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.

I’m much shorter than you (5ft 2) but I’ve gone from 12st 8 to 9 st.
I echo what a lot of previous posters have said. Buying size 6 clothes and knowing they’ll fit/look fab, the boost in confidence, men doing double takes when I walk past (even if I’m in the supermarket with no make up on) whereas before, I felt invisible.
Being able to tie my laces, paint and cut my toenails without feeling like I’m being cut in half.
Being able to run for the train or zip up a flight of stairs easily.
My skin is glowing.
I look in the mirror and think, “I look amazing”. I almost fell down the stairs in the gym the other day, admiring myself in the mirror 😂
I do a lot of weight training and I love seeing my muscles (hence why I almost fell down the stairs). I go to the front at my gym classes.

I used Mounjaro to lose weight. Nothing else worked and I steadily got bigger (I’d hovered between 9 - 10 stone throughout my teens and twenties. By the time I was 30, I’d gone up to the 10-11 stone bracket and then it got worse from my mid thirties onwards). I knew I had got big but I think you learn to accept what you look like. I now look back at those photos and think, “jeez, I looked awful”. I was worried about bumping into people I hadn’t seen in years and them seeing how big I was. I also hated my double chin on teams calls!

I've been obese, overweight, healthy and underweight at various points, I am currently underweight - my weight fluctuations have been largely health-driven.

It's not clear whether by 'thin' you mean 'a healthy weight' but unsurprisingly a healthy weight is the sweet-spot for general wellbeing and comfort - being able to move about comfortably, knowing clothes will fit you, everything looks good - you do not have to choose clothes to disguise your fat tummy or big boobs. Being able to go into any shop and not fear people thinking 'there'll be nothing here in her size'.

No chafing or seams digging in, no gaping buttons. No shoes wearing out quickly because you're heavy. No weals on shoulders from bra straps holding up heavy boobs. No sweating, no chub rub in summer.

Being 'thin' in the sense of being underweight is a different kettle of fish. You feel cold or chilly almost all the time - on a hot sunny day you've got a cardigan on while everyone else has bare shoulders. You've got two duvets on your bed to keep warm at night while other people are still using their summer duvet.

Things like lying back in the bath become really painful because you've nothing between your bones and the hard surface. You can't lie in bed in certain positions because your bones rest on your bones and it hurts. Your hair falls out and your face sags. Your skin hangs in wrinkles all over your body. You struggle to find a skirt or jeans that will stay up because you've no hips anymore to hold them in place. You look like nothing when you're trying to 'dress up' because your feminine curves no longer exist.,

So aim for 'healthy' rather than 'thin' is my advice, that is the 'sweet spot' where you will look and feel great, be able to wear anything with confidence and develop your style without having to worry about disguising any aspect of your body whether that's too curvy or not curvy enough.

Yes! Bye-bye Bravissimo. 💸💸

Now I can walk into M&S and even Primark and buy a bra.

@yelpmeouthow do you define “thin”?

when I’m skinny I can choose any outfit in my wardrobe and that’s a great feeling. I just feel more confident

It’s awesome. Every single clothing item I buy and try on looks exactly how I expected it to and looks good. No more buying clothes that aren’t my style because my body doesn’t suit my style.

Or still spend ages obsessing about your weight, your nose, your height etc etc

I said this in a previous post. I just meant not overweight. I didn’t mean “skinny” or underweight.

I've lost over 4 stone so far this year (still going!) and I just bought my first non-Bravissimo bra in well over a decade.

Like, what do you mean I can just order a £22 bra from M&S and it fits?!

It feels great! I recently lost 3.5 stone and I’m so happy and confident in my body now. I’m not thin but I am healthy and have a healthy bmi. I feel healthy!
I love clothes now and most things look great on. I’m thinking long term future me and if I’m healthy now it will surely help as I approach 50

Ah, sorry, I missed it. I’ve not heard anyone refer to not being overweight as thin before so it threw me.
My BMI is 20. Has been up to 26. I don’t consider myself thin. Slim on a good day maybe. Clothes don’t fit well and never have really. I’ve always been between sizes. It’s annoying. My knees ache, my hips are awful as is my back and this hasn’t changed no matter what I’ve weighed. If problems are caused by excess weight then of course they should improve on losing weight. For me it’s wanting to prevent future problems caused by excess weight.

