Naturally thin people...what do you eat in a day?

Before I got into lifting weights and tracking my calories to gain weight I used to just "eat what I wanted" without ever going over 100lbs. We all know by now that losing and gaining is about calories in vs calories out. Like others on here have said, those people like me just either weren't eating over their TDEE or they were burning a lot more calories than you think. I happen to not like chocolate or cakes or chips or anything like that. I've always preferred to eat fruit. That was my dessert or snack. But I did eat fast food and go out to eat but if I went to say mcdonalds and ate a burger fries and shake I would literally be full the rest of the day. If I did eat later it would be a small snack like fruit. So I was just not going over on calories. This is why I never gained weight. When I started tracking calories I was eating much more often but better foods and found I was still not gaining. It took me some time to realize what my actual TDEE was in order to gain but it felt like I was eating so much more food. Also people who say they barely eat anything all day are just eating over their calories and not realizing it. I have a coworker who told me he hardly eats all day but he's not losing weight. I asked him what he ate that day and he said a big cup full of tostito chips. I looked at the bag and 6 chips were 150 calories. He couldn't believe it. Then be forgot to include the giant coffee he drank with tons of cream and sugar. He also admitted to eating a ton of Indian food at dinner. So for someone like him he didn't eat much all day but what he did eat was high in empty calories and then his dinner probably just put him over his TDEE.

People who are naturally thin can eat whatever they want. My roommate has weighed 120 pounds since we graduated high school nearly 11 years ago and eats nothing but junk food. I swear she lives on Totinos Party Pizzas, Oreo cookis, and Mountain Dew and never gains a pound.

I disagree. Naturally thin people eat less and or move more

I am one of three brothers. The oldest and I were always chubby. The middle brother was always "unnaturally thin" while eating anything and everything. Then in his late 20's he discovered he had graves disease and a host of other problems with his thyroid. Now we know why he could do what he did. After getting his body in check now he is like a normal person.

Don't just assume people who are thin yet eat anything they want are truly healthy inside.

You wouldn't believe how many times doctors have asked to check my thyroid and they find nothing.

My children are all thin. Same thing. (ETA, yesterday they spent the afternoon sucking down whipped cream from a can. I bought it for a party. Little spazzes.)

Becky

Depends on your definition of thin. I have never in my life been overweight. My highest weight I hit, at 5'10, was 150, and that was due to undiagnosed hypothyroidism. I was always quite active as a child, doing dance, drama, rollerskating and going on walks. I do not recall restricting myself at all until I was 14 and went on a stupid diet that triggered an eating disorder (I was 140 at the time and 5'10). I guess I just naturally kept to what my body burnt off, without realising it. I still do not gain above a certain amount, though in all fairness, I have not had children which might be part of that. Even when fairly inactive, I was able to eat 2000 + a day and not go above a certain weight. I ate what I wanted, but I certainly did not eat excessively daily, as my stomach would not allow me to go past a certain point.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAQr77QMJiw

There is one freak of nature in this documentary who ate and ate and ate and didn't get fat. There is one woman who simply could not eat the required amounts of food no matter how hard she tried. That is two of ten who didn't get fat in a month of deliberate gorging.

I would like an answer on this. Am currently watching "why are thin people not fat" on youtube. Very interesting stuff and seems to partly go against what people are saying. This one asian dude ate a ridiculous amount of food and gained muscle instead of fat. This other person ate twice the calories they should've and didn't gain any weight. I know people like to come on strong with their usual copy and pasted "well hur hur, unless they can defy laws of thermodynamics, they aren't eating as much as they think they are!" but i predict most on here aren't scientists that study this issue extensively. Just people that count calorie with an app on their phone and pretend they know everything. I think largely the "a calorie is a calorie" is sound logic for 99% of people out there, but that there are freaks of nature who have bodies that do something else.

I saw that also. It was interesting. But, some people did not follow the food guidelines. And I suspect the man that gained muscle was doing exercise at home. Maybe not, but it is my suspicion. It just seemed like people were not really following the guidelines and it wasn't a strictly observed scientific study. Also younger people gain muscle more easily than older people.

Also, a lot of people are saying their tdee decreased around their late 20's or early thirties. I think some change is normal with age, plus people stop growing (some people grow into their mid twenties), and other factors such as activity level can change without really noticing it.

