Page 6 | Is anyone else skinny-fat?

labamba23 · 2025-06-29T21:05:12+00:00

I am a size 14, weigh about 11.5 stone at 5’6/7. I don’t think walking down the street anyone would look at me and think I look noticeably ‘fat’ but I also know that I am technically overweight and I am carrying excess fat around my belly and thighs. Compared to my size 8 friends I feel huge, compared to my size 20 friends I feel smaller. I think there’s a whole group of people like me who are overweight but at the lower end. I think of myself as a skinny fat person if that makes sense. I am finding it hard to lose weight, mostly because I’m not very good at tracking calories and I do have a few vices (mostly wine, chocolate and carbs) that I struggle to give up. I know people who have been very overweight who have managed to drop a lot of weight very quickly but it doesn’t happen like that for me even when I try. Im not desperately unhappy with my appearance but I think if I could lose between 1-2 stone I’d feel a lot better. Health wise I am more worried as I’m 40 soon and know I need to look after myself better. It’s almost harder when you don’t have as much to lose, or is it just me?

TempestTost · 29/06/2025 22:42

labamba23 · 29/06/2025 22:35

I’m not skinny! We’ve established that.
It’s just a silly made up phrase (or so I thought, I’ve since been educated that it does have a more scientific meaning) to describe my body which is fat but at the lower end of fat. So a skinny fat person. Which is easier to say that ‘a fat person who is at the lower end of overweight but still a bit fat.’

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Don't worry OP, it made sense. You meant that if we were only grading all the fat people, you would be one of the skinny ones.

Some people are just very literal.

Original poster

labamba23 · 29/06/2025 22:41

Dwells · 29/06/2025 22:37

Gonna be real with you here...Think about that suitcase you take on holiday with you...that's the kind of weight you're carrying around with you all the time ..let's call it an 18kg suitcase. Imagine if you didn't have to carry that all the time...how amazing would you feel??!

If you decide to make a change. Make sure you frame it in a positive way like with an overall goal such as 'i want to feel light, look healthy, wear that dress and I need to eat healthy and exercise' ...don't frame your change negatively such as 'I want to lose xx, and in I need to stop eating x,y,z'...positive framing has been proven to be much more sustainable for achieving long term goals.

I have tried this. I have tried adding healthy things rather than taking things I enjoy away. So I started going for at least one walk a day and so on. My willpower is terrible and I revert back to old habits very quickly. I don’t think my diet is shocking. I eat plenty of fruit and veg but I do have big portions, I eat too much ‘white’ stuff (bread, pasta, potatoes) and I drink a lot of calories too. I find it hard to kick these habits but I know I really do have to make some big changes and actually stick to them if I want to see results.

OP posts:

mindingmyown37 · 29/06/2025 22:40

I’m just fat and I’ll own it, not because I eat too much but because of a side affect from the medication I’ve been taking my whole life, luckily I do enough to keep a steady weight, I don’t smoke or drink and am generally healthy. I also don’t care what people think, I learned that when I was 15 because at the end of the day I know my truth.

Petrovaposy · 29/06/2025 22:38

Boy, women on here are so MEAN! 😳

TempestTost · 29/06/2025 22:37

I do think very obese people can sometimes make much more startling weight loss, especially at the beginning.

But often when they get down to the "skinny fat" stage they also struggle more. I suspect there is some kind of metabolic or other explanation for this.

I also think that to some extent it's just normal for post-menopausal women to have their fat distributed differently. That's why they can't shift it, they'd have to starve themselves to get rid of it, and who wants to live like that?

Dwells · 29/06/2025 22:37

Gonna be real with you here...Think about that suitcase you take on holiday with you...that's the kind of weight you're carrying around with you all the time ..let's call it an 18kg suitcase. Imagine if you didn't have to carry that all the time...how amazing would you feel??!

If you decide to make a change. Make sure you frame it in a positive way like with an overall goal such as 'i want to feel light, look healthy, wear that dress and I need to eat healthy and exercise' ...don't frame your change negatively such as 'I want to lose xx, and in I need to stop eating x,y,z'...positive framing has been proven to be much more sustainable for achieving long term goals.

Toomuchleopard · 29/06/2025 22:36

I’m the same, about 11 stone when I used to be 9.5. I look fine in clothes but feel fat in a bikini. These days almost everyone is a bit fat so you look normal.

Original poster

labamba23 · 29/06/2025 22:35

Tumblingthrough · 29/06/2025 22:31

But if you’re overweight, surely you’re not skinny in any way.

Also, why 🙄 ? you’ve said yourself you’re not skinny!

Edited

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I’m not skinny! We’ve established that.
It’s just a silly made up phrase (or so I thought, I’ve since been educated that it does have a more scientific meaning) to describe my body which is fat but at the lower end of fat. So a skinny fat person. Which is easier to say that ‘a fat person who is at the lower end of overweight but still a bit fat.’

OP posts:

5128gap · 29/06/2025 22:35

ShamrockShenanigans · 29/06/2025 22:28

From Google...

"Skinny fat" refers to having a higher percentage of body fat and a lower amount of muscle mass than is considered healthy, despite having a normal or even underweight BMI (Body Mass Index). Essentially, it means someone can look lean or thin on the outside but have an unhealthy body composition with more fat than muscle.

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Oh thats definitely me then! I always thought it meant that body type mainly seen on older men with fragile looking arms and legs and a big round belly.

Yuoi · 29/06/2025 22:32

I’m the skinny legs, arms, normal bmi but huge stomach type. I look pregnant most of the time, I had surgery a while back and in the pre check thing the dr made a comment that he essentially didn’t expect my stomach to look like that considering my weight/bmi. I have pcos and just hold it all there, hate it!

