Is 5’7 160 too skinny?!
jakersneed1770
Posts: 12 Member
5’7 male, 21 YO. SW: 286. CW: 160. In the last year i’ve lost over 100 pounds. Went for my physical today and my doctor said I’m too skinny and I look frail. I personally don’t think I look frail. I fit into Small clothing now but I’m also a small dude. My doctor said he would send me to an eating disorder clinic if I don’t put on 10 pounds. He said I was fine at 190 but I was incredibly unhappy and he was upset I decided to lose more. Here’s the issue. I’m happy at my current weight but I’m afraid of maintaining. If I just start eating 2000 calories a day will I be gaining? Will I just maintain? I’ve worked so hard to get here and don’t wanna go back. From XXXL to small, to actually having success with women. Any advice?
12
Replies
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I"m 69 yrs old, 5'8" and 150# (+/- 3) and no one has ever told me that I look too skinny. My measurements are 40C/32W/38H at about 12-15% BF w/lots of visible muscular definition and vascularity (due to the low BF%) and a v-shaped torso.
For lack of a better standard of comparison, my BMI is 22.8 just above the midpoint of the "normal" range and your BMI is 25.1 just slightly w/in the "overweight" range. You'd have to lose 15# to have the same BMI as mine.
So, I'm curious why your doc thinks that you look too "skinny and frail." My guess is that it's due to a lack of muscular development rather than a lack of weight and you may want to consider taking up wt lifting to gain muscle/strength and to improve your physique.
FWIW, many newbies to lifting can lose wt while also increasing their strength and muscularity. It happened for me and if you are interested, I suggest you look into 2 beginning lifting programs that are available free on the Net:
Starting Strength and Stronglifts.
I've done both and preferred Starting Strength, but individual opinions on the programs vary. Read about both and try the one you think will suit you best. If you find that it's not working for you, then try the other.
Either one, if followed according to the program, should work for any beginner.
BTW, IMO your doc's suggestion that you'd be "fine at 190" is crazy! At that wt your BMI would be 29.8 just short of obese and put you at greater risk of coronary disease and diabetes. I was near 200# twice in my life and that weight was NOT "fine" for me
FWIW, I think you need to condult another doctor and/or need to speak w/acdietisn or nutritionist and/or sports/physical trainer for additional opinions regarding your situation24 -
Hi Jake,
I can't tell you if your current weight is unhealthy because I am not a doctor; however, your doctor has said he thinks you have lost too much weight. I would suggest listening to your doctor.
You may want to take him up on the offer for an eating disorder clinic anyway. You said you were unhappy at 190 which your doctor said was a healthy weight. You also said you are afraid of maintaining your current weight which is worrisome.
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At 5'7" and 160 lb. your BMI is just at the very lowest edge of the "overweight" category. Do you have some medical condition that would cause your doctor to think this is not a healthy weight for you? If not, then I would recommend seeking a second opinion.20
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How may calories are you eating now? Are you building muscle? I would stick around 2000 It wont make you gain weight you are a young male which works to your benefit. As you age you may want to decrease in calories but right now at your age and weight I think you would be fine. You should be proud of losing all that weight but being healthy isn't just about the number on the scale. Best of luck
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One part of what you relay makes your doctor sound strange. The second part makes him sound potentially correct.
As a person who is older than you and wears medium at 5ft 7"+ (172.25 cm) and 155lbs and well above the midpoint of normal BMI I have a hard time envisioning you as catastrophically too thin, but I am also having some trouble seeing me wear small... so who knows!
The difference to what you looked like before and the potential end result of currently being malnourished if you've been under-eating beyond prudent to lose weight fast, may be making you appear to be thinner and drawn out as you're concluding a period of eating restriction.
Eating at maintenance and stabilizing for a good six months to a year will help your wobbly bits settle down and redistribute, and hopefully improve your "lustre" <think shinny coat and a wet nose>
Now moving beyond jokes. If you're having trouble eating 2000 Cal or contemplating doing so I can see where your doctor is concerned.
