Aibu to think as you get older being a bit fatter looks better?

YABU
You are under weight for your height so of course you’ll look better at a healthier weight.

Im 40, recently lost weight from 11st 11lb to 9st. I look loads better. Gone from a size 1/ to 8-10 depending on where it’s from. I do not look better with more weight. I look better at a healthy weight. I was also 7st 7 ish for majority of my 20s. Also under weight but due to illness.

The way you are talking is making me wonder if you possibly have an eating disorder or similar.

I have lost 18 kgs over 18 months…thank you MJ . I look so much better generally but my scraggly neck looks awful 😞 I always prided my beautiful long neck for all my adult life! Swings and roundabouts I guess 🤷‍♀️

Rounder faces do tend to look younger, and skin sometimes looks plumper/smoother all over. Apparently it's better for your health, an elder care worker said. Not sure what age and weight, obviously she didn't mean aim to be obese at 20, but as you age, being too thin can be really dangerous and the person with a bit of extra weight might well deal with illness better.

Yanbu that people, especially women don't look as good thinner as they age but yabu to think the answer is being fatter. I used to think this until I realised the problem is muscle loss. We need to be working to keep our muscle tone rather than getting fatter, although I appreciate that the latter is easier.

Of course, it does depend on the individual. One of the most beautiful and healthiest people I know is very lean, but she is a professional athlete and her body is a machine in the peak of condition. Most people are not like that.

There's a difference between not being skinny and 'carrying excess weight', though. Nobody's saying it's healthy to weigh twenty stone. Just that being underweight or even the low end of normal BMI is not optimal, especially as we get older. I think that this is especially important to remember as the ultra skinny look seems to be being pushed once more.

Yanbu. Being excessively thin ( underweight) looks awful at any age though .

I agree this is the most youthful.

I think when considering our 'youthfulness' we tend to scrutinise our faces in the mirror and don't think about how we appear as a whole, moving person, from further away.

I’m mid sixties, often told I look younger, 5’8” tall, just under ten stone, size 10. I feel big, but when I was poorly last year and went under 9 stone, I looked awful, lined and haggard. This shocked me because I weighed around 8 stone all my younger years. So I agree @ywllowcomercio , a little weight as we age has benefits.

Most middle aged people I know who carry excess weight are struggling with their knees and have breathing issues, personally I’d rather have a wrinkled face

I agree. I put on weight after having a baby in my mid 30s and I looked 10 years younger. Now the fats gone and I look older.

I know. But being underweight is just as bad as being overweight!

I'm mid 50s and am aiming to maintain my current size and shape which is 23-24 BMI, muscled, low visceral fat.

What that does to my face I don't really care, because I'm doing what I do for optimal fitness, health and strength not to be decorative.

But if I was forced to choose, I'd go leaner rather than plumper.

65kg is not terribly light, though. It's healthy. If you were 55kg you might well look gaunt.

If you are actually underweight this can increase the risk of osteoporosis when you are post menopause - but this is if you are underweight rather than being at the lower end of a healthy BMI.

How? Did they explain?

I think athletic "dried up" look is much better than double chin and fat stomach look. I was close to 86kg and now 65 kg and look 100 times better... But I'm not under weight, I'm 1.75m high so finally got my weight to be what it used to for the majority of my life. I'm 54 and my face looks thinner but I still look much better.

Some women look better with a bit of extra weight, some dont. I think it depends what your type is. A lot of women I know look much older with extra weight.

My aim as I age is to build muscle and stay at a healthy weight.
I think that being both over and underweight can be aging tbh but I think naturally slim women generally don’t look gaunt. I often think women who’ve lost a large amount of weight look older ( but it’s probably well worth it regardless)

Yes, i’m almost 50 and covid dropped to 7.5 stone. It didn’t look good.

I'm late 60s and always being told i don't look It when people find out, in fact some are totally shocked..........i say its the fat, it plumps out the wrinkles!🤷
In actual fact I think a lot is just genetics, I remember my gran and mother never really appeared wrinkly well into their 80s.

My GP told me that for post menopausal women it’s better for your bones, to carry a bit of extra weight.

Not good - DH father is too thin & looks a decade older than he is.

My friend is rather obsessivs about her weight so stays very lean. She is now in her early 50s but looks 10 years older, and has got osteoporosis. Shes also had a huge number of injuries in recent years from falls etc, her knees are knackered.

Sadly she's from an upbringing where women appreciating food or eating any more than a tiny portion was openly viewed as disgusting, and believes woman should essentially remain the size of a trim 15 year old throughout life.

I think being healthy looks better on people no matter their age. So having a healthy bmi, being fit, eating well, drinking lots of water.

I don’t necessarily think being fatter helps (and your version of fatter is still far lighter than average for your height) but being a healthy weight and eating nutritious foods helps, and exercising too- good circulation and muscle definition definitely helps with looking good/healthy.