What exactly is skinny fat?

savlyon

http://www.crossfitsouthbay.com/2011/05/skinny-fat/


This website has great info on what is Skinny fat !!!

This is a good article, obviously very heavy on the advertisement for crossfit, but what irritates me is that it doesn't talk about nutrition at all. What you do for exercise is only like 20% of how you look. You aren't going to look toned, lean, and decrease body fat without changing what you eat. Not a very wholistic approach, imo.

jadedone

They also may have some of the same health problems as an obese person.

Exactly. They can have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart problems and diabetes even though they are "normal" weight.

Everyone needs some muscle mass, to stay healthy and function in daily life.

hpsnickers1

Because that lean muscle mass is very, very important. The less you have, the slower your metabolism. And lean muscle mass is more than just muscle. It's your bones, ligaments, tendons, connective tissue, (also water). That muscle mass will keep you aging well.

Being skinny-fat is just as unhealthy as being fat-fat. And excessive cardio will make you skinny fat. It means your body broke down muscle to lose weight rather than burned fat from your fat storage. I though the entire point of diet and exercise was to lose body fat, not muscle mass.

What's the point in losing weight if you aren't healthy?

One in five diabetics is thin. THIN DOES NOT MEAN HEALTHY!!

BrendaLee

Thin outside, fat inside. A person can appear skinny but have larger-than-healthy amounts of visceral fat on the inside.

hpsnickers1

skinny fat looks good with cloths on, not off.

Exactly!! And I want to LOOK GOOD NAKED!!

LGN RULES!!

Symphony6

Thin outside, fat inside. A person can appear skinny but have larger-than-healthy amounts of visceral fat on the inside.

That's true, they can. However, you cannot measure that with a skin caliper.

hpsnickers1

http://www.crossfitsouthbay.com/2011/05/skinny-fat/


This website has great info on what is Skinny fat !!!

This is a good article, obviously very heavy on the advertisement for crossfit, but what irritates me is that it doesn't talk about nutrition at all. What you do for exercise is only like 20% of how you look. You aren't going to look toned, lean, and decrease body fat without changing what you eat. Not a very wholistic approach, imo.

Most Crossfitters follow Paleo/Primal - based on real, whole food the body was designed to eat. And it's true. Body composition is like 80% diet and the other 20% is a combination of genetics and exercise.

MrDude_1

Skinny-Fat looks good with cloths on, not off.... and I want to be naked.

Karmynzahringer

My sister in law is definitely skinny fat. She has never weighed more than 105 lbs and she does not exercise and I do not think I have ever seen her drink anything but Mt. Dew and have never seen her eat anything but McDonalds and Taco bell. I am not joking! They do not come over for dinner because she does not eat regular food. She has no muscle tone, and her stomach is always bloated presumably from high sodium intake. She always has dark circles under her eyes etc. But to look at her, she is a size 1, nice shaped bum in her pants, and all around fit looking when in clothes. You can tell when she is wearing shorts or a swimsuit though that she has no definition!

hpsnickers1

I get the whole idea behind this. But I can't help thinking the phrase is crazy. Now we're even calling skinny people fat? C'mon.

It's not about calling skinny people fat... it's saying that just because one is skinny, it doesn't necessarily mean they are healthy... on the inside... skinny obese people can still have higher body fat percentatges, fatty livers, clogged arteries, weak lungs, type 2 diabetes and all the other unhealthy attributes commonly associated with overweight/obese people. It has little to do with appearance and everything to do with their health.

Actually, it is calling skinny people fat. Thus, the term skinny/fat. I guarantee most people who don't train would have to look that up, which they probably wouldn't. They'd hear "fat" and think you were calling them fat/fat. Not to mention you'd probably hurt their feelings and ruin their day. As for health concerns, being fit can only take you so far. Genetics does play its own role. (And no, I'm not saying fat people should blame being fat on genetics. I'm just saying that because of genetics even fit people can be susceptible to certain health-related issues.)

Genetics is not destiny. You can be pre-disposed to something but your environment and lifestlye and the foods you put in your body will decide whether or not those genes get turned on. (this is your mitchondrial DNA - you can control this DNA based on your lifestyle choices).

My sister-in-law has high blood pressure. Dr. said cut out salt. She did but blood pressure didn't go down. So she's told it's genetic and inevitable and is given a pill rather than figuring out what is causing the HBP - like Fructose-Induced Hypertension (a high sugar/carb diet will make the body retain sodium, therefore retain water, and then up goes the BP).