Again I can only go from n=1, but I lost from a similar start to a similar finish over a longer time frame, eating more calories, and I found it to almost be too fast for me.
Large caloric restriction triggers brain chemistry changes that can be reversed with time and normal eating. Your brain also takes time to catch up with your loss. And unless you're sedentary your maintenance calories are closer to 2500 than 2k.
So....
Well done so far; but time to snap out of it, especially if your doctor thinks you're looking haggard, has already told you to slow down, you haven't, and you haven't not because you CHOSE; but because you "were afraid" and/or "couldn't"
By the way: the same results with less side effects can be had with a smaller restriction over a longer period of time.
Don't keep pushing things... already you're in danger of rebound hunger when you start eating normally because something tells me you've been restricting way more than 1000 Cal a day
And if you seriously cannot increase your calories to the mid 2000 range which would be the normal level for your age, height, weight, and sex, you should really consider taking your doctor up on their offer for a referral.
My friend, you have to stabilize and concentrate on maintenance and a maintenance weight range. You can then re evaluate after a good year, or so, of "normalcy"...
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Without knowing more about why your doctor is making that determination, it's hard to make a fully informed comment. It is possible that there is something he is seeing that we can't see as people on an internet message board.
That being said, at the numbers, 160 is certainly not too low for the average person who is 5'7. It is not even in the normal BMI. So I am confused as to why your doctor thinks it is at eating disorder levels. I also can't imagine that 5'7", 190 would be considered a "don't go any lower" weight for you, considering that is just right at about an obese BMI. I am 5'11, 195, and I am definitely overweight still and could lose at least 20 more pounds to be at a good weight for myself.
It's hard to tell from your doctors comments if he thinks you are abnormally muscular which is why he thinks that 160 is too low for you or if he thinks that you don't have much muscle, and you look frail and "skinny fat". The former would make more sense as to why he would want you to stop, but if he thinks you look "frail" that would mean he thinks the latter. So I am not sure where he is coming from or why he thinks 160 is a good weight for you. Have you gotten a proper body fat test done? That may give you some insights.
I don't agree with "trust your doctor" as just blind advice to follow, as many primary care physicians have little to no knowledge or training of nutrition, diet, or weight loss just being a doctor does not make someone an expert on it. It may benefit you to see a registered dietician to discuss with them what they think about your weight and diet.
Now, all that being said, there are a few things you've said in your post, such as "being incredibly unhappy at 190" and "scared to maintain" that do set off a bit of red flags that you could be having an unhealthy relationship with food and body image. If you are worried about gaining at 2000 calories, that could indicate that you've been eating considerably lower than that, which could have been too low to be considered healthy for you. So your doctors concern could have some merit to it, especially if it's not the number of your weight, but the way you are getting to it that are of concern. It wouldn't be a terrible idea to see if you could find a counselor to talk to about this stuff, even just at a basic level, to make sure that it doesn't grow into something more serious.10 -
One part of what you relay makes your doctor sound strange. The second part makes him sound potentially correct.
As a person who is older than you and wears medium at 5ft 7"+ (172.25 cm) and 155lbs and well above the midpoint of normal BMI I have a hard time envisioning you as catastrophically too thin, but I am also having some trouble seeing me wear small... so who knows!
The difference to what you looked like before and the potential end result of currently being malnourished if you've been under-eating beyond prudent to lose weight fast, may be making you appear to be thinner and drawn out as you're concluding a period of eating restriction.
Eating at maintenance and stabilizing for a good six months to a year will help your wobbly bits settle down and redistribute, and hopefully improve your "lustre" <think shinny coat and a wet nose>
Now moving beyond jokes. If you're having trouble eating 2000 Cal or contemplating doing so I can see where your doctor is concerned.
Again I can only go from n=1, but I lost from a similar start to a similar finish over a longer time frame, eating more calories, and I found it to almost be too fast for me.
