Is anyone else skinny-fat?

[labamba23]

I am a size 14, weigh about 11.5 stone at 5’6/7. I don’t think walking down the street anyone would look at me and think I look noticeably ‘fat’ but I also know that I am technically overweight and I am carrying excess fat around my belly and thighs. Compared to my size 8 friends I feel huge, compared to my size 20 friends I feel smaller.

I think there’s a whole group of people like me who are overweight but at the lower end. I think of myself as a skinny fat person if that makes sense.

I am finding it hard to lose weight, mostly because I’m not very good at tracking calories and I do have a few vices (mostly wine, chocolate and carbs) that I struggle to give up. I know people who have been very overweight who have managed to drop a lot of weight very quickly but it doesn’t happen like that for me even when I try.

Im not desperately unhappy with my appearance but I think if I could lose between 1-2 stone I’d feel a lot better. Health wise I am more worried as I’m 40 soon and know I need to look after myself better. It’s almost harder when you don’t have as much to lose, or is it just me?

I’m not skinny! We’ve established that.
It’s just a silly made up phrase (or so I thought, I’ve since been educated that it does have a more scientific meaning) to describe my body which is fat but at the lower end of fat. So a skinny fat person. Which is easier to say that ‘a fat person who is at the lower end of overweight but still a bit fat.’

I’m the same, about 11 stone when I used to be 9.5. I look fine in clothes but feel fat in a bikini. These days almost everyone is a bit fat so you look normal.

Gonna be real with you here...Think about that suitcase you take on holiday with you...that's the kind of weight you're carrying around with you all the time ..let's call it an 18kg suitcase. Imagine if you didn't have to carry that all the time...how amazing would you feel??!

If you decide to make a change. Make sure you frame it in a positive way like with an overall goal such as 'i want to feel light, look healthy, wear that dress and I need to eat healthy and exercise' ...don't frame your change negatively such as 'I want to lose xx, and in I need to stop eating x,y,z'...positive framing has been proven to be much more sustainable for achieving long term goals.

I do think very obese people can sometimes make much more startling weight loss, especially at the beginning.

But often when they get down to the "skinny fat" stage they also struggle more. I suspect there is some kind of metabolic or other explanation for this.

I also think that to some extent it's just normal for post-menopausal women to have their fat distributed differently. That's why they can't shift it, they'd have to starve themselves to get rid of it, and who wants to live like that?

Boy, women on here are so MEAN! 😳

I’m just fat and I’ll own it, not because I eat too much but because of a side affect from the medication I’ve been taking my whole life, luckily I do enough to keep a steady weight, I don’t smoke or drink and am generally healthy. I also don’t care what people think, I learned that when I was 15 because at the end of the day I know my truth.

I have tried this. I have tried adding healthy things rather than taking things I enjoy away. So I started going for at least one walk a day and so on. My willpower is terrible and I revert back to old habits very quickly. I don’t think my diet is shocking. I eat plenty of fruit and veg but I do have big portions, I eat too much ‘white’ stuff (bread, pasta, potatoes) and I drink a lot of calories too. I find it hard to kick these habits but I know I really do have to make some big changes and actually stick to them if I want to see results.

Don't worry OP, it made sense. You meant that if we were only grading all the fat people, you would be one of the skinny ones.

Some people are just very literal.

I'm 5'6", 11 stone 3 and definitely fat! I guess it depends on where you hold it (mainly stomach upper arms and thighs for me).

I live up North but when I come down South I feel a right fatso.

I think skinny fat is more like someone who is not overweight on the scales/BMI but has no tone or muscle anywhere and are just flaccid.

This is me. It’s so hard. I managed to stay in and around 9 stone doing 30 day shred for years (not every day!).. I started to have some eye problems which have persisted and made my life a misery. I stopped exercising in May of last year due to being so down over eyes and having no energy. Roll on a year and I’ve put on a stone. None of my jeans close and I’m struggling to lose it. I tried Caroline Girvans and a lot of walking and lost 7lbs but went on holiday and put it back on. I’ve joined a women’s only gym for a 28 day trial doing 3 workouts a week and I’ll go back to the walking and Caroline Girvan the other days. I’m determined to lose it 🙏.

