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?

Why are people still using clothes sizing as a guide? I’m 5ft 1, about 9st 10 and my clothes range from 8-14 depending on brand etc, it means nothing

I'm skinny fat. I'm 5' 6" and 10.5 stone.

I appear slim but have a thick layer of fat on top of my frame especially arms and thighs which has a lot of cellulite. Have some on my middle to but have lost a bit if weight overall but the belly is way behind on shrinking.

My bmi is good but I do appear fatty(not fat) but slim naked.

Walking around London over the weekend in the heat - I would say 90% of young women are grossly fat. These are pre-children, pre-menopause, pre-middle aged women. Probably not suffering from weight related health issue -YET.

The only slim women I saw were older - like 50+.

I think body positivity has a lot to answer for. Telling young girls 'it's ok to be really fat and wear crop tops / booty shorts' is not cool or helpful. Just like it wasn't cool or helpful in the 90's to be pro-anorexic "nothing tastes as good as skinny feels"...etc.

I am body shaming. Because, as a nation, we have become shamefully fat.

I know, it always strikes me on dating apps, that the men proudly proclaim "I have a dad bod" but I bet there are no women that are stating that "i have a peri tummy" (or something similar).

And in fact we generally have more reason than them for our changing shapes/weights what with childbirth, menopause etc.

I am but currently 11 weeks pregnant. All the extra first trimester weight has made me go from skinny to skinny fat and no one knows I’m pregnant yet!

Me too. I'm considering 30 day shred or the BHF strong woman challenge
Not stopping alcohol but have cut down

Yes, I'm currently a 10/12 but short. I don't think most people would consider me fat but I'm definitely wobbly (need to hit the gym really because I'd look alright toned at this weight), and it's really bloody hard for me to lose weight. I literally need to drop below 1000 cals a day to lose a pound each week!

I offer you solidarity. The worst thing is I’m slimmer than all my friends - but all my fat is on my tummy. My friends think I’m slim, but I’m far from it, perhaps just carry it well to a degree and they’re all bigger than me. Can’t even talk about it with them.

Very unhealthy, I too love crisps and wine and a lovely cold beer. Hence my fat is basically sugar.
Today is the day though, no crisps, wine, chocolate. I’ve started the Davinia Taylor willpowders (only the electrolyte drink), I’ve got a fridge full of healthy foods, salads, lentils etc I hate the gym, so I’ll do wall Pilates etc.

I’m not fat enough for mounjaro/ozempic and wouldn’t take it anyway. If I don’t change my ways it would be pointless.

Even when I was skinny, (8 stone) I never had a flat tummy!

Because it isn't really about health, it's about appearance. But you're right, sizing is completely inconsistent (nothing to do with vanity either, it's to do with adapting to a customer base that's getting bigger overall, beds and furniture have got bigger too, and also a mix of both customer profiling and a lack of customer profiling).

BMI isn't 100% reliable but unless you're particularly tall, short or muscular (and you'll know if you are) then it's a pretty good rough guide; the healthy range is generally wide enough to encompass most builds, including the ones that are more typical of some ethnicities, both bigger and smaller. However, most of us spend more time thinking about our dress size than our BMI and have a much bigger emotional involvement in it. But obesity (a medical term for a BMI of 30 or above, nothing more, and not usually anywhere near the sizes used to illustrate it) and health are not defined by dress size. Nor is attractiveness. You can be a very beautiful obese person.

Yeah - tall and slim until after my second c section in 18 months - stomach muscles never recovered and now menopausal - all weight goes to my tummy . No alcohol , veggie forever - but I like chocolate and it probably needs to stop . I’m probably now only 1/2 stone more than I want to be but still have a mid 20s BMI . I run a few times a week . It’s just really obvious that I can’t eat as much as I could when young and wish I’d realised sooner .

But obesity (a medical term for a BMI of 30 or above, nothing more, and not usually anywhere near the sizes used to illustrate it)

Yes, for many people 'obese' is someone from '600 pound life' trash TV programme. Which is of course not true, more than a quarter of UK women are medically classified as obese.

