To think this would be too much weight to lose?

[Lemononachair]

I've lost 2 stone since last year but I know I'm still overweight. My BMI is around 27 so I wanted to lose around another stone to put me comfortably within the healthy range.

However, the calculator suggests that to be in the middle of the healthy range I'd need to lose 2 1/2 stone and that I could actually lose as much as 4 1/2 stone and still be a healthy BMI!

I'm short so I know I can't get away with weighing as much as someone taller but this really surprised me because I'm a reasonably well padded size 12/14 but I've noticed significant differences in my body since losing weight. My bum has shrunken to the extent where it hurts to sit on a hard surface because my bones dig in. I can see and feel my ribs, collarbones and hip bones pretty well - not to the extent where I look emaciated but there isn't much coverage there anymore and I'm sure if I lost another stone they would be quite prominent and another 2 1/2 stone off would make me quite gaunt. I'm already noticeably wrinklier in the face than I was too.

Maybe I've just been overweight so long I've lost sight of what a normal weight looks like!

Only on MN is a size 12/14 considered overweight...
Only on MN do people insist on using clothes sizes to determine being overweight. They're not. BMI , waist measurement and body composition determine if a person is overweight or not. However many women who wear size 12/14 will be in the overweight range. I was obese when I wore size 14, and I'd never heard of mumsnet.
Good posts scrappydappy and Ziraphale.

I think most posters on this thread are either
A. Lying
B. Have extremely disordered eating habits
C. Ridiculous unhealthy perceptions of what "thin" is

And not just this thread
All of the weight/clothes size yhrwads

I'm 5'10 and was in the overweight BMI category after putting on weight during my first pregnancy and even at my highest weight point, I was still comfortably fitting into size 14 and some size 12 clothes.

So I can't really see how someone much shorter than me in those sizes wouldn't be overweight or obese.

• think most posters on this thread are either A. Lying B. Have extremely disordered eating habits C. Ridiculous unhealthy perceptions of what "thin" is*

Or more likely, others are disillusioned that average means slim. We have now reached the stage where the average is overweight, so comparing ourselves will others is given us a false sense of what is a healthy size.

I have a size 12 pair of trousers bought in 1996 that fits me perfectly (and back in fashion, so looking good). I tried on a pair of similar trousers from the same shop, and a size 10 was way too baggy. My dimensions have remained the same.

I am slim at the very top of my bmi.
Another few stone down to the bottom and I think I would probably look hospitalisable .

Mine is the same and quite frankly I don't think I'll ever get to the bottom end of that scale. I am currently about 1.5 stone above 'healthy' weight. But the range seems huge!

I'm
Currently around 11 stone 5 having lost a stone... my "happy" weight was 9 stone 12...

I'm 5 foot 5 and an hourglass. I've had people telling me I'm "perfect and slim" as I am yet I know I'm still overweight. I fit in a size 10 generally speaking.i

I think society has lost sight of what a healthy weight looks like.

well here are health risks from being a lower BMI as well, in particular osteoporosis. I'm seeing now the affects of this in MIL and her sister who have constantly dieted and restricted, now in 70s breaking bones and seeming more and more fragile and frail. This is a real risk and concern. but for some reason most people focus on health risks of being overweight.

Mammyloveswine, but that's why weight, once you have become interested in your body, becomes meaningless.

Most women who take up weight lifting and marshal arts, are heavier or around the same as they once were. Even though they lose three dress sizes and carry little body fat.

As said, I'm on a diet forum. We advise new members to take measurements. Without losing weight, many lose inches, some weeks.

My youngest DD is a size 12 jeans in fashion shops, top shop/primark. She has big hips and muscular thighs. She looks like she works her legs more than she does. She can throw a heafty punch. She's naturally heavier boned and stronger than a lot of Women. My mother had amazing strength even in her late 70's.

My middle DD us a size 6/8 (again in fashion shops not overly vanity sizing).

But they are a similar weight and body fat %.

Like a pp, I'm an advocate of weight training. Women should do weight bearing exercise for muscle and bone density.

@Orangeblossom78, the risk of osteoporosis in slim people is minimal compare to the many health risks of being overweight, so focusing on this to ignore the issues related to being overweight is not doing anyone any favours.

Osteoporosis is not a disorder of the slim people, it's a disorder of those who have serious eating disorders and/or who go into the menopause early and don't take hrt and/or have a lifestyle to prevent it, ie. diet rich in calcium, plenty of vit D and exercise.

Obesity is the biggest killer and the highest cost to the NHS with its link to diabetes.

Most women who take up weight lifting and marshal arts, are heavier or around the same as they once were
Totally agree. I've started to do weights and strength building and my weight has gone up slightly, but my clothes are getting baggier by the weeks.

