Naturally slim

thefaceman25 · April 2012

Can anyone answer this question?
Why is it that some people can eat whatever they want and never put on weight, whilst others even look at a chocolate bar and put on weight?
Is it all down to genetics? Metabolism?

Meg_78 · April 2012

I think it's really just metabolism.
I'm one of the "lucky" naturally thin people and my metabolism is stupidly fast it feels like, but I'm also skinny fat, so I'm on here trying to gain weight and muscle and loose the tummy pudge (with diet and exercise). The only time I have ever weighed more is during pregnancy. It sounds like a blessing I guess, but it isn't always so.

kbmnurse · April 2012

Just cause they are thin does not mean they are healthy.

Meg_78 · April 2012

^^ Very true!

thefaceman25 · April 2012

So true my brother in law has always been slim, he must have a body fat percentage below 5% He eats nothing but rubbish, no vegetables, vitamins or fruits. Basically all he eats is processed frozen ready meals, pies, burgers etc.

Sublog · April 2012

Pretty much every study ever done with naturally thin people found they simply didn't eat as many calories as other people who had issues with their weight. There are exceptions - but that's the truth. Skinny people eat less food.

marbly · April 2012

Yup, I don't believe that skinny people have a fast metabolism or that they are anything special. They just eat less! Everyone I know who are slim either consciously OR subconsiously watch what they eat and if they have a big meal, they compensate by eating much less the next meal or meals (again, whether consciously or subconsiously doing so).

qtiekiki · April 2012

^This. And I do think that the junk food eventually catch up to them.

qtiekiki · April 2012

oops double post.

thefaceman25 · April 2012

People say the weight gain will catch up with them when there older but why is this?

iuew · April 2012

my anecdotal evidence :

after having observed several people who i thought could "eat anything they want" and still not gain, i have observed that they seem to fall into two categories.

1. the thin people who i observed eating McDonalds / high fat food all of the time generally ate the burger and fries and then stopped when they were full. also, they often had jobs that involved physical labor. they were lifting something a good deal of the day.

2. the person who "eats all of the time and doesn't gain an ounce." many of these people that i knew also had physically demanding jobs. however, the job plus activity alone just didn't explain the lack of weight gain. these people then turned 35. they are gaining weight slowly, but they are gaining. most of them fell into the category that wanted to gain weight and felt that they couldn't, however. so they are happy about the extra 20 pounds. if they wanted to lose it, it would be easier for them than for most.

does the elusive "can eat anything and everything and never, ever, no, i'm serious never gain weight" specimen exist in the wild? possibly. i've never met him or her, and i would consider this person an evolutionary anomaly. perhaps after thousands of years of "feast" conditions, humans might develop this trait. however, at this point, the trait is much less common than most of us believe.

qtiekiki · April 2012

Because people's metabolism slow down as we age, unless we are actively working our muscles. Of course, people who continue to exercise and strength train will continue to be slim, but I assume that you were talking about naturally slim people who don't exercise.

rc630 · April 2012

I think that naturally slim people are just better at listening to their bodies - eating when they're hungry, stopping when they're full. I've noticed that most of my naturally skinny friends will eat junk food when they want it, but they won't go on binges. If offered food but they are full, they turn it down. A lot will skip meals just because they don't feel hungry, not because they are intentionally trying to cut back on calories or have an eating disorder. They make up the difference by eating more another time when they are hungry.

Also, now that my friends and I are getting into our early 20's, I've noticed that many of those that have been naturally thin don't have a very strong or athletic look to them; their bodies still look like they did in their early teens (other than some more feminine shape). Those that weren't naturally skinny as kids either a. became overweight or flabby-looking in college or b. started realizing they had to be aware of what they eat and their exercise, and became fit and strong.

staceydeelane · April 2012

i used to be one of those skinny eat whatever you want people and never gained weight,remained a size 8 and with a weight of only 8 stone even though i was 5 foot 4.
i lived with my fella in a flat and consumed chinese every night (we didnt have a cooker) so it was always take out,i ate chocolate biscuits and cakes by the pack load never touched fruit or veg but remained thin the only exercise i did was dancing in a club till 4am sloshing back alcopops like it was water and remained thin
that was until i fell pregnant though i didnt increase my food intake i just ate the same i managed a whopping 4 stone in extra weight by the end of the pregnancy and weighed 11stone after the birth
i exspected to shrink back but it seemed my metabolism slowed down and now i struggle with my weight 5 years later i now have what i reckon to be a normal matabolism.
nowadays if i go out to eat (chinese)just one night ill gain a few lb that sheds after a week and manage to maintain my weight
if i ate like how i did id put on a huge amount of weight!

