Big boned?

Carleybby
Carleybby Posts: 158
edited September 20 in Health and Weight Loss
I was wondering, can you be 'big boned'?

I weigh a little over 260, I have a lot of weight around my arms, thighs and tummy (like a lot of people).

But my hips, you can easily feel the bone, and you can find my rips pretty easy too.
If I did lose weight, my hips would still be the same size, I don't think I could ever be tiny body shape wise, which doesn't bother me. I just was wondering.

I have body pictures on my profile, and I dont think I look 260... And thats another reason I was wondering, maybe I weigh that much from being 'big boned'. I could be totally wrong.

Anyways, good luck everyone on your journey.

Replies

  • LittleSpy
    LittleSpy Posts: 6,754 Member
    Definitely! I'm (almost) 5'4" and weigh 227 and I wear a size 16. Most people my height/weight wear a couple sizes bigger. I'm also fairly muscular on my lower body. That's why there's a healthy weight *range* for each height -- because frame sizes and bone sizes definitely vary from person to person! We'll see, but I don't expect I could healthily lose much past 150.
  • Carleybby
    Carleybby Posts: 158
    Alright thanks.

    I'm also 5'4 and I wear a size 18.
  • moujie
    moujie Posts: 229
    I have heard evidence to the contrary but I don't buy it. I think you can definitely be big boned or maybe more dense (physically) than someone else. I don't think everyone's frame is the same. I have always weighed more than I look. On the one hand I guess it's a good thing that I don't look like what I weigh...but then again sometimes that number is pretty upsetting to see. I started this journey (this time) when I found out I weighed more than my boss who is a guy and a full foot taller than I am. and he's not a small guy either! anyway, my partner is 30 pounds lighter than I am and she wears only one size smaller than I do! she is average weight for her size.
  • LittleSpy
    LittleSpy Posts: 6,754 Member
    I looked at your pics and I definitely wouldn't guess you weighed 260 at 5'4". And I'm a high guesser since I'm someone who weighs more than I look like I weigh.


    If I go to see a doctor I've never seen before, the nurse ALWAYS starts the scale over 50 pounds too low. :laugh: To save time, I always say "Yeah... go ahead and bump that up one more notch." I've had to "prove" my weight to my older brother (who's 5'11" and a heavy man) on a bet that I weighed more than him (Sad bet, but at least I made $20!).
  • Carleybby
    Carleybby Posts: 158
    Well, I have heard that you can't be big boned also.


    I guess it's all different from person to person.
  • I have to chime in on this also. At my smallest in Highschool I was a size 12. You could see all my bones even when I was a size 16. At size 12 I weighted about 175 at size 16 I was about 210 maybe a bit higher. I am 5'8 but still I have a wide frame. Especaly my rib cage and hips. Ironicly I have a very small chest. Good luck on your weight lose adventure. I've got about 90lb to get back to my size 12 goal.
  • sgsnow79
    sgsnow79 Posts: 15 Member
    Yes, it seems that everyone carries their weight differently...I'm 5'11, about 230 pounds, and a size 18/20, too! I guess this is because most of my weight is in the middle! I've always been envious of women who carry their weight in a more hourglass shape...good luck with your weight loss!

    ~Sarah
  • sarabear
    sarabear Posts: 864
    I think you can be big boned/densed bone. A few of my cousins and I have been tested for bone density and the doc said that our fam has some of the denses bones he's seen. Jokingly I told my cousin, she's a bit of an airhead, maybe it's affecting her brain, that's why she's dense. :wink:
  • I've always wondered this too and I think it's fascinating to see everyone's height weight and pants size. I have big hips too and will probably never be in single digit pants sizes. I started at 224 (I'm 5'9") and was wearing a sometimes tight 18 and now I've down to 190 and I'm wearing a somewhat tight 14. I'd like to get to a size 12 (a size 10 would be heaven) with my last 16 lbs but I'm skeptical. It is a little discouraging but I like my hips so I guess it's a trade off. *sigh*
  • You can find instructions online that will help you determine your frame size. I wondered this about myself not too long ago, so I went to a few different sites to try different methods - just to get an average consensus.

    Here's are two that I've used :

    http://www.ehow.com/how_2346297_determine-body-frame-size.html

    http://www.caloriesperhour.com/tutorial_ideal.php
  • Sparksfly
    Sparksfly Posts: 470 Member
    I hate to say it, but I think a lot of what we think in terms of "oh I don't look this weight" is because most people (women) lie about their weight.

    I know when used I get on a scale and see (155-160) I thought I was huge compared to other women. I have found there are a lot of people that weigh more than that and look just fine. It's the magazines and people lying on their drivers licences etc. That give us this perception that our (number) weight is outrageous.
  • LittleSpy
    LittleSpy Posts: 6,754 Member
    I hate to say it, but I think a lot of what we think in terms of "oh I don't look this weight" is because most people (women) lie about their weight.

