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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

to want to know what all them slim people eat that are not on a diet and never gained a pound....

189 replies

FairLadyRantALot · 30/05/2009 19:46

well, am I?

OP posts:
hannahsaunt · 30/05/2009 19:50

No

HecatesTwopenceworth · 30/05/2009 19:51

no.

But you'll find they eat smaller meals - without realising, they may even say they eat LOADS, but their 'loads' will be tiny compared to what MY loads used to be!!

Plus you find they are more active - be it moving/walking more or just being extremely fidgety.

ime (as a fat person but not a fat person in denial iyswim) bigger people often eat a lot more and more less than they think they do, and slim people often eat less and move more than they think they do.

It's not a hard and fast rule, naturally, but certainly applies in very very many cases, ime!

yama · 30/05/2009 19:51

Just peeked at your profile - you are slim.

Do you mean those that can eat what they want? Surely that's a bad thing as it is unhealthy?

Goober · 30/05/2009 19:51

Nuffink!

HaventSleptForAYear · 30/05/2009 19:51

They wear really tight jeans and stop eating as soon as they start to dig in a bit

Or it's genetic.

Or they have great self-control.

Or they 'naturally' know when to stop eating and balance out how much they eat over the day/week (what I do - and I notice bigger friends struggle with).

Morloth · 30/05/2009 19:52

It really is totally unfair isn't it?

I have to work at maintaining my weight constantly, I have a girlfriend who does virtually no exercise (other than the school run) and she eats easily 2x what I do. And she is as thin as a twig.

I think we are all different and that there isn't any one answer that is going to work for everyone.

Have I just made this thread more serious than it was intended to be?

HaventSleptForAYear · 30/05/2009 19:52

Oh yes, move more.

I know it's a bit of a classic but I always take the stairs and some of my bigger collegues always take the lift.

golgi · 30/05/2009 19:54

Maybe they have worms.

lou33 · 30/05/2009 19:56

i am one of those people who can stuff my face and not gain weight

but i also lose weight really easily, and i cant afford to

i have ulcerative colitis which flares up with stress, and have lost a lot of weight because of it, and i am struggling to regain the pounds

that sounds like not a bad thing, but losing weight when you cant afford to in the first place isnt fun

i am not sure why i am like i am, my sister isnt and my mother wasnt

my brother is more like me tho afaik

i feel too thin atm, i would love to put on half a stone or so

EyeballsisonaDietAgain · 30/05/2009 19:58

I have a really slim friend who always claimed to eat huge amounts and I could never understand it. Then we went into McDonalds about a year after we met and she ordered a Happy Meal. Suddenly it all became clear - her idea of a gutbash and mine were two different things hence why she was tiny and I wasn't. And moving definitely is half the answer.

RubberDuck · 30/05/2009 19:59

I found this recently which is interesting: how French women stay skinny

I have always been very slim (and had a naturally small appetite - embarrassingly so when visiting a restaurant, always having to apologise for leaving food on my plate!)

Then I had ds2 and I suddenly had an appetite which was wonderful, and I gained a bit of weight, not a terrible amount - was actually nice. But last summer got into a habit of snacking loads in the evenings on rubbish, drinking more alcohol and managed to put on a stone in six weeks. It's taken me a year to get that back off (mainly by exercising more and cutting right back on the snacking - I only allow myself snacks in the evenings at weekends now).

Saying all that, I do now love exercise (which as a former computer-potato (can't claim couch potato, I never watch telly!) I thought I'd never say), exercise between 30-45 mins a day 6 days a week and have in the last month started a kung fu class once a week So I can say I've lost the weight, but I can't say that I'm skinny anymore - I'm now getting quite a bit of muscle definition! Been hard work though.

LadyAga · 30/05/2009 20:04

80-20 rule applies.

80% of what I eat is really healthy, all home cooked food from fresh ingredients and I am a huge fan of brown rice, veg and fish.

This means that along with an active lifestyle I can enjoy eating a bar of chocolate, a piece of cake or a glass of wine every day.

I will eat out and stuff myself silly with a three course meal or enjoy an Indian take away but only once or twice a month.

If the balance changes or I become more sedentary than I put on weight, just like every woman does.

