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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To wonder if this is a fat girl problem

120 replies

Star1234567890 · 25/06/2018 10:56

I've always been slightly bigger than most, not always overweight but even at my slimmest 12-14, as a pair shape I would still have a belly, wobbly thighs and fat upper arms whilst having twig legs and a decollege that made me look gaunt.

I'm current 15stone and have recently lost Stone by dieting. I did the Couch 2 5k programme in the hope that it would improve my fitnes but despite also losing the stone, walking the 7 minute walk to nursery has me hot and sweaty even in cooler weather. It was like this when I was thinner too but I presumed I was just unfit.

When I walk, I'm not out of breath, just hot and sweaty. I find it uncomfortable trying to suck my tummy in and walk so that I don't waddle and have my belly stuck out but that's difficult too. I go slow when I can but then see other women breeze around faster and flawlessly.

Losing weight and working on my fitness, will this change the discomfort or am I just made this way?! It's not just that I swear but I feel hot too. Today is a killer and I don't have any summery clothes that I feel comfortable in.

OP posts:
Zippetydoodahzippetyay · 25/06/2018 11:01

Could it be hormonal? I think things like polycystic ovaries can cause you to sweat more. I know since I've been breastfeeding I also get hot quickly snd sweat more than others seem to.

Pippylou · 25/06/2018 11:02

Yeah, fat = thermal insulation.

Lovely if you swim in cold water, difficult otherwise.

Be careful with the sucking in of the tummy all the time, can cause problems.

15st will be causing joint damage too, particularly knees. The waddle is a clear sign of hips needing help to move too. Affects your biomechanics.

Get doing some weights, tighten everything up & help your walking.

lubeybooby · 25/06/2018 11:03

I'm pretty sure plenty of slim women get sweaty and uncomfortable too. One of my friends is a powerlifter and regular posts beetroot faced sweaty pics. I find them really inspiring actually knowing it's normal to look like you worked HARD

I'd stop worrying so much about what you look like too - sod holding your tummy in, that means you're trying to do a core and cardio workout at the same time - bound to be hard and make you feel bad

Chapman31 · 25/06/2018 11:08

I have problems with regulating my body temperature- I can be really sweaty and clammy or shivering cold. It’s related to my thyroid. Have you had yours checked? It can also be linked to weight gain and struggling to lose weight.

mostdays · 25/06/2018 11:11

Be careful with the sucking in of the tummy all the time, can cause problems
What problems? I know I do this pretty much whenever I think of my tummy and now I'm slightly worried!

OP, I can get really sweaty too. I'm fat atm but honestly it was no different when I was thin.

Teachtolive · 25/06/2018 11:13

While weight loss would probably help somewhat because you'll physically need less effort to move, some people just run hotter than others. At any weight my DH will pump sweat and is always warm to the touch. Another make friend of mine is quite physically fit but would break a sweat reading a book. I, on the other hand, am frozen if there's a stiff breeze even on the hottest day!

Star1234567890 · 25/06/2018 11:13

Interesting comments here, I wouldn't think to do weights for a start! I don't think I have any other symptoms for PCOS but do still breastfeed my almost 4 year old though not much now. Again my last check of thyroid was ok but was a while ago so might be worth a check.

Wether there is an underlying cause or not I know I'm going to have to work to make things better but reassuring if slim people get the same!

OP posts:
Star1234567890 · 25/06/2018 11:14

It's so awkward when you want to walk more but feel crap in clothes and don't want to be seen. A vicious circle!

OP posts:
TheHulksPurplePanties · 25/06/2018 11:17

I'm a sweater. Doesn't matter if I'm size 4 or size 16, I'm covered in sweat with even the slightest rise in temperature or exertion.

LizB62A · 25/06/2018 11:18

I've always overheated - doesn't matter what weight I am. I'd pass out from the heat when I weighed 7.5 stone at age 18 and can still do now that I am (literally) twice the woman I was then.
I'm sure for some people, their ability to deal with the heat would improve if they lost weight but I know I've always been rubbish in the heat.
I don't really sweat much so I just go bright red, get really uncomfortable and eventually faint.

ComtesseDeSpair · 25/06/2018 11:18

You're essentially carrying around several stone of "cargo", for want of a better word. If I had to carry a backpack weighing eight stone everywhere with me in this weather, I'd be constantly sweaty and exhausted as well. That's a way to think of it.

As other posters have said, difficulty regulating body temp and excess perspiration can sometimes be symptoms of thyroid and pcos - but honestly, I think a GP would suggest you lose a little more weight before ordering tests for either as that's the most likely cause. Losing a stone and getting to running 5km is excellent - keep up the good work!

Almondio · 25/06/2018 11:19

I've always had a problem with overheating. I'm 5ft11 and a size 12/14 so I don't think it's necessarily always related to weight/excess fat. I sweat easily, quickly, and enthusiastically (!) when it's warm, even I'm just sitting out in it.

