What is it like being thin?

[yelpmeout]

After a visit to the GP today I think I’ve started to accept I need to lose weight to help a chronic condition.

I’m in my mid 40s and have always been bigger (size 14 at my smallest and size 18 right now) and I’m tall, 5’9”.

I have a BMI of 30 so technically obese.

I am fairly active but do eat too much and don’t always make the healthiest choices (though I am not eating junk).

The problem is really I’ve always just been a bit fat and I’ve just kind of accepted that’s me. I don’t really feel it affects me at all and I have high self confidence etc.

Can anyone who is similar to me please tell me what it felt like to lose weight? Give me the sell! I’m genuinely not sure it’s worth it.

You have more time . You can just throw on a pair of jeans and t- shirt and look good .
You don’t have to spend an inordinate time hiding extra rolls of fat or worrying about what you are going to wear to an event

You have more money, because you can buy cheaper clothing which looks better on a slimmer body

Thank you for replying, it’s nice to hear from someone the same size as me now! How long did it take you to lose the weight and what do you eat now you are maintaining?

Thank you that’s very useful. Yes my chronic condition will likely be better. And actually if it isn’t then at least the doctors will look at other things!

I still can't get over that aspect honestly - up until recently I have had no experience of walking into a medical setting and hearing anything other than 'lose weight'. I didn't know that getting treatment was an option as it simply never happened! It's really amazing to be investigated and offered help. So I would say worth it just for that!

Okay I’ve decided I am going to do it! I’ll take it half a stone at a time and see how I feel. Even losing half a stone will get me out of the obese category and solidly back into size 16 (which I can still wear sometimes but I’ve noticed in some brands it’s a little harder). I just had a healthy protein based breakfast when usually I’d have nothing at the weekends. Let’s do this!

Good luck, and I really hope it helps with your health condition - whether directly or indirectly!

Honestly I felt like I’d exhausted all other options, every weightloss method that worked pre 40 stopped working after 40. I was sick of being fobbed off by drs and told to lose weight, sick of not being able to wear what I wanted and sick of being constantly hungry.

I’ve gone from a 38 inch waist (possibly more) to a 30. I’m tall so my current size is perfectly healthy for me. I was trying on jeans yesterday and looked fucking fantastic in every pair. It’s so freeing to be able to choose clothes that you love, not ones that make you look less terrible.
Something as small as trying on really good jeans had made me cry with happiness. It’s so fucking worth it OP.

It’s taken just over 2 years, and been quite a slow process. I used Mounjaro for the first half of it, which definitely got things kick started - I had got very used to eating more than I needed.

I had to set out good habits though. I already ran and did some sporadic weight lifting, so my main new habit has been portion control. I have a regular breakfast (Greek yoghurt & protein powder, fruit, nuts) that I measure out, half of lunch is always green vegetables (the other half varies, but the green bulk is important), I drink lots of water all day, and I eat what I like in the evening but keep a close eye on how much. No seconds, puddings on weekends, if I snack I eat less at the next meal. This is what works for me, but the main idea is to not let how much I’m eating get away from me again.

I’ve been maintaining for around a year now, so far so good!

Thin people don't necessarily have a waist actually. You can be a thin rectangle.
Also, after menopause, even a thin woman will have the fat go around the middle rather than on the hips.

Yes, because she's 5'9. Thin and short people have difficulty with dresses. They don't fall in the right place.

"You might look younger"

Her face may look older with nothing to pad out the wrinkles.
I'm not saying that to discourage OP from losing weight, just pointing it out.

I love it! Having been between 10-13 stone my whole life, being 8.5 stone feels absolutely amazing. I don't struggle up and down flights of stairs. Lost weight before ozempic.

I feel really, really sad for year 9 me who was always 10 stone, always one of the heavier girls in the year. All I wanted in the world was to be thin and I tried every day to lose weight but just didn't have the willpower. I didn't realise eating half a loaf of bread every day after school was what was causing it.

I just don't eat anything until the afternoon. I have pro plus, apples and hot chocolate during the day.

The difference for me was not worrying what people might be thinking about me if I ate in public.

And holding up teeny clothes, clothes ive owned and worn for months if not years and thinking "god this is teeny, it'll never go on" and then it does.

Oh, and cheaper lingerie.

I've spent most of my life hovering between a size 14-16. Have had a couple periods of being slimmer

For me the best things were

1. Being able to walk into a shop and try anything on.
2. Not standing out as the larger one in any photograph/group.
3. Got faster running.
4. The male attention (didn't feel like the fat friend)
5. I like how my face looks when thinner.

Some of these are quite shallow but it's the truth. I just felt happier.

I love wearing anything that I like, rather than dressing to hide bits and only wearing what suits me. Being thin gives sartorial freedom, being a bit fat is limiting, clothes wise. I’m not the type that enjoys showing off the podge, so when I have it, I dress to hide it.

Thank you everyone this is very encouraging. I think I feel lucky that I don’t feel being the size I am is in any way a problem (other than health wise in the longer term) but it does mean I don’t quite have the impetus some of you had, e.g. I feel fit, happy and like the way I dress etc! Doesn’t mean I don’t need to do it though.

It will be interesting to come back to this thread when I lose weight and see how I feel then!

I don’t use the word ‘thin’, but I am now in the healthy weight range after being clinically obese for many years. I lost 35kg in 18 months by eating sensibly (much less crap, much more lean protein & fresh veggies & fruit), radically cutting my alcohol consumption & exercising more. No silly fad diets & certainly no drugs.

Looking objectively better & getting compliments about my weight loss is great, obviously. Of course it is. But the real best thing is how I feel. The constant nagging anxiety about being overweight & its inevitable negative effects on my heart, my blood pressure, my cholesterol, my liver, the seeming inevitability of type 2 diabetes etc etc has all gone. I no longer lie awake worrying about when I’m going to have a heart attack. I no longer avoid strenuous activities because I’m scared I might keel over. I now absolutely love hiking up big hills.

Nothing tastes as good as thin feels.

Sorry, that's a horrible quote but it's true. I've just reached my target weight (4 stone/25kg lost). It's taken me a long time as I was really ill for a couple of years (BC treatment) so it's not been a straight road.

But yes:

Being able to tie your shoelaces
Not avoiding group photos
Skinny jeans & sparkly top combo
Catching your reflection in the mirror and thinking 'wow, I'm hot'
People saying 'you look amazing' (this is the best thing)

Strangely, a friend recently sent me pictures of us in 2020. I looked horrendous but no one else seems to remember me being that fat.

If you're starting this journey @yelpmeout with or without WLI please remember exercise is important, especially weight training.

You feel great walking around, light and quick and unaware of your body, especially going uphill. But the absolutely best thing is shopping for and wearing clothes! Pure delight instead of choiceless drudge

I used to be a police officer and I had to complete a fitness test every year involving the bleep test. Every year this bloody test would loom over my summer holiday. As a size 18 I’d pass it but it was not easy for me and I’d be so stressed by it. The first time I got on the treadmill as a slim person … my god I just ran for 20 minutes with no stopping. Now I don’t need to run the test but I know I’m much speedier around the tennis court.

Another factor which I don’t think has been mentioned is feet. I used to struggle with very hard skin and thought I’d found a wonder solution then I realised that weighing 4 stone less was probably the cause.

Also…. Cheekbones.

I actually disagree with this & used to model. Not everything suits me, I look dreadful in drop waists for example. Most people even when slim still need to be aware of their proportions although being tall helps.