How to tell if you're to skinny?

RoadsterGirlie

Congrats on your success!!! 135 and even 120 at 5'4" is not in any way too skinny. Americans are accustomed to looking at their overweight selves so perception is skewed.

At this point, like others suggested, I would concentrate more on body fat percentage. I'm sure you look great at either weight!

harleyjax

I know exactly how you feel!!! I'm 5'5, down to 127, still feel and think I look fat. It's the pudgy "mommy" belly that bothers me so much!

lilbearzmom

LOL You have my sympathy. I am also 5'4 and 145. People are telling me to stop! I might, I feel pretty good at this weight, but maybe I won't...

I have lost 155 lbs in total, so it's definitely that their perspective is skewed, not to mention it's already skewed because the majority of other people are overweight.

ChrisS30V

As long as you're at a healthy weight for your height, which it sounds like you are, then don't pay any mind to the "too skinny" comments. Your weight and appearance isn't anybody else's business.

BinaryPulsar

120 is still in the healthy range. But, you look fantastic in your pics! It doesn't look like you have 15 pounds to lose. You don't look too skinny. You look beautiful. But, keep working on your fitness.

I don't think you have BDD. BDD usually involves intense anxiety to the point that it impairs some aspect of your life because of an imagined flaw (but you don't know that it is imagined and it's very hard to realize that it is). And it is a mental health issue, so it is more than just vanity, but connected to strong emotions (can be caused by childhood trauma that is both emotional and body oriented).

laceyfowler

Hi Brandi,

Congrats - you look great! I think it's smart that you are listening to those around you but not just taking what they say as truth, reality checking it instead. You look great now, but it sounds like 120lb would also be completely healthy for you. As you probably know, there are more ways to judge your health than just by your weight. Are you in the Army, or are you looking at joining? Either way, get your hands on the Army fitness standards... how are you doing at those? To be in the Army, you need to maintain a certain level of physical performance as well as be below a certain weight. If you can be in a "healthy" weight range (there are many charts for this, with varying numbers, but it can give you an idea... generally both your current and your goal weight are considered healthy) and can also meet (or exceed! go for it, girl!) the Army standards for fitness, you have a pretty good shot at being healthy :-)

My guess is that because you've undergone such a dramatic physical change from your high weight, people are just used to seeing you heavier, and you now are most certainly not heavy! Sometimes it's hard for others to accept our positive changes :-)

Keep positive, stick to your goals, and keep checking in with your friends on here with your concerns. Also... if you are really having significant body image issues that you feel might be affecting your mental health, do talk to your doctor because BDD can be a serious thing. But... at 5'4", just having the goal of weighing 120lb doesn't point to BDD :-)

ktrn0312

You look great.

SLLRunner

People are idiots. Just do what you want. 120 sounds perfectly acceptable.

I wouldn't go that far. People seem to have differentvideasvof what too skinny is.

tjthegreatone

120lb may be too skinny for you - it depends entirely on your body composition. Only you can tell, not your family or friends or these boards. Sometimes though, we do set unrealistic goals. If you are concerned about body dysmorphia it may be worth stepping back and re-evaluating why it is so important to get to 120lb.
I'd say that my rule is my comfortable weight is one I can maintain without feeling starved/deprived all the time, with enough energy to do my (hard) workouts, and to have normal periods. Of course, if you are a model/entertainer/working in a field where your looks are really important well that's a different story.
For me, the low end of the healthy weight range at my height (5'9) is simply not achievable without losing a lot of muscle mass that I have worked hard to build. No thanks. I am most comfortable at a BMI 22-23.

QuietBloom

I would go by BMI charts. Especially ones that include frame size.

DianneP6772

Congratulations! You have really done well.
I am also your height and originally set 129 as my goal, but as i got nearer - i started thinking 119-120. And now that i am at 128-129, most people are saying "well - you aren't trying to lose anymore, are you?" At first i started saying, well.....i would like to lose just a little more so i can go have a pepperoni pizza and not worry about it! But now, its easier to say " no - i am just trying to hold it here" My BF is somewhere between 24 and 27 - hard to say as its only with my scale and since that changes 3 points within a day according to my activity - its not too reliable. I would like to get it down in the 22-24 range. So i am eating more now but still watching it - and we will see where it goes.
Like so many others - you know how you feel and how you want to look - so go with it and enjoy.
You look great now - but i don't think 120 would be too low. If it is 'well - walla - you can eat for awhile - its not like you can't get it back if you want to.

