Is skinny fat so bad?
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This.
I'm also not in to this weight loss thing for my looks, but I find a lot more pleasure from exercise and the health benefits it brings. I swear it was when I started running that I got a sparkle in my eye and pink in my cheeks.
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kshama2001 wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »...I want to be slimmer to be/stay healthy. I'm too old to care that much about the way I look TBH! (although looking nice is always nice, obviously). I need to lose 2 stone to get back into "normal" BMI but otherwise I am pretty healthy. I tried lots of different exercises last time, all worked for a period of time, then I got bored/finished/stopped so I keep healthy through daily routines (I cycle to work, walk to the shops etc) which obviously isn't putting any "overload" on my muscles so isn't making me fitter/stronger etc so I guess, when this weight goes, I will be skinny fat unless I find the time/money/interest to start going to the gym again, which is unlikely in the near future.....
You're 42! That's way too young to be giving up. But if vanity won't motivate you - what about health? My 77 year old mother goes to the gym for her health - osteoporosis.
Use it or lose it. My fiance's mother lost most of her muscle tone in her legs and is practically chair and bed-ridden. It's painful to watch her struggle to push herself up and hobble around with a walker.
If money is an issue, perhaps there's a gym near you with a sliding scale? A few sessions with a trainer could help you find some routines that are more interesting to you. You could also start a thread specifically for tips for how to not be bored by exercise.
Since I'm a bit older than the OP, I agree with much of this, except that it seems to imply that a gym is needed to maintain muscle and bone. It's not. Weights are a great way to do it, if you have the resources and enjoy it. But, there are many activities that will do the job just as efficiently as lifting weights.
Ya, I noticed that my post was gym-centric. I don't currently have a membership myself, and am getting upper body strengthening via bodyweight in yoga.
Thing is, Mom is extremely active, and has great muscle tone in her legs, but despite doing things like scraping and painting the house, and maintaining extensive gardens, the muscle tone in her arms is not great.
I also think a gym membership would be good for someone not especially motivated to exercise on her own.
How does she maintain a garden without having good muscle tone in her arms. Gardening is one of my best arm exercises (though not as good as firewood). Digging, tilling and lugging stuff is great for the core and arms.
I think a gym might be good for someone not motivated, but it could also be the worst. If you can't be motivated to do push ups or resistance bands at home, what are the odds that you'll be motivated to travel to the gym to lift weights?
Ya, she does firewood too. Beats me. I may be misunderstanding something about her arms. I will ask her more but do know that due to her osteoporosis and some arm issues she decided she needed to kick it up a notch and is going to the gym twice per week.
I hope it didn't sound like I was knocking her choice, I think it's great. I was just curious how she could do the work and not get muscles. But strength and muscle size don't always coincide.0 -
You are way too young to have such a defeatist attitude.
No, skinny fat is not OK.0 -
It sounds as if OP is already fairly active without going to the gym. If she is significantly overweight or obese, just losing the weight is going to vastly improve her health and negate risks of getting things like Type II diabetes, heart disease down the road. Obviously, exercise reduces risk of osteoporosis, but OP is hardly a couch potato if she'd doing 10,000 steps a day and does gardening. That's plenty of exercise. I've become a bit "skinny fat" myself because I had to reduce my lifting, but still do the 10,000 steps and cardio; my doctor has yet to yell at me for not being as "toned" as I used to be. By the skinny fat standard, a 175 lb. of my size 5'1.5" who spends several hours in the gym, but eats 3000 calories a day might be "healthier" than I am, which is an absurdity. As most of us know, bodies and weight loss are made as much in the kitchen as in the gym. Like many others, I also think the term is abused by anorexics and body dysmorphic people, as well as by lifting devotees to shame others who may not be into strength training, such as runners. I've seen runners and bikers on the near underweight category told they should be concerned about "skinny fat."0
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It sounds as if OP is already fairly active without going to the gym. If she is significantly overweight or obese, just losing the weight is going to vastly improve her health and negate risks of getting things like Type II diabetes, heart disease down the road. Obviously, exercise reduces risk of osteoporosis, but OP is hardly a couch potato if she'd doing 10,000 steps a day and does gardening. That's plenty of exercise. I've become a bit "skinny fat" myself because I had to reduce my lifting, but still do the 10,000 steps and cardio; my doctor has yet to yell at me for not being as "toned" as I used to be. By the skinny fat standard, a 175 lb. of my size 5'1.5" who spends several hours in the gym, but eats 3000 calories a day might be "healthier" than I am, which is an absurdity. As most of us know, bodies and weight loss are made as much in the kitchen as in the gym. Like many others, I also think the term is abused by anorexics and body dysmorphic people, as well as by lifting devotees to shame others who may not be into strength training, such as runners. I've seen runners and bikers on the near underweight category told they should be concerned about "skinny fat."