I have to say, although these responses probably aren't aimed at comments like mine, I bristle a bit when its implied that women who are concerned with fat and health are some sort of helpless victims of the patriarchy. Not just because I work in health research, but because many of my older relatives ate badly and did no significant exercise and are now facing related health issues. Yes, some of it is genetic, but I'm afraid I won't ever be on board with the "fat is fine, your weight is outside of your control, self-improvement is narcissim/a tool of the patriarchy/impossible/etc." Carrying too much fat, especially visceral fat, is a significant health which we can change. So is having too little muscle. By all means, if you choose to run that risk, that's your right and your business (hypothetical you). But its a bit annoying to have it implied that actively managing my disease risk by staying lean, avoiding excess sugar and monitoring my waist size makes me antifeminist or something. I'm already at some risk of T2 diabetes due to my ethnicity and family history, so damn right I'm going to do whatever I can to reduce it.

I dont think its anything to do with the patriarchy, nobody, man or woman, wants to walk around with toothpick legs and a spare tyre!

You are in the overweight category, definitely get control of it or you’ll be like me and wake up one day tipping 13 stone!

I’m the same height as you, my weight crept on so slowly, I hardly noticed and ended up a size 18 and looking like Humpty Dumpty!

I’ve lost 2st 8 lb and I’m now 10st 6lb and a size 12. I feel fantastic and look so much better. I will do everything I can to keep the weight off now!

EXACTLY I can tell you this from experience!

I think in my 30s I was very like you - hovering size 12/14 and sometimes right on the top end of normal BMI, sometimes one or two kg over. But the fat was always very evenly distributed all over so people would often say, "but you're not overweight?" if I brought it up and most of the time I was still wearing the same clothes even with 5 kg difference

Since I hit peri (almost dead on 40), I've sadly I've gained more weight and have been up to 8 kg over normal BMI and definitely lots more belly fat. No one would say it but I do look overweight in photos now. I can see it.

Sadly the only thing that works for me now is low added sugar. It takes away the food noise similar to what people on the weight loss injections have described to me. I lost 6 kg in 8 weeks, including a fortnight on holiday, initially, and it has been more slow and steady since then. But it's very difficult to resist the social and emotional pressures of sugary things!

This! Im nearly 43 and losing weight is painfully slow even with a low carb diet and big deficit.

5 years ago if id done this same diet id have lost 4-5lbs a week. Now its 1lb a fortnight.

Nah. Just fat fat.

I understand what you're saying, you appear slim in well chosen clothes but are carrying weight.

I joined Nutra check last October, had reached 11.4 at 5ft 7 and was carrying it all on my middle. I didn't know where to start so I just started tracking cals and before long I was choosing to snack on lower calorie items or delaying my goodies until later in the day so that I ate less treats overall. The first two weeks of proper calorie restriction were hard but I lost a stone by Christmas which improved my figure and energy levels.

I still have a bit to lose but am happy to do it very slowly.

Did that comment make you feel good?

Yes this is it. I’m not saying I appear slim in anything but I don’t look obviously overweight especially in well chosen clothing. I’ve tried to watch my calories today. It helped that it’s been bloody boiling and I haven’t had much appetite. Probably ruined it this evening with a bbq dinner though.

If you stuck to meat and salad sides you won't have gone too far over. Most ppl get 1400 cals per day but you can balance that across the week so if you went over at the BBQ then you go slightly under the rest of the week. Nothing is restricted you just have to fit it in your cals.

It's not easy when you only have a stone or two to lose. You can't really talk about it as people say I'd love to be your size or act like it's very easy to lose it as it's very little compared to many other people who are struggling with their weight. If you're on any meds that can slow your progress as well. The weight creeps on slowly and can take even longer to shift.

From a medical perspective, 'skinny fat' can be a genuine issue. I have had both a high 'inner' (ie around my organs) body fat percentage and higher than recommended cholesterol - but I'm 5ft and weigh 7 stone. I've had to work hard to get the cholesterol down (and I don't even eat meat).

Thin people can get heart disease too - it really is the silent killer - my dad has never been overweight but had a heart attack in his 60s.

If you get the chance to get body fat and cholesterol tested do take it up. And look into family history. Our bodies are so much more than a dress size.

Can I ask what you have done to bring your cholesterol down? My total cholesterol is higher than I would like, but still in normal range, although my HDL/LDL ratio is good. I know some of it can be genetic and also menopause can make it rise, but I can’t see what I might be doing wrong otherwise.