Slim women. Do you work at it?

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I always thought slim women could just eat whatever they liked naturally. But looking at the eating habits of my slim friends, they don’t seem to eat whatever they like - they are constantly making healthy, low cal choices and I can’t shake the feeling it’s deliberate in order to stay slim, rather than them just actually fancying the lower cal option.

is this your experience? Is this what slim women have to do forever? When did you start doing this and do you find it easier now?

I'm naturally slim (as were both parents) but I have not got a big appetite and don't overeat. I also don't eat junk food nor exercise. If I am upset I don't binge eat, rather, I lose my appetite.

When I reached 60 I developed hypothyroidism and that did result in weight gain (mainly round the middle!) but Iost almost all that upon developing various food intolerances, to the point where I became skinny.

I do think slimness is mainly genetic.

I disagree. I am 5'8"
25 inch waist, 34 hips, 32 bust.
Slim. Not unhealthy.
If I was 5 foot with the same proportions I would prob need a size 4 or children's sizes. Very petite, healthy women exist.

UK sizing has massively increased. I size myself by French sizes as they have not upsized in the same way. So I’m still an 8 in Joseph as I have been for 30 years. However in U.K. sizing I am often a 6. I don’t count that as a real 6 though.

Up until the age of 38 I was slim naturally. I've always eaten healthily but I used to eat 3 big meals a day and a few little snacks in between and I wouldn't put on weight. I did use to exercise but not excessively.

Since I had my DD at age 39 everything has changed, partly because I don't exercise quite so much as I've got some back issues. But I make a huge effort now to stay slim (eat only 2 meals a day and avoid sugar).

Which ignores vanity sizing. My weight and measurements haven’t changed since my late teens, yet my clothes size has 🤷🏻‍♀️

You don't know the role of ethnicity in body shape?

This is me too, but instead of Spanish I’m south-eastern European. Your diet and food preferences sound identical to mine. There’s definitely a cultural element.

I’m slim, 5ft 7 and about 9st I do eat what I want, and eat chocolate nearly every day. I also have carbs with every meal.
However I really don’t like greasy food, so rarely get takeout as the options in our town are all grim, greasy Chinese/pizza/rubbish Indian food type places. I grew up somewhere where the nearest takeaway was about a 40 minute drive away so never grew up with just getting one because it was convenient or we couldn’t be bothered.
I like cooking, and I don’t eat meat or meat replacements which inherently means things tend to be quite low calorie.

I am also very active, I run a lot to a half decent level on the road (have won a few 10k races etc), I walk places as much as possible, i have two dogs that hate running so they need walking twice a day on top of my running, and I try and do some strength training 3x a wee.
I don’t do that to loose weight I do it because I love running but definitely means I can eat a lot more than the average person of my size

I’m slim right now because I can’t afford to eat more 😡 but I’m never more than a size 8 and I do 16:8 all of the time and running plus weight training. It annoys me when people complain about how much easier it is for me while sitting on the sofa eating a full packet of biscuits.

Yes and no. I often eat 2 meals a day only because breakfast makes me feel sick but I tend to eat what I want when I want. Some days I eat a lot more than others. Also if I start noticing I’m gaining weight I’ll consciously stop eating chocolate and rubbish etc.

I was always very slim till I was about 33 (big boobs though) after that it crept on and on- all my own fault- I don't eat shit and not do I snack but clearly ate way too much carbs and too big portions and apart from walking as I don't drive did sod all exercise. I'm currently on a diet and am a couple of stone down after a year but still 14 stone. Thing is though I'm aware I have a 'good face' and at 61 I don't have many wrinkles and still have good legs and cleavage etc . Whereas I'm sat next to 2 women in a cafe who are my age(I heard them discussing this) both slim, but definitely look a fair bit older and with way more lines- seems to me you can't win- Barbara Cartland always said beyond a certain age it was figure or face. Having said that given my aches and pains at the moment I would rather be slim and a bit more wrinkled!!

That's exactly what I do and it does work.

Genetics are somehow important but diet and exercise are so much more important after a certain age..ime

My mum isn't slim exactly but she has remained consistently between 8.5 and 9.5 stone except for pregnancy (she's short though). She's 76 now and her hobbies are Pilates, gardening and aqua Zumba. She eats what she wants but always lots of veg, small portions and moderate treat food - she'll eat something sweet most days but it is a square of dark choc or a home made small slice of cake. Oh and home cooked - low on the upf by nature.

So it's not an effort but it is a habit. She says it's part of being a post war baby.

On the other hand, I am none of that. Except the veg bit maybe.

Genetics is interesting - I am the only fattie in my family on both sides and also the only non sporty person. My kids look to be naturally skinny so far too but are also sporty.

I think there is some interesting stuff emerging on gut microbiome too. I did Zoe and was low in some of the bacteria which those with a 'fast metabolism' often have.....

I'm slim but only because of the constant watching what I eat. Recently, I've let go a bit on the control, not gone crazy at all, more what is considered 'normal' nowadays and sure enough, in 2 months, I'd put on 1/2 stone -which is a lot for me - despite my level of exercising still being intense.

So I'm back to being even more watching what I eat and counting. I can see why most can't be bothered. It's a serious restriction to life. I do it because I HATE feeling fat, really hate it and because aim very health conscious. It's a choice I make that is right for me.