Those risks all apply to normal weight obesity, too, though.
"Skinny fat" isn't a fabulous term, imo, but it's not "fat shaming" to be concerned about the medical reality it refers to, either.
No one (in this thread anyway) is saying everyone should aim to look "shredded" or whatever. I hate it when people are well within the normal range (eg high 20s) and get told they should want to. But aiming for Sub 33% body fat is a goal that supports health.
Resistance activity protects bones, that's another really important reason to do it. And Mobility in later life is a huge deal for me, anyway.
I'm not sure everyone can do what
@mccindy72 did, getting % significantly down w diet alone, without going to a fairly low BMI , though. I think there are some individual differences in that regard. Like I did get down to about 22-23% at a BMI of 20 w diet and mostly cardio, but am in the high 20s now, at BMI 21.1 (with regular bodyweight resistance activity). (I'm inside the normal range but am prone to low Vit D & more lean mass could help my body process it more efficiently, is my understanding.)0 -
Fully agree that the term is abused tho0
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What is skinny fat? You can't be skinny and fat? Am I missing something0
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daniwilford wrote: »At 53, I don't care about my looks as much, hence the natural premature grey hair color. I do care a ton about my health. Even though I find strength training boring, I am doing it because of the health benefits. I also read how those on the national weight loss registry, those who lost AND maintained weight, by a large measure used a balance of calorie restriction and exercise. My grandmother had osteoporosis, and my aunt in her 80's had to use both arms to lift anything over 10 pounds. I want to be able to stand up straight and carry my own groceries, even if strength training is boring.
Ya, flossing is boring too, but after just having to go through dental scaling, I am motivated to do it. Unfortunately, the effects of not strength training don't show up until it's rather late to do anything about it.
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idrinkalotofwater wrote: »What is skinny fat? You can't be skinny and fat? Am I missing something
Normal weight obesity. It's covered in the thread.0 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »...I want to be slimmer to be/stay healthy. I'm too old to care that much about the way I look TBH! (although looking nice is always nice, obviously). I need to lose 2 stone to get back into "normal" BMI but otherwise I am pretty healthy. I tried lots of different exercises last time, all worked for a period of time, then I got bored/finished/stopped so I keep healthy through daily routines (I cycle to work, walk to the shops etc) which obviously isn't putting any "overload" on my muscles so isn't making me fitter/stronger etc so I guess, when this weight goes, I will be skinny fat unless I find the time/money/interest to start going to the gym again, which is unlikely in the near future.....
You're 42! That's way too young to be giving up. But if vanity won't motivate you - what about health? My 77 year old mother goes to the gym for her health - osteoporosis.
Use it or lose it. My fiance's mother lost most of her muscle tone in her legs and is practically chair and bed-ridden. It's painful to watch her struggle to push herself up and hobble around with a walker.
If money is an issue, perhaps there's a gym near you with a sliding scale? A few sessions with a trainer could help you find some routines that are more interesting to you. You could also start a thread specifically for tips for how to not be bored by exercise.
Since I'm a bit older than the OP, I agree with much of this, except that it seems to imply that a gym is needed to maintain muscle and bone. It's not. Weights are a great way to do it, if you have the resources and enjoy it. But, there are many activities that will do the job just as efficiently as lifting weights.
Ya, I noticed that my post was gym-centric. I don't currently have a membership myself, and am getting upper body strengthening via bodyweight in yoga.
Thing is, Mom is extremely active, and has great muscle tone in her legs, but despite doing things like scraping and painting the house, and maintaining extensive gardens, the muscle tone in her arms is not great.
I also think a gym membership would be good for someone not especially motivated to exercise on her own.
How does she maintain a garden without having good muscle tone in her arms. Gardening is one of my best arm exercises (though not as good as firewood). Digging, tilling and lugging stuff is great for the core and arms.
I think a gym might be good for someone not motivated, but it could also be the worst. If you can't be motivated to do push ups or resistance bands at home, what are the odds that you'll be motivated to travel to the gym to lift weights?
