What's so wrong about a thigh gap?

124

Replies

  • HotMummyMission
    HotMummyMission Posts: 1,723 Member
    Hell if I could make a dream girl she'd have tattoos, good smile, a heart as big as the out doors and always wanna hug me. Thighgap shmygap

    So cute
  • rotill
    rotill Posts: 244 Member
    I'm so glad I grew up in an era that was FAR less pressuring in terms of the female body! I feel sorry for the young girls growing up today (including my two teenage daughters). The way the media and society consciously and subconsciously pressure women to be a certain way is appalling. Things like the thigh gap and the bikini bridge should not even exist, why is the emphasis not on being healthy and fit - instead of attempting to conform to some ridiculous phrase that somebody made up.

    Who gives a *kitten* whether your thighs touch or not! To anybody that is attempting to attain one - get a clue and start living life.

    I may have grown up in an even further era, because where I grew up jeans didn't fit unless we had to lie down to pull them up, Twiggy was the image of true beauty for the girls a few years older than us, and boobs or hips should never mar a good feminine silhuette. That went straight into the period of a female silhuette with wide shoulders and narrow hips, when men modelled women't clothing and nobody noticed, because that was the body that would fit into the current fashion.

    My daughter learned that "the current body ideal" is an image forced on women by society, she learned that it was possible to question these ideals, and fashion isn't natural.

    Yes, I pity the young girls who have to live through this and discover how unhealthy it is on their own. But I pity the young girls of all ages - the ones we were, and the new-born grand-daughter who will, in some way, have to struggle with this on her own. I aim at trying to make that as easy as possible for her though, through love, support, and as much of a healthy life-style as I can offer her.
  • LondonEliza
    LondonEliza Posts: 456 Member
    If you have one, you have one, if you don't, neither do a lot of people

    2qvtra8.jpg
  • Maybe people just don't want to chaff anymore and you don't if you have a thigh gap (also known as a bridge)
  • SquidgySquidge
    SquidgySquidge Posts: 239 Member
    There's nothing wrong with a thigh gap if it's acheived healthily, I think it's just normally associated with pro-ana websites so it's automatically seen as a bad thing.

    I would LOVE a thigh gap, but if I ever get one, it will be achieved through healthy eating and lots of yoga etc...if I don't get one I'll still look fabulous anyway :flowerforyou:
  • SquidgySquidge
    SquidgySquidge Posts: 239 Member
    Hell if I could make a dream girl she'd have tattoos, good smile, a heart as big as the out doors and always wanna hug me. Thighgap shmygap

    Aw, that's so lovely. I think I love you.
  • Oishii
    Oishii Posts: 2,675 Member
    Well I hate to tell everyone but when I was in cheerleading everyone was fit and only around one or two of us had that thigh gap that's being talked about. I get it, it's not when your feet are apart, it's when your feet are together and then on some of us you could see a little gap toward the top of the thigh area if she stood straight posture was important and we always looked at each other for posture and formation so we knew each other well physically so I can tell you this is not a common thing to have even amongst healthy AND active girls.

    If you added all the cheerleaders and songleaders back then together it would be around 25 girls and maybe 2 of us and 1 of them had it. It was more pronounced on the ones who also did dance classes so I think it has more to do with genetics first and then only if you workout a lot and in a certain way will it show up but not on everyone. There were sets of girls who did the exact same schedules, classes and nearly ate the same and some had that and some didn't but it wasn't a thing back then. No one talked about it or wanted it or anything. There was one girl who of course was just plain bow legged and I don't think that's what's being discussed here. It's just something that naturally occurs on some girls when they are fit and healthy and it's just towards the top not the whole length of the thigh. Otherwise it could end up looking like those sad ana pages I just saw and I think everyone could agree those aren't what's sought after.

    Sadly, I think this is the current understanding of thigh gap: thighs not touching at all when standing with feet/knees together. If this is natural to you at a healthy weight/BF% then, obviously, no one should have issue with it. The problem is girls thinking they are only skinny enough to be attractive if they have it.