Large caloric restriction triggers brain chemistry changes that can be reversed with time and normal eating. Your brain also takes time to catch up with your loss. And unless you're sedentary your maintenance calories are closer to 2500 than 2k.
So....
Well done so far; but time to snap out of it, especially if your doctor thinks you're looking haggard, has already told you to slow down, you haven't, and you haven't not because you CHOSE; but because you "were afraid" and/or "couldn't"
By the way: the same results with less side effects can be had with a smaller restriction over a longer period of time.
Don't keep pushing things... already you're in danger of rebound hunger when you start eating normally because something tells me you've been restricting way more than 1000 Cal a day
And if you seriously cannot increase your calories to the mid 2000 range which would be the normal level for your age, height, weight, and sex, you should really consider taking your doctor up on their offer for a referral.
My friend, you have to stabilize and concentrate on maintenance and a maintenance weight range. You can then re evaluate after a good year, or so, of "normalcy"...
Yeah the more I think about it, the more the issue could be around rapid loss, extreme restriction, and overall attitude towards body image rather than the specific number on the scale. That would make more sense.9 -
Thanks for all the replies.
I’m not scared of maintenance more so I’m afraid that at 2000 I will gain.
When losing I was eating around 1200 to 1400 and losing around a pound or so a week.
I haven’t done a proper body fat percentage test. I guess I should look into that...
I will be trying to get a second opinion I’m convinced my primary care physician is a moron because he is 5’5 200 lbs (male) and trying to tell me that he feels “too skinny” at 180.... so just kinda sounds like he’s a moron. (respectfully as possible; still kind of upset he pretty much scolded me for losing more weight”.
My goal weight is around 155 I don’t think I could go much lower than that.
Thanks all.7 -
Here are photos of me before and after.
288
160 ish (i think i took it at 166)
Thanks.7 -
One part of what you relay makes your doctor sound strange. The second part makes him sound potentially correct.
As a person who is older than you and wears medium at 5ft 7"+ (172.25 cm) and 155lbs and well above the midpoint of normal BMI I have a hard time envisioning you as catastrophically too thin, but I am also having some trouble seeing me wear small... so who knows!
The difference to what you looked like before and the potential end result of currently being malnourished if you've been under-eating beyond prudent to lose weight fast, may be making you appear to be thinner and drawn out as you're concluding a period of eating restriction.
Eating at maintenance and stabilizing for a good six months to a year will help your wobbly bits settle down and redistribute, and hopefully improve your "lustre" <think shinny coat and a wet nose>
Now moving beyond jokes. If you're having trouble eating 2000 Cal or contemplating doing so I can see where your doctor is concerned.
Again I can only go from n=1, but I lost from a similar start to a similar finish over a longer time frame, eating more calories, and I found it to almost be too fast for me.
Large caloric restriction triggers brain chemistry changes that can be reversed with time and normal eating. Your brain also takes time to catch up with your loss. And unless you're sedentary your maintenance calories are closer to 2500 than 2k.
So....
Well done so far; but time to snap out of it, especially if your doctor thinks you're looking haggard, has already told you to slow down, you haven't, and you haven't not because you CHOSE; but because you "were afraid" and/or "couldn't"
By the way: the same results with less side effects can be had with a smaller restriction over a longer period of time.
Don't keep pushing things... already you're in danger of rebound hunger when you start eating normally because something tells me you've been restricting way more than 1000 Cal a day
And if you seriously cannot increase your calories to the mid 2000 range which would be the normal level for your age, height, weight, and sex, you should really consider taking your doctor up on their offer for a referral.
My friend, you have to stabilize and concentrate on maintenance and a maintenance weight range. You can then re evaluate after a good year, or so, of "normalcy"...
Yeah the more I think about it, the more the issue could be around rapid loss, extreme restriction, and overall attitude towards body image rather than the specific number on the scale. That would make more sense.
If that is the case, then it is irresponsible for the doc to throw out a specific number and threaten the patient.
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jakersneed1770 wrote: »Here are photos of me before and after.
