Anyone else "big boned"?

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Replies

  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    Bone grows and remodels based upon the load put on it. Not the other way around. You get big bones from having big tissue be it adipose or muscular. Big bones do not cause big tissue. Twinkies cause big tissue which causes big bones.
    So my best friend who has never been overweight in her life but has very broad shoulders and large wrists doesn't really have very broad shoulders and large wrists?

    I'm not saying that it's an excuse to be obese. But the BMI scale (yes, I understand it's an average, yada, yada, yada) gives people a 40-pound range of possible healthy weights.

    Bone density and bone size are different issues. The load on your bones bone density, which will have a minimal affect on weight. But it won't do much about how wide your shoulders or wrists are. That's just genetics.
  • belle_of_the_bar
    belle_of_the_bar Posts: 474 Member
    I used to call myself big boned. It was one of the many lies I told myself about why it was okay to be fat.


    This!! And I was never obese, but at a size 16, I told myself it was bone structure. Now Im in a 6. Turns out it was the fat.
  • murphy612
    murphy612 Posts: 734 Member
    I've said this before and I'll say it again...there is no such thing as "big boned". I'm an archaeologist, I've seen many skeletons, studied a lot of physical anthropology. There just isn't a whole lot of difference, unless of course you are a Neanderthal.
    Whether its real or not has nothing to do with how much fat is on your body. Even still...the average weight of the adult human female skeleton is only around 20 lbs. For a large man its only around 30. It still shouldn't impact scale weight more than a few lbs.

    Yea, voices of reason :) Big boned, lol or the my bones weigh more comment, even bigger lol
  • sissiluv
    sissiluv Posts: 2,205 Member
    Most of the women in my family I'm finding are a little broader than I was expecting. Even my skinniest cousin wears a large and my mom, who's very thin, can't get below a size 12 pant. We're also a pretty tall brood. I'm 5'10 and mom is 5'9. We're both size 11 shoes.
    That and considering my father who is a bear and I just got kinda screwed in the pool of genetics. Much to my disappointment I'll never be as tiny as I actually want to be but I can look the best for my size.

    My goal weight is my mom's weight, which is around 165 but I think I'd be happy at 170. Only 20 more pounds to go. c:

    ETA My wrist width is 7 inches...and that's with my wrist bones clearly visible.
  • Peachy1962
    Peachy1962 Posts: 269 Member
    Good for You Chris!!!!! You give me Hope!!! :flowerforyou:


    I am 5'7" and have big feet thought I was big boned all my life but when I was having my son they did a bone density test and the nurse said I had a small bone frame and all the rest was fat and muscle which she stressed the word FAT!!! :blushing: so I know I could get to a really low weight instead of what I had first thought way back in the day!!

    On my way to a thinner n leaner ME!!! :tongue:
  • confetti_blind
    confetti_blind Posts: 91 Member
    I have big bones and I am (now) thin. I probably look a lot thinner than my healthy BMI suggests.

    Wide hips = massive thigh gap

    Broad shoulders = very pointy collarbones

    Big rib cage = you can count all the ribs and see clearly defined spine bones

    Pointy wrists and elbows, sharp knees and ankles, very defined cheekbones.

    My point is that big bones actually makes you look thinner, it doesn't need to be an excuse for being pudgy....
  • SutapaMukherji
    SutapaMukherji Posts: 244 Member
    I am big boned... it is a family thingy. So, while my healthy weight says, 68kgs, I have decided my GW to be 70.

    We shall see when I reach there
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
    People have different builds, wider hips, shoulders etc but the actual weight of the human skeleton varies very little from one person to another of the same height and sex. It's a handy excuse for why you weigh more but is based on little fact. Your bones weigh very little in comparison to the rest of the things that make up your body so I wouldn't place much stock in it being the reason you weigh more.

    except that if you have a larger rib cage, larger shoulders and larger pelvis, your entire torso will be larger, and that means larger internal organs and a greater muscle mass (muscles need to be bigger to fit over the wider surface area of the rib cage, wider shoulders, pelvis etc, and the result is actually that a large framed person can be 30lb or more heavier than a small framed person of the same height, at the same body fat percentage. In other words, the extra weight does not come from the skeleton itself, but everything else that's also bigger as a result of the frame size being bigger.

    But as has been said, a large frame does not give you rolls of fat. You can still be fit, lean and have muscle definition, just that you will be that little bit bigger (maybe a size 6-8 as opposed to a 0-2) and 20-30lb heavier (possibly a little more) than a small framed person of the same height.

