Am liking the scales but not the mirror
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OP - What are your measurements? (I ask because in your profile pic you don't appear to be wide at your waist.)
Figure types aren't based on fat, they're based on measurement differences. An hourglass figure is usually defined as having similar bust and hip measurements and a waist measurement which is at least 10" smaller than bust/hips. So Marilyn Monroe is usually referred to as an example at 37-23-36. If the bust/hips are similar and the waist is <9" smaller, that's considered straight. Pear shape just means that your hip measurement is larger than your bust. Apple is the opposite. So you can potentially be any figure type at any fat %.
I was an hourglass when I was overweight/obese and stayed one until I got to my goal weight. I stayed there for awhile (36-26-36) and have been mostly maintaining (recomp). Every time I lose an inch or two, I become more pear as my hips are staying the same (34-25-36).5 -
That is a fallacy that is propagated by people who are adverse to hard work or prefer to make excuses.One thing to remember is that you don't have much control over your body shape - if you're an Apple shape, you're not going to change into an Hourglass shape with exercise or weight loss.
Show me a woman at 15% or 20% body fat and "Apple" shaped and then we will talk.
Until then, I call BS.
Please check out my profile pics for evidence. In those pics I tested at 15-16% BF by Dexa and Bod Pod. I look like my BF% is higher due to no boobage. My fat is stored in the 1ft area below my belly button and the top of my thighs. I seem to be pulling this measurement out quite a lot recently, but android/gynoid fat difference was 8.5%/25%. If having 8.5% BF on your upper half and 25% BF on your lower is not the definition of pear, I'm not sure what is.
Edit - my bad....I just read you wanted evidence of an 'Apple'. Wrong body type for that comparison. But hopefully it helps you realize that body types don't change with low levels of BF. I guess it goes more with this quote.I'm not willing to debate it with you now, sorry.
Like I said, if you get down to around 18% and still feel like you are fruit shaped then we can discuss it then.
"about 24% fat" is a long way from being hydrostatically weighed and demonstrated to be within 15% to 20% body fat.
None of the "pear shaped" women I have ever known or coached who did the work to get into the 18% range looked remotely apple or pear shaped in the end. Their bust sizes did shrink a bit, but that is to be expected.
Wider hips or a thigh gap due to bone shape or density does not affect your body composition.
Furthermore, it rarely affects your overall appearance as dramatically as some people want to think, unless you are competing on a stage.
Put muscle on those thighs and few people would ever noticed the "gap".
It is hard work, but it can be done.
Weight distribution excuses go out the window when you actually drop the additional 10lbs or 15lbs of fat you didn't realize you were carrying or "distributing".
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WickedPineapple wrote: »OP - What are your measurements? (I ask because in your profile pic you don't appear to be wide at your waist.)
Figure types aren't based on fat, they're based on measurement differences. An hourglass figure is usually defined as having similar bust and hip measurements and a waist measurement which is at least 10" smaller than bust/hips. So Marilyn Monroe is usually referred to as an example at 37-23-36. If the bust/hips are similar and the waist is <9" smaller, that's considered straight. Pear shape just means that your hip measurement is larger than your bust. Apple is the opposite. So you can potentially be any figure type at any fat %.
I was an hourglass when I was overweight/obese and stayed one until I got to my goal weight. I stayed there for awhile (36-26-36) and have been mostly maintaining (recomp). Every time I lose an inch or two, I become more pear as my hips are staying the same (34-25-36).
This is absolutely correct. The body shapes are based on bust waist hip ratios. Yes an apple shape can lose tons of body fat and maybe get a more defined waist but that doesn't magically make them a categorized hourglass figure.