But that's the point, it's not about weight but dress size, and for most, even if muscular, a size 12/14 is likely to mean that they are not slim.

well here are health risks from being a lower BMI as well, in particular osteoporosis. I'm seeing now the affects of this in MIL and her sister who have constantly dieted and restricted, now in 70s breaking bones and seeming more and more fragile and frail. This is a real risk and concern. but for some reason most people focus on health risks of being overweight.

It's a risk for women who are underweight due to restricted diet and who do not exercise. Nobody at all is advocating for people to cut essential nutrients from their diet in order to be underweight. So wondering why nobody is focussing on that is ridiculous because it's not an issue in this conversation. It's not a choice between being unhealthy due to being over-weight and being unhealthy due to being under-weight. That's the whole point. People have this discussion as if those are the only two choices and it's actually mind-bogglingly stupid and so belittling to us.

Guess what one of the biggest preventative factors for osteoporosis is? Go on. I'll give you a clue. It isn't being over-weight. It's being fit and having an excellent, consistent, near daily exercise routine. Regular weight-bearing exercise builds bone density. So if you want to reduce your odds of suffering with osteoperosis your best bet is (unsurprisingly) a good healthy diet and lots of exercise.

It's also probable you haven't lost weight evenly all over - I find certain parts drop the weight much faster and some retain. You might find if you lose more, your collarbone etc. Doesn't protrude any more but you lose off your stomach or arms, for example.

How tall are you op and what do you weigh?

I also think the pertinent phrase is you're so used to seeing yourself heavier that you are unable to see yourself as you are.

If your ribs are really sticking out and your hips etc then it's unusual you're bordering on a 14 if your short. Unless you mean if you stretch up and breathe in hard.

If I was you I'd look at myself realistically not sucking it in if that's what you're doing. But aim for a weight you can maintain. Anything too light and you'll just pile it back on.

Healthy BMI covers a huge weight range for everyone which is why it works.

People really don’t look too thin at a healthy BMI. They just aren’t used to seeing themselves like that.

I feel bony and skinny after an episode of the nuro virus, it doesn’t mean I’m suddenly too thin.

Only on MN is a size 12/14 considered overweight

This is a bit of an odd thing to say. Dress size alone is clearly not an indicator of whether someone is over weight or not, because obviously height and muscle has a major impact on that.

However an average height woman, with average muscle tone, will indeed likely be over weight at a size 14. And the smaller you are. Then the more over weight that would likely be.

I struggle to believe anyone would think otherwise.

@Lemononachair how tall are you?

Have a look here- over 40 and postmenopausal the optimum BMI for prevention of osteoporosis is 26-27 www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0018442X14000201

Important to think of as we grow older.

Also to the comment: “Only on MN is a size 12/14 considered overweight...”

I think people take clothes size and compare themselves too much to this. A 12/14 size on a 5’8” woman is most likely to see her being a healthy size. A 12/14 on a 5’2” woman is most likely to see her being overweight. I say most likely as it’s not always the case - in that, I think we see the problem.

Women are comfortable at all different weights and sizes. @Lemononachair go for strong, healthy and happy.

It’s to do with build and body fat too.
I’m def a bit overweight for my build because my excess weight is round my middle. I can get into a big 10 on top but sometimes struggle with a 12 on the bottom. My weight only ever fluctuates by 7lbs but that half a stone makes a big difference to what I look and feel like.
My bmi has always been at the lower end because of my small frame, but doesn’t mean I couldn’t lose weight from the middle area.

@Orangeblossom78

Weight training increases bone density, by stimulating bone production, thus lowering the risk of osteoporosis. Carrying excess body weight puts stress on bones, therefore produces a similar-ish effect.

So you might be technically right but I don't see the logic in saying that it's somehow "good" to be a higher BMI to incidentally reduce the risk of osteoporosis (but get all the other health risks associated with said BMI), instead of just being a healthy BMI and doing some strength training to get the same effect (which has more overall benefits than just bone strength).

I am a 12/14 (occasional 16 even) and have a BMI of 21. I am not overweight.nor do I look it!

Weight training increases bone density, by stimulating bone production, thus lowering the risk of osteoporosis.

It's not just weight-lifting. Little is better for increasing bone density than simply jumping. Just taking a few minutes to jump about every day will do a tonne more for your bones than being somewhat overweight. Women who do impact sports like squash, soccer, speed skating etc tend to have the highest bone densities. Ideally you want an exercise routine that includes weight bearing and muscle building. Because women who do both have significantly better bone density than women who just do one kind of exercise. Though doing one is still a lot better than being sedentary.