    I, also, was only aware of this aesthetic after joining mfp.
  • BigJza
    BigJza Posts: 116 Member
    This is why women are crazy.

    Thigh gaps

    :/
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    It's a huge thing in the pro-ana community. Things that are big with that crowd tend to be received with suspicion here.

    This.

    I have a tiny one that I didn't attempt to achieve (I actually didn't even know it was a thing until I started reading about it here). It kinda bothers me that some people assume you have to be anorexic to get one (I have one because I have really wide hips), but at the same time I cringe when I read threads by young women who want one more than they want to be healthy.
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    to me, strong legs are beautiful.. and the strong fit legs that I admire don't have thigh gap. When I see thigh gap...It doesn't look healthy, fit or attractive

    You can have strong legs and have a thigh gap - it's called genetics. And you have just insulted a lot of women by your comment.

    ^^^^^this times a billion

    Yes, thank you Sara. :flowerforyou:
  • AllyLouB
    AllyLouB Posts: 40 Member
    Same old story..until we stop seeing pictures of models in magazines with thigh gap (and hipbones protruding etc), our younger generations are going to grow up thinking that shape is normal. Just walk past any high street shop Topshop etc where all the younger folks shop...the body shapes in the window and on advertising boards are terrible.

    If you are naturally that shape, fine. If you are not..fine. Just be healthy and fit...sounds so simple.
  • kooltray87
    kooltray87 Posts: 501 Member
    The only bad thing about the thigh gap is that a lot of people don't realize its genetic! Some are made to have thigh gaps and some are not. If you need to get bone thin to see the gap, then you were not supposed to have one in the first place. People set themselves up for failure when they set unrealistic goals.
  • Aviva92
    Aviva92 Posts: 2,333 Member
    I had never even heard of thigh gap being a cool thing to have until I joined this site. I naturally have thigh gap even with huge thighs because I have wide hips. I never liked it and got made fun of for it as a teen. Now I come on here and see that it's a thing to have. I think having thigh gap as a goal is just plain silly. Seems like it's a thing with the younger crowd. It's kind of annoying how misinformed people are about thigh gap though by not recognizing that body type is a big factor.
  • Aviva92
    Aviva92 Posts: 2,333 Member
    If you have one, you have one, if you don't, neither do a lot of people

    2qvtra8.jpg

    ummmm, that's not "proof" of anything. marilyn monroe was worshipped like 60 years ago and the men who worshipped her are mostly dead or like 90. that look is not what men want anymore.
  • Bumdrahp
    Bumdrahp Posts: 1,314 Member
    If you have one, you have one, if you don't, neither do a lot of people

    2qvtra8.jpg

    ummmm, that's not "proof" of anything. marilyn monroe was worshipped like 60 years ago and the men who worshipped her are mostly dead or like 90. that look is not what men want anymore.

    Hmm, I wouldn't speak for all men, especially.. since you are female.

    For example, I has a GINORMOUS *kitten*,. a lot fo men don't like that, some men do.. BUT, I happen to find a man that just can't get enough of the big bootie bi*ches!!.. SSooo, some men might really enjoy some skinny bi*ches! Some enjoy a big ole double basketball bootyyyyy!
  • Aviva92
    Aviva92 Posts: 2,333 Member
    If you have one, you have one, if you don't, neither do a lot of people

    2qvtra8.jpg

    ummmm, that's not "proof" of anything. marilyn monroe was worshipped like 60 years ago and the men who worshipped her are mostly dead or like 90. that look is not what men want anymore.

    Hmm, I wouldn't speak for all men, especially.. since you are female.

    For example, I has a GINORMOUS *kitten*,. a lot fo men don't like that, some men do.. BUT, I happen to find a man that just can't get enough of the big bootie bi*ches!!.. SSooo, some men might really enjoy some skinny bi*ches! Some enjoy a big ole double basketball bootyyyyy!

    yes, i agree with that, but marilyn monroe should not be used as the proof of this. use kim kardashian or someone who is actually alive and currently somewhat liked by men. marilyn monroe has been dead for over 50 years.

