Size 18 and Happy - Anyone Else Not Wanting to Lose Weight?”

I am similar to you OP.All I read about is WLI ,however I know no one on them .and every time I go out see lots of ladies enjoying their food!I too was very slim when young.size 10 wedding dress! M and S cafe yesterday afternoon 2 ladies in front of me, one with a nice cake covered in hundreds and thousands and a chocolate button.one with a dirty big crossaint! Harvester sat evening lots of nice rounded ladies enjoying their food!9

I'm the same height as OP and a size 16 and my knees are absolutely fine. My BP is slightly high, my GP was trying to find a cause, took a look at me and said I was fine weight wise. I haven't been a size 12 since I was in my teens or early twenties and I feel great - I'm 66.

Your BMI is more useful than a clothes size, which aren't an accurate measure of health. If your BMI is only just above 25 then it's not too bad. Any higher and you are risking health problems when you hit middle age and menopause.
What is tolerable in mid 30"s can snowball in mid 40's.

I’m 4 foot 9 and 3/4 (the 3/4 counts!) and 9 stone 5 and classed as top end of overweight. I’m a size 8-10 on top and size 10-12 on the bottom.

Up until I reached peri menopause I tried to stay between 7 and a half and 8 stone and was a size 4 on top and 6-8 on the bottom but mostly wore kids clothes because even petite clothes were far too long on the legs.
Even then my BMI was 22 and I’d technically be within healthy if I got down to under 6 stone but if I dipped under 7.7 I felt I looked too skinny.

In order to lose weight in the past I had to have less then 1000 calories and around 1200 to maintain, it’s a constant battle and every pound gained shows.

I’m currently trying to lose weight but having to stick to around 800 calories because I was lucky to lose around half a pound a week when I cut down to 1000. I was following SW so not eating 1000 calories of rubbish.

It’s not all about dress size, 8-10 is a desirable size for a lot of people but I know I’m that size just because I’m small.

I was did get up to 10 stone 5 for a few months which was obese and I was wearing size 12-14 clothes.
I really suffered from the excess weight with plantar fasciitis and strain on my back and knees, I snored, was hot and sweaty a lot of the time which I hated and found embarrassing, (I was used to always being cold when I was slimmer) my thighs chafed and my blood pressure and heart rate were high.

I requested WLI and my doctor referred me but I was rejected for not being overweight enough and referred to a dietitian instead who said my diet was fine but weight gain was due to age and height.
I couldn’t afford to pay privately so I’m putting the work in myself and getting used to being constantly hungry again and spending several hours a week exercising.

My doctor said now I’ve lost a stone in 4 weeks that it’s better this way because a lot of people gain weight when they stop the injections. I would have quite liked to be able to cut calories without being constantly hungry but that’s the curse of being small - along with having children’s size 12 feet so I can’t even buy nice shoes to cheer me up! The only pair of heeled boots cost me £200 to have made and my feet look like hooves in them 😂.

I’m 67, slim and healthy and zoom around the place. I’m very active. My sister who’s 17 months older, was the same size as me growing up, and was like you when she was your age, putting on weight.

She now has significant health issues and is still overweight. She walks really slowly and has to have afternoon naps. I have never had an afternoon nap. We both love cooking and food. The difference is that I can stop eating when I’ve had enough to enjoy: she keeps eating.

Please please think about what your life will be like when you’re her age unless you’re very very lucky.

You are delusional. You might be getting away with being fat now, but your joints are over loaded and deteriorating faster than someone of a healthy weight. Your heart will start to struggle. There is fat surrounding your organs and starting to clog your arteries. You are racking up a future of misery, Ill health and early death because of this.

There is a reason why there are very few obese older people.

All this is all science. Science is not a matter of opinion.

It is quite simple, eat less, do more. That is the simple truth. For most fat people there are usually complex reasons around why it is so difficult to accept all this and address it. You need to explore these reasons and address the problem. I say this as a former fatty.

