Am I fat?

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Replies

  • hilmo1
    hilmo1 Posts: 1 Member
    I have a friend like that too! I'm very fit and muscular, and weigh 155lbs (5'6"). She has a flat stomach, is super slim, and always says she needs to run more to lose weight. She pinches the skin on her stomach, and thinks she's fat. It's SKIN!
  • onedayillbamilf
    onedayillbamilf Posts: 662 Member
    I know people without eating disorders who see everyone that isn't a size 2 as fat. So I really don't care what people think of me.
  • theflyingartist
    theflyingartist Posts: 385 Member
    I've had friends who have a hard time seeing themselves as they are, even after losing weight. I have days where I struggle to accurately see myself as well and I'm not what most people here would probably consider "fat" (i.e. I'm pretty fitness oriented, I work out regularly, eat well, have a healthy BMI, a decently good body fat %). But again, these aren't things I consider when I see myself in the mirror.

    It's a lot about your perspective and not necessarily reality.
    This is such an important idea to keep in your mind.
  • RAFValentina
    RAFValentina Posts: 1,231 Member
    I see myself as fat. Not flabby fat, but the ugly on a woman chunky fat. I was skinny before Christmas when I was on a huge deficit and running. Over Christmas, I kept on running but didn't have much deficit at all so basically my muscles grew... and that leaves me feeling quite masculine :( gutted! Have nice back muscles and skinny calves... by side profile of torso and front torso to me are just horrific. In my eyes. I don;t honestly know what everyone else thinks... I never will because I'll never believe an honest opinion of it because my mind is so warped that way I'd think they were lying if they said I looked fine/OK etc.
  • RAFValentina
    RAFValentina Posts: 1,231 Member
    Those are UK sizes, not American.

    I live in the US. Pretty sure those are American sizes.

    Look like UK sizes to me
  • I think Fat is a state of mind, as well as a physical state, for some people.

    AGREED!
  • jnance82
    jnance82 Posts: 149
    Had this convo with my bf trying to get him to understand how I see things. When I was 12 y/o I began to starve myself b/c a boy in my class made a fat joke about me in front of everyone and I was embarrassed to no end. I was 5'5" and 157lbs in February. When school started back up in August I was down to 120lbs and my parents took me to a psychiatrist so that I could get help. I am now 29 years old and I have struggled with my weight since then. I have tried to get my bf to understand that no matter what I do all I see this morbidly obese person in the mirror. I am now 5'6" 173lbs, 8lbs from my goal, and wearing a size 10 down from a 14 and still I see myself as obese. He has been very supportive of me and takes pictures of me to show me the difference in what I see and what he sees. It's crazy, but when I look at pictures of myself I can see all the progress that I've made and I can see what he sees. I really wish I could see what he sees when I look in the mirror. Maybe try that with your friend. Take pictures and show them to her. Good luck!!!

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  • megz4987
    megz4987 Posts: 1,008 Member
    I didn't see other people as fat unless they truely were. My friend weighed more than me and is shorter but I thought she looked good and that I looked like an oinker.
  • I thought losing weight would change how I saw myself. For a while it really did as the scale got.lower and lower I felt better and better. Now that I've stalled out within 8 lbs of my goal im feeling that fatgirl inside slowing creeping back in my mindset. I wonder if that will ever go away
  • I, apparently, see myself as bigger than I am but others as smaller. Therefore, I'm constantly putting pressure on myself to lose weight but telling others they are fine as they are, unless they are significantly overweight.
    I feel like I have the same problem. I see other people and assume they weight a ton less than me and then i figure out for sure and they actually weigh more or the same. So I think that I have slight image disorder, but I try to concentrate on myself in the mirror and really digest what I am seeing and being more honest with myself instead of just focusing on what I want to change or fear will never be the way I want it.
  • hpynh2o
    hpynh2o Posts: 194 Member
    In my brain, I'm fat. I hope that isn't always the case.

    Every time I see a picture of my current self, I actually have to take pause.
    It doesn't quite register right in my head that I'm the not-fat guy.
  • YukonJoy
    YukonJoy Posts: 1,279 Member
    Got this from Facebook :tongue:

    I am larger (always has been) than the "National Average"

    2wf01l4.jpg


    There is no way that woman is a size 12.

    ...Is there?? O.o

    Maybe size 12 in a wedding dress...