    I think that making a poster of someone as this "proof" who has been dead for over 50 years might have the effect of proving the opposite to some people because they couldn't find a more current figure.
  • Bumdrahp
    Bumdrahp Posts: 1,314 Member
    If you have one, you have one, if you don't, neither do a lot of people

    2qvtra8.jpg

    ummmm, that's not "proof" of anything. marilyn monroe was worshipped like 60 years ago and the men who worshipped her are mostly dead or like 90. that look is not what men want anymore.

    Hmm, I wouldn't speak for all men, especially.. since you are female.

    For example, I has a GINORMOUS *kitten*,. a lot fo men don't like that, some men do.. BUT, I happen to find a man that just can't get enough of the big bootie bi*ches!!.. SSooo, some men might really enjoy some skinny bi*ches! Some enjoy a big ole double basketball bootyyyyy!

    yes, i agree with that, but marilyn monroe should not be used as the proof of this. use kim kardashian or someone who is actually alive and currently somewhat liked by men. marilyn monroe has been dead for over 50 years.

    Personally, I think Marilyn is WAY WAY overrated...But she has that classic beauty, and full body..which is why she is always used as an example.

    Unfortunately if she were around these days ( meaning same exact body, and face..not aged ) I think she would be overlooked. The world is a different place now.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    ummmm, that's not "proof" of anything. marilyn monroe was worshipped like 60 years ago and the men who worshipped her are mostly dead or like 90. that look is not what men want anymore.

    While I agree that it is not proof of anything necessarily how on earth do you think you can speak for all men? From what I can tell, most men don't give a cr@p whether a woman has a thigh gap or not.
  • Aviva92
    Aviva92 Posts: 2,333 Member
    ummmm, that's not "proof" of anything. marilyn monroe was worshipped like 60 years ago and the men who worshipped her are mostly dead or like 90. that look is not what men want anymore.

    While I agree that it is not proof of anything necessarily how on earth do you think you can speak for all men? From what I can tell, most men don't give a cr@p whether a woman has a thigh gap or not.

    i didn't say anything about thigh gap in that post. i think worshipping thigh gap is stupid and men certainly don't do that. i think that using marilyn monroe as the standard is stupid. the majority of men aren't getting off to pictures of marilyn monroe. the ones who might be are very strange.

    i'm not speaking for "all men", but marilyn monroe is not a sex symbol anymore.
  • leannems
    leannems Posts: 516 Member
    The term thigh gap has been given a negative connotation due to it's widespread use as a measure of beauty in pro-anorexia culture.

    That being said - if you're healthy and have a thigh gap - no worries. I think most negativity on MFP regarding a thigh gap deals with concern that the person who is striving to have a thigh gap is simply using that term to hide their pro-anorexia tendencies. It doesn't mean that it's always true, but that's likely where most of the negativity comes from.

    A similar analogy is the confederate flag - while the flag itself doesn't necessarily stand for racism, over the years, the flag has been so often associated with racism that it now has a negative connotation. Same thing with thigh gap. Thigh gap has been so often associated with pro-anorexia culture that it too now has a negative connotation.

    So just be healthy. If in your health you end up with a thigh gap - that's a-ok. But my guess is that people who are truly seeking health won't necessarily be commenting on their own thigh gap - they would likely be focusing on their strength, body fat %, macros, etc.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    ummmm, that's not "proof" of anything. marilyn monroe was worshipped like 60 years ago and the men who worshipped her are mostly dead or like 90. that look is not what men want anymore.

    While I agree that it is not proof of anything necessarily how on earth do you think you can speak for all men? From what I can tell, most men don't give a cr@p whether a woman has a thigh gap or not.

    i didn't say anything about thigh gap in that post. i think worshipping thigh gap is stupid and men certainly don't do that. i think that using marilyn monroe as the standard is stupid. the majority of men aren't getting off to pictures of marilyn monroe. the ones who might be are very strange.

    i'm not speaking for "all men", but marilyn monroe is not a sex symbol anymore.