Anorexics are what you would call skinny fat. Their body fat % as a % of overall body weight is very high (it goes up rather than down) due to the fact that their body has eaten through it's muscle mass due to severe calorie restriction and excessive cardio exercise.

k8blujay2

I get the whole idea behind this. But I can't help thinking the phrase is crazy. Now we're even calling skinny people fat? C'mon.

It's not about calling skinny people fat... it's saying that just because one is skinny, it doesn't necessarily mean they are healthy... on the inside... skinny obese people can still have higher body fat percentatges, fatty livers, clogged arteries, weak lungs, type 2 diabetes and all the other unhealthy attributes commonly associated with overweight/obese people. It has little to do with appearance and everything to do with their health.

Actually, it is calling skinny people fat. Thus, the term skinny/fat. I guarantee most people who don't train would have to look that up, which they probably wouldn't. They'd hear "fat" and think you were calling them fat/fat. Not to mention you'd probably hurt their feelings and ruin their day. As for health concerns, being fit can only take you so far. Genetics does play its own role. (And no, I'm not saying fat people should blame being fat on genetics. I'm just saying that because of genetics even fit people can be susceptible to certain health-related issues.)

Except that people associate being skinny with being "fit" so that doesn't necessarily work either. And really only a Doctor can tell if you are "skinny fat" or "skinny obese" (as I have always heard it called, since articles about it started coming out in magazines and blogs over a year ago (the first time I saw this term was in Self Magazine in 2009)) outside of body fat percentage anyway.... and I don't know anyone that will go up to someone and say "you're skinny fat because your doing (blah blah blah)", so unless you come across a spiteful person I don't see this term hurting anyones feelings or ruining their day (and sometimes, bluntness is necessary to light a fire under someones butt)... Besides, since the idea behind the term is body fat percentage and it's toll it takes on the body and the organs, I see this as a quite accurate term. And yes, genetics DO play a role, but study's have shown that eating right and being active can reduce the risks of certain diseases and illnesses.

BTW, here is the first blurb I have read on the subject:

"You know that friend, the one who eats with abandon, shuns the gym and never gains an ounce? She may not be as lucky as she looks: Half of normal-weight women have body-fat percentages above 30 percent, commonly considered the cutoff for good health, according to a study from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. And these skinny-obese women are more likely to die of a heart attack than fit-within women who are overweight but get 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week (so they're fit and fat), other research shows. Sure, the ideal is to be slim and fit, but thinness isn't always attainable. Don't get frustrated—get active." http://www.self.com/health/2009/01/are-you-skinny-obese

hpsnickers1

My sister in law is definitely skinny fat. She has never weighed more than 105 lbs and she does not exercise and I do not think I have ever seen her drink anything but Mt. Dew and have never seen her eat anything but McDonalds and Taco bell. I am not joking! They do not come over for dinner because she does not eat regular food. She has no muscle tone, and her stomach is always bloated presumably from high sodium intake. She always has dark circles under her eyes etc. But to look at her, she is a size 1, nice shaped bum in her pants, and all around fit looking when in clothes. You can tell when she is wearing shorts or a swimsuit though that she has no definition!

Wait until she hits 40. That's seems to be when it starts.

OnWisconsin84

<

---

I personally never heard of this term until I came here. So I finally looked it up on Google and all I can work out is its people who are thin with no muscle definition! Is that what it means and if so what's so wrong with that? A lot of the pictures under that where of people with bodies I could only dream of having. So is that what it means or have I got it completely wrong?

bcattoes

Being skinny-fat is just as unhealthy as being fat-fat. And excessive cardio will make you skinny fat. It means your body broke down muscle to lose weight rather than burned fat from your fat storage. I though the entire point of diet and exercise was to lose body fat, not muscle mass.

"Excessive" exercise of any kind can be unhealthy. But doing cardio only will not make you unhealthy, and it won't make you skinny fat. It's quite possible to get a low BF% with cardio only. And a good cardio workout can cause an increase in metabolism for more than 1/2 a day. Cardio exercises use muscles. Your body is not going break down muscles that are being used.

bcattoes

Genetics is not destiny. You can be pre-disposed to something but your environment and lifestlye and the foods you put in your body will decide whether or not those genes get turned on. (this is your mitchondrial DNA - you can control this DNA based on your lifestyle choices).

