How skinny is too skinny?

Options
2

Replies

  • Factory_Reset
    Factory_Reset Posts: 1,651 Member
    Options
    Maybe try for a body fat % goal rather than a number on a scale
    ^This is what I came in here to say.

    Me too!
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    Options
    I agree with others that this is different for each individual. It depends a lot on what weight you have been before and how healthy you looked and felt at that weight. And going by the mirror is a good measure (as well as taking your measurements).
  • etoiles_argentees
    etoiles_argentees Posts: 2,827 Member
    Options
    you'll know when you hit your goal. just look in the mirror.
  • verdancyhime
    verdancyhime Posts: 237 Member
    Options
    you'll know when you hit your goal. just look in the mirror.

    More or less this is what I came to say.
    A number target is useful for tracking and keeping yourself motivated, but ultimately I feel like I will have that moment when I look at myself in the mirror and think "This is good." I will have that moment when I can dance for an hour without stopping. I'll have that moment when I am strong enough to do things that would have been impossible before. The moment when I no longer feel self conscious about the "jiggle" on my underarms. The moment when I don't have love handles. The moment when I'm not afraid to wear shorts.

    The things that motivate most people to get in shape are the nonscale victories anyway. Numbers on the scale are just for tracking purposes.
  • Graelwyn75
    Graelwyn75 Posts: 4,404 Member
    Options
    "Too skinny" IMO means you have to eat an unreasonably low number of calories to stay that way, your hair falls out, weak and or dizzy a lot, showing signs of malnutrition, etc. Some people are naturally small and can maintain a lower end weight eating over 2000 calories a day, and are perfectly fit and healthy.

    I would agree with this. I got down to an 18.4/5 BMI and has to cycle or workout 60-90 minutes a day and walk for at least an hour whole eating 2000 or less to maintain it. I felt as if my life revolved around exercise.
  • meminusten
    meminusten Posts: 5
    Options
    Thank you everyone for the advice! For the two people who asked my current weight, its 114.5. And for the person who asked what my workouts/eating is like, I do yoga three times a week and walk for 6-10 hrs a day 5 days a week (im a cocktail waitress at a big casino). My eating varys greatly throughout the week but averages to about 1,500/day.
  • Mads1997
    Mads1997 Posts: 1,494 Member
    Options
    Ask those around you friends etc. Sometimes we have a warped view of our own bodies and what we see in the mirror is not the case.
  • RobinV_Seattle
    RobinV_Seattle Posts: 191 Member
    Options
    Go by body fat percentage and how you actually look. Body weight in and of itself is not what you should be targeting as a goal.

    This^^
  • joeguitar21
    joeguitar21 Posts: 1
    Options
    Your goal should probably be a body fat percentage, and you can base your weight goal off of that.
  • Nutella91
    Nutella91 Posts: 624 Member
    Options
    i was 108 5'8" and people told me i was too skinny
  • pollyineedtobeskinny
    pollyineedtobeskinny Posts: 362
    Options
    Personally, I wouldn't go too much by your weight, go by body fat % and the way you look. Too skinny, in my opinion is when you can see your hip bones, ribs, collar bones (a lot) and just generally looking fragile and weak… It's never a good sign. Keep healthy and loose weight to what you think you look best at. Like I said, go by body fat % :-)
  • UncleRiotous
    UncleRiotous Posts: 69
    Options
    Go by body fat percentage and how you actually look. Body weight in and of itself is not what you should be targeting as a goal.

    This. I'd suggest setting an initial goal for just into ideal (borderline overweight) and then just do it on how you look, what your eyes see. I'm pretty damn thin at the moment but I'm doing mental amounts of cycling, other people I know aren't carrying any extra fat but do more lifting and therefore weigh more than their BMI says they should.

    Weight and BMI are an okay coarse indicator of where you are if you don't exercise much but the more I think about it the more I realise that once you're within about 10lbs then it's pretty subjective and the more you workout the more subjective it gets.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    Options
    Ask those around you friends etc. Sometimes we have a warped view of our own bodies and what we see in the mirror is not the case.

    Yeah, this is true and also important to keep in mind. It's good to have a lot of information to add to your decision: What you see in the mirror, your measurements, your clothing fit, your weight, your doctor's input, your bodyfat percent, opinion of people you trust. And remember not to set unrealistic expectations on yourself. And when you look in the mirror, do not zero in and focus on specific areas too intently (as if under a magnifying glass). View yourself as a whole person.

    There does come a point when weight loss is no longer a goal, but continuing fitness still is and always will be.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Options
    Just because you set a goal initially doesn't mean you can't change your mind. Lose until you're happy and then stop.
  • BflSaberfan
    BflSaberfan Posts: 1,272
    Options
    I'm 5'2 my goal is 125, 120 at the very least. Anything under that I look sick, but that doesn't necessarily mean you will. Get to 115 and see how you feel.
  • JossFit
    JossFit Posts: 588 Member
    Options
    I'd say just go by the mirror.

    I feel like when someone is basically there in terms of where they want to be, it's time to throw out the scale. You know what to do to lose weight, so why focus so much on the numbers? It tends to prevent people (especially us women) from really getting the bodies they want because doing so generally means eating more, lifting weights and seeing our scale weight increase.

    Just food for thought...
  • stargazer008
    stargazer008 Posts: 531
    Options
    When your bones are very visible.
  • Julettashane
    Julettashane Posts: 723 Member
    Options
    set your goal higher like at 115 or something and if you think you could go smalled go for 110 just work your way down then maintain once you get to where you want to be
  • Cr01502
    Cr01502 Posts: 3,614 Member
    Options
    When you put your health at risk,
  • patsnyder89
    patsnyder89 Posts: 93
    Options
    yea dont look at so much the weight aspect, but more of BF%

Categories