I used to be 8 and a half stone and a size 8 then put on 4 stone during pregnancy/breastfeeding. I shamelessly used it as an excuse to eat anything and everything. I did a BMI the other day and it put me as 'mildly obese'. 🤣 Anyway it's given me the kick up the arse I needed as I've lost 7lb recently. Just another 3 and a half stone to go 😭.

Basic misunderstanding of how sizing works for anyone over 5ft 8".

I modelled when younger, I have very long arms and I'm not busty. I have always favoured a 14 in blazers/jackets/coats, I have long limbs and a long torso. .

I like skirts and trousers to fit on my hips and tops to not make me feel a draught. I don't care what size they are.

i don't own scales, Tall does not fit in with sizing norms or BMI charts

I'm pretty much exactly as you describe in terms of height and weight, having put on lots of weight with perimenopause and going from a normal to overweight BMI. I'm definitely not "skinny fat"; I'm "chubby," or "overweight" or maybe just "fat."

I'm 5'7 and you are so right. Proportion of limbs makes a huge difference

‘a fat person who is at the lower end of overweight but still a bit fat'

So... chubby. Or plump. But not skinny-fat.

If you put a towel around my boobs and middle, I look like I have a fab body, but I have the hugest gut and love handles. Finding clothes is a nightmare- size 12 too small, 14 too big. All jeans feel like they’re choking me or falling down. No dresses suit me and my boobs are small so draw attention to my middle. Skirts and tops sometimes do the job

Oh I hate these labels: fat, skinny, fat skinny, skinny fat.

I'm probably the same as you OP in that I'm a bit overweight but not excessively so. And ideally I'd like to be just a little bit slimmer. I'm size 14 trousers and skirts, 14/16 tops and dresses, jackets etc.

But I've been roughly the same size and weight for about the last 25 years - I'm early 70s now - so I dont agree with the people who say you inevitably get fatter if you don't do anything about it.

I never diet and I would hate to make myself miserable by doing so. I eat healthily, with some treat foods, and I eat to live and not live to eat. I'm active and fit for my age and that to me is the important bit.

Your post resonates with me! Am thinking I’m now skinny-fat after a few years of struggling with weight loss and not being able to lose the several kilos which would make me feel lighter/better…am 46 & worried this is perimenopause kicking in/I'm doomed with it!

Size 14 is not skinny. You are on the better end of being overweight where it passes as ok.

In my opinion, skinny fat would be someone who appears healthy because they are not overweight but is not actually healthy because of their lack of exercise etc. Basically it’s just appearances.

I’m skinny fat. I’m 5’5, 9st and body fat 21.3%. I’m much more comfortable at 8st10lbs. Sure it’s only 4lbs but the difference in body fat is significant.

Whatever the term OP I am the same, I am
used to being 9 stone ish but closer to 11. Dressed I look fine but I look awful undressed. Really want to get my weight back down but seem to have zero motivation.

yes, i’m not fat but my weight sometimes creeps just into overweight. I do feel horrible about myself when that happens. I often gain and lose the same half stone. I went down 24lbs during covid, as I got into exercising and calorie counting. I did feel better, but now I won’t get to 7.5 stone again, I just wanted to see if I could. I’d like to lose 1 stone, and am currently trying to lose 4lbs in 3wks for son’s graduation. Any excess weight clings to my stomach and bust, wish it would distribute a little more.

Skinny fat means someone of a healthy BMI but poor muscle tone and a lot of visceral fat. It means risks associated with 'hidden' fat. I'm a similar weight and height to you and I don't consider myself skinny anything, I'm chubby. However having reduced that from obese I'm cool with it!

I was a size 14 just over three months ago and am now a 10 moving into 8, and I'm also approaching 40. It can be done. Yes, someone very overweight would see bigger losses, but at a lower starting weight a pound a week very quickly gets you towards your goal if you keep at it. I haven't calorie counted but I had some of the same bad habits as you so made positive changes. One piece of sourdough in the morning rather than two. A nest of rice noodles for my dinner carbs rather than masses of pasta. If pasta, then just a handful bulked out by loads of veg. 0% Greek yogurt and fruit when I get that snack craving in the evening. No nightly wine (which always made me reach for the cheese). I've got into exercise at home. I haven't found it a struggle, it's been empowering. I had to be a bit obsessed in the beginning but only with seeking out better choices and really facing the truth of how calorific some food that I loved is. All this is to say if your main problem is bad habits (rather than side effects from meds or deep seated trauma) then you can overcome them.