You can only control it to a point and how much varies greatly from person to person. Some have little to no control over their genetic destiny.

Huffdogg

"Excessive" exercise of any kind can be unhealthy. But doing cardio only will not make you unhealthy, and it won't make you skinny fat. It's quite possible to get a low BF% with cardio only. And a good cardio workout can cause an increase in metabolism for more than 1/2 a day. Cardio exercises use muscles. Your body is not going break down muscles that are being used.

Sure it will. Particularly if they are not being fed properly, which happens quite often with people who binge on cardio. Not to mention all the muscles that are *not* being worked and are ripe for catabolization.

rides4sanity

Unfortunately? Me. I do lift weights, but I'm convinced my six year old daughter is stronger than me. Someday I'll get that fat% down where it belongs... -=sigh=-

I feel your pain, my 9 yo daughter has 8 pack abs, I am so jealous!

LorinaLynn

Everyone keeps talking about it as if it's inevitable... In my opinion, it's HARDER to become skinny fat than it is to be just plain lean and healthy.

Skinny fat requires big calorie deficits and excessive exercise without fueling properly over a long period of time.

Getting lean and healthy requires a small to moderate calorie deficit, moderate exercise, and proper fueling.

The only thing you'll need more of to get lean and healthy is PATIENCE. Shift it into low gear and go slowly.

According to BF% calculators (which I know aren't 100% accurate, but I can't exactly go back in time to find out what my starting stats were anyway), my lean body mass is the same as it was about year ago. I haven't "gained" any muscle mass... I just retained what I already had.

It's really hard to gain muscle mass, and, from my perspective, it takes MORE effort to lose it than it takes to keep it. So keep it.

bcattoes

"Excessive" exercise of any kind can be unhealthy. But doing cardio only will not make you unhealthy, and it won't make you skinny fat. It's quite possible to get a low BF% with cardio only. And a good cardio workout can cause an increase in metabolism for more than 1/2 a day. Cardio exercises use muscles. Your body is not going break down muscles that are being used.

Sure it will. Particularly if they are not being fed properly, which happens quite often with people who binge on cardio. Not to mention all the muscles that are *not* being worked and are ripe for catabolization.

Yes, IF. Men, especially young men, can bulk up their muscles, but it's quite possible for a woman to lift heavy and be skinny fat if she doesn't eat right, just as it's possible to do cardio and not eat right and be skinny fat.

But that is the fault of diet, not the cardio exercise. Whether all the muscles are being worked depends on what type of cardio you do. If all you do is run, then your arms probably won't have much definition. But your legs will and you won't necessarily be fat, because it's completely possible to obtain a low BF% and be healthy with running as your only exercise.

MrDude_1

Everyone keeps talking about it as if it's inevitable... In my opinion, it's HARDER to become skinny fat than it is to be just plain lean and healthy.

Skinny fat requires big calorie deficits and excessive exercise without fueling properly over a long period of time.

Getting lean and healthy requires a small to moderate calorie deficit, moderate exercise, and proper fueling.

The only thing you'll need more of to get lean and healthy is PATIENCE. Shift it into low gear and go slowly.

According to BF% calculators (which I know aren't 100% accurate, but I can't exactly go back in time to find out what my starting stats were anyway), my lean body mass is the same as it was about year ago. I haven't "gained" any muscle mass... I just retained what I already had.

It's really hard to gain muscle mass, and, from my perspective, it takes MORE effort to lose it than it takes to keep it. So keep it.

this is without a doubt, a womans perspective.
without going into a long winded article response I will try to condense it.
lets say that to maintain muscle, you need to use around 80% of its max once in awhile. this is give or take, but ignore the number for now.
If someone is trying to maintain basic strength and can be fit squatting only 138lbs... its not going to be hard for them to go around life and stay in shape. They probably dont need anything special, general exercise is enough resistance.
If someone is trying to maintain exceptional strength and can squat 250lbs... its going to be hard for them to stay in that shape as life generally doesnt provide anywhere near that resistance day to day.
A man out of puberty, eating plenty (and probably gaining fat as well) not on steroids, with decent free T levels, can get 1/2 of pound muscle per week.... ( source ) the man will start gaining slower and slower as he reaches his natural genetic limit..

Its HARD to build muscle. it can be work to maintain it...its EASY to lose it.

thats why its valued.