When I am obese I have a 13" difference between bust to waist, and 12" between waist to hip. My waist and stomach may still be very large but the ratio is still there. When I am at normal/healthy weight I'm more around 12" bust to waist and 11" hips to waist. My ratios stay almost exactly the same and I NEVER drop below a 10" difference. I am an hourglass figure. Oh I'm also a top heavy hourglass as my bust is always larger than my hips. Just adding that note to show contrast to the quoted post which features a bottom heavy hourglass figure with hips that trend larger than bust when weight is lost.
Yes hard work and dedication can change the look of your body but when people say that you can't change your foundation shape they usually aren't talking about a curve here and a smoothing out there. They are talking about not changing really defined structural ratios and build.
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@mom23mangos This is the 2nd time i've seen you direct posters to your profile pics, but your profile is set to private. I really want to check out your pics so i can get a better understanding of what you're talking about. I'm honestly not creeping lol
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Christine_72 wrote: »@mom23mangos This is the 2nd time i've seen you direct posters to your profile pics, but your profile is set to private. I really want to check out your pics so i can get a better understanding of what you're talking about. I'm honestly not creeping lol
Doh!! I'm so embarrassed @Christine_72! I totally didn't realize. I think I fixed it. Thanks for letting me know.2 -
OP: We are all our own worst critics and no one is ever satisfied with the way they look. Remember that most celebs are underweight and at high risk for eating disorders. If you have achieved a good fitness level, have a good diet, healthy habits, and can do everything you want, then life is good!
@cqbkaju may be right that if you drop your body fat %, your body will look different (no guarantees that it will look better, IMHO). Is this where you want to focus your energy?2 -
This is where you set body composition goals and eat and train with specificity. At some point "watching what you eat" and "lifting weights" just isn't going to give you the look you want.
Need to lose a little fat? Get logging. Watch your protein. Make sure your program has a progressive overload, with a decent amount of volume but not so much that a deficit is difficult.
If you're already very slim, maybe time for a bulk or a recomp with a new program.2 -
@CharlieBeansmomTracey
I think I understand what you are saying but by definition...
If you lose enough fat (thus shrinking your belly and body fat to say, 18%), have wider "birthing" hips, and ANY breastesess at all (with or without "wide shoulders"), wouldn't that result in more of an "hourglass" than an "Apple" shape?
Even with no bewbies, an "Apple" or "Pear" shape is not in the cards.
Sorry, but most of that is adipose tissue, not "hip bone"...
At least "Pics or it didn't happen." You may still not convince me, but we can debate it.
I have known girls/women who were very, very thin who were still basically straight up and down from shoulders to hips with no indent at the waist. They were dancers and had very low bodyfat. Some women are just not hourglass shaped at any weight.5 -
Op, have you progressed on your lifts? Are you getting stronger and lifting heavier weights? Are you eating in a deficit? These are key to getting better body composition.1
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Perhaps let go of your media-driven ideal of a perfect body. We don't all have the same body type. We don't all have the money to pursue surgical interventions as we age. You are active, at your ideal weight and, I'm assuming, you eat a healthy diet. If not, that would be something to focus on, rather than how you look in the mirror. Your good health is going to serve you well in the coming years and is ultimately much more important than a tiny waist!
I say all this to you because I say it to myself (except I'm older and already suffer the consequences of not taking care of myself in my 30's and 40's). I'm one of those women that never had and never will have an hourglass figure. I found myself being more critical of my body after I lost weight than before. I have to consciously shut down the negative self-talk on a regular basis. Give yourself a break!4 -
Yes, no disagreement there, Ms. Tracey.CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »I still store fat in the same places and not much has changed except that Im a smaller version at a higher weight.
Solution? Cut the amount of fat you are storing by a sufficient amount and the location of storage will not matter much.
It is not simple or easy, but it can be done, has been done and shall be done again.
That is all I am saying.
If your assertion is that you are "pear shaped" or some such simply based on something like the width of your hips, regardless of how much body fat or muscle mass you have then we will have to agree to disagree.
I would assert that "pear shaped" may be a matter of aesthetics and appearance.
Therefore...
