Would you rather have an amazing figure by eating a restrictive diet and exercising or be slightly larger (not obese)and not ripped by eating whatever you fancy?

[malificent7]

Like most women i love food but would also like a leaner body. Is the slog of dieting really worth it?

Also if I have a sauna I can increase my heart rate and sweat for half an hour is that as good as exercise?

I eat sensibly and don't stuff myself with crap. I'm slim and toned.

What shape are women supposed to be?

Gain muscle! You won't become 'bulky' - you'll just feel fit. Plus you'll be able to eat 3000 cals per day.

Unfortunately this would only happen if you gained enough that you could outlift The Mountain on game of thrones.

That's not true at all. Gaining muscle means your RMR goes up. Which means if you have muscle (not bodybuilding standards by any means), you can train your body to take lots of lovely calories and burn them off doing nothing at all. You won't get ripped doing resistance training unless you have 0 fat in your diet.

Instead of eating dust and running yourself into an early grave to be skinny, you can eat more and more calories, resistance train and be healthy, slender and toned.

I don't understand the desire to be skinny at all.

And BMI is a terrible tool to measure your size without other factors taken into consideration.

So in answer to the OP, it's perfectly reasonable to have and want both. You don't need to starve to be thinner and certainly not healthier. But to achieve such you need a lifestyle change, not a diet or excessive cardio which wastes away your muscles.

What shape are women supposed to be?

their natural one

And BMI is a terrible tool to measure your size without other factors taken into consideration.

THAT
a million times that!!!

I do both. I’m slim but never have to deny myself anything. I think it’s because I don’t crave processed food, take always, fried food. I eat sweet stuff most days in some form but love my meals which are all cooked from scratch. Some are rich, some are fresh and light, it’s balance and luckily my food craving seems to have the right balance to stay slim.

@Whosorrynow - you could eat healthy alternatives, but if you're at that point, why would you? It's easier, cheaper and nicer to eat junk food, and it's just a calorie game.
Looking at the pros - doesn't Killian Jornet (probs the fittest guy in the world) eat a massive amount of pizza and chocolate spread?
I'm not sure about saunas... I can't imagine that they're as good as moving your body because you're only exercising your heart muscle, as opposed to the rest of your body too?

B please Bob.

I think it depends how lucky you are genetically. I’m naturally slim and eat what I want. But if I had a slow metabolism I would probably diet if I was overweight. I have some friends who have to diet just to stay normal size (their normal). If they ate like me they said they would be huge. However, downfall is I have high cholesterol...

I switch between the two.
It will catch up with me through because it's becoming harder to lose the weight just through a months better eating.
I just love food though unfortunately and I also tend to eat my feelings. I don't think I will ever be truly skinny again.

Mostly b at the moment! I like the idea of a but I can never turn down a pizza so it's just not meant to be

I want to be in the middle, to lose my mum tum and feel better in clothes, to be fitter and know that the food I am putting into my body is good for me but also not be scared to have a treat. Finding the balance is hard but for me it's about feeling good in myself as much as it is about vanity.

Agree that BMI is a terrible judge of health and fitness.

Before I started my fitness journey regime, my BMI was perfect. But I was huffing and puffing going upstairs, couldn’t run for a bus, restricted movement in all of my joints. I’m now the same weight as when I started, so the BMI will be the same, but I can sprint up the stairs without catching my breath. I feel stronger, healthier, get less colds, go to the toilet more regularly (yes), and sleep better. I have more energy and have killed most of my most persistent aches and pains. That includes sciatica and constant back/shoulder issues. Even my periods are less heavy. As I said above I still eat what I want, and bloody enjoy it.

'amazing' is subjective isn't it? What you might class as 'amazing' another might consider vile.

I think if you place much value on how you look, or the size of your waist/how your jeans fit/how you look in a bikini rather than if you're a decent human being and living a good life, then you're a pretty vapid person anyway and regardless of figure that shines through the most.

2nd option. I'm a large size 14 and happy with my looks & figure. I like curves. I'm in my 50s so I'm not going on a diet - don't want a collapsed face. I low carb 3 times a week, lift weights (probably not as often as I should), eat mostly what I like on other days and that's it.

I'm not getting out of here alive I refuse to spend life worrying about every morsel that passes my lips, it's boring.

When I was three stone heavier I would have seen the diet that I have now as restricted : but now I just see it as normal. I don't feel like I'm on a diet. It's been a long hard slog to get to this point.

It's about re-educating yourself as to what a meal needs to be - and this doesn't need to include bread and butter on the side, 6 roast potatoes and a sandwich before bed!

Ooh, one last point : if I gain weight it's all on my face. Not many people are like this, most people look the same facially at ten stone vs 13 stone. I look like a different person, I really do.

@MyFamilyAndOtherAnimals1 Serious question why would anyone increased their intake of processed foods? surely extra exercise just means extra protein, complex carbs and plenty of fruit and vegetables?

Is it possible to be a decent human being who lives a good life whilst simultaneously caring about how fit you look and how hot you are?
Genuine question are these things mutually exclusive.
@MyFamilyAndOtherAnimals1 I take your point that elite athletes can get away with eating junk food in the sense that they are unlikely to gain unwanted body fat by so doing, but I don't agree that it's just a calories game, processed food in my view is inherently damaging to health and it would be better to eat real food all the time.

@AlwaysCheerful - I agree that the vast proportion of the population does not need to increase their processed food intake. But I like to make the point that processed food can be a part of a healthy lifestyle.

@Whosorrynow ahh, we're not going to agree on that point! Also, I think you've got the wording in your first sentence mixed up - shouldn't it be 'how fit you are and how hot you look'?

Is it possible to be a decent human being who lives a good life whilst simultaneously caring about how fit you look and how hot you are?

Yes, of course

@Whosorrynow
I agree, all calories are NOT equal.
The question might be from a journalist but it is an interesting debate!

@WhiteRedRose "Amazing is subjective"
looking amazing is definitely subjective but feeling amazing is different.
How we feel is just as important as how we look.

In order to be at the peak of physical fitness in order to be in really good shape .....well most of us would have to extend a great deal of time and energy in service of this goal, can you be a well rounded decent human being if the overwhelming focus of your life is optimising your own body?

@Alwayscheerful - well, that's just daft - a calorie is a calorie.
But food isn't equal - some foods make you crave more food and some foods are more satiating.