Feeling “heavy” when you are at a healthy weight

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am 5’6” and at 130 I would look like death. At 110 I would be literally dead as that would leave me with no fat at all. Are you skinny fat, OP? Maybe instead of obsessing about the number of the scale, try to improve your body composition by lifting some weights and properly fueling your body? You won’t be lighter but you might very well end up smaller.

NP I was going to say something similar. I lost about 15+ lbs during the pandemic doing IF and meticulously counting calories. Even though I loved the way I looked, I was being over restrictive and it wasn't sustainable. And I decided I wanted to build more muscle which requires putting on some weight. So I stopped dieting so much and started focusing more on lifting heavy, especially trying to build my shoulders and my glutes (which makes your waist look smaller). I've probably gained about 10 or so lbs back and yeah, some of it is from not being as disciplined in my diet but there is a noticeable difference in my body shape now compared to before. When I look at pictures of myself from 10 years ago when I was roughly about the same weight but didn't lift weights, only did cardio and smoked like a chimney, my body doesn't look as defined even though I worked out alot then too. But its the type of workout thats made the difference. Now I look more strong and athletic despite not being super lean.

[Anonymous]

I am 5'4 and 122 lbs. I am 42 years old. This year, I am focusing on eating well- I am not restricting carbs but also not going crazy on them, eating more protein, cutting out red meat most of the time. And for fitness, I am focusing on strength training. I don't mind if my weight goes up on the scale. I am focusing on muscle growth. That is what will help me lead a healthy life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am 5’6” and at 130 I would look like death. At 110 I would be literally dead as that would leave me with no fat at all. Are you skinny fat, OP? Maybe instead of obsessing about the number of the scale, try to improve your body composition by lifting some weights and properly fueling your body? You won’t be lighter but you might very well end up smaller.

This is interesting to me, because I’m 5’6” and currently 125, but still have a belly pooch and abs are not defined. The rest of my muscles are finally making an appearance though! I’ve been working on my lifting for almost two years now and just seeing progress now. Anyways, I definitely still have fat on me and do not look like death, so this just goes to show that some of it is about the size of your frame and body composition, where you store fat (face vs belly), etc.

I am the PP you are responding to and I agree that the frame and bodycomposition matter a lot. I am currently about 142lbs and 22% bodyfat as I am fairly muscular. I wear size 2-4 clothes across brands right now. Coming down to 125 while keeping my lean mass would mean I would have to drop down to 12% bodyfat, which is extremely low and unhealthy for a female. I am trying to get down to the 18-20% range, but that is already a point where my already skinny face might start looking really gaunt and I might have to reassess whether the increased muscle definition is worth it.

[Anonymous]

I can relate to a lot of these posts. I'm in my early 40s and have had a few kids. I'm 5 feet tall and 120 but I'm where I should be at this stage of my life. I'm toned (even muscular) and have abs and a small waist (even if there is some wrinkly skin). During summer I'll drop down to 115 to be more confident in a bikini but I still wear a bikini at 120 and frankly at even higher weights.

I felt I had to chime in because I'm seeing posts with taller stats and less weight. At 5 feet tall and 115, I already get comments about how gaunt I look, and I'm not entirely sure how I pulled off 5 feet tall and under 110s back as a teenager and in my early 20s. Aging likely makes your face more gaunt when you lose weight.

In any event, I do feel heavy over 120 lbs but I'm a runner and I can feel every pound over that weight. And to maintain 120 or lower I eat well/healthy and exercise 6 times a week, including cardio and strength training.

I think I look great, my husband and kids think I look great, and I feel healthy and that's all that matters. No one thinks I need to be losing any more weight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am 5’6” and at 130 I would look like death. At 110 I would be literally dead as that would leave me with no fat at all. Are you skinny fat, OP? Maybe instead of obsessing about the number of the scale, try to improve your body composition by lifting some weights and properly fueling your body? You won’t be lighter but you might very well end up smaller.

This is interesting to me, because I’m 5’6” and currently 125, but still have a belly pooch and abs are not defined. The rest of my muscles are finally making an appearance though! I’ve been working on my lifting for almost two years now and just seeing progress now. Anyways, I definitely still have fat on me and do not look like death, so this just goes to show that some of it is about the size of your frame and body composition, where you store fat (face vs belly), etc.

I am the PP you are responding to and I agree that the frame and bodycomposition matter a lot. I am currently about 142lbs and 22% bodyfat as I am fairly muscular. I wear size 2-4 clothes across brands right now. Coming down to 125 while keeping my lean mass would mean I would have to drop down to 12% bodyfat, which is extremely low and unhealthy for a female. I am trying to get down to the 18-20% range, but that is already a point where my already skinny face might start looking really gaunt and I might have to reassess whether the increased muscle definition is worth it.

I’m another 5’6” early 40s person and I’m currently at 128. I solidly wear a 4 across brands, no way could I fit in a 4 at 142 (and I know that as I’ve got the 6s from that weight in my closet since that’s around what I weighed in October). I don’t lift at all though,I’ve never been able to get into it, it both intimidates me and bores me. I also carry my weight in my thighs and rear, which don’t look thin to me. I probably need to suck it up and learn to lift. I definitely don’t look like death, I look body-wise similar to how I did in my mid-late 20s with a lot more stretch marks and graying hair!

[Anonymous]

The BMI is a big range and it's fine to want to be at the lower end of normal because you like how you look. But it's certainly not a must for health. People with a BMI that is at the lower end of the "overweight" range actually have the best life expectancy

The instagram influencers are thin because they have to be aspirational for people to want to follow them, and people aspire to look thin

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m 5’8 but 150 and I look better than when I was 135 in my 20s getting married. Mainly because I have lifted weights and strength train and I am more defined. Before I weighed less but had more far of that makes sense?

I am 5’8’and 150. Out of curiosity what size do you wear in clothes? Thanks