    Where did I disagree with what you just said? The topic is about thigh gaps so I made a comment about it *shrugs*.

    Also, why would men be strange if they got off on pics of Marilyn Monroe?
  • Aviva92
    Aviva92 Posts: 2,333 Member
    ummmm, that's not "proof" of anything. marilyn monroe was worshipped like 60 years ago and the men who worshipped her are mostly dead or like 90. that look is not what men want anymore.

    While I agree that it is not proof of anything necessarily how on earth do you think you can speak for all men? From what I can tell, most men don't give a cr@p whether a woman has a thigh gap or not.

    i didn't say anything about thigh gap in that post. i think worshipping thigh gap is stupid and men certainly don't do that. i think that using marilyn monroe as the standard is stupid. the majority of men aren't getting off to pictures of marilyn monroe. the ones who might be are very strange.

    i'm not speaking for "all men", but marilyn monroe is not a sex symbol anymore.

    Where did I disagree with what you just said? The topic is about thigh gaps so I made a comment about it *shrugs*.

    Also, why would men be strange if they got off on pics of Marilyn Monroe?

    nit pick much?

    getting off on pics of a person who probably died before these people were even born is strange to me. sorry if you have an issue with that.
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    It's not really just about the thigh gap. If you have one naturally, and are healthy and happy then there's no issue.

    It's more about the lengths that some people will go to get one. A lot of women will NEVER have one unless they become underweight. It requires wider hips and less fat genetically stored in your lower body. If you are a typical "pear shape" or have slim hips then it's unlikely you'll get one without starving yourself.

    They're not the be all and end all.
  • MystikPixie
    MystikPixie Posts: 342 Member
    I honestly had no idea what a thigh gap was let alone knew people actually want that. It's not attractive.
  • Poecile
    Poecile Posts: 46 Member
    From what I've divulged, you have to have very wide hips in order to have a thigh gap. By wide hips, I mean your bone structure. Some women have wider pelvic bones than others. I, for one, probably will never get a thigh gap because my hips are--bone-wise at least--pretty small.

    Also, photos can be deceiving. A lot of girls posting their gaps are sticking their bums back, turning their toes in, etc. in order to get that gap. I tried it myself, and even at my current weight, I looked like I had a small gap!

    Just remember:
    1. It's ALL about bone structure.
    and
    2. Don't trust everything you read/hear/see on the Internet.
  • fbmandy55
    fbmandy55 Posts: 5,263 Member

    getting off on pics of a person who probably died before these people were even born is strange to me. sorry if you have an issue with that.

    Are you for real?
  • TrailRunner61
    TrailRunner61 Posts: 2,505 Member
    I don't understand why anyone would want a thigh gap. Personally I find a box gap much more appealing.
    Haha my husband agrees and has always mentioned mine. For years I had no clue as to what he was talking about. lol
  • perfectingpatti
    perfectingpatti Posts: 1,037 Member
    getting off on pics of a person who probably died before these people were even born is strange to me. sorry if you have an issue with that.
    Are you for real?

    Yes, Mandy. Why are you confused? Men, yes, all men, are now "worshiping" Kim Kardashian. Well, except for those who are dead or in their 90's,
  • Annaruthus
    Annaruthus Posts: 301 Member
    Even when I got down to 13-14% body fat for my last competition, my thighs still touched. I'm one of those people who will always have touching thighs. I had to explain it to my mom this weekend, when she said "not having my thighs touch is one of my goals". Had to tell her, that depending on how her lower body is set up, they may always touch, and that isn't a bad thing. If you have one though, good for you! I don't, and have come to terms with it, so good for me! :-)
  • quirkytizzy
    quirkytizzy Posts: 4,052 Member
    *EDIT: Realized the pictures I posted might be triggering to those in recovery.

    Anyways, a quick google of "ana thigh gap" will easily display why some of us are so upset at the idea. I think that those who talk about not wanting their thighs to rub are thinking of two entirely different things.