    Getting your body fat percentage calculated reasonably accurately and basing your goal weight on that is more straight forward than trying to estimate your frame size. If you have a large frame, you'll weigh more for your height than average at a healthy body fat percentage, so go by body fat percentage and you'll know your frame size when you get there.

    This. I have a large frame. Big head, shoulders, rib cage, hips, feet, hands, etc. I have a body fat percentage in the low 20s right no (perfectly healthy) and am a size 8. The smallest I've ever been is a size 6 at 145lbs. 0-2 is not a possibility for me. I'm 5'9" and 162lbs. I have a friend who is my height and weighs 104lbs but probably has a slightly higher body fat percentage. She has a small frame. I have a large frame.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    Yes, people do have different sized bones. That's why some people of the same height can both be healthy, slender and fit with one being 100 pounds and another being 135 pounds (or some other variation). Obviously people have different frame sizes. I have a 26 inch rib cage and other people have a 40 inch rib cage. Obviously a larger frame also means larger organs and more space for muscle and fat (without being fat). Obviously a larger sized person needs bigger bones to support the weight. And obviously a 40 inch rib cage on a short person is going to be longer rib bones than a 26 inch rib cage on a smaller person (as an example). And obviously bones don't only vary in length. They also vary in size in lots of other ways. There is a lot of variation, bones are not exempt from that. Look also at hands and feet. Not all people have the same sized bones in their hands and feet, even if they have the same length.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    I have a friend who is my height and weighs 104lbs but probably has a slightly higher body fat percentage.

    I hope you meant 140 pounds.
  • Ash1983ley
    Ash1983ley Posts: 19 Member
    I'm big boned. I'm also 5'10. I'm skinny at 170 pounds. It's not awesome. lol
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
    I have a friend who is my height and weighs 104lbs but probably has a slightly higher body fat percentage.

    I hope you meant 140 pounds.

    Nope. She's really got a tiny little frame, but she doesn't appear to "too skinny". I'd guess her body fat percentage is 25% (and it's all on her stomach with nothing on her hips or limbs).
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
    I'm big boned. I'm also 5'10. I'm skinny at 170 pounds. It's not awesome. lol

    Why not? Who cares what the number on the scale says? If you are fit at 170, that is awesome.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    I have a friend who is my height and weighs 104lbs but probably has a slightly higher body fat percentage.

    I hope you meant 140 pounds.

    Nope. She's really got a tiny little frame, but she doesn't appear to "too skinny". I'd guess her body fat percentage is 25% (and it's all on her stomach with nothing on her hips or limbs).
    Wow. My friend is 5'4" and very small-framed and at 104 she was perfect. I can't imagine someone at 5'9" weighing so little!
  • 07JKGirl
    07JKGirl Posts: 45
    I have a large bone structure and am naturally muscular (under the fat). I have accepted that even if II lose what I want and am wearing the same smaller same size clothing at the girl next to me, I will probably still outweigh her by 20 pounds. In the grand scheme of things, it's not really that important. You can still achieve your goals, providing they are realistic.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,990 Member
    It's not the issue for everyone here being "big boned". It's being "over fat" for their particular frame.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
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    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • mariposa224
    mariposa224 Posts: 1,241 Member
    I'm large-framed. Not big-boned. I'm 5'5" and according to wrist & elbow measurements, I fall into the large frame category. That being said, I wear size small in Misses, medium in Juniors, a size 6 dress, size 4 & 6 pants & jeans, size 8 wedding gown. I weigh between 138-141 depending on the day. I have a goodish bit of muscle on me now, when I was in high school (over 20 years ago), I wasn't even a 4-6 and I only weighed about 120lbs. It honestly depends more on your body fat % than how large your frame is.
  • brower47
    brower47 Posts: 16,356 Member
    I've never seen a fat skeleton.
  • CantStopWontStop92
    CantStopWontStop92 Posts: 165 Member
    I don't know if this has been said but I think a better, more realistic approach is frame, not bone size. I've done a lot of research at my university involving bone structure and I don't see a whole lot of science backing up this concept of being "bigger boned." I think frame is legitimate though. Using myself as an example, I'm only 107lbs at 5'6'', but I look about 10lbs heavier which is fantastic. I look healthy and well-proportioned, and this is due to a very petite frame. I've talked to doctors to make sure I'm healthy, and I am as my legs are disproportionally longer than they should be to my torso. No complaints there! So don't fret about the scale, take your own unique frame into consideration when on your fitness journey. Just my two cents:)
  • missdibs1
    missdibs1 Posts: 1,092 Member
    Hi,

    I was wondering, if this big boned story is really true, and if there is anyone out there that has still achieved their goals with a bigger frame? I'm about 1.66m (5'5'') and weight 76.8kg (170), want to go down to 65kg (143), but I have always been told I'm big boned, and honestly I DO have some large shoulders!!
    Will I ever get the figure I want?? :(

    Any stories/advice/opinions appreciated :D

    I have wondered about this often. I have googled it too.

