What in the heck is "skinny fat"????

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SiltyPigeon
SiltyPigeon Posts: 920 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have heard the phrase "skinny fat" several times today here. All in the context of:

"You will go into starvation mode, lose a lot a of weight, but it won't be healthy weight loss, you will be Skinny Fat!"

What EXACTLY (dare I ask) would a "skinny fat" person look like? How could a person possibly be skinny while simultaneously being fat??

Would that just mean they are skinny but don't have a ripping, greased up, cheese shredding, can crunching, shiny six pack? << I might be okay with that.
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Replies

  • crystal_sapphire
    crystal_sapphire Posts: 1,205 Member
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    skinny fat is when you don't have much lean muscle at all and have a high body fat percentage even though by society standards you're skinny.
  • SiltyPigeon
    SiltyPigeon Posts: 920 Member
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    If a "skinny fat" person were walking down the street (or even in a bikini at the beach, for example) would you be able to point them out? If so, what would tip you off?
  • mangos4music
    mangos4music Posts: 126 Member
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    small framed and body type and when they are in a bikini instead of clothes they are loose and flabby?
  • gazbo1986
    gazbo1986 Posts: 52
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    If a "skinny fat" person were walking down the street (or even in a bikini at the beach, for example) would you be able to point them out? If so, what would tip you off?

    Basically it's just people who are thin but don't look fit. it's much more common with women than men i've noticed.
  • SayLiLIG
    SayLiLIG Posts: 197 Member
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    Your skinny, but not in shape. :)
  • kao708
    kao708 Posts: 813 Member
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    I would classify alot of the girls on American Next Top Model as "skinny fat" they are a size 0/2 and have almost no muscle tone at all. They just look like skin hanging on bones. Not beautiful at all. :noway:
  • sabrinafaith
    sabrinafaith Posts: 607 Member
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    Those girls that wear bikinis at the beach, have a flat tummy, but everything kinda jiggles....

    Thats skinny fat. Lol.
  • IrishChick71
    IrishChick71 Posts: 311 Member
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    I have seen skinny fat people at the beach a lot. They're the ones that are wearing the bikini but they still that round pooch under their bellybutton and slumped shoulders and no butt. No tone at all....some look like walking bones with jiggly legs and arms. Not very attractive in my opinion.:noway:

    But to each his own.:flowerforyou:

    I want to the slim but toned with muscle definition in the end.:bigsmile:
  • erniemj
    erniemj Posts: 187 Member
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    search the success stories thread for "skinny fat" someone posted some before and after pics and a lengthy discussion about his health, muscles loss and muscle rebuilding
  • DatEpicChick
    DatEpicChick Posts: 358 Member
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    some of these definitions people are giving are awesome. skinny fat just sounds wronchie (i dont think thats an actual word... i tried spelling it like 5 different ways)...
  • jrt9999
    jrt9999 Posts: 114
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    Here is an excerpt from some random website....Lists Mick Jagger and Iggy Pop in the skinny fat catagorie.

    Skinny Fat: Does Size Matter?

    Skinny fat is not uncommon and you will see it in the close-up paparazzi photographs taken of the various super skinny celebrities on their vacations. Still, many of us are surprised when we see our skinny friends on the beach for the first time. Who’d have thought they were anything less than perfect? Well, size isn’t everything. Take Scarlett Johansson or Halle Berry. Neither superstar has succumbed to the super skinny size zero craze, yet when in shape you’d be hard pressed to find any cellulite on these women and you certainly would never call them flabby. Then, consider the many starving, skinny and saggy starlets in Hollywood (or wealthy aging women desperate to keep slim). Men just need to think of pretty much any type of Rock Star, esp. the aging kind. Mick Jagger, Iggy Pop and Ringo Starr are perfect examples of skinny fat men, who appear to eschew lifting serious weights.

