No really... I AM big boned..?

Have yourself professionally measured for body fat percentage, cost is ten dollars here. That may be a better indicator of where you need to go on this journey. Best wishes : )

I am "big boned" according to the wrist measurement thing. I'm 5'5" and my wrist measures 6.75". BUT, I'm not actually big boned. When I had a fracture on my shin, the doctor was shocked at just how thin my bones are. I happen to have big joints. At my smallest, I was 132 pounds and a size 0. I have very narrow hips, and slightly broader shoulders. So, just because one portion of your body happens to measure "big boned" doesn't mean the rest of you is. Don't let it limit you. Don't use it as an excuse to say "Oh, I'll only ever be able to be such and such a size". I was a size 8 most of my adult life, but when I knuckled down and got into shape, I got tinier than I even thought it was possible for me to get.

http://jn.nutrition.org/content/136/6/1453.full

It is possible to lose bone mass and bone density while losing weight. Severe calorie restriction and malnutrition causing Oseoporosis being the worst example. However these changes make up an extremely minimual amount of weight especially when eating proper nutrition and adding muscle through exersice. This is why it is so important to get your nutrients. That being said, the bone does change in order to support more weight, hence the increased risk of bone fractures in obese people. On the flip side, as you lose significant amounts of weight your skeletal structure no longer needs to support it and small changes do occur, which is why wrist measurements change with weight loss. Hormones also play a part. Please read the article for all the detailed explanations.

It does explain why when ancient skeletal remains are found they can tell if the person had a good diet or not, even without tissue being present. Remember bones are porous and are affected by what we eat too....example: calcium deficiency in youth can cause malformation of skeletal structure. Read, read, read.

At my highest weight, my wrist was about 7" and is currently 5.75" after 73 lbs lost. The wrist has fat to lose, too.

Looking for some motivation!

Anyone else out there have a large frame and able to share their story? I'm 5'8 and 220... generally wear a size 16. I was at a Doctor's office the other day and he told me I was NOT big boned, and that he's seen much bigger - he's kinda given me a complex now! So I went and looked online to see how I can judge this myself and the circumference of my wrist is 7"....and according to everything I read that's big boned! I am very broad and carry weight all over, anyways I'm trying to lose weight, and I really wish I can get down to a size 10, is this even possible? I don't even remember a time that I wore something outside of a size 14. About 3 years ago I dropped down to 180, and I was wearing a size 14 - and this was a healthy look for me.

Am I deluding myself into thinking my frame will prevent me from going down to a size 10?

If anyone has got some stories, please share! Thanks!

I'm here to tell you YES it is possible to reach size 10, if that's your goal. It depends on more than just weight and frame size. Find out your body fat percentage and focus on getting THAT down.

I started at 224, size 18. I'm now 169, size 8/10, medium. People NEVER believe me when I tell them my weight, and they say I'm crazy for wanting to lose 20 more pounds. I am 5'7" and carry most of my weight on my bottom half. Scale weight doesn't necessarily determine your clothing size. I have no idea what size frame I have. My goal is 150, 21% body fat. I'm currently over 30% body fat (again, mostly in my lower half).

You sound like me! I started at 220, and I'm now 163 and mainly wear an 8, but some 10s for trousers as i have wide hips. I probably have a wide pelvis - it made giving birth twice relatively easy so i won't knock it!

My wrist is just over 6" and I am 5'6" so I guess that makes me a medium frame.

My goal is also 150. Not sure about body fat, but it's around 29/30% at the moment.

Like you, people always think I weigh less than I actually do.

I am female, 5'2" and weigh 147lb, my wrist measures 6.5" and I know before I lost 43lbs it was bigger because my watch is now loose.

No really, you're NOT big boned.

I have to say, looking at the x-ray, it looks as though the one to the left is male and the right is female. My logic is that the hips are smaller on the left side and there are no fat pockets up top (aka boobs) on the left either. I know that I've lost weight before and am working on it now but never lost mine completely.

If people have EXACTLY THE SAME skeletons then how is it possible to identify male from female when fossils are discovered from ancient cultures?

Why are some women to 'narrow' for childbirth if the skeletons are EXACTLY the same? is the fat making their hips closer together?

If all skeletons are the same please explain Osteoporosis and the other skeletal disorders. By this thinking then it would be impossible to have any differences in structure at all.