Ya, she does firewood too. Beats me. I may be misunderstanding something about her arms. I will ask her more but do know that due to her osteoporosis and some arm issues she decided she needed to kick it up a notch and is going to the gym twice per week.
I hope it didn't sound like I was knocking her choice, I think it's great. I was just curious how she could do the work and not get muscles. But strength and muscle size don't always coincide.
She's actually the healthiest mother of all my peer's mothers
She just wants to be even healthier...through lifestyle changes rather than medication.
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idrinkalotofwater wrote: »What is skinny fat? You can't be skinny and fat? Am I missing something
it is possible to be within a healthy weight range per BMI but still at a BF% which is unhealthy and poses health risks...just as it is possible for someone to be overweight as per BMI, but at a perfectly healthy BF%.
The term is often misused though.0 -
I missed that, thanks.marissafit06 wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »3dogsrunning wrote: »
It's defined differently by everyone. Anorexics who have any fat will deem themselves "skinny fat" and attempt to eliminate the excess.Need2Exerc1se wrote: »How are you defining "skinny fat"? Like so many other terms, that seems to have several different meanings on MFP. The most common is a BMI in the healthy range but a BF% outside the healthy range. You say your BMI is high so that would not describe you.
It is possible to be overweight and healthy and this may better describe you. Being overweight is a risk factor for some diseases, but it's not a guarantee of disease. If you get enough exercise and eat right you can be overweight and healthy. A gym or structured exercise plan is not required for getting exercise. All activity is exercise.
I said once that I quit lifting weight because it bored the crap out me and someone said, "So, you want to be skinny fat?" Several people agreed. To them, anyone who doesn't lift weights is skinny fat.
Since it's not a medical term with any real definition, everyone gets to make up their own meaning.
There just is no way to use the term nicely, whether you say it about yourself or others.
No, skinny fat has a definition, people just choose to use it their own way. It is Normal Weight Obesity.
To answer the OP - I would consider true "skinnyfat" bad. But the question is if that is what you will really end up as.
How do you define "Normal Weight Obesity"?
And who coined that term? Is it even possibly to be obese by BF and normal by BMI? Overweight, sure, but obese?
The article posted by MakePeas above discussed the term and what it means.
It doesn't give any details, though. It would seem that one would need to review tests and look at a person in order to determine whether they had weight-related health risks. It would not seem that there are numbers to define it.
Calling someone "skinny fat" would be difficult to do online, even for a doctor.
Who is calling anyone skinny fat here? OP was the one who believed she would be skinny fat, many questioned if she actually would be. And it was determined that the OP was applying a different meaning to the term.0 -
oops, I seem to have upset some people by saying I was too old
I just meant that looking good is not my motivation, and does not motivate me.... I've been married for 22 years and he honestly can't tell the difference between me at size 12 and me at size 20! (sometimes that is sweet and sometimes annoying). I work with a bunch of 18-23 year olds. I couldn't "compete" even if I wanted to! and I don't want to. I LIKE being in my 40's. It is by far the best decade I've had:)
On the exercise front, It's not that I don't like anything, more that I get bored and quit, reach my goal and quit or finish the programme and quit. I struggle to attend regular classes/sessions in anything due to family circumstances so my programmes have to be flexible - I tried running, insanity, and lifting at home and all worked well for a time, but were not really a sustainable way of life for me. The walking and cycling is, and keeps me healthy.0 -
oops, I seem to have upset some people by saying I was too old I just meant that looking good is not my motivation, and does not motivate me.... I've been married for 22 years and he honestly can't tell the difference between me at size 12 and me at size 20! (sometimes that is sweet and sometimes annoying). I work with a bunch of 18-23 year olds. I couldn't "compete" even if I wanted to! and I don't want to. I LIKE being in my 40's. It is by far the best decade I've had:)
On the exercise front, It's not that I don't like anything, more that I get bored and quit, reach my goal and quit or finish the programme and quit. I struggle to attend regular classes/sessions in anything due to family circumstances so my programmes have to be flexible - I tried running, insanity, and lifting at home and all worked well for a time, but were not really a sustainable way of life for me. The walking and cycling is, and keeps me healthy.
this whole thing makes no sense to me. I'm the same age as you are and have been married for 25 years... you're married and 40s, not dead. Who cares about the women you work with? Your motivation for health and your body seems a bit twisted.
