when your skinny you don't need to work out any more?

LOL! I think for some reason people thinks it's easier to tell people that they are too skinny rather then letting people know when its time to start working out and going on a diet. Thats why america is dealing with a obesity epidemic. I can't stand when people say " Oh, your so lucky to have a body like that." It's definately not luck, it's a lot of dedication and hard work! Congrats to you for keeping on top of your diet and overall health, and forget about that lady with the odd comments, the gym is a place for everyone that wants to keep a healthy lifestyle.

Jealousy.

I was at the gym this morning, in the changing room and this lady kept staring me up and down. and then she asked me if i was one of the class instructors here at the gym, because she said my body looked so amazing and in shape. i told her no, i said i just run a lot. she told me that the gym is for people like her, not people like me. bascially saying that since i'm already in shape and skinny i don't really need to be working out. why do people have that misconception that people who are skinny and in shape can eat whatever they want and not work out. how do they think, i got this way. i worked out hard to get to where i am now. and if i want to continue being a healthy weight, i need to keep going to the gym and work at it. i feel bad, cuz the woman was really over weight. i told her, that she can do it too, just have to work hard at it. and she just kinda rolled her eyes, and said, yea in like a hundred years, i would look like you. any one else ever have people tell you that you don't have to work out if your in shape already?

Sounds like maybe she just doesn't get how hard you worked to get there and that you want to stay there. Or maybe she's jealous and has been working hard already and not seen results. There could be about a million reasons why. But I'd just not worry about it because chances are she feels bad about herself already. I'd take it as a compliment that you look good enough to be an instructor.

I feel sad for the lady. What a defeatist mindset. I hope your response changes that for her.

^This.

I workout so I can eat

I couldn't have said it better myself lol

What a terrible attitude. :indifferent:
Be an example... because it is the ones like her that will end up losing and gaining it back. Everyone losing weight needs to understand that you have to keep it up, it is a lifestyle change.

:happy:
Amen! I was thinking the same thing...I understand that as a heavy person sometimes you resent those who are fit and "make it LOOK" easy...but the truth is that for majoirty of people it isn't easy. And the reality is that it is a LIFESTYLE... this woman obviously hasnt gotten to a point in her life where she realizes that; she still views working out and being healthy as a short term goal to lose weight.

I'll admit that I used to think that way to an extent...

Skinny people are just naturally that way and eat whatever they want, and I'm just cursed with being fat. Poor me.

I think one of the things that finally "clicked" in my head was the observation that all the thin, fit people that I knew actually walked past the donut box at work while I was helping myself to thirds, and they all talked about running and going to the gym and hiking and biking all of the time, while all I did in my spare time was watching TV and eating.

It took me a long time to realize that the majority of thin people have to watch what they eat as much as I do, and all the fit people at the gym have great bodies because they go to the gym on a regular basis. The people at the gym that have the most spectacular bodies are the people that I see every time I go. Huh. I guess there's a correlation and I'm not just unlucky....

I have come to the realization that in order to be thin, I will have to track my food every day forever, weigh myself daily forever, and engage in fitness activities forever. In order to be thin and healthy, I must be vigilant against becoming fat and unhealthy. That realization is what is different this time around. Before, when I would lose weight, I always thought that I would reach my goal and be done. Now, I finally understand that if I want to be thin for the rest of my life, I'm not done until I'm dead.

I like to play devil's advocate to give balance sometimes. I think that what she said was dumb yes, but there is a bit of truth to it.

The body, once it becomes lean and generates muscle tends to burn more fat and calories then it did before it was lean.

For example, you could eat 2k calories per day and workout for 30 minutes and gain nothing, while that lady who was overweight could eat 1500 calories per day and workout 60 minutes and still gain weight.

When you get leaner and more muscular, the body burns fat for you while you do nothing..obviously working out and watching your calories helps, but you innately have an advantage over someone who is bigger.

Now getting into "well they shouldent have got big in the first place" is a different discussion...but just wanted to point out that while she is incorrect in saying "you dont belong in a gym" she has some truth to the fact that it is easier for you then it is for her.

The flaw in this line of thinking is that when you lose weight, you don't automatically get leaner or more muscular. You get more muscular by *using* your muscles, and forcing them to get stronger.