When I get the 'you're lucky, you're just slim', I really annoys me. If only!

It annoys me when people complain about how much easier it is for me while sitting on the sofa eating a full packet of biscuits.

That happens a lot does it? 😆

Not a lot but enough!

But do you actually want those biscuits?

Yesterday I was having a chat with a friend and weight came up. Earlier she'd had a bowl of ice cream (with the kids). I could have had a bowl as well, but I simply didn't want any- it wasn't that I was denying myself the ice cream, I just didn't want it. She said to me that "I'm good"not having treats and she really struggles denying herself. I commented that I wasn't denying myself, I just didn't fancy it. So it IS easier for me than for her.

Similarly, I have a friend who is taking ozempic for weightloss. She's had so many negative comments about it, but she has said to me that it means she no longer feels constantly hungry, she's not constantly thinking about food. I rarely think about food, I can't imagine trying to remain slim if I did.

I think some overweight people imagine it's harder than it is to 'eat less and move more.' I once had a colleague say I was on a 'health kick' because I cycled to work everyday. Nope, I don't drive so I have to exercise to get anywhere, I'm so used to it it doesn't even occur to me that other people would find it some sort of challenge.

I'm slim (a bit too slim actually). It's just my natural body shape/genetics. Have made half-hearted attempts to put weight on at various points in my life and not managed it.

I reckon I eat a pretty average diet in terms of both quality and quantity and do an average amount of exercise.

Carbs are the main part of all my meals. Have never tried cutting them. I also never miss a meal.

@AllOfThemWitches, I feel the same when people say they walk 10,000 steps a day or ‘walk the dog every day’ as their only exercise. I can see how this would be challenging for someone who is completely new to any form of physical activity and who is transitioning from a sedentary to more active lifestyle, but for the vast majority of people in good health, walking the dog every day doesn’t really constitute exercise in my book (unless one is striding at a fair pace up hill and down dale for a couple of hours), and 10,000 steps a day isn’t difficult to do (harder for people who work in jobs where they are sedentary though, I’m sure).

Someone (middle aged and with no health problems) was telling me recently how much their legs ached after spending half a day walking round a city. If you’re getting DOMs in your quads from a bit of walking, you’re probably not very fit!

Before I get shouted at, yes I know there are good reasons why some people can’t exercise or find it hard to improve their fitness. I’m just speaking generally.

Depends on the size and breed of dog..

I’ve always been slim, 8-10 in recent years, and do eat what I want. But I don’t want much. I’ve never had a big appetite and if I’m feeling upset or anxious, I won’t eat at all.

If my health condition is flaring then the pain takes away my appetite, so every so often I’ll spend a week or so eating nothing but a few biscuits and pieces of toast here and there because it’s all I can stomach.

I can’t afford meals out or takeaways and don’t like ready meals. I’d say I eat relatively healthily but don’t particularly like salads and similarly low-cal foods. I eat a lot of rice, stir-fried veg and fried tofu or paneer, and always have to have some sort of sweet thing afterwards.

When I haven’t been able to eat for extended periods because of pain or poor MH or whatever, I feel so physically weak and unwell. The longer I go without eating, the harder it is to stomach anything so it becomes a case of having to force food or complan down myself to break the cycle. Which is horrible.

I did have a short period of rapidly gaining weight while taking a particular medication, and it was quite distressing and I got a bit fixated on it. So I do really sympathise with the struggle some people have, it must be exhausting.

I'm not especially slim - I describe myself as a size 13! - but I'm tall and athletic with a big frame. I do a lot of sport, weight-training etc, my body is well-kept and toned and I'm a good fitness / mobility level.

I've been the same weight more or less since I was about 21 (44 now), maybe 3kg +/- over the years.

I do watch what I eat and drink to an extent, but that's because I prefer to feel a certain way and I know that some foods will make me feel bloated or over-full or just unwell. I also like 'healthy' food - I would honestly take the salad over the chips or the crudites over the crisps - but that's my personal taste, not some kind of moral fortitude.

I will have the odd full-on blow-out, but I know I'll pay the price for the next couple of days and, as I get older, that's just not a price I'm prepared to pay.

That is true Mirabai, but a lot of the people saying it have Pugs/Frenchies/old dogs 😂

Yes and no. Definitely no until I was about 40. I am classic ectomorphic (I think it's that one) body shape; all limbs, arms and legs very slender indeed, never had an arse to speak of. Hungry frequently, have to eat regularly or I feel terrible, have skipped a meal about twice in 47 years. 5 foot 2, weigh about 7 and 3/4 stone and that doesn't really vary. I've hit 8 stone a couple of times in my life. Can put away a lot of fried potato products and beer and have a weakness for a lot of foods that are very fattening.
Having said all that, I carry a bit of a tummy and always have, even at my skinniest, although you can't necessarily tell unless I'm also bloated (sadly I frequently am due to IBS). Weight goes straight there and to my face. Like a bloke.

And with peri hitting it will head there more rapidly. So while I still loves chips and beer it is offset by other meals of steamed fish and greens. And recently I've realised that although I think of myself as a big eater, my portions aren't necessarily as large as some peoples. And I do wonder if the IBS actually also plays a part. Quite a lot of food goes straight through me.