I think that YOU will treat yourself differently if you lose weight.
Then you will notice other people treating you differently.

They will be treating you differently because of how you perceive yourself, not because you are thin.

I'm slim and just feel nimble, it's a nice feeling

I don’t think your life will really change in any way or that you’ll necessarily feel any different. I think it’s one thing losing 5-10-15 stone where your standard of life/health/mobility etc has been significantly impacted and it improves greatly by losing weight.

But if you’ve only 1-2 stone or around this to lose, then the focus will be on the health aspects.

It is nice being able to fit into any clothes you have and not have a distinction between fat/thin clothes. As you’re a size 18, for your health you need to consider losing some weight. I’d love to be taller so lucky you having this. I’m not “thin” but at a BMI of 24.9 or so; happier about this but it hasn’t changed my life in any way.

My knees are much sorer now when I run than they were when I was heavier!

I’ve lost around 100lb in the last 18 months. Went from 17st 9 to 10st7. 22 down to a 12. I was getting dressed this morning and I hold up my new jeans and I was like naaaah that’s not right, they must be DDs cos they are tiny, they will never fit me! But yeah, they are mine and they fit like a glove. My knees thank me EVERY day and I’m suddenly a walker…I walk 2-3 times a week just because I can and it doesn’t hurt. It’s absolutely brilliant tbh and I wish I’d done it sooner. I still occasionally struggle to recognise myself in the mirror but oddly in turning a corner in the last few weeks because when memories and old photos pop up I tend to be genuinely agog trying to remember who that person is and how I’m related to them. Best thing I’ve ever done.

I lost nearly 3 stone (am now a size 8 at 168cm).

Every time you walk past a reflective surface, you’ll pause to flex and admire yourself.

Everything you wear will look good, because it’s your body (not the clothes) that’s the ‘fit.

People will treat you better — skinny privilege is real.

But you might very well run cold in winter, my favourite complaint is now “I’m freezing” and my husband always rebukes with “well yes you haven’t got any body fat left to keep you warm”. He’s also offered to take in my favourite coat that’s now 3 sizes too big for me because it looks like “a bloody duvet”.

Maybe, but she will be less at risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer at the same time.

Having been size 22 and now a size 8 it is crazy how brilliant it is. I think I was in denial but the world it has opened up in terms of clothing, style, self esteem, (sadly) people respecting and being nice to me and being able to say a silent fuck you to all those who leveraged their thin privilege over me is priceless.

I’m pretty envious of your height, @yelpmeout
I’m 4’1” and occasionally daydream about being tall.

I am the wrong side of 55. I have a young child, had him in my 40’s.
My only goal & focus is to be well, healthy & fit for another 20 years to be around for my boy & to be able to see him grow up & thrive into an independent adult.
I’ve lost 4 stone.
I’ve had one of my blood pressure pills stopped.
My blood pressure is now normal.
I’m now out of perimenopause and into menopause so no more periods, pain, brain fog, memory issues, anaemia as I now ensure everything I eat is nutritionally driven & dense.
I don’t feel thin but I do feel so so so much better.
Oh & clothes fit lovely now! I have comfort rather than too tight or too huge to cover up lumps & bumps.
Christmas is coming, maybe I won’t refuse to be in pictures this year for the first time in 20 years!

Fucking freezing, tbh.

(Was nearly 30st, now not)

The two things I noticed most after losing weight (3 stone) was

1. Clothes just looking better, generally. I always felt squeezed into things or frumpy.

1. Being able to walk up hills without feeling breathless!

Absolutely bloody amazing!!!

You’ll enjoy getting ready for a night out. Exercise becomes a doddle as less to move around and joint pain will go.
You’ll have the same personality and it doesn’t change your happiness levels but being able to exercise more will

You will enjoy sex more because you will look and feel like a goddess.