To think that slim people have different habits re food and exercise

[WhatWillSantaBring]

I've been overweight most of my adult life, and find I put on weight very easily. BUT I also think I have had very unhealthy food habits - I think of food as treats, I avoid the scales, I eat when I'm not hungry, I always have the cake, emotional eating etc. I know all the things I do wrong (and that I'm sure a lot of overweight people do) but what I want to know is what do thin people do "right". i.e. what are the habits of people who are consistently a healthy weight (i.e. BMI of 20-25).

I've got some very petite friends who will do things like:

• weigh every day and take immediate action if their weight goes up by more than 5lbs;
• never accept a biscuit
• only drink one glass of wine (unless its a very special occasion when they may have two)
• never order themselves a dessert/ice cream etc (will just eat whatever their kids leave)

- exercise 5-6 days a week without fail, including Christmas Day

• never have seconds

If you're slender, and have maintained a healthy weight for years, what habits do you have that you think help you?

Also swimming for low impact cardio

I hate swimming

I am in my mid fifties and have always been around 8 1/2 stone (apart from when pregnant). I am 5'6". I have never been on a diet and very rarely weigh myself. I eat whatever I want, although rarely eat anything sugary, as I just prefer savoury food. I know I eat slowly compared to other people and don't have huge portions. I am very active. I can't bear sitting still for too long! I get up early as we have dogs to walk and horses and other animals to tend to and so don't eat breakfast (which is a cooked breakfast) until about 10.30. I come from a family of slim people, so I think it is a combination of many factors.

" I would say that many (not all!) of us don’t experience proper hunger before embarking on our next snack/meal. "

I don't think it's a good idea to wait until you're hungry before preparing a meal as you'll then grab the fastest thing possible.

I don't think exercise is the key to staying slim. Eating less is more important. All I do is a brisk walk for about 20-30 mins each day and I've managed to stay slim.

I am thin people.

Habits that help me

• no binge eating

-no eating in front of the television

• no sweets in the car
• 10,000 steps a day
• healthy meals during the week and higher calorie meals when eating out/weekends/special occasions
• big portions of healthy, vegetable heavy meals
• limited snacking
• no fizzy or sweet drinks
• drink mainly water and tea
• wine a couple of nights a week
• no puddings as such, but always something small and sweet after a meal

This works for me. I eat loads when I go out for meals and really enjoy it. I don't feel deprived or miserable!

I walk a lot
I don’t eat food as a treat. I eat food that is nutritious and good for my body
I rarely eat sugar
I don’t drink alcohol or fizzy drinks

I’m fat after having a baby. I gain weight like mad unless I restrict my calories or go no carb. My partner is very slim and eats more/worse things than I do. So I don’t always think it’s a different lifestyle thing.

See food as fuel and eat the good stuff to stave off unnecessary hunger.

I am a healthy weight (slim but definitely not skinny/thin) but unfortunately I have to really work at it! When I have let go of what I eat during pregnancy and having a new baby I gain 2 stone

Things that help - I’m generally active, and tend to eat small portions.
I weigh myself most days and reduce my food intake if I gain 5lbs.

Things that don’t help - I eat fast, I love food, I always say yes to pudding, I drink white wine, I always like a chocolate or biscuit in front of the tv in the evening.

BMI of 21. I’ve lost 20 pounds over the last 18 months and do follow some of your rules in order to maintain my weight, although I don’t do any exercise at all.

I definitely wouldn’t say it’s a joyless existence. I do limit my unhealthy snacks but still have either a packet of crisps, biscuit, ice cream or popcorn most days. I don’t drink unless I’m socialising, and then don’t drink a lot.

I do weigh myself every day. The benefit to me is that if I stick to this I won’t need to diet again, which is the main bonus. And I’m so much happier being slimmer as I feel more confident.

@Chanjer

Also swimming for low impact cardio

I hate swimming

Swimming doesn't have a great reputation for weightloss.

BMI of 18.5

• weigh every day and take immediate action if their weight goes up by more than 5lbs;

I would take action before this!

• never accept a biscuit

Yes, never

• only drink one glass of wine (unless its a very special occasion when they may have two)

Um... I drink more than this!

• never order themselves a dessert/ice cream etc (will just eat whatever their kids leave)

Never, ever eat dessert. I don't like desserts so it's no hardship. Ditto chocolate, sweets, etc.

• exercise 5-6 days a week without fail, including Christmas Day

Yes. And I walk absolutely everywhere, regardless of the weather.

• never have seconds

This, too.

Crisps would be my downfall (I love them , so don't buy them!)

It seems that the key is to -

Drink alcohol
Eat sweet things
Eat full fat foods
Eat breakfast, preferably one that's higher in protein
Go running

Maybe it's because those things are giving pleasure on a daily basis for no more than 300 calories, so there isn't the 'feeling bad' that trying to stop having those things creates, which then makes it more likely that when people do have them, they overdo it? And eating breakfast means you have energy reserves to call on through the day, so you don't get so drained that you eat too much of quick food for an energy boost and to fill the gaping hole?

