Do genetics really keep you from getting skinny?

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dessyjo
dessyjo Posts: 176 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I've lost almost 20lbs now and was talking to my dad about it and he said that I'd never be real skinny because of my genetics. I am big-boned, broad shouldered, and as he put it "built like a brick *kitten*-house". My grandma was big and so are my 2 aunts on his side, none of which were able to lose weight. My question is basically do I have a chance at being thin? Believe me I don't want chicken legs, just a defined body.
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Replies

  • btoeps74
    btoeps74 Posts: 167 Member
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    Get that thought out of your head. You may never get to "chicken legs" dimensions, but you certainly can get down to a healthier weight.
  • Josee76
    Josee76 Posts: 533 Member
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    Have you done measurements to know if you really are big boned? I spent a part of my life obese and always told myself I was "big boned". When I actually started to lose and took measurements; I realized I was not!
  • gmallan
    gmallan Posts: 2,099 Member
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    There are calculators that will tell you your frame size which will impact on your realistic and ideal goal weight. Genetics and body type make it more difficult for some people to lose and maintain weight but you CAN do it if you want it badly enough. Your grandma and your aunts were probably just eating more than they burned
  • purpadillo
    purpadillo Posts: 45 Member
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    It sounds like you and I are built similarly. I am 5'8, but I have a larger frame/big bones. My shoulders are wide (if I wasn't deathly afraid of the water, I'd probably make a good swimmer) and my arms are too long for my body (the shoulders/arms of my husband's shirts, who's ~5'11, actually fit me very well). It took me a long time to actually feel comfortable in my skin because I always did feel like the Jolly Green Giant. My family are all large frames/big boned as well, but they're also overweight. I was overweight as well until grad school when I lost 30 lbs after an illness (not the best method for weight lost, but effective). I hovered at the high end of my BMI until a couple of years ago when I took up running; I've lost another 20 lbs and I am now in a size 2. I wouldn't have thought it was possible, but I'm by no means too thin. I still have plenty of meat on these big bones, but I've toned everything.
  • MikeMarchetti
    MikeMarchetti Posts: 5
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    I would rather be "lean" than "skinny." Even if you do have a larger frame (which may or may not be the case), you can still be very lean.
  • Curleycue0314
    Curleycue0314 Posts: 245 Member
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    I go by this....STRONG IS THE NEW NEW SKINNY. Just because you are skinny doesn't mean you will be healthy! Focus on the healthy and the rest will follow. I go by my measurements more that the weight I loose. I don't see a drop in pounds, but I do see drops in meaurements. Also, just because you drop pounds doesn't mean you will see it in inches. One thing I've learned from my personal trainer that it isn't all about your weight!
  • KANGOOJUMPS
    KANGOOJUMPS Posts: 6,473 Member
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    FOR SURE,,,
  • Shawnzgirl78
    Shawnzgirl78 Posts: 148 Member
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    I don't believe it, no
    My grandma and aunts are all big and I am not even remotely taking after them
  • katyejean
    katyejean Posts: 233 Member
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    Don't focus on "skinny", focus on healthy and fit. I am broader, and don't believe I could ever be "skinny", but I don't really care about that. It's about being healthy and fit. Sometimes skinny isn't healthy.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    Genetics may make it easier for some people and more difficult for others but we can all make very significant improvements.
  • kristen6022
    kristen6022 Posts: 1,926 Member
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    People use genetics as another reason to stay fat. Like when people say "I just come from a family that's larger". Doesn't mean you can't lose the weight. When I was at my heaviest I thought I'd never been able to get into the sizes I'm wearing now, but I could if I really put my mind into it. And I'm 5'11, 34 and wearing size 4 jeans today, smaller than I've ever been, even in high school. Don't listen to others, do what you think is right.
  • dimsumkitty
    dimsumkitty Posts: 120 Member
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    Remember, genes aren't the only thing that run in the family, so do habits! Break out of the unhealthy habits first, and if that makes a difference, disregard the genes.
  • Yanicka1
    Yanicka1 Posts: 4,564 Member
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    I am 4'11'' but medium build. I tend to be quite muscular.... I could never blook like a vcitoria secret model with legs a mile long but I can be my best.
  • quirkytizzy
    quirkytizzy Posts: 4,052 Member
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    One can always get skinnier. You cannot always get smaller, if that makes sense.

    I have huge boobs, big hips, small waist. I can and will continue to lose the weight. But my dimensions will never be waiflike, delicate. I will not get the ballet dancer body, just a thinner body.
  • belligerent599
    belligerent599 Posts: 40
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    My scientifically-minded brother likes to tell me that nobody in our family will be cut because of our eastern European ancestry, since "it's cold there" and therefore (according to him) people from that region need extra insulation. As a counter, I like to point out Dolph Lundgren and the fact that Sweden is colder than the part of eastern Europe we're from. He doesn't have an answer for that.

    Genetics may have a part in weight loss ease, frame, metabolism, and body composition but until you can look up which genes you do or don't have, I wouldn't let it discourage you from trying to be the healthiest you that you can be.
  • NikoM5
    NikoM5 Posts: 488 Member
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    Genetics will make it more or less difficult, but not impossible.
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
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    I come from a family of chubby people who started out skinny. I weigh 80 pounds less than my next thinnest sibling. They started out skinnier than me.

    It's harder for some people to stay 'skinny' than others, but that's because they burn calories more efficiently than others (bummer) and they move less.

    MY kids, sons of a somewhat overweight dad and someone who has mostly been 'average', but slipped into 'overweight' for a year, are VERY thin. One is 6'2" and weights 135, the other 6' and weighs 140. Same genetic heritage. But they eat well. They are also very 'wiggly' (active even when sitting 'still') and exercise a lot during their daily routines.
  • darwinwoodka
    darwinwoodka Posts: 322 Member
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    You can look fantastic and healthy at any size! When I go to my Bar Method workouts, we are all different shapes and sizes, but we all look wonderful! I'll never have thin hips, but the curves shape up nicely.
  • _noob_
    _noob_ Posts: 3,306 Member
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    There is absoutely NO genetic advantage for us to be inefficient at storing fat...so yes, basically.
  • nesman89
    nesman89 Posts: 10 Member
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    Go live in an African Village for 2 yrs and see if genetics is this issue. I'm thinking you will come back skinny(i.e. Malnourished) it really has to do with diet and exercise(how much we move during the day). I hate to sound condescending but it really is that simple. We live in a society where you can eat pretty much anything at anytime, this is what makes us overweight.

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