    I'm a size 8 and I am not nearly that slim.
  • Bankman1989
    Bankman1989 Posts: 1,116 Member
    Got this from Facebook :tongue:

    I am larger (always has been) than the "National Average"

    2wf01l4.jpg

    I'LL TAKE THE NATIONAL AVERAGE!
  • tangiesharp
    tangiesharp Posts: 315 Member
    I have always thought that the phrase "I am fat / he is fat / they are fat" was one of those bad quirks of the english language that really did overweight people a lot of psychological harm.

    No one IS fat.. It implies that the only thing that makes up their entire body is fat.

    The TRUTH is none of us ARE fat... we all HAVE fat.. some more than others..
    and the other truth is we are ALL 'skinny' in that, we all have skin....just like animals are hairy or furry, get it?

    Think of a steak.. some are lean, and some have more fat.. perhaps marbled though, and perhaps just around the edge. Both are appealing to some, not appealing to others... but both have quality and value.

    ok off my language soap-box for today!

    Thank you. This statement almost made me cry. It's so true.

    Yes, I'm one who sees myself as fat. And yes, I equate "fat" with "bad." And yes, I probably have undiagnosed depression. And yes, I'm ready to change!!
  • sblair77
    sblair77 Posts: 355 Member
    Got this from Facebook :tongue:

    I am larger (always has been) than the "National Average"

    2wf01l4.jpg

    I'LL TAKE THE NATIONAL AVERAGE!

    May depend on her height and build.

    I was up to a size 12 but I was the only one who knew it and most people considered me thin.
  • jcstanton
    jcstanton Posts: 1,849 Member
    Got this from Facebook :tongue:

    I am larger (always has been) than the "National Average"

    2wf01l4.jpg


    There is no way that woman is a size 12.



    ...Is there?? O.o

    Maybe size 12 in a wedding dress...

    I'm a size 8 and I am not nearly that slim.

    How tall are you? My guess is that the women depicted in this photo are AT LEAST 5'10". Most models are anywhere from 5'9"-6ft tall. On a frame that tall, a size 12 is going to look more like a size 6 or 8....even smaller in some cases depending on the size of their bone structure and body fat percentage.
  • Some of us are just messed up enough that we will never be "good enough". In junior high and high school, I weighed 104 lbs and was 5'5". I felt "fat". I've since had two kids and ten years go by. I'm still 5'5", and weigh 115-120, and still feel "fat". When I look in a full length mirror, I only see my "problem areas", not my assets. But if you show me a pic of me without my head, I'd admit that girl has a decent body but could use some toning.
    My mom has been overweight as long as I can remember, and as long as I can remember she's told me the reason she's bitter and alone is because she's fat. My grandmother has yo-yo dieted my whole life and got a tummy tuck at 60. Soooo, I developed an unhealthy fear of being fat and ending up bitter and alone. Consciously, I know she's alone because she's bitter. But I still have the fear of being overweight and I can't shake it. But I don't see other people as being overweight unless they are obviously medically overweight.
  • Got this from Facebook :tongue:

    I am larger (always has been) than the "National Average"

    2wf01l4.jpg

    Yeah, I'm gonna be a little *kitten* here, but that's a 0-2, a 6, and a 12-14.
  • YukonJoy
    YukonJoy Posts: 1,279 Member
    Yeah, I'm gonna be a little *kitten* here, but that's a 0-2, a 6, and a 12-14.

    That's what I said.

    I think whoever created this was looking at sizing charts from the 50's!
  • Haven't read all the replies yet, but at Zumba the other night, the instructor and I were talking about sizes. I wear size 22 or xxl. I look in the mirror at myself and get disgusted. She thought I was about a size 16! I wish! So maybe what I see in the mirror isn't true to life. I have a hard time getting myself believing that. All I know is that there is no way my butt will fit in a pair of size 16 jeans.
  • fteale
    fteale Posts: 5,310 Member
    Got this from Facebook :tongue:

    I am larger (always has been) than the "National Average"

    2wf01l4.jpg


    There is no way that woman is a size 12.

    ...Is there?? O.o

    Maybe size 12 in a wedding dress...

    I'm a size 8 and I am not nearly that slim.