Here's one from the American Journal of clinical nutrition : http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/75/6/1012.long which discusses frame sizes.

It is utterly ridiculous to say that everyone has the same size of skeleton.

I think the point is that people run around with a gut, saddlebags, etc. and use "big boned" as an excuse. Your skeleton doesn't make you have a gut.

It is not a myth. I have met people that have a decisively smaller tibia than mine on numerous occasions.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/imagepages/17182.htm

People vary in ratios of bone lengths, circumferences, etc. My scale estimates bone mass, and that can vary since it can change in density, mostly affected by strength training and age.

http://www.livestrong.com/article/225710-how-to-measure-muscle-bone-mass/


We'll see if I have the code right for links.

In my experience, what this gentleman has said has shown to be true. "Big boned" or "large framed" is relative. One must understand how bones work. Without going into a long description, the more weight your body carries or the more resistance it works against, the denser the bones will become in order to support this. Using that logic, your bones will be thicker the heavier you are. Also using that logic, your bones will be thicker and more dense if you do a lot of resistance training, because the bones have to strengthen themselves to withstand the push/pull of the muscles . Bone's affect on your weight mostly has to do with density. Different factors can, of course, play into the weight of your bones (genetics, weight-bearing exercise, muscle mass, etc.) (http://jcem.endojournals.org/content/80/4/1118.short).

There are then the different shapes that bones can create - this is what gives you pear, hourglass, and boy-ish frames. But even so, examining pelvis sizes and the circumference of rib cages among humans doesn't result in a statistically significant difference in terms of bones - adipose tissue is a different story, though. (Relations between frame size and body composition and bone mineral status Am J Clin Nutr 2002 75: 1012-1016 - http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/75/6/1012.abstract).

I also heard somewhere (I have no evidence to support this) that about 10lbs lost is down 1 size in jeans? It is possible. It's just about setting measurable goals and not obsessing about clothing sizes. Buy what fits you, what you feel comfortable in and what looks good.

I am female, 5'2" and weigh 147lb, my wrist measures 6.5" and I know before I lost 43lbs it was bigger because my watch is now loose.

No really, you're NOT big boned.

My daughter is 10 years old, is 5'10 and weighs 125 lbs. Her wrist measures 6.5 inches. No fat on her wrist.

In this picture (20+ years ago), I weighed in at 126# at 5'8. I wore a size 11/12 on average and had maybe one or two pairs of size 10 shorts. Oddly enough, others on my team who were the same height actually weighed more than I did and wore a smaller size and some weighing less than me wore a larger size.



I think it's important to remember that each person is different and even people who are the same height and weigh exactly the same will sometimes not wear the same size clothing. Whether you believe in the "big bone" theory or not, not every skeleton is created equal.

I wish you well on your way to healthy. Good luck!

I wished people would stop saying this. There is no such thing as "Big Boned"! Everyone's skeletal bones are pretty much the same size! Some may be longer (because of height), but as far circumference and width they are no bigger. People should educate themselves!

I'm a surgical tech and work 75% of my cases in orthopedic surgery and I'm sorry to tell you, but this is false! If this were the case we would not have to work with 12 different trays of instruments and trials to be prepared for the right size implant we need and you would be very amazed at the different sizes and they vary greatly. For example our femoral head trays have 50 different trial sizes.

I'm five foot one (add a inch for shoes). I started out at a size 18W nearly a 20W. Now, I am a size 18 nearly 16 misses.

It can be done, no matter what your bones are.

I'm 5'8 too, with pretty bony wrists (circumference 6.5'), which according to online calculators means my frame size is just between medium and large. My lowest adult weight was around 172lbs, and I was wearing size 12. I also starved myself to get there, and most likely had a high percentage of body fat for that weight, due to sacrificing muscle mass. Right now I'm around 210 wearing size 14s', so I'm pretty confident that once I reach that weight again this time around, I will be out of the size 12's. Don't forget to take body fat % into account, too.

My ultimate size goal is to fit into size 8 jeans, but I won't torture myself getting there. I'll let the mirror and my body tell me when I'm ready to maintain my physique.

I now have a sternum to support 373 bs and a lump that looks pretty pronounced now down to 212lbs that can not remember was there when i was last this weight in 1980.
So I have been left with one big bone as a reminder to touch when feeling like eating
No physical problems with exercise/breathing etc