During high impact gym classes/running/weights, I'm the one sweating profusely, red in the face, hair soaking, with a towel and headband at close quarters. My thyroid was fine when I had it checked in my 20s, though I've not had it checked recently (40s). I used to be terribly embarrassed about it as a teenager and would wear black, and avoid dancing in clubs as after a while, I'd be 'glowing' and unable to cool down unless I got into fresh air.

My dad is the same, as is one of my DCs, so I think it's something in the family genes. I'd love a cure, as it's annoying and u sightly, but I'm not self conscious any more. Too old for that nonsense!

ReanimatedSGB · 25/06/2018 11:20

Another possibility (you don't mention how old you are) is the start of the perimenopause. If these spells of overheating are a newish thing and persist even on a cooler day, it might be worth a word with your GP.

ILikeMyChickenFried · 25/06/2018 11:20

I'm very overweight but not particularly sweaty

gwenneh · 25/06/2018 11:20

The law of diminishing returns kicks in quite quickly when it comes to cardio. That's why weights are so great -- it's easier to change up to avoid that situation.

I'm the opposite, it takes a lot for me to get hot & sweaty. I just did a free month of tae kwon do with a few friends and while I'm the heaviest out of all of us, I was also the one who was able to do more before getting red in the face. But I also lift weights fairly often -- I think there's a strong correlation.

cholka · 25/06/2018 11:21

Well done on losing the stone!

I think some people just run hotter than others. Slightly connected to fat but not entirely - I've met fat people who feel the cold.

Have you tried cycling much? You still get the cardio but a cool breeze too, plus if you're self-conscious then it's less cringeworthy than jogging as you can zip past people before any gawping happens. It also puts less strain on your joints than running, especially if you're carrying some extra weight.

KittyHawke80 · 25/06/2018 11:22

She’s not carrying eight stone of ‘extra cargo’, though.

Tinkobell · 25/06/2018 11:23

The weight and the lack of summer clothes won't be helping the sweat that's for sure. When overweight I have a bad knee, sore feet and haemorrhoids- lovely! They all go away once the weights back down.

TheHulksPurplePanties · 25/06/2018 11:26

Another make friend of mine is quite physically fit but would break a sweat reading a book

I quite literally do this. I break a sweat putting make up on in the morning. No matter what my fitness levels. My brother and mother are the same.

northernirishgirlonline18 · 25/06/2018 11:26

Are you on any medication that might have that sort of side effect?

The sweat thing happens to me, but it's like if my legs or another part of my body touches the other (e.g. arms touch legs, stomach or wherever) the place it touches becomes so sweaty that there is literally water on the top of my skin.

This never happened before last year, I changed medication to Vensir and I am now on 225 mg and I can only think it must be that. It's like I wake up in the middle of the night, my legs are soaking, the bed is soaking where I have lain and my hair is soaking. You'd think I'd run a marathon in the Sahara Desert ffs. This only happened when my medication changed.

I actually feel like I didn't know what sweat was until that happened lol, as I have never in my life sweat to the point where there is literal water on the surface of my skin. I've been tested for hormonal issues, PCO, thyroid, etc when doing other tests so I know, for me, that's not it.

Go to your GP and ask for tests to be done, it could well be as another poster mentioned, a hormonal imbalance of some sort.

cholka · 25/06/2018 11:27

On the hot weather clothes I entirely know where you're coming from. Those sweat-wicking exercise leggings with a loose cotton dress over the top works for me.

sallythesheep73 · 25/06/2018 11:28

You should be proud of yourself for all the exercise and weight loss!! Well done!!
I am also trying to get fitter. I go jogging with a friend but she sweats whereas I overheat and although she is fatter than me I am the one who is always out of breath and desperate to stop!
So we are all different.
But you're doing an excellent thing. Just get out there. Keep up the hard work!

StandardsHighSquatsLow · 25/06/2018 11:28

I think it's a family thing rather than a fitness thing. I walk to work every day, just half an hour and it's a quick walk, I don't have time to go slowly and by the time I get to work I am so sweaty. I don't see how other people are walking in their normal work clothes, I always have to wear gym clothes so I don't get my work clothes sweaty.

For the record, I am a size 8-10 and in the gym three times a week so I know it's not a fitness thing. I've always been sweaty and I've just had to accept that I always will be.

BounceAndClimb · 25/06/2018 11:29

I'm slim (size 8) but I get red faced and sweaty very very easily and don't handle the heat well, so don't think its just weight related though it probably worsens it a bit.

sociopathsunited · 25/06/2018 11:30

I overheat really quickly, so you have my full sympathy. I've always overheated, and therefore drink a LOT of water to keep myself hydrated. I just accept that, when I exercise, I'm going to look like a sweaty beetroot. As a PP said, some of us just have a higher setting on our internal thermostat. Or maybe it's a lower one...I'm happier too cold than too hot, that's for sure.

Go with it, just pay attention to your fluid intake. If you're sweating loads, it may be worth considering using those rehydration tablets - they've got minerals and salts etc in them to replace what you lose through sweating, so keeping you balanced.

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