    I can agree with you to some extent but 2 people the same height/weight can be VERY different sizes all around. Maybe how the weight is distributed plays a role to some extent. Also, muscle mass will make a huge difference. You can't deny that a 200 pound person who has a large amount of muscle mass isn't going to look MUCH smaller than a 200 pound person who doesn't have nearly as much muscle mass.

    I mean, I would never say I'm not fat at 227 pounds. I absolutely need to lose a lot more weight. I'm just saying that I've had very honest people nearly fall over in shock when they found out how much I weighed. You can lie to other people, but you can't (really) lie to yourself about how much you weigh, so you always have yourself as a frame of reference for others. My best friend is nearly 5'8", weighs 170 and is a size 12. I'm 4 inches shorter and 60 pounds heavier than her and wear just 2 sizes bigger. There's an obvious difference there somewhere that can really only be accounted for in frame size/bone density/bone size/muscle mass.
  • karleen
    karleen Posts: 260
    I've always wondered this too and I think it's fascinating to see everyone's height weight and pants size. I have big hips too and will probably never be in single digit pants sizes. I started at 224 (I'm 5'9") and was wearing a sometimes tight 18 and now I've down to 190 and I'm wearing a somewhat tight 14. I'd like to get to a size 12 (a size 10 would be heaven) with my last 16 lbs but I'm skeptical. It is a little discouraging but I like my hips so I guess it's a trade off. *sigh*

    wow we have almost the same stats. weird!!! i'm 188 right now and in a normal fitting 14. a ten is where i wanna be also but my goal weight is around 160 im thinking [who knows]

    i had a lean mass test don't recently and my mass [everything besides fat] is 135 pounds. my hips and ribs are huge. the ribs really bother me a lot cause i feel like ill always look big no matter what. [i have horrible body image problems too though and i'm aware that i think i'm much bigger than i actually am]

  • wow we have almost the same stats. weird!!! i'm 188 right now and in a normal fitting 14. a ten is where i wanna be also but my goal weight is around 160 im thinking [who knows]

    i had a lean mass test don't recently and my mass [everything besides fat] is 135 pounds. my hips and ribs are huge. the ribs really bother me a lot cause i feel like ill always look big no matter what. [i have horrible body image problems too though and i'm aware that i think i'm much bigger than i actually am]

    I often think i'm bigger than I actually am as well. Sometimes I see pictures of myself and just for a moment I think wow I'm really not that big but then I look in the mirror or something and i'm back to thinking i'm huge! :ohwell: Right now my goal is 174, but that may be revised depending on how i feel when i get there.
  • I totally agree with you... when I was pregnant with my son I ended up having gestational diabetes and I had to see a specialist... I remember he asked me what weight I wanted to be and I told him about 130lbs... I remember he chuckled and told me that due to my height (5'7") and bone structure that a healthy weight for me is about 170lbs... I was absolutely shocked cause according to my suggested BMI weight I would have to be around 135-140lbs to be healthy... bone structure plays a huge part in what you should weigh... right now I weigh 236lbs but you can still feel my ribs and hips and I wear a size 18... also no one believes I weigh that much although I do find being big boned annoying sometimes when you are trying to shop for clothes even after you have lost all of your weight... lol... it would be nice to fit into a size 2 but I know its not a believable goal so I have moved on... lol... good luck on your journey and keep smiling!!!
  • iplayoutside19
    iplayoutside19 Posts: 2,304 Member
    Why do I have Cartman from South Park going through my head right now?:bigsmile:

    It's not just a women thing. When discussing my weight loss with other people I'll ask them how much they think I weigh, and almost always they'll guess between 220 and 230. They're shocked to learn that I weigh 50 lbs more than that, and that at one point I was 336 lbs.

    The BMI chart says I'm supposed to weigh 195, Wii Fit says I'm supposed to weigh 166, nothing short of death an famine is getting me there.

    The BMI is designed on a statistical average, because of that, there are millions of people who will fall outside of it's "range".