Meg_78 · April 2012

When I joined MPF, I set to maintain my weight, which gave me around 1700. I'm fairly active, but I always ate back my cals and stuck to my goal by no less than 100 cals, and I lost 3 lbs in the first week. Now I am set to gain, so I'm on 2140, and I still eat my cals back when I exercise. I eat reasonably healthy, by which I mean I eat whole foods, and foods I prepare myself, but I still drink a lot of milk and eat cheeses and meat etc (so my fat can sometimes be a little over), and I never really eat junk (the odd cookie or chocolate sometimes). And I don't think that is a small amount of food, or I'm a picky eater. I have started adding a super gainer to my protein shakes to help add bulk, cause it can be a lot to fill! I'm eating more than many people on here.

Myndi73 · April 2012

I was skinny, to the point of anorexic looking, up until my late 20's. I ate constantly. I would eat until I was sick. I never gained a pound. I'm not joking when I say, I would eat Taco Bell twice a day, lots of candy, drinking, etc. I honestly should have weighed a freaking ton. I just could not gain weight. I even tried "weight gainer" drinks. Nothing. I finally started putting on weight in my mid 30's. Now, it doesn't want to stop. I have to work really hard to keep it off now.

grannygethealthy1111 · April 2012

[/quote]does the elusive "can eat anything and everything and never, ever, no, i'm serious never gain weight" specimen exist in the wild? possibly. i've never met him or her, and i would consider this person an evolutionary anomaly. perhaps after thousands of years of "feast" conditions, humans might develop this trait. however, at this point, the trait is much less common than most of us believe.
[/quote]

Yes, they exist ... I am married to one. My husband is 63-years-old and he still wears the same size pants as he wore in 7th grade (30X32). He eats a minimum of 4,000 plus calories per day. His diet is probably 85% protein (meat), but he can eat anything and not gain an ounce. He has been the same weight and height since 7th grade. He is super active and always has been. None of our friends or our children can keep up with him when he hikes. He is super healthy. He has perfect blood pressure, very low total cholesterol, low blood sugars, etc. He takes no medication and never has. He has been ill once in the 23 years we have been married. What caused his illness? Lifting a 400-pound beam on top of his head and walking it up a ladder when building our 2-story garage. His disc in his lumbar spine did not like that.

Yes, he exists.

P.S. I obviously don't know how to do the "quote" thing.

juliekaiser1988 · April 2012

And just because you're overweight, doesn't make you UNhealthy. I used to be an example of this.

I was well over 100 pounds overweight, had perfect blood sugar, blood pressure, cholesterol, etc.

Yet my brother's best friend, who was an avid runner, bicyclist, and a "natural thin" had a massive heart attack and horrid cholesterol problems, even though he was vegetarian.

Go figure.

coconutbuNZ · April 2012

My youngest son is naturally slim and I asked him what his "secret" was and he told me. The reason why he is slim is because he eats when he is hungry and he doesn't eat when he's not. His weakness is sugar - anything sweet - chocolate, cake, soft drinks - and McDonalds! but when it comes to bread, butter, dinner or lunch - he doesn't overdo it. He just has enough. He knows when to STOP.

Unlike myself and many others who can aimlessly eat almost unconciously when my stomach isn't hungry.

shiseido_faerie · April 2012

I used to be one of those people, despite eating mostly junk food I was 98lbs from age 16- 24ish, then I saw a dietician who made me basically eat high fat high calorie food and drink ensures to get me up to 105-110 since my doc thought it was strange that I hadn't gained weight since I was young. As it turns out had they waited a few more years my weight would have increased on its own. I am now 130 and trying to get back down to 115-120 (I'm 5'2"' tiny frame)

strawberrie_milk · April 2012

Those people actually don't eat as much as you think they do. They may eat junk, but it's usually not a lot, or they may not eat many meals a day. It's pretty rare for someone to have a metabolism so fast that they can be underweight while eating like 3000 calories a day (just pulled out a random calorie number).

Naturally slim

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