As someone who struggles with the ability to move sometimes, I also have found my 40s to be my best decade, despite my limitations. It's frustrating to hear someone else trying to toss a healthy body away by saying there's no motivation. YOU should be your own motivation.0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »...I want to be slimmer to be/stay healthy. I'm too old to care that much about the way I look TBH! (although looking nice is always nice, obviously). I need to lose 2 stone to get back into "normal" BMI but otherwise I am pretty healthy. I tried lots of different exercises last time, all worked for a period of time, then I got bored/finished/stopped so I keep healthy through daily routines (I cycle to work, walk to the shops etc) which obviously isn't putting any "overload" on my muscles so isn't making me fitter/stronger etc so I guess, when this weight goes, I will be skinny fat unless I find the time/money/interest to start going to the gym again, which is unlikely in the near future.....
You're 42! That's way too young to be giving up. But if vanity won't motivate you - what about health? My 77 year old mother goes to the gym for her health - osteoporosis.
Use it or lose it. My fiance's mother lost most of her muscle tone in her legs and is practically chair and bed-ridden. It's painful to watch her struggle to push herself up and hobble around with a walker.
If money is an issue, perhaps there's a gym near you with a sliding scale? A few sessions with a trainer could help you find some routines that are more interesting to you. You could also start a thread specifically for tips for how to not be bored by exercise.
Since I'm a bit older than the OP, I agree with much of this, except that it seems to imply that a gym is needed to maintain muscle and bone. It's not. Weights are a great way to do it, if you have the resources and enjoy it. But, there are many activities that will do the job just as efficiently as lifting weights.
Ya, I noticed that my post was gym-centric. I don't currently have a membership myself, and am getting upper body strengthening via bodyweight in yoga.
Thing is, Mom is extremely active, and has great muscle tone in her legs, but despite doing things like scraping and painting the house, and maintaining extensive gardens, the muscle tone in her arms is not great.
I also think a gym membership would be good for someone not especially motivated to exercise on her own.
How does she maintain a garden without having good muscle tone in her arms. Gardening is one of my best arm exercises (though not as good as firewood). Digging, tilling and lugging stuff is great for the core and arms.
I think a gym might be good for someone not motivated, but it could also be the worst. If you can't be motivated to do push ups or resistance bands at home, what are the odds that you'll be motivated to travel to the gym to lift weights?
Ya, she does firewood too. Beats me. I may be misunderstanding something about her arms. I will ask her more but do know that due to her osteoporosis and some arm issues she decided she needed to kick it up a notch and is going to the gym twice per week.
I hope it didn't sound like I was knocking her choice, I think it's great. I was just curious how she could do the work and not get muscles. But strength and muscle size don't always coincide.
She's actually the healthiest mother of all my peer's mothers
She just wants to be even healthier...through lifestyle changes rather than medication.
Good for her! I have avoided the pitfalls so far but remaining healthy without meds and keeping my bone and muscle is my biggest concern. Or I guess I should say strength. I focus on strength more than muscle mass.
I know the statistics for women my age and they aren't great. Too many risk factors are beyond my control, but I intend to work on those I can control.0 -
oops, I seem to have upset some people by saying I was too old I just meant that looking good is not my motivation, and does not motivate me.... I've been married for 22 years and he honestly can't tell the difference between me at size 12 and me at size 20! (sometimes that is sweet and sometimes annoying). I work with a bunch of 18-23 year olds. I couldn't "compete" even if I wanted to! and I don't want to. I LIKE being in my 40's. It is by far the best decade I've had:)
On the exercise front, It's not that I don't like anything, more that I get bored and quit, reach my goal and quit or finish the programme and quit. I struggle to attend regular classes/sessions in anything due to family circumstances so my programmes have to be flexible - I tried running, insanity, and lifting at home and all worked well for a time, but were not really a sustainable way of life for me. The walking and cycling is, and keeps me healthy.
this whole thing makes no sense to me. I'm the same age as you are and have been married for 25 years... you're married and 40s, not dead. Who cares about the women you work with? Your motivation for health and your body seems a bit twisted.
As someone who struggles with the ability to move sometimes, I also have found my 40s to be my best decade, despite my limitations. It's frustrating to hear someone else trying to toss a healthy body away by saying there's no motivation. YOU should be your own motivation.