288
160 ish (i think i took it at 166)
Thanks.
As always, I commend people who have the courage to post pictures. And as I suspected, your issue is too little muscle, not too much weight. Just saying “gain 10 pounds” — well, let’s just say that is an incomplete answer.
Having said that, I do think it is time to give your body a “weight loss break” and focus on reshaping what is there rather than trying to lose more.
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Not at all. It all depends on body type though. I know guys that height at 140lbs that are very fit and healthy looking.1
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going by your bmi you are by no means underweight. i would look at seeing another doctor to be honest. Is it possible that your doctor is concerned about the method you are using for weight loss?6
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Awesome job losing weight. I preceive neither haggard, nor worryingly thin.
1500 being the absolute minimum recommended intake for males, if your intake was accurately measured at sub 1500, that restriction was too high. Some indications do exist that your intake may have been measured a bit more loosely which would make things not as bad as they sound. Yet, you both said 1lb a week and more than 100lbs in a year. In general, if I were you, I would consider the issue moving forward: you do not get bonus points for making things harder on yourself.
A break, some strength training... both sound good.
Do note that the closer you are to normal weight and the larger the restriction the more your ratio of fat to lean mass lost tends to deteriorate. Whereas when morbidly obese you may have been losing fat to lean mass on an 8:1 or even 10:1 ratio, when you are closer to normal weight and with a large restriction, little strength training, and perhaps inadequate protein intake, that ratio can easily become around 1:19 -
I would see a new doctor. You look great. Good luck transitioning to maintenance.2
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Great job on the weight loss. You look fantastic and not unhealthy at all. Your doctor does sound like he has some personal bias based upon what you've said. Regarding your fear of gaining at 2000 calories, I'm 5'4" 134 and still losing. When I reached 143, which was my initial goal which put me at at high end of a normal BMI, I went into maintenance for a few months to give both my brain and skin a chance to catch up to my weight loss. I also wanted to give myself time to enjoy, accept and appreciate my smaller size without that nagging voice in my head telling me that I needed to keep restricting. The last 10lbs I lost, I lost while increasing my calories every two weeks or so. I went from 1400 to 1500, to 1600, to 1700, to 1800. I also worked out about 5 times a week, never more than an hour at a time, workouts ranging from yoga, strength training and running. I did this so when I reached my maintenance weight I would be able to consume around 2000 calories without gaining. It seems to have worked. I started losing again about two months ago and have lost another 9lbs. My daily calories are set at 1900 and my workouts are about the same, except I eat around 2400 calories (or more depending on how I'm feeling) on the weekends because I run between 10 and 13 miles every Saturday and I feel famished if I don't eat back these particular exercise calories. I run not to lose more weight, but to be fit and it is nice having these days when I know I can eat a bit more. Sorry, I say all this only to say, at your height and weight, you should not be afraid to be gaining at 2000 calories. But considering you've been eating at such a high calorie restriction, I would start increasing your calories slowly as I did until you are able to eat at 2000 calories a day. Again, great job on the weight loss and you do look great.6
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You don’t look too thin to me, and your weight as pointed out is just slightly in the overweight category. Combining this with the information that your doctor is obese and has complained about feeling too thin when he was still technically overweight for his height, I think you are correct and your doctor may be a moron. Get a new one. In any case it’s not useful to have a doctor whom you think is a moron, even if he isn’t, so a different doctor is a good idea.5
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Thanks all. Appreciate the kind words! I will try to get down to 150 and call it there. I’m very happy at my current weight but could for sure use some toning and what not. I’m going to see about talking to a dietician to get some second opinions. Appreciate how kind everyone on this forum is, was expecting to get bashed honestly.7