    Today I saw a post from a girl who was 20 pounds lighter than me but ony 1.5 inches shorter (I an not big). I started to wonder is it bone or muscle?

    I have tried the online calculator and it says I have a small frame? It goes by your wrist size. I am unsure if this is accurate.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    I don't know if this has been said but I think a better, more realistic approach is frame, not bone size.

    And like the "muscle weighs more than fat" arguments, it's semantics. You KNOW what people mean when theyu say it, but heaven forbid they don't say it exactly right.
  • CantStopWontStop92
    CantStopWontStop92 Posts: 165 Member
    I don't know if this has been said but I think a better, more realistic approach is frame, not bone size.

    And like the "muscle weighs more than fat" arguments, it's semantics. You KNOW what people mean when theyu say it, but heaven forbid they don't say it exactly right.

    Cool your jets.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    I don't know if this has been said but I think a better, more realistic approach is frame, not bone size.

    And like the "muscle weighs more than fat" arguments, it's semantics. You KNOW what people mean when theyu say it, but heaven forbid they don't say it exactly right.

    Cool your jets.
    My jets are perfectly cooled. The argument is stupid.
  • Jaulen
    Jaulen Posts: 468 Member
    *laughs at the ideal weight range for someone of her height*

    112 to 151 pounds.....

    Man at 5'5", below about 130 pounds I look sick.
    Bones everywhere. *shudder*
    Even at my lowest weight (125 pounds in highschool) I still had to wear a mans sized/cut jacket for marching band (ribcage alone was 37 inches and that was when I was looking boney) . And even at my best in shape weight of 132# and ~18% bf (still a 37 inch ribcage)....I still wore a medium, or even a large shirt. Dang this manly frame!

    Very jealous of females with small or even medium frames.

    But my large frame if not the cause for what I weight now.....just means I'll never be one of those petite-looking people.


    I also have great bone density.....I light up an xray.....I often joke that I probably have a lot of Neanderthal DNA.
  • BrainyBurro
    BrainyBurro Posts: 6,129 Member
    i hope somebody has posted a cartman gif at some point in this thread.

    if not, i would be sorely disappointed.

    seriously though, one person's bones may be bigger/longer if that person is taller than another, but everything still has to be in proportion to the difference in height.

    Soldiers-Short-Tall-and.jpg

    people of the same height and gender will have roughly the same sized bones. there is no such thing as being big boned compared to another person of the same height and gender (barring some genetic bone disease or somesuch).

    386206_2485304664822_1446516688_n-300x300.jpg
  • Karleh
    Karleh Posts: 45 Member
    No one is big boned, you ever seen a fat skeleton?
  • MsEndomorph
    MsEndomorph Posts: 604 Member
    I don't know if this has been said but I think a better, more realistic approach is frame, not bone size.

    And like the "muscle weighs more than fat" arguments, it's semantics. You KNOW what people mean when theyu say it, but heaven forbid they don't say it exactly right.

    I agree. Arguing over semantics as if you have no clue what the person is trying to say...annoying.
  • shannonerdelyi
    shannonerdelyi Posts: 21 Member
    I just measured my wrist and it's 6.7 inches! I'm only 5'6, so I guess that puts me in the "large" frame category. My sister is an imagining technician and always rants about how she wants to x-ray my big hands. We often joke about the "man hands" episode of seinfeld.

    I think your frame can definitely impact your weight, but using the "big boned" line sounds like a bit of an excuse. How you look and feel is usually a better indication of fitness and health than the number on the scale!
  • mojohowitz
    mojohowitz Posts: 900 Member
    I like big bones :tongue:

    Naughty!!


    ...and hawt. :flowerforyou:
  • rowanwood
    rowanwood Posts: 509 Member
    I have a 7 inch wrist.

    It is not fat.

    I am a 5'4" woman.

    So what's this about its not possible for my bone structure to be larger than a woman with a 4 inch wrist?

    I must have failed at measuring.

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