    Too many people unhappy with their body focus on size. However, smaller size and less weight does not equal a better body. Whether you are male or female, you want a tight, toned body. What matters is body composition.
    The cause of skinny fat is body composition; that is the ratio of fat to muscle. Sufferers of skinny fat lack muscle mass. You could technically have the tiniest, weeniest legs, but if those legs have no muscle the only thing covering your bones is fat. That is one poor muscle to fat ratio. A good example is the picture above. To combat skinny fat you may or may not have to decrease your body fat percentage. However, you definitely must work to increase your muscle mass. Women often think they want skinny legs, but actually want toned, firm, slim thighs and legs. For that you need muscle.

    Unfortunately, many skinny fat women unknowingly resort to cutting back on calories to get rid of skinny fat. They are focusing on how to get skinny - or skinnier. Alas, dieting will do little to solve this problem. The only solution is exercise. Dieting will decrease weight, will decrease body fat percentage. Dieting WILL NOT increase muscle mass, in fact dieting tends to decrease muscle mass. Therefore, dieting without exercise can make the situation worse. Understandably, this can leave anyone frustrated.
  • scagneti
    scagneti Posts: 707 Member
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    With all due respect, why? So people can give you reasonable, well thought out answers, backed up with research found online that since it disagreed with your opinion, you mocked? I'm sorry if you're not happy that your body will eat your muscles when you starve it. That's just the way it is.

    So here's my honest answer -- keep eating 900 calories a day and don't eat back your exercise calories and you'll find out what skinny fat is. FYI - it's the reason why these people giving their bodies 200 calories a day NEVER seem satisfied with their appearance, even when they get down to 110 pounds.

    Cheers!
  • sweebeesmom
    sweebeesmom Posts: 148
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    funny you should ask. that's what I'm aiming for at the moment. I'm focusing more on my calories from eating, than working out. I've been too busy to do any serious workouts (I walk about 4 miles a week.. on my day off.) I figure when I'm done with this giant project I'm on, I'll pick up some workout system, but for now.. skinny fat would work for me.
  • SaraTonin
    SaraTonin Posts: 551 Member
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    That's me! Skinny and no tone, no health, no muscle. I haven't done my blood work but I'll bet you I have bad cholesterol. Slowly fixing that though since joining MFP.
  • SiltyPigeon
    SiltyPigeon Posts: 920 Member
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    With all due respect, why? So people can give you reasonable, well thought out answers, backed up with research found online that since it disagreed with your opinion, you mocked? I'm sorry if you're not happy that your body will eat your muscles when you starve it. That's just the way it is.

    So here's my honest answer -- keep eating 900 calories a day and don't eat back your exercise calories and you'll find out what skinny fat is. FYI - it's the reason why these people giving their bodies 200 calories a day NEVER seem satisfied with their appearance, even when they get down to 110 pounds.

    Cheers!

    What are you talking about? I honestly wanted to know what "skinny fat" was. I at no point stated an opinion on the existence of "skinny fat" nor did I mock anyone! I am curious person. How else will someone learn if not by asking questions?

    Now to the heart of the matter:
    WHY ARE BEING MEAN TO ME? YOU'VE BEEN FOLLOWING ME AROUND FOR DAYS MAKING BULLY COMMENTS ABOUT EVERYTHING I SAY. DON'T BE A BULLY. IF YOU DON'T LIKE ME THEN JUST LEAVE ME ALONE! WE HAVE THE SAME GOAL... SO WE'RE APPROACHING IT DIFFERENT WAYS. WHY IS MY LIFE YOUR CONCERN?
  • jrt9999
    jrt9999 Posts: 114
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    That's me! Skinny and no tone, no health, no muscle. I haven't done my blood work but I'll bet you I have bad cholesterol. Slowly fixing that though since joining MFP.

    Good luck and I wish you all the best. You know you are going to be a buzz kill with this post to all the people that think it is OK to under eat and not take care of their bodies.
  • wellyourenotSKINNY
    wellyourenotSKINNY Posts: 130
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    This is definitely me (or at least was me last year).
    I need to find ways to tone up.

    Actually, does anyone have any suggestions?
  • IrishChick71
    IrishChick71 Posts: 311 Member
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    With all due respect, why? So people can give you reasonable, well thought out answers, backed up with research found online that since it disagreed with your opinion, you mocked? I'm sorry if you're not happy that your body will eat your muscles when you starve it. That's just the way it is.