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Thank you for the kind words.. I figured I may as well upload a clothing photo. My mother is saying my frame is too “small”... Not sure what to make of it.Great job on the weight loss. You look fantastic and not unhealthy at all. Your doctor does sound like he has some personal bias based upon what you've said. Regarding your fear of gaining at 2000 calories, I'm 5'4" 134 and still losing. When I reached 143, which was my initial goal which put me at at high end of a normal BMI, I went into maintenance for a few months to give both my brain and skin a chance to catch up to my weight loss. I also wanted to give myself time to enjoy, accept and appreciate my smaller size without that nagging voice in my head telling me that I needed to keep restricting. The last 10lbs I lost, I lost while increasing my calories every two weeks or so. I went from 1400 to 1500, to 1600, to 1700, to 1800. I also worked out about 5 times a week, never more than an hour at a time, workouts ranging from yoga, strength training and running. I did this so when I reached my maintenance weight I would be able to consume around 2000 calories without gaining. It seems to have worked. I started losing again about two months ago and have lost another 9lbs. My daily calories are set at 1900 and my workouts are about the same, except I eat around 2400 calories (or more depending on how I'm feeling) on the weekends because I run between 10 and 13 miles every Saturday and I feel famished if I don't eat back these particular exercise calories. I run not to lose more weight, but to be fit and it is nice having these days when I know I can eat a bit more. Sorry, I say all this only to say, at your height and weight, you should not be afraid to be gaining at 2000 calories. But considering you've been eating at such a high calorie restriction, I would start increasing your calories slowly as I did until you are able to eat at 2000 calories a day. Again, great job on the weight loss and you do look great.
Before:
After:
(gotta flex the fake muscles!!!)
Thanks all.
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Is your doctor overweight?6
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NOT too skinny!
Makes me wonder about your doctor's judgment, though...He thinks you're better at 190 at 5'7"? Wow. My husband is 6' and 190, and his doctor doesn't want him any higher.2 -
From your pictures you do not look frail. That said, you stated you are afraid of maintenance and you have had rapid weight loss which could equal an eating disorder in the near future. If you have been with your doctor for a long period of time, he may just be expressing a concern and does not have a good bedside manner.
Question, did your doctor draw blood and complete a full panel to make sure your vitamin, mineral, body functions, etc. are in proper order? If not you may want to either ask for full blood panel and/or get a second opinion.
What I have done in the past to determine my "maintenance" caloric intake is I added 100-200 calories to my daily calories. I ate that amount of calories every day for a week. I checked my weight at the end of 7 days. If I was still losing I did the same the following week. I continued the process until I stopped losing and hovered around 2 pounds over/under my goal weight. It is a process. Example: Current calories 1200/day. Week 1 - 1300 calories per day; week 2 - 1400 calories per day, etc. Since all of us have different bodies and activity levels this is a personal measurement.
Do not be afraid of maintenance! You have worked hard to get to this point in time.3 -
Well done on the weight loss. I agree with the others that your doctor is in the wrong. It's likely he's a little heavy himself. Other thought is perhaps he was concerned with your calorie intake or speed of weight loss. Maybe he thought you were too fixated on low calories?
I know we are all different with different goals but I am 5'10 when I weigh 160lbs I am around/sub 10% body fat. I wear mainly large t shirts but I can fit into some mediums if they are loose fit but I dont look to skinny imo. Calorie wise I cut on 2100-2300 and maintain about 1000 calories higher. I would recommend lifting weights for body recomp if that's something your interested in. If not I'd be tempted to aim for a bmi of 22.5-23.0 -
I would probably take a 2 week diet break (eat at maintenance with about 140-160g of protein), especially since you went a bit aggressive for your deficit. And then come back with a smaller deficit (1600-1750 calories) and follow a structured lifting routine. But you definitely have room to get more lean.
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p1
I am 5'11'' and will probably have to get to around 160-165 to get abs. Grant it, I will build back up from there because I rather be 175 and around 10-15% body fat.8 -
Regarding your fear of gaining on 2000 cals which is a huge issue which perhaps prompted your Doctor to say something which in isolation sounds dumb.
I'm 59 YO, 5'9", 165lbs and usually maintain on 3,000 - 3,500 cals depending on my exercise volume.