Tumblingthrough · 29/06/2025 22:31

labamba23 · 29/06/2025 22:28

That’s very kind of you 🙄
Im certainly not skinny, but it’s a made up phrase I used to quickly say I’m overweight but at the lower end of overweight. HTH.

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But if you’re overweight, surely you’re not skinny in any way.

Also, why 🙄 ? you’ve said yourself you’re not skinny!

Original poster

labamba23 · 29/06/2025 22:29

ShamrockShenanigans · 29/06/2025 22:28

From Google...

"Skinny fat" refers to having a higher percentage of body fat and a lower amount of muscle mass than is considered healthy, despite having a normal or even underweight BMI (Body Mass Index). Essentially, it means someone can look lean or thin on the outside but have an unhealthy body composition with more fat than muscle.

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Ok well this is news to me haha. Apologies if I’ve caused confusion.

OP posts:

Petrovaposy · 29/06/2025 22:28

Oooh you’re just like me! 40 in 6 months, 5ft 8, 11stone 3lb. Not overweight, but upper end of normal and want to lose 1.5 stone by… well, as soon as I can manage it!! By 40 I want to be much healthier and toned!

Original poster

labamba23 · 29/06/2025 22:28

Tumblingthrough · 29/06/2025 22:27

I do t see where the word skinny fits in to this description tbh

That’s very kind of you 🙄
Im certainly not skinny, but it’s a made up phrase I used to quickly say I’m overweight but at the lower end of overweight. HTH.

OP posts:

G5000 · 29/06/2025 22:28

of course you don't stand out, average woman in the UK is now size 16

ShamrockShenanigans · 29/06/2025 22:28

labamba23 · 29/06/2025 22:26

I didn’t actually know skinny fat was a phrase by the way (if it is?) it’s just something I’ve made up because it’s how I feel. I’m fat. I have literal rolls of fat around my belly. But I’m not obese and I don’t think I stand out in public as being fat.

From Google...

"Skinny fat" refers to having a higher percentage of body fat and a lower amount of muscle mass than is considered healthy, despite having a normal or even underweight BMI (Body Mass Index). Essentially, it means someone can look lean or thin on the outside but have an unhealthy body composition with more fat than muscle.

Tumblingthrough · 29/06/2025 22:27

I do t see where the word skinny fits in to this description tbh

Original poster

labamba23 · 29/06/2025 22:26

I didn’t actually know skinny fat was a phrase by the way (if it is?) it’s just something I’ve made up because it’s how I feel. I’m fat. I have literal rolls of fat around my belly. But I’m not obese and I don’t think I stand out in public as being fat.

OP posts:

G5000 · 29/06/2025 22:26

Skinny fat is commonly used to describe someone who is slim, but has higher percentage of body fat (yes it would make more sense to call it fat skinny), generally this term would not be used to describe overweight people.
Agree with others that losing weight won't get any easier, so if you do feel that you want to do something, rather sooner than later. And losing weight when you're still a size 14 is not harder than waiting til you're size 24.

ShamrockShenanigans · 29/06/2025 22:25

labamba23 · 29/06/2025 22:24

I don’t think anyone who is a size 10 could be classed as fat at all. Just my opinion.

For me I suppose it means that yeah I am a bit fat but not hugely so. I’m at the skinnier end of fat. But I agree I’m not happy with myself and need to make some changes because I already know that the older I get the harder it will be to shift.

I think it’s sometimes harder to shift smaller amounts of weight sometimes but that’s maybe a mental thing. I know from attending SW groups in the past that larger ladies could easily drop a stone in one week, perhaps because they have more to lose.

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I don’t think anyone who is a size 10 could be classed as fat at all. Just my opinion.

Of course they can, that's the whole point of the label skinny fat.

I'm size 8/10 but with a large, flabby stomach.

Whatwouldnanado · 29/06/2025 22:25

Yes definitely don’t be complacent. I am 5’ 1” 8.5 stone and can’t shift the half stone/stone gained in menopause that means that a lot of my clothes feel wrong. My health is fine, textbook diet, walking, yoga etc.

ShamrockShenanigans · 29/06/2025 22:24

Yeah to me skinny fat doesn't mean overweight.

Just slim all over but with a large stomach.

Original poster

labamba23 · 29/06/2025 22:24

Moveoverdarlin · 29/06/2025 22:08

Skinny fat doesn’t describe someone who is a size 14. It’s more an untoned 10/12.

I don’t think anyone who is a size 10 could be classed as fat at all. Just my opinion.

For me I suppose it means that yeah I am a bit fat but not hugely so. I’m at the skinnier end of fat. But I agree I’m not happy with myself and need to make some changes because I already know that the older I get the harder it will be to shift.

I think it’s sometimes harder to shift smaller amounts of weight sometimes but that’s maybe a mental thing. I know from attending SW groups in the past that larger ladies could easily drop a stone in one week, perhaps because they have more to lose.

OP posts:

ShamrockShenanigans · 29/06/2025 22:24

I'm skinny fat.

9st and 5ft 3" but aged 56 with an underactive thyroid and raging menopause.

If I stand tall and pull my stomach right in, I'm slim again but with a disturbingly blue tinge to my face 🤣

5128gap · 29/06/2025 22:23

I thought skinny fat meant someone with a lot of abdominal fat and thin limbs. So they might not be OW but the fat they do have is dangerous because its round their organs. So a slimmer apple, may be 'fatter' than a heavier pear in health terms.