I got comments like the ones the OP described back when I was thinner than I am now, but skinny-fat. I also got comments to the effect of, you can eat X, because you're skinny. I think this sort of misconception is part of why (but certainty not all) of why people gain weight.

I work out so I can get healthy so I can work out harder so I can get healthier.

THIS!

Nice backhanded compliment she threw your way!

Anyways- What a joke............. Clearly you have to CONTINUE to take care of you body or it will eventually start to look like hers......... :noway: And last time I checked the gym is for ANYONE who pays for a membership. Thats just as rude as saying- "the gym is for fit people- the couch is where YOU belong."

Sorry- but that just irritates me.

I'll admit that I used to think that way to an extent...

Skinny people are just naturally that way and eat whatever they want, and I'm just cursed with being fat. Poor me.

I think one of the things that finally "clicked" in my head was the observation that all the thin, fit people that I knew actually walked past the donut box at work while I was helping myself to thirds, and they all talked about running and going to the gym and hiking and biking all of the time, while all I did in my spare time was watching TV and eating.

It took me a long time to realize that the majority of thin people have to watch what they eat as much as I do, and all the fit people at the gym have great bodies because they go to the gym on a regular basis. The people at the gym that have the most spectacular bodies are the people that I see every time I go. Huh. I guess there's a correlation and I'm not just unlucky....

I have come to the realization that in order to be thin, I will have to track my food every day forever, weigh myself daily forever, and engage in fitness activities forever. In order to be thin and healthy, I must be vigilant against becoming fat and unhealthy. That realization is what is different this time around. Before, when I would lose weight, I always thought that I would reach my goal and be done. Now, I finally understand that if I want to be thin for the rest of my life, I'm not done until I'm dead.

THIS!!!

Wow. So you assume that anyone who is thin is naturally thin and didn't work for it? That is the most ridiculous statement.

You also seem to think that there is something wrong with a thin person working hard because they don't want to gain weight? It's called staying healthy and fit. You want her to want to gain weight??

I didn't say that, I said they are there to tone up a little bit like firm up their 6 pack on an already small waist. I'm talking someone who is 135 lbs and 5'6 and looks amazing without thinking about it but wants to tone down to 116 lbs.

Please refer to my previous statement. I was always skinny. But I wasn't healthy. And you can't fight Type II Diabetes without diet and exercise unless you just want to give up and take an insulin shot.

Yes I know eating McDonalds daily can hurt a skinny person blood pressure.

I think one of the things that finally "clicked" in my head was the observation that all the thin, fit people that I knew actually walked past the donut box at work while I was helping myself to thirds,

Yes this finally clicked for me as well. I think skinny people appreciate being thin they panic at the thought of gaining a lb and thus are more disciplined at walking past the cookies at work. I'm now that person.

There have been studies that have said when you lose weight your metabolism decreases significantly. Therefore when you go to maintenance mode you still have to go to the gym and build muscle to help bring your metabolism back up or else you will be "skinny fat" and put on all the weight again + more. It's not an easy road, the lady you were talking to is just caught up so much in her current problems with weight that she doesn't realize it's a battle that goes on for the rest of your life.

I was at the gym this morning, in the changing room and this lady kept staring me up and down. and then she asked me if i was one of the class instructors here at the gym, because she said my body looked so amazing and in shape. i told her no, i said i just run a lot. she told me that the gym is for people like her, not people like me. bascially saying that since i'm already in shape and skinny i don't really need to be working out. why do people have that misconception that people who are skinny and in shape can eat whatever they want and not work out. how do they think, i got this way. i worked out hard to get to where i am now. and if i want to continue being a healthy weight, i need to keep going to the gym and work at it. i feel bad, cuz the woman was really over weight. i told her, that she can do it too, just have to work hard at it. and she just kinda rolled her eyes, and said, yea in like a hundred years, i would look like you. any one else ever have people tell you that you don't have to work out if your in shape already?

Who makes rude comments to another person like that? Next time anyone speaks to you that disrespectfully, tell them to eff off right and proper. #peoplesuck

Of course we and anyone in good shape has to continue to work out!!! I am on a journey to get to your point, and know 100% that once there, it is a lifetime of committment to working out and eating healthy to stay that way.....especially as we age. (Referring to myself.. LOL)