How do you define skinny?

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Willows333
Willows333 Posts: 8
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey guys, out of interest, how would you classify someone as skinny? A certain BMI? A certain body fat %? Which numbers in particular? In a girl, I mean. And based on body parts, is someone skinny when their stomach's flat? When they can wrap their fingers around their upper arm?
Juuuuuuuuust wondering. :)

Also, I don't mean unhealthily skinny... but like, I don't just mean "slim" either. Definitely skinny without being sickly skinny.
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Replies

  • terracotti
    terracotti Posts: 101 Member
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    ?
    you know a girl is skinny just by looking at her. they look thin.
  • Willows333
    Willows333 Posts: 8
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    Please elaborate?

    What does looking thin entail... Visible bones? Visible lines of muscles?
  • GauchoMark
    GauchoMark Posts: 1,804 Member
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    to me, calling someone "skinny" is not a compliment, just like calling them "fat".

    Definition:
    skinny [ˈskɪnɪ]
    adj -nier, -niest
    1. lacking in flesh; thin
    2. consisting of or resembling skin
    skinniness n

    I probably am oversensitive to it, but when someone looks at me and says something about me being so skinny, it really annoys me! In my mind, skinny is someone that is under to low-average weight with little to no muscle tone - not athletic at all.

    like this guy:
    skinny-guy.jpg
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,136 Member
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    If I can see your ribs without you stretching out or sucking in your belly, that's skinny to me.

    ribs.png
  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
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    You can tell just by looking, but if you want some tangible numbers I'd say BMI of <18, BF% of <18%, visible collar bones, hip bones, spine, ribs, and gap between thighs. The last part has more to do with body composition, but those are a few examples.
  • Shamrock_me
    Shamrock_me Posts: 161
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    I'm skinny!!! I don't think so but I was called "Skinny *kitten*" this weekend by my MOM and "Skinny Minnie" by a co-worker yesterday.

    I don't want to be skinny - I want to be strong!! I'm working on it but I still have too much jiggle in my wiggle. I flash my bicepts at people who call me skinny... that ain't skinny.. that's MEAT baybee! (rotf) No Potatoes!!!

    Skinny is a salad eating person with smaller shins than a paper towel roll tube. I've seen them on the trail and I don't ever want to be one.... they make the stick people on the backs of minivans look a healthy weight!!
  • pullipgirl
    pullipgirl Posts: 767 Member
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    my ribs stick out but I'm not skinny I just carry weight differently, skinny to me is a derogatory word for a slender person with little muscle mass
  • Erienneb
    Erienneb Posts: 592 Member
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    When your elbows/knees are the largest part of your arm/leg respectively. When you have no body strength whatsoever. I feel like skinny is a negative term. At least in my mind I always equate it with someone so thin they are unhealthy. Or at least look unhealthy.
  • surromom2010
    surromom2010 Posts: 457 Member
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    less body fat than muscle, I don't need your muscle definition to show all the time but if you flex then there should be something there. That's skinny to me.

    Thin on the otherhand makes me immediately think of someone who just naturally has little fat on them, and I generally don't picture any muscles at all, like someone who is anorexic, thin people in my mind is equal to weak people.

    TLDR: Skinny = healthy thin=weak
  • RunHardBeStrong
    RunHardBeStrong Posts: 33,069 Member
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    to me, calling someone "skinny" is not a compliment, just like calling them "fat".

    Definition:
    skinny [ˈskɪnɪ]
    adj -nier, -niest
    1. lacking in flesh; thin
    2. consisting of or resembling skin
    skinniness n

    I probably am oversensitive to it, but when someone looks at me and says something about me being so skinny, it really annoys me! In my mind, skinny is someone that is under to low-average weight with little to no muscle tone - not athletic at all.

    like this guy:
    skinny-guy.jpg

    I completely agree with this. This is what I envision when I hear skinny. It's not a compliment. To me, healthy/fit is a compliment!
  • schondell
    schondell Posts: 556 Member
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    Skinny is when someone looks much thinner compared to everyone else. Like a size 0 or 2.
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
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    ...skinny to me is a derogatory word for a slender person with little muscle mass
    ^ This. I wouldn't consider being called "skinny" a compliment in any way.
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
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    I don't really go by clothing size or body fat % or BMI - if I look at someone and they're slim, then they're slim. A slender physique and no obvious fat rolls I guess would be the biggest indication.

    It's also my feeling that strong/fit/healthy is much better than skinny but skinny seems to be the most popular word to use and basically means the same thing in most people's minds. My user name even came from a friend of mine, who happens to be big into fitness and knows I am to, calling me "Min" which is short for Skinny Minnie! In my case it has a lot to do with where I came from as well. Most people who've known me for years still get a bit of a shock when they see my new shape.
  • FitBeto
    FitBeto Posts: 2,121 Member
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    This was originally my motivation. No homo but the dudes hot.

    ian-somerhalder-22.jpg
  • Ge0rgiana
    Ge0rgiana Posts: 1,649 Member
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    When she looks like she needs a sammich.
  • IpuffyheartHeelsinthegym
    IpuffyheartHeelsinthegym Posts: 5,573 Member
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    Skinny is when someone looks much thinner compared to everyone else. Like a size 0 or 2.

    That's quite the generalization. Skinny is an ugly word. An athletic person can wear a size 2 and not be skinny.... I was "skinny-fat" wearing a size 6, but lost body FAT and gained weight and am now wearing a size 2. Now, instead of skinny, I'm fit.
  • kelly_e_montana
    kelly_e_montana Posts: 1,999 Member
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    To me, it always makes me think of someone who looks like they would break easily and are not very healthy. I always imagine someone at a low weight for their height who does not necessarily look healthy or fit.
  • willwillywilson
    willwillywilson Posts: 229
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    Easy. If someone says, "I'd like to lose 5lbs" then that means they're skinny. They may not know it, but they are.
  • kelly_e_montana
    kelly_e_montana Posts: 1,999 Member
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    Easy. If someone says, "I'd like to lose 5lbs" then that means they're skinny. They may not know it, but they are.

    Ha! Totally!
  • Illona88
    Illona88 Posts: 903 Member
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    Bones sticking out, barely any muscle, looking ill.

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