FlaxMilk

It's hard to tell based just on the pictures on your profile, but it is hard to imagine you losing 15 more pounds. 120 is often a great weight for a woman of your height, but you truly don't have more to lose. I wouldn't say you need to try to gain weight, but if you're going to the army, switch your focus to overall health and fitness. Great work-you do look awesome.

cafeaulait7

You look wonderful!!!! I can't imagine 15 lbs less on you unless you want to lose muscle, because it certainly looks like you have nice muscle. But if you have a few bikini lbs hiding out somewhere, a few more lbs would be fine, too, imho. Maybe you just really dress well, lol.

I'm sure the full 15 would be 'fine' health-wise. But you don't look like you could have much fat on you at all, no. I mean, female bodybuilders get to incredibly low BF levels, so it depends on what you want, really. Just try to keep that muscle if you must go lower.

MinimalistShoeAddict

As long as you're at a healthy weight for your height, which it sounds like you are, then don't pay any mind to the "too skinny" comments. Your weight and appearance isn't anybody else's business.

I agree with this completely. Both your current weight and goal are in the healthy range. Focus on your goals, not the opinions of others.

Congratulations on your wonderful success!

JesterMFP

I think you look great. I don't think you look "too skinny", and I don't think you look like you need to lose any more. Whether you want to lose a little more fat or not is your choice. It's hard to tell from the fully-clothed photos whether or not that would be a good idea in my opinion, but you're still at the point where it's personal preference (ie you could probably still lose a few pounds and still be healthy). That doesn't mean that 120 would be ideal for you and I definitely think you're at the point where it could be helpful to let go of a particular goal number, and focus on what you see in the mirror, photos, and how your body feels.

By the way, it's very common for people who have lost a significant amount of weight to have a slightly distorted view of their body, to have some degree of body dysmorphia. That doesn't mean that you have Body Dysmorphic Syndrome, but it can take a bit of time for your brain to catch up with your changing size/shape. If you're really struggling to see what you really look like, one option is just to maintain for a while so that you can get used to how you look, and if you still want to lose a bit more fat, then go for it. Just try not to get to fixed on certain numbers, as that can lead to problems too.

It's also pretty common for those around us to get used to us at a certain (higher) weight and then think we look to skinny when in fact we;re healthy. It doesn't mean they're jealous or insecure. Chances are they just need some time to get used to the new you too. If it's people close to you, then there might also be a genuine worry about when you're going to stop losing. If it's people whose opinion matters to you, then you could try talking to them, be open an honest about your goals and wanting to be fit and healthy. Otherwise, just focus on what you want for your body, and let them mind their own business.

iDrix

Yeah, I got those last 10lbs to loose. People started progresively tellling me to stop throught my weight loss journey, the last month I became over encumbered from all the people telling to stop, even my close ones. I know I can loose another good layer of fat so I decided to burn those last 10lbs but straight bull****ting people about my weight, as far as people know I already stopped my weight loss journey, I stopped losing weight last month... and i'm doing my thing low key.

alisonlynn1976

I use BMI as my guideline. I'm still working on losing weight right now, but in the future if I should ever happen to drop into the underweight category, I would make an effort to gain until back to the normal category. If other people think I "look too skinny" despite being a healthy weight, screw 'em. It's my body, not theirs.

darrensurrey

Something to think about: I joined MFP weighing about 73kg. I went down to 60kg eating about 1800 cals a day doing a lot of HIIT. I still wasn't happy with my fat levels but my arms got a bit skinny. Got the same comments from friends and family that you did.

I decided to focus more on building muscle, eating around 2600-3000 cals a day, playing tennis once or twice a week. I now weigh about 73kg (my original weight) but my lower ab area now has more definition so I've lost fat. :laugh:

The same people who commented on me being too skinny now say how I look more athletic/muscular.

alechua

It really sucks ESPECIALLY when its your family and friends. I think its because they aren't use to seeing it that it appears that way.

This. I feel the same way. I'm 5'3 and my SW: 156lbs and CW: 118-120lbs (fluctuating), they keep telling me im skinny but i know im not

cafeaulait7

BMI can be a little weird for individuals, remember. Would I be healthy at the lowest end of the range for my height? Well, that's 3 lbs above my lean mass, so that BF% would not be healthy, no! Of course, you can lose lean mass (the muscle part), too, but who would want to?

I think the BMI being the 'healthy range' is more of a range to attempt to cover frame sizes in the population and not a fully healthy range for each person! And we all know that more muscular people are going to weigh more without needing to lose weight. Is it healthy to lose some muscle? Meh, to an extent it can be, I guess, but I'd think more muscle is definitely healthier.