2000 is often stated as an average maintenance calories for a mythical average female and 2500 for a mythical average male.
My suggestion would be to focus on what really is an irrational (but understandable) fear of regaining weight on a very small allowance and work up your calories steadily, ignoring fluctuations, and learn what your true maintenance calories are over a period of months. After a very rapid loss of weight you might be surprised how high your maintenance calories end up.
Meanwhile get yourself to the gym and lift some weights.
At your young age you have a whole load of long term options open to you - don't think what you do now commits you for life.6 -
Great job! I'm thinking you might "look frail" because of loose skin and lack of muscle. Start lifting! Bump your calories by 100 or so a day per week until you find maintenance. Your skin will continue to tighten over time. You might also want to find a new doctor, but it is also possible that he is just surprised at the quick change in your appearance.1
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OP: Based on the photos you posted, you are still overweight and are definitely NOT "thin or frail" as is confirmed by your BMI.
Your photos also confirm the presence of excess BF and a lack of muscular definition. So, you would definitely benefit from a wt lifting program as I suggested previously.
Your goal of 155 is a good stating point for this effort but I think, as happened for me after I made progress, that you may want to lower your goal wt later.
When I started my wt loss and stength development efforts at 196 down to 160, I've was losing wt on 1800 cals/day but as I lost fat and became more fit my cal consumption has dropped to an ave of about a 1600 cal/day at my current wt of 150 w/o any medical or physical issues arising as a result.
However, everyone's cal intake needs differ and I'm not saying that you will be able to lose/maintain your wt at the same levels.
What I am saying is that your cal intake needs will chg and vary depending on the chg in your wt and physique and will require constant adjustment as you progress.
Just keep this in mind. Nothing in a wt loss/body building effort remains static.
Good luck!
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jakersneed1770 wrote: »5’7 male, 21 YO. SW: 286. CW: 160. In the last year i’ve lost over 100 pounds. Went for my physical today and my doctor said I’m too skinny and I look frail. I personally don’t think I look frail. I fit into Small clothing now but I’m also a small dude. My doctor said he would send me to an eating disorder clinic if I don’t put on 10 pounds. He said I was fine at 190 but I was incredibly unhappy and he was upset I decided to lose more. Here’s the issue. I’m happy at my current weight but I’m afraid of maintaining. If I just start eating 2000 calories a day will I be gaining? Will I just maintain? I’ve worked so hard to get here and don’t wanna go back. From XXXL to small, to actually having success with women. Any advice?
On the one hand, going from 286 to 160 in a year is rather fast, so a legit cause for concern from your doctor.
OTOH, from your 166# picture it does seem like you have more weight to lose, so I disagree with his "gain 10 pounds" comment, unless he was specifically referring to muscle, which is does not seem like he was.
I agree with the other who suggested a progressive lifting program. Might be a good time to take a diet break (eat at maintenance) and focus on building muscle.
Thanks for posting the pictures - it was very helpful. Re your loose skin, quite a few posters here have said it can take about 2 years after losing the weight for the skin to tighten up.9 -
Skin will tighten (to a degree) and things will redistribute (slightly) over time. Whether you maintain for a bit or a longer length of time you can evaluate once you start maintaining and strength training. You can then see how you feel and decide where to go from there.
Weight fluctuations happen, especially when you introduce more food and different training. Don't go in a panic because of a single weight reading. Understand your weight trend and that when you're strength training you're carrying some extra non fat weight.
While 100 Cal increases each week may be appropriate in some cases where you're seeking maintenance, if you were going from 1500 to an expected 2500+ you're looking at 10+ weeks, so it would not be appropriate. I would start with ~500 and then 200 a week till you hit 2400-2500 and then evaluate again whether to stay put or go up or down by 100s or 200s4 -
I think you got great advice. My husband is your height and weight with a bit more muscle and is definitely not too thin, but on the small side for a guy. Are you currenty using a strength program. You may find doing a recomp or a very slight deficit with weight training might be a good way to ease into maintenance.0
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