As an aside, apart from caffeine and cigarettes, could it be that many slim people haven't experienced actual 'there is no food' situations as in 'I've got £2 to last ten days and there's nothing in the cupboard other than a bag of pasta'? I know I eat less when there is loads of food in the house and I don't feel bad about wasting food if I don't eat everything if there's no worry about it going into in the bin, for example.

Nor do many low intensity aerobic activities, taken on their own in isolation

I'm 6ft tall,athletic, 79.5Kg BMI 23.7 which puts me in the upper third of the healthy range.

I think i eat healthily.
I do not do takeaways or eat any low grade crap
Very little alcohol consumption/non smoker.

At least once a month i will weight and measure BP.
I get my bike out and go for a ride at least once a week

Im a healthy weight and don't actually do any of the things you mention, I do eat a healthy diet but don't deprive myself of occasional puddings/glass of wine.

I also usually do 5x 30 minute workouts per week which I really enjoy ( I know not everyone does)

I have friends who are larger and they tend to eat more processed/ ready meal type meals and dinners like pasta/pizza but that's just an observation - no judgement for whatever they want to eat

I have a friend who is very overweight and it's pretty easy to tell why.

If we go out for coffee I drink mine black no sugar ( have done for years). She'll opt either for hot chocolate with all the extras or an iced frappuccino style coffee. She'll have a cake. I'll settle for the lotus biscuit that generally comes with it.

Her portions are huge - when I go there for a meal she'll serve me twice what I can actually eat. It's healthy food - just masses of it!

In our 50s it's now caught up with her healthwise but she's lost loads on an NHS sponsored scheme and it's really changed her eating habits. I don't see her putting the weight back on this time. She's on the maintenance program now and is finding it really easy to follow

I’m slim and always have been. It’s getting harder and harder to stay slim though. I’m mid-forties now and weigh two pounds more than I did when I was 20. I’m a comfortable size 8-10.

I’m just always on my feet. I have two big dogs and do three walks a day with them. I walk to the shop instead of driving, I hoover and mop two-three times a week (not always the whole house) and I do exercise classes 5 times a week.

I average around 20Ks a day.

My food is healthy but I do love my chocolate so I have that every day. I don’t drink alcohol or sodas so live off water and sometimes coffee.

I have arthritis so I have to stay slim and active otherwise I’ll just be in pain but I think even if I didn’t have it I would still be the same.

I never eat low fat or reduced sugar things. They are usually joyless.

Bmi 20.5 and been the same weight for 40 years. Never "dieted".
I don't think of food as a treat, have a big appetite and eat anything.
I try to eat healthily but not fanatically. I will happily have steak and chips or salad. Not keen on processed food.
Never take the biscuit / cake mainly as I don't eat between meals because I want to be hungry when I sit down to eat.
Not big on exercise.
I like wine but don't have it with meals as it would make me drink more.
Wine and crisps in the evenings a few times a week.
I do snack but only in the evening which is supposed to be bad but I never put weight on so don't worry.

I think a lot of it's down to your metabolism. I've been in the healthy 21-24 range BMI my whole adult life (now early 40s) without following any rigid rules like OP describes. I love cake and biscuits (often eat daily), don't exercise often and dislike it when I do. I drink alcohol 5-6 nights a week.

What does help me I think:

• I don't like fizzy drinks or crisps
• I eat one big meal in the evening (when I can relax - I don't like eating on the go so have much lighter meals in the day)
• I mostly eat good quality food made from scratch; don't like junk food or freezer food
• for many years I skipped breakfast (in favour of sleeping in) so was effectively doing a 16:8 mini fast
• I can stop when I'm full

Not slim here and I know that most slim people just have better portion control than me. I used to be slim as a teen / early 20s , basically as a teen I did loads of exercise - netball, hockey, tennis, cycling.
I would say my weight has stabilised and ideally should lose a stone. I rarely weigh myself only if I have to but use clothes to check weight gain.

I've known a couple of men who can get away with eating loads and are still skinny (some weird metabolic thing) .

I think the main is not eating between meals and portion size.

This is a really interesting thread.

I rarely feel hungry, but if I start to eat also rarely feel full. So if I eat, I eat a lot. Always have a lot of food in the house and if I go to stay with people will buy food to take there so there is 'enough' in my mind. Will also try and cook for them as other peoples portions are tiny !

I don't eat biscuits/cake/chocolate even though they are in the house, they don't do anything for me, except bizzarely if I am at work. Although if you made me a pavlova I could quite happily sit and eat the whole thing, fortunately I have never mastered meringue making !

I drink a lot of wine.

I love savoury carbs, can merrily demolish a big bag of crisps, a full box of breadsticks, 4 slices of toast, huge portions of pasta. When I say huge that is 4-5 open fistfulls of pasta.

I do no exercise at all , probably walk the equivalent of a 1,000 steps a day maximum, and honestly that is being generous, spend a lot of time sitting down.

I love vegtables, anything green is probably up there in my favourite foodstuff list and tomatoes I could happily eat like people eat fruit.

Rather un suprisingly I weigh 20 stone.

Having read MN for many a year, I thought that fatness was related to thyroid problems, big bones, genetics and medicine. I didn't realise healthy eating and exercise had an impact.