    She could just about be a UK 12 if she was shopping somewhere with small sizes.
  • shander7
    shander7 Posts: 613 Member
    Er... I have no idea if I have an eating disorder or not, but I'm 5'5.5" and I currently weigh 104 pounds. My lowest weight was 101 pounds. At that weight, I felt like I looked exactly the same as I did at my initial weight of 116 pounds. Now, I feel huge compared to when I was at 101, even though I probably don't look any different. I know I'm not fat and I've never been truly fat; I just "feel" fat. Most other people look great to me. I can easily recognize when someone is huge or tiny. Any problem I might have is not clouding my vision of others, just of myself.

    First of all - you are my complete MFP twin for everything!
    Second - I agree, I see people who are technically "bigger" than me that I think look amazing and I would kill to have their body. The way I see myself and how I carry my weight makes me feel fat. I notice my gains more now than I did at 116, and I can't see what other people see. I'm constantly comparing myself to others, and like many of you said, I always think I'm bigger than the skinny girls that people tell me I'm smaller than. It is definitely a personal feeling and it is not intended to hurt anyone, I believe we all truly see ourselves much different than the rest of the world sees us.
  • jcstanton
    jcstanton Posts: 1,849 Member
    I have always thought that the phrase "I am fat / he is fat / they are fat" was one of those bad quirks of the english language that really did overweight people a lot of psychological harm.

    No one IS fat.. It implies that the only thing that makes up their entire body is fat.

    The TRUTH is none of us ARE fat... we all HAVE fat.. some more than others..
    and the other truth is we are ALL 'skinny' in that, we all have skin....just like animals are hairy or furry, get it?

    Think of a steak.. some are lean, and some have more fat.. perhaps marbled though, and perhaps just around the edge. Both are appealing to some, not appealing to others... but both have quality and value.

    ok off my language soap-box for today!

    Thank you. This statement almost made me cry. It's so true.

    Yes, I'm one who sees myself as fat. And yes, I equate "fat" with "bad." And yes, I probably have undiagnosed depression. And yes, I'm ready to change!!

    Same thing with the word diet. Your diet is plain and simply what you eat on any given day. To say, "I'm going to start dieting," is to say that you weren't eating anything in the first place....which is a ridiculous statement. Making CHANGES to your diet brings about change in your physical form and well being. Oh, and, FYI, reduction of caloric intake is only PART of the changes that need to take place when incorporating a healthy lifestyle.
  • sarahgilmore
    sarahgilmore Posts: 572 Member
    The picture is not American sizes, people!
  • fteale
    fteale Posts: 5,310 Member
    The picture is not American sizes, people!

    Maybe we need to shout it louder. I don't think the message is getting through.
  • The picture is not American sizes, people!

    What can we say? We're American - don't we always think everything is all about us? ;)
  • Got this from Facebook :tongue:

    I am larger (always has been) than the "National Average"

    2wf01l4.jpg

    I can't see that middle girl as a size 12! She looks more like a 4. Am I the only one who see's this?
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  • fteale
    fteale Posts: 5,310 Member
    The picture is not American sizes, people!

    What can we say? We're American - don't we always think everything is all about us? ;)

    I think in this case it's just wishful thinking!
  • fteale
    fteale Posts: 5,310 Member
    I understand what you mean... I don't quite get it too, I've never had a huge image disorder... but I was insecure. I have some friends that are easily 20 pounds lighter and even taller and they view themselves as "fat" and keep talking about losing weight. It irritates me because they are at their goal weight... I love my friend to death, but she depends on the number on the scale, when her boobs are what's causing the problem. Imagine this...5'8" blonde 18 year old, weighing at 130-140...and size D breasts... come on now... FAT?!

    I have a friend just like yours. She has a 27 inch waist D breast and complains about being overweight. I tell her all the time its just her boobs but she complains that she feels fat. 27 inch waist!!!!!!!! Really?????:noway:

    Well, it depends on what your basis for comparison is. A 27-inch waist isn't small. It's more "average" than anything else. Audrey Hepburn's 20-inch waist was small. Mine is 24 and I still need to tone it down some. I feel fat at 26 inches, and I also wear a 32 D. It's not acceptable for me to have a waist larger than that, and it wouldn't be for my mother or for many other women I know.

    I don't go in at the waist at all, so a 27 inch waist is thin for me. I have a 28 inch back, and 33 inch hips.
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