    As long as I'm looking better, feeling better, running faster, lifting longer and heavier I'm not sure I give a damn what the scale says.
  • Carleybby
    Carleybby Posts: 158
    I don't believe in the BMI.

    since if you were all muscle and weighed 200 lbs, it would say you're overweight.
  • Nikki143
    Nikki143 Posts: 491 Member
    so by that website, (the first one) I am large framed.. I always felt like i WAS big boned, and my doctor says taht I don't look like I'm 230.. I know I am big boned, because at 180 lbs I thought I was fat (back then) but in the pictures I have, I look like a crack head.. very sick looking.. soo I don't know..
    1st goal : 230
    2nd goal: 180
  • Nikki143
    Nikki143 Posts: 491 Member
    oops!!! 1st goal 200 lbs, then 180.. duhhh!
  • teetee1281
    teetee1281 Posts: 1,076 Member
    This topic reminds me of a episode of Celebrity Fit Club when Bone Crusher (a big guy) said he was big boned, so one of the trainers (the ex marine) went and had x-rays done on both them. The end result, Bone Crusher, identified the wrong bones! The trainer then said that the density could be different, but there isn't really a such thing of big boned.

    I too wear my weight pretty well and no one believe my weight or BF, especially when it comes to weigh-ins (I'm navy and we have a required weight or 33% BF for my age) I have always been border line.
  • sculley
    sculley Posts: 2,012 Member
    I think so too because people look at me and don't believe that I am a size 14 and almost 170 lbs...
  • LittleSpy
    LittleSpy Posts: 6,754 Member
    This topic reminds me of a episode of Celebrity Fit Club when Bone Crusher (a big guy) said he was big boned, so one of the trainers (the ex marine) went and had x-rays done on both them. The end result, Bone Crusher, identified the wrong bones! The trainer then said that the density could be different, but there isn't really a such thing of big boned.

    Genetics (& some environment) make up skeletal structure just as much as they do any other part of our bodies. I find it completely unbelievable there isn't a pretty significant variation in not only bone density but also actual bone circumference (and bone *weight*) from person to person.

    Now I can understand the point of this exercise if "Bone Crusher" was BSing about being "big boned" and using it as an excuse. I definitely wouldn't take someone's word for it when their only qualificaiton is that they're an ex-marine drill sergeant. :laugh:
  • MisdemeanorM
    MisdemeanorM Posts: 3,493 Member
    You can find instructions online that will help you determine your frame size. I wondered this about myself not too long ago, so I went to a few different sites to try different methods - just to get an average consensus.

    Here's are two that I've used :

    http://www.ehow.com/how_2346297_determine-body-frame-size.html

    http://www.caloriesperhour.com/tutorial_ideal.php

    These are interesting, but the formula says that at 5' 9" I should weigh under 130! That would be me at a size 4 (I'm 160 and an 8 right now). 130 is actually my unrealistic goal :) and 145-150 is my realistic goal.

    There are definitely different body types and builds, but I don't think that means that a moderately muscular larger structured woman at 5' 5" should ever be a "healthy" 190 lbs. People carry their weight differently. I have bony shoulders / collarbone and no boobs and am tall, so I look thinner and hide my weight in my "man legs" as I call them :) That does not mean that my legs are big boned :) My hips are also somewhat bony in the front, but that does not account for the muffin top and booty that makes my smaller jeans not fit :) Being big boned would not make any (healthy/female) body type not show a waistline of some sorts, account for a round tummy, etc. It's how you fill in the area around those bones that matters! Muscle also not only ads weight, but ads shape.
  • Yes! Yes! Yes!
    5' 11" here, and at my thinnest was 170 ( now 208). Almost fit into a size 10, felt very healthy. I was running 15-24 miles a week then. My friend who does Weight Watchers said I should weigh 155. There is no way! I would look like a walking hipbone!
    Now, my sister, who is one year younger and one inch shorter, weighs 150. And, while I think she's too thin, she doesn't look emaciated. She's just more delicately boned than me.
  • mablesyrup
    mablesyrup Posts: 286 Member
    First off- You are beautiful. And I NEVER would have guessed your weight is 260 from the pictures! I would have guessed somewhere around 190-200 range. WOW!

    I'm 290 and look it- (even when I was down to 250) and I am 5'7"!


    I hear you though.. my hip bones stick out... but my top half is soo big. My arms are probably the size my thighs really should be,
    I can wear a 22 nicely- except for my arms and breasts. They are HUGE. I'm hoping to be able to do enough exercise and really get my arms tone (I know- i will have sagging skin on them) but I want to help firm them up as much as possible. I feel like a monster from my belly button up.
  • firedragon064
    firedragon064 Posts: 1,082 Member
    I have I have a LARGE frame.. is it the same as big bone?
    I weight 184 lbs.. between size 14 - 16
  • Oh yeah some people just are not meant to be a size four. It really depends on bone structure and muscle. I am 5'6" and 171 pounds and wear a size 8/10. My healthy weight is supposed to be at the highest 155 but my doctor told me that for my build I would have trouble getting lower than the 155 he told me to focus more on losing fat percent. I can feel my hip bones now and he actually told me if I wanted to be a size 4 we would have to remove some bone! Point Taken Doc.

    You look fabulous I would have never guessed over 200 for you!
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