Rib cage visible at a high bodyfat percentage?

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Mellouk89
Mellouk89 Posts: 469 Member
edited February 2021 in Health and Weight Loss
How common it is to have visible ribs at a fairly high body fat percentage like 15-17%? Only when I get really fat that I don't see my rib cage.

What does it say? Skinny fat syndrome?

Replies

  • Mellouk89
    Mellouk89 Posts: 469 Member
    edited February 2021
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    I don't know for sure what is my body fat %, I have a 34 inch waist at 5'9. I'm carrying body fat mostly in the lower back region.

    My brother for example is more thin but doesn't have visible ribs.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,526 Member
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    People's fat is distributed differently. Some it's in the legs. Some in the abs. Some in the arms. You just happen to not have it distribute a lot in your rib area.

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  • scarlett_k
    scarlett_k Posts: 812 Member
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    I'm still overweight according to BMI but my ribs have started showing since I was about 10 kg off my initial goal weight (high end of a healthy BMI). I have a healthy hip to waist ratio so I think it's just because of where I store most of my remaining excess fat, which is on my hips and thighs.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    Mellouk89 wrote: »
    I don't know for sure what is my body fat %, I have a 34 inch waist at 5'9. I'm carrying body fat mostly in the lower back region.

    My brother for example is more thin but doesn't have visible ribs.

    No-one is really sure of their BF%. In the end I assume you are aiming for a physique rather than a number that is only an estimate. Those estimates (if reliable, many aren't) are really just a guide to progress and become less useful the closer you get when muscle definition, separation and increased vascularity emerge more clearly.

    My abs and love handles are the first place I gain fat and last place I lose it. Sounds like if you had a profile picture you would take a front view rather than a rear view like me! ;)

    When you are appraoching your physique goal progress pictures, measurements and re-assessment of goal weight helps.
  • Fflpnari
    Fflpnari Posts: 975 Member
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    I can see my ribs too and its weird when I have so much body fat to lose 😂
  • SnifterPug
    SnifterPug Posts: 746 Member
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    Fflpnari wrote: »
    I can see my ribs too and its weird when I have so much body fat to lose 😂

    So can I. One one side, if I lean over and suck my belly in really hard. Not bad for over 30% BF ;-)

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    Depends a lot on fat distribution...also, 15%-17% is actually fairly lean for a gen pop male...it's well within a healthy range of BF...seeing ribs at that BF% doesn't particularly surprise me. When I'm around 15%, I have a flat stomach and no love handles and I can faintly start to see the outlines of abdominal muscles in the right light...so ribs would be a no brainer.
  • Noreenmarie1234
    Noreenmarie1234 Posts: 7,493 Member
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    Also it depends what OP means by "seeing rib cage". Some people think it means.....
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    And others think.....

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  • tariqari
    tariqari Posts: 38 Member
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    I’m somewhere between 15-17% and my rib cage is visible among other bones. It varies person to person.

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