To think fatter people look better when old?

[Littlewoodenrocket]

Clearly they’re not healthier (well, I guess it depends on lifestyle).
I always think people, particularly women, who are bigger, tend to look more youthful when older.

Slimmer or skinnier women (and men) tend to get scraggy necks and skin.
And their faces look older.

I guess an example is Dawn French, when she lost all that weight, she obviously looked fitter, but much older and more haggard looking.

Hoping this doesn’t offend anyone!

Going off piste here as haven't done a recce of looks, there are definite advantages to carrying more weight in later age. Kicks in at 65 to be exact.

Here's the Geriatric BMI calculator, that has adjustments to show that what are regarded as healthy lower end BMIs in general (and am aware of the limitations of BMI) are associated with increased deaths for the 65+.

www.omnicalculator.com/health/geriatric-bmi

The upshot is that telling older people to get thin isn't an automatic benefit, though it's not a carte blanche to eat all the pies, either.

I'm 67 and my rheumatologist said every kilo overweight is a three kilos of pressure on the knees. And it's not just about losing the weight, but building up the quads. I was sadly unfit after two years, on and off, of remote teaching. This, combined with loss of muscle mass due to ageing, makes it uphill as I'm working against dual issues. Again, my chap reckoned every year of inactivity meant a year to build up mass. He's being realistic here, not referring to special programs.

There are very few fat Mumsnetters who don't care about their weight.

How do you know @TeapotTitties? 🤔. Great username by the way 😂.

There are very few fat Mumsnetters who don't care about their weight.

How do you know? None of us know who’s fat, any more than we know who cares.

So what? What have how someone looks got to do with anything as compared to other more important things such as healthy longevity? Why would you encourage someone to be overweight because "it looks better"? In any event that is entirely subjective and I would generally disagree.

Sorry I should've said very few Mumsnetters who are vocal about their weight.

The majority who post about being overweight, aren't happy about it.

And lets be honest, how many overweight people would opt for being overweight if they could take a magic pill and wake up slim?

Sometimes being resigned to being overweight and not caring about it are two very different things.

I think being large and losing a lot of weight can be aging as there will be natural sagging where weight used to sit. So in that respect yes.
I don’t think women who are slim look older in general, no. I think being overweight is more aging tbh

Show me an overweight 86 year old who looks better than this queen and maybe we'll concede you have a point!

In all honestly, I looked middle aged when I was late 30s and over-weight. I look more than 20 years younger now that I'm in good shape. My body looks like a young woman's and while you'll see some signs of my age on my face, especially when I'm tired, my face looks way younger than it used to as I have my cheekbones back and my eyes look bigger. (I wasn't even that fat, just fat enough that my face looked non-descript rather than healthy and nicely proportioned.

Wanderingowl

Is that you in the photo? Wow fantastic, beautiful and so strong! Love it!

I like dropping 10lbs and seeing my hip bones & collarbone reappear like gorillas in the mist.
52 and about 20lbs overweight for my height

This 👏

I’m 61, just started a weight loss programme. I’m 5ft 2, weigh 11st 5lb and aiming to lose 2 stone. I don’t want to be fashionably thin, just healthy

@Wanderingowl

She does look incredible but losing weight and getting into incredible shape doesn’t make anybody look 20 years younger. It makes them look fit and strong for their age usually.

I know super fit and slim 50 year olds but they sure as hell don’t look 30.

Oh well rest easy, i'm fat and i'm happy. The happiest I have ever been now that I accept my body as it is. I'm really sorry to have to burst your bubble Can I offer you a biscuit to guzzle?

Dawn French isn't a great example as she'd have a lot of excess skin that had been fully stretched at one point before deflating.

I don't think fat women look better or worse than slim women.

It depends on how they present themselves that makes a person look good not not.

You can be skinny or fat in scruffy clothing or skinny or fat with a good hair cut and nice clothes.

It depends on how they present themselves that makes a person look good not not.

In a nutshell. Dawn French looks fabulous with her new grey hair. Age appropriate and groomed.

@WeSent500Ravens , I didn’t mean that all fat people are unhappy in life, but I think given the choice everyone would choose to be slim. It depends how big you are. I am not talking about someone who just carries a bit more weight than normal BMI

I'd rather be slim than overweight.

I notice if people look nice / kind/ fun more than their weight.

@FaceFullofFillers

Me too.

Bloody ridiculous isn't it

I'll happily believe fat people who say they're happy being fat. I hope they'll believe that, despite being slim, I'm not permanently hungry or in need of a biscuit or whatever.

Depends what you class as old. I'm 53 (does that count?) and lost 2 stone since I was 50. I look and feel at least ten years younger.
I have a youthful looking body, no menopausal thickening of the waist, and can move around quickly and easily. I'm flexible and agile and not restricted by some of the aches and pains i used to have that gave me an 'older' gait. Being a size 8 with a nice shape gives me confidence to dress more fashionably too.
Facially I lost my jowels, and ended up with a stronger jaw and a heart shaped face I didn't know I had. I lost some volume from my cheeks which I had replaced with a tiny bit of filler.
So, in my case, definitely not. However perhaps this will change in the next decade or two. In which case I can enjoy putting a couple of stone back on!

I could have written the previous post. Losing weight at 50 took years off me. I think carrying extra weight can be quite ageing.

I'll happily believe fat people who say they're happy being fat. I hope they'll believe that, despite being slim, I'm not permanently hungry or in need of a biscuit or whatever. 👏