    So here's my honest answer -- keep eating 900 calories a day and don't eat back your exercise calories and you'll find out what skinny fat is. FYI - it's the reason why these people giving their bodies 200 calories a day NEVER seem satisfied with their appearance, even when they get down to 110 pounds.

    Cheers!

    that seemed a bit like a hostile answer. What's up with that? I thought it was a good question.


    edited to say: Obviously there is history there so I'm backing out....geez :grumble:
  • Mary830
    Mary830 Posts: 64
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    From the Mayo Clinic: Normal Weight Obesity: http://www.mayoclinic.org/news2008-rst/4738.html
    More than half of American adults considered to have normal body weight in America have high body fat percentages — greater than 20 percent for men and 30 percent for women — as well as heart and metabolic disturbances, new Mayo Clinic research shows. The finding conflicts with the widely held belief that maintaining a normal weight automatically guards against disorders such as high levels of circulating blood fats and a tendency to develop metabolic syndrome, which often leads to type 2 diabetes.

    The researchers defined "normal weight" by body mass index (BMI). They found that people with normal BMI who had the highest percentage of body fat were also those who had metabolic disturbances linked to heart disease. The researchers use the phrase "normal weight obesity" to describe this new type of patient at risk for metabolism problems and risk factors for heart disease, but who rates as "normal" on standard weight charts. They defined normal weight obesity as a condition of having a normal BMI with high body fat percentage.

    The above basically sums up "skinny fat"

    It's about more than just the difference in being thin, and being thin & toned. There is a huge difference between being thin/normal weight and being fit and healthy.

    I know that I was "skinny fat" at one point. I weighed 130 lbs- well within the healthy weight range for my height (5'5") but my body fat % was 32%.

    Ultimately, what you do is up to you and you alone. But I wouldn't dismiss this as nothing. Just my $0.02
  • scagneti
    scagneti Posts: 707 Member
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    With all due respect, why? So people can give you reasonable, well thought out answers, backed up with research found online that since it disagreed with your opinion, you mocked? I'm sorry if you're not happy that your body will eat your muscles when you starve it. That's just the way it is.

    So here's my honest answer -- keep eating 900 calories a day and don't eat back your exercise calories and you'll find out what skinny fat is. FYI - it's the reason why these people giving their bodies 200 calories a day NEVER seem satisfied with their appearance, even when they get down to 110 pounds.

    Cheers!

    What are you talking about? I honestly wanted to know what "skinny fat" was. I at no point stated an opinion on the existence of "skinny fat" nor did I mock anyone! I am curious person. How else will someone learn if not by asking questions?

    Now to the heart of the matter:
    WHY ARE BEING MEAN TO ME? YOU'VE BEEN FOLLOWING ME AROUND FOR DAYS MAKING BULLY COMMENTS ABOUT EVERYTHING I SAY. DON'T BE A BULLY. IF YOU DON'T LIKE ME THEN JUST LEAVE ME ALONE! WE HAVE THE SAME GOAL... SO WE'RE APPROACHING IT DIFFERENT WAYS. WHY IS MY LIFE YOUR CONCERN?

    What are you talking about? I was one of the very few people who answered your repeated questions last night with as much information as I could provide and ignored your original post. Remember? No? Where here you go. Show me on the thread where I was mean to you? I just kept answering your questions. Why? Because I felt sorry for you.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/184809-to-clear-things-up

    Yeah, not so much now. And then today I see you mocking that the body will burn muscle and yes even organs before all fat on people of a healthy BMI. I don't care if you don't believe it. I could hand you a study performed by the Mayo Clinic with students from Harvard, Yale and Columbia all providing evidence and you STILL wouldn't believe it because it goes against what you want to hear.

    Your post:

    "Haven't you heard? First your body eats all your muscle mass, then it eats your organ tissue, then you lose all your energy, get REALLY fat, and then you die.

    I'M KIDDING, DON'T HURT ME!!!!!

    Those ARE a few of the things I was told yesterday by other MFP users, though.

    I am really interested in reading the HONEST (not scare tactic) answers to this question. "

    I answered your question about skinny fat. And I'm very happy with my answer. I think that it's completely apt.

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