TheProvincialLady · 30/05/2009 20:04

Being constantly on the go and not having a car helps. I have friends who go to the gym 3 times a week but barely move the rest of the time, whereas I have to push a 32lb toddler in a puschair and carry an 18lb baby in a sling. I walk everywhere. And I am doing couch potato to 5k so running(ish!) 3 times a week. I eat a lot more than the average person but I am skinny (well I will be when this last 1/2 stone of baby weight is gone!)

FairLadyRantALot · 30/05/2009 20:10

intersting answers and thanks for all of those...still watching out here...

oh and thank you yama...you are very nice...

OP posts:
LovelyTinOfSpam · 30/05/2009 20:11

Agree with others that people who say they eat loads and are thin, aren't eating the same amount as people who say they eat loads and are not thin.

Having been one of each, I can safely say that my weight is directly proportional to how much food I eat. In an old job people thought I ate a lot as a I always got a massive roast lunch in the canteen yet was a size 8. However i have never liked to eat breakfast and would just have a bit of toast or something for supper. Not intentionally, it was just that i wasn't hungry in the evening after a massive lunch.

Now I can happily eat 2 or 3 solid meals a day and am twice the size.

My advice is to shadow someone thin and eat what they eat and see how you go! Although I believe a TV program has nicked my idea on that

howtotellmum · 30/05/2009 20:14

I am slim but battling with 3-4lbs round middle due to comfort eating recently- otherwise weigh around 48 kgs.

I just have to be careful all the time. I eat well- egg and 1 piece toast for breccie- home made soup, or slad, or humuus for luch with veggies, and the usually fish with vegs for dinner, or chicken. Can't eat wheat or dairy very much, so usual cakes and biccies are not a feature, don't really go for crisps or anything like that, so have a pretty healthy diet overall. I also walk 3 miles up hills daily. and do toning exercises 2-3 x a week.

My weakness is nuts and dried fruit- healthy but high in calories.

Meglet · 30/05/2009 20:15

I've always been skinny, I'm a terrible fidget and move a lot, my mum had to order me to sit down when I was ill recently. Before I had dc's I went to the gym 5 days a week and I still walk everywhere.

My diet isn't amazingly healthy as I have IBS and can't have too much fruit / veg + fibre, but even so my weight is almost on the low side. I have toast, tea and choc bics for my breakfast everyday, lots of pasta dishes for my main meals and quite a bit of cheese. I hardly drink alcohol either, I never get the chance.

howtotellmum · 30/05/2009 20:15

I am slim but battling with 3-4lbs round middle due to comfort eating recently- otherwise weigh around 48 kgs.

I just have to be careful all the time. I eat well- egg and 1 piece toast for breccie- home made soup, or slad, or humuus for luch with veggies, and the usually fish with vegs for dinner, or chicken. Can't eat wheat or dairy very much, so usual cakes and biccies are not a feature, don't really go for crisps or anything like that, so have a pretty healthy diet overall. I also walk 3 miles up hills daily. and do toning exercises 2-3 x a week.

My weakness is nuts and dried fruit- healthy but high in calories.

FairLadyRantALot · 30/05/2009 20:20

erm howto...how tall are you...because I do metric, being german, and 48 kg is not a lot....just to put it into comparison

OP posts:
FairLadyRantALot · 30/05/2009 20:20

erm howto...how tall are you...because I do metric, being german, and 48 kg is not a lot....just to put it into comparison

OP posts:
FairLadyRantALot · 30/05/2009 20:20

erm howto...how tall are you...because I do metric, being german, and 48 kg is not a lot....just to put it into comparison

OP posts:
FairLadyRantALot · 30/05/2009 20:21

oops computer was stuck..sorry

OP posts:
OrmIrian · 30/05/2009 20:21

Key is exercise and eating when hungry only.

sound so easy. Wish i could stick to it.

howtotellmum · 30/05/2009 20:24

I am 5'3" and my BMI is 19.5.

BarnMummy · 30/05/2009 20:24

I definitely agree that ime portion size has a big impact. I'm a size 8 - 10 and I normally don't eat huge portions, but when it's food I love (Christmas particularly) I eat until I am really full, instead of just "not hungry anymore", and I put on the pounds.

That said, snacking is my current downfall. I could get away with it until recently as was bf-ing ds2, but I've noticed this last week that since he has been cutting back (more solid food, less milk) I am going to have to start being more ruthless about those biscuits I eat with every cup of tea...