Have you read any of this thread at all? Try the first post I wrote that stated "I want to get down to a healthy BMI again to stay/be healthy, not because I care about how I look" I'm not trying to "Toss away" my healthy body, but to keep it
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oops, I seem to have upset some people by saying I was too old I just meant that looking good is not my motivation, and does not motivate me.... I've been married for 22 years and he honestly can't tell the difference between me at size 12 and me at size 20! (sometimes that is sweet and sometimes annoying). I work with a bunch of 18-23 year olds. I couldn't "compete" even if I wanted to! and I don't want to. I LIKE being in my 40's. It is by far the best decade I've had:)
On the exercise front, It's not that I don't like anything, more that I get bored and quit, reach my goal and quit or finish the programme and quit. I struggle to attend regular classes/sessions in anything due to family circumstances so my programmes have to be flexible - I tried running, insanity, and lifting at home and all worked well for a time, but were not really a sustainable way of life for me. The walking and cycling is, and keeps me healthy.
I can totally relate to this. The husband and the boredom with exercise. I really only exercise in Winter because there isn't much work to do outside but I constantly mix it up. I would never stick to a plan that included the same things every day or week. When I get bored I just start looking around for something else to do until I get bored with it.0 -
oops, I seem to have upset some people by saying I was too old I just meant that looking good is not my motivation, and does not motivate me.... I've been married for 22 years and he honestly can't tell the difference between me at size 12 and me at size 20! (sometimes that is sweet and sometimes annoying). I work with a bunch of 18-23 year olds. I couldn't "compete" even if I wanted to! and I don't want to. I LIKE being in my 40's. It is by far the best decade I've had:)
On the exercise front, It's not that I don't like anything, more that I get bored and quit, reach my goal and quit or finish the programme and quit. I struggle to attend regular classes/sessions in anything due to family circumstances so my programmes have to be flexible - I tried running, insanity, and lifting at home and all worked well for a time, but were not really a sustainable way of life for me. The walking and cycling is, and keeps me healthy.
this whole thing makes no sense to me. I'm the same age as you are and have been married for 25 years... you're married and 40s, not dead. Who cares about the women you work with? Your motivation for health and your body seems a bit twisted.
As someone who struggles with the ability to move sometimes, I also have found my 40s to be my best decade, despite my limitations. It's frustrating to hear someone else trying to toss a healthy body away by saying there's no motivation. YOU should be your own motivation.
In what universe does focusing on health instead of looks = tossing a healthy body away??0 -
It's defined differently by everyone. Anorexics who have any fat will deem themselves "skinny fat" and attempt to eliminate the excess.Need2Exerc1se wrote: »How are you defining "skinny fat"? Like so many other terms, that seems to have several different meanings on MFP. The most common is a BMI in the healthy range but a BF% outside the healthy range. You say your BMI is high so that would not describe you.
It is possible to be overweight and healthy and this may better describe you. Being overweight is a risk factor for some diseases, but it's not a guarantee of disease. If you get enough exercise and eat right you can be overweight and healthy. A gym or structured exercise plan is not required for getting exercise. All activity is exercise.
I said once that I quit lifting weight because it bored the crap out me and someone said, "So, you want to be skinny fat?" Several people agreed. To them, anyone who doesn't lift weights is skinny fat.
Since it's not a medical term with any real definition, everyone gets to make up their own meaning.
There just is no way to use the term nicely, whether you say it about yourself or others.
I agree with you 100%.
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It's defined differently by everyone. Anorexics who have any fat will deem themselves "skinny fat" and attempt to eliminate the excess.Need2Exerc1se wrote: »How are you defining "skinny fat"? Like so many other terms, that seems to have several different meanings on MFP. The most common is a BMI in the healthy range but a BF% outside the healthy range. You say your BMI is high so that would not describe you.
It is possible to be overweight and healthy and this may better describe you. Being overweight is a risk factor for some diseases, but it's not a guarantee of disease. If you get enough exercise and eat right you can be overweight and healthy. A gym or structured exercise plan is not required for getting exercise. All activity is exercise.
I said once that I quit lifting weight because it bored the crap out me and someone said, "So, you want to be skinny fat?" Several people agreed. To them, anyone who doesn't lift weights is skinny fat.
Since it's not a medical term with any real definition, everyone gets to make up their own meaning.
There just is no way to use the term nicely, whether you say it about yourself or others.
I agree with you 100%.
Except there is a medical term.0
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