I was ‘happy’ overweight, but then it kept increasing with time, and then the health issues associated with it kept increasing in time, and now it’s hard to shift, along with sleep apnoea, leg odema, back pain, poorer mobility and blood pressure. You can be ‘healthy’ now, but you aren’t- you will most likely continue to out weight on, and you will, at some point, get associate health issues. I don’t believe that everyone needs to be on a GLP1 and I don’t believe these are a magic bullet. I also don’t believe everyone has to be a size 10 or they need to practise restrictive eating, but I do think we need to accept that higher weights usually continue to increase, and often come with the risk of weight related health issues that those lighter don’t have as much of a likelihood of getting, although obviously anyone can

I don’t think it is a flex, I’m fat and I know it and am aware of the risks. BMI is a terrible yardstick.

Frankly if your top half is big enough for a size 20 it doesn't matter what your BMI is, you're carrying excess weight in the most unhealthy place for a woman and if you don't quite tip into obese then it's even more disproportionate and therefore more risky for your health. I'm not sure that you not being technically obese whilst wearing a size 20 is the flex you think :/

I was you - then my knees and back starting hurting. I lost three stone and the knee pain went.

I explained in the post above yours. I’m not saying I’m not fat but my BMI is not in the obese category.

I think it’s ok to be ok with some extra weight. For me it would depend on how I carried it. An hour glass or pear shaped size 18 I would love to be that size. But I’m a triangle so when I’m overweight I look like an apple with legs. Not attractive at all to me.

How :/

My BMI is in the “overweight” category. The top end, but it’s still not officially “obese”. I carry all my excess weight in my torso, my arms and legs are pretty slim, hence why I need wider clothes.

Sorry you find it incredulous but it’s true.

I think if you are happy then great. Plus size 18 is hardly huge if you are tall.

This is a quote from a previous poster, for sime reason the qute facility was not working
"Imean this kindly, OP. I think that when larger women wear things like novelty earrings it is almost buying into this stereotype of the wacky fat woman. Size 18 isn’t massively overweight and perhaps toning things down sartorially will really complement you.
You are living life to the full so just enjoy it."

Trust me you did not mean this kindly, you were bitching. The comment was nasty and unhelpful.
I am a size 16, 5ft 5ins, and late 60s. I love my figure. I dress well, and when the occasion calls for it, I wear big earings that are funky. I totally ignore idiots like the poster who I quoted, it was ignorant and her own biased opinion.

I will also add, I am considered overweight and given my age I have good blood pressure and no diabetes. So I will carry on enjoying my food, and keeping on the go.

Your happy and thats all that matters.
Appearance and dress size are important to you.

But your still overweight.
Your an adult, you understand the associated risks.

You choose how you live your life, its your life.

No you didn't mean it "kindly" at all.
She can wear whatever jewellery makes her happy.
Nasty comment.

I am a similar size and shape and mostly fine with it though I do think I would be more attractive slimmer. My health is good and I am active.

i mean I sometimes need a 20 top for boobs but I wouldn’t say I’m VERY large
fat, yes

I think your name might be the giveaway!
I am overweight (size 14-16) but know its because I am a greedy fucker. Managing to reduce it very slowly through intermittent fasting and exercise.
OP if used dyo not mind but seeing my equally fat older friends getting more an more health issues has made me try and turn it round.

It’s fine to accept the trade offs of being overweight if you prefer it. Lots of people make sub optimal choices when it comes to their health (drinking alcohol, smoking etc). If you’re happy with the risks / trade offs then it’s fine.

I find it incredibly difficult to believe that anyone wearing a size 20 top is not obese tbh.

A size 20 is, to be frank, very large indeed. I can't quite envision how you could be a size 20 and 'only' a couple of stone overweight.

Omg that’s insane! I took them to get from a BMI of 27 (with high cholesterol) to 22, roughly size 12 to 8.
i’m embarassed to admit it as I wasn’t “fat”.

Not sure why you are so certain OP is now "obese". For all we know she is in the "overweight" range, just like you are.