Since I am I guy and you are a woman, how attractive and sexy "I" (i.e. your Significant Other, other hetro guys, other women who are attracted to their own gender, etc.) think you are is more important in this instance than your opinion of how you feel you look or your self-image / body image.
"I" am a better, more impartial judge of "your" aesthetics, just like "you" are the better judge of "mine."
So "I" am sticking with my evaluation of what a "pear shaped woman" looks like over yours.
I have to agree with you, @180 I was an apple, @140 a "ruler/banana" now close to 130 I have a waist!!! And I'm sure around 125 I'll be an hourglass
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HOW do you lift 5 times per week? What weights? What routine?
If you feel like you are "wide around the midriff" then you need to cut body fat.
There is no other way. Changing exercises will not make a difference unless it increases your calorie deficit (CO).
Tighten up your CI and start with cutting about 250 calories a day out.
Playing with the macros can help some people. Stay with it for a month and see if you notice results.
If not, add more CO (exercise) or cut calories another by another 250.
Rinse and repeat.
I think your food intake should stay the same scale is where you want it. I know our bodies get used to the same exercises. Change up your weight routine, alternate the number of days you do it weekly and not a increase but go down a day or two. Do the exercises that you go hard for a certain amount of minutes then rest a few minutes.0 -
Not sure if this applies to you, but if you are using weights that are relatively heavy for your core work, it will serve to thicken the abdominal muscles (weights create thicker muscle). If so, I'd recommend dropping the weight and going for much higher reps instead. Not bullet-proof, but if you're smashing out the palloff presses with 10kgs for 12 reps, it may thicken your obliques. Therefore, wider waist.0
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Everybody think's they are stuck with a certain body "shape" or "type" until they push themselves beyond where they've been before and realise it was just what was normal at that time.2
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OP perhaps you are being too harsh on yourself, that is a great weight for your height.
You are using a good workout programme regularly and you might find it'll take your body a while to tighten up - it takes a lot of time. (I'm into second year of a recomp and my body is still changing)
I haven't changed my maintenance weight much in 4 years but people continually tell me I'm 'thinner' - having muscle has the effect of pulling us in. Keep on with your workouts.
And as others say, not all of us have e.g 24" waists - I might have missed your reply about your stats but that would be useful.
(I'm smaller, maintain at around 128lbs and measure 34"/ 25"/ 35" just to give you an example, my waist I feel is quite small.)
Be confident in your progress and keep on honing that figure 1 -
HOW do you lift 5 times per week? What weights? What routine?
If you feel like you are "wide around the midriff" then you need to cut body fat.
There is no other way. Changing exercises will not make a difference unless it increases your calorie deficit (CO).
Tighten up your CI and start with cutting about 250 calories a day out.
Playing with the macros can help some people. Stay with it for a month and see if you notice results.
If not, add more CO (exercise) or cut calories another by another 250.
Rinse and repeat.
I think your food intake should stay the same scale is where you want it. I know our bodies get used to the same exercises. Change up your weight routine, alternate the number of days you do it weekly and not a increase but go down a day or two. Do the exercises that you go hard for a certain amount of minutes then rest a few minutes.
your body doesnt really get used to it, but the more you do it the less calories you burn because you get stronger and your body doesnt have to work as hard as it did to do those exercises. you become more efficient at them. changing them up wont make much of a difference if your calories are higher than your burns1 -
Personally I think you could go for either recomp or cut a little more if that suits your goals, but it's really up to you since you're already at a healthy weight. (I recently started a recomp.)
This thread is interesting. I had thought I was an apple shape since belly fat definitely tends to be my problem. However, in my 20 lb weight loss a year ago I went from (at 5'7") measurements of 37/31.5/41 to 35/28/38. My waist definitely looks more defined now but proportionately on my frame, my ribcage is fairly small (28.5" underbust) and hipbones proportionately a bit wider so I guess I am technically pear shaped after all.0
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