019re both from Pittsburg, there\u2019s some sentimental value there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While making music is Wetzel\u2019s top priority, music videos have played a crucial role in his creative expression. \u201cI\u2019ve always loved music videos,\u201d he says, citing Nirvana\u2019s \u201cSmells Like Teen Spirit\u201d as a significant influence. \u201cI prefer the videos that are like little mini-movies, and that\u2019s what I\u2019ve aimed to create throughout my career.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Wetzel has been candid about his hard partying\u2014many of his late-night antics have inspired his lyrics and videos. His hit \u201cFebruary 28, 2016\u201d was written after being arrested for public intoxication outside a fast-food restaurant on that date. It\u2019s become so popular, Feb. 28 has been \u201cunofficially\u201d designated by fans as \u201cKoe Wetzel Day, the singer releasing his latest album on that day. \u201cCasamigos\u201d addresses themes of relationships and addiction. Wetzel recognizes that cutting back on alcohol has improved his physical health and performance. He believes that his past experiences have also profoundly influenced his music.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt definitely helped with my inspiration,\u201d Wetzel explains. \u201cThere were times I\u2019d wake up and not remember what I had written down. I\u2019d check my notes on my phone and find stuff I didn\u2019t understand until I kept reading, and then I thought, \u2018Oh, that\u2019s what I was thinking.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His fans\u2014and his management\u2014know what they\u2019re getting with Wetzel. His 2020 video \u201cOnly the Good Die Young,\u201d which revolves around the premise of a last day before heading to prison, was released shortly after Wetzel and his band signed with Columbia Records. While it raised some eyebrows, it was\u2014and still is\u2014100 percent Wetzel being true to himself.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe didn\u2019t hold anything back. We had all these people from Columbia there asking, \u2018What the hell are we getting ourselves into? What\u2019s wrong with this guy?\u2019 But we had a great time, and it was a lot of fun to make.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.muscleandfitness.com\/athletes-celebrities\/koe-wetzel-dropped-30-pounds-as-he-helps-carry-country-music\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Koe Wetzel has been laser-focused on continuing his current country music success. He\u2019s achieving it by showcasing the same intensity and ferocity onstage as he displayed while chasing down quarterbacks during his days on the football field. He\u2019s also taking on a new challenge: maintaining his music momentum while regaining his pass-rushing physique. The former &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13523","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fitness"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13523"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13523\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}