I'm not naturally thin but the people I know who are thin can either eat as much as they want or they are thin because they don't eat much. They like food but don't LOVE food so they're never tempted to overeat. They eat some food until they don't feel hungry and then that's it. They also don't really like sweets.

This is a good question. Kind of along the same lines of 'why do some fat people stay healthy and not develop diabetes, heart disease, etc'- the 'healthy obese phenotype.' The answer is multifactorial and, like a lot of things in science, one in which we don't have all the answers to. Most likely, many naturally thin people have hormonal differences (leptin, ghrelin, etc.) and/or faster metabolisms. My boyfriend is naturally thin (although it's catching up with him now that he's in his 30s). He eats crappy foods, but he doesn't eat breakfast and sometimes doesn't eat lunch (because he's not hungry). He usually has a big dinner and snacks throughout the night. So his body is kind of geared more towards doing a fast everyday (which evidence is indicating may be the way to go instead of small meals throughout the day). But it really depends on what works best for the individual.

I don't consider myself a naturally thin person (maybe thin-average). I'm around 5'4" and in high school I weighed around 125 lbs. Now, I'm almost 30 and I weigh 107 lbs (I've actually gained 7 lbs. over the past year). My weight loss is medication induced (I think it's a combo of increased metabolism/suppressed appetite). Although, since I started hardcore weightlifting, my appetite is very rarely suppressed anymore. Now, I'm usually ravenous and have no trouble eating 1950-2100 calories a day.

I used to wonder the same thing about my boyfriend's aunt until I went on holiday with her. She is very slim and I wondered why she never gained weight. I had only been used to seeing her at dinner time and never really spent a full day with her. It worked out she did not eat one thing and only dinner and even dinner was a smaller portion. So she did not really eat and she definitely did not snack, she might have 1 slice of toast for breakfast. Her 11 year old son is now the same and suffers with an eating disorder (scared of food and eating - make himself sick, hide food) and I wonder if there is a link there. Anyway, that was just her. But I realise now she just didn't eat, but that may also be why her skin looks all faded and is covered in spots with dry horrible hair and she just looks rough.

My husband is lean, but of course he can eat more than me because he weighs 75 pounds more than I do and he is 9 inches taller than me.

My husband is what you call “naturally thin”. His eating habits are very monotonous so let me tell you what he eats. Breakfast: 1 fried egg, 2 pieces of bacon, 1-2 slices of buttered bread and a banana. Lunch chicken wings or leftover from dinner. Dinner: rice and meat stew, or rice and fish stew. There is always a glass of coke with lunch and dinner. An exotic fruit after dinner. Sometimes a glass of sour milk. He does not snack and he could even skip lunch if there is nothing that he fancies. Basically if there is nothing that he wants he does not eat at all. He does not like desserts and the only odd snack is a glass of sour milk or a bit of cheese. No surprise that he stays thin.

My sister who was always petite (half of my weight!) loves salad, soup and does not like sweets. Only now in her 40ies she put a little bit of weight (slower metabolism I guess).

I am, on the other hand………………. (like all my food and I am always up for eating).

thank you. I know. That's exactly my point. Fat people think that skinny people "eat whatever they want". It's a very skewed view of the issue. They don't "eat whatever they want". It's very modified and they stop when full. Fat people don't stop. But, it's confusing to someone that doesn't have moderation as an option.

I'm one of those too. But, I learned something. When I hung out with my fat friends, I couldn't believe how much they would eat. Maybe in HS or so, I stayed with a friend for about 3 or 4 days. I couldn't wait to get out of that house. The amount of food they ate just blew my mind. I was so happy to get home and just get back to my normal eating. But, in my own world view, "I ate whatever I wanted", but when you compare that with someone who is overweight, you will see that the two points of view are very different.

This has been my experience, too. In my 20s, I had a "working group" of maybe six people that I would see for three days at a time, and we'd work on a project together. We stayed together 24/7, ate together, slept in the same house. Then see each other again four months later for the same thing.

About half of them were obese. Two of us were "naturally thin" and a couple of people were in-between.

The two of us who were "naturally thin" quite literally ate about half the amount that the obese people did. AND we got up in the morning and went running before we started work. Also, when we took a break, the "thin" and "medium" people went outside for a walk to get some fresh air (or we'd go walk to the coffee shot and bring it back), while the obese crowd stayed on the couches.

Anyhow, I've been accused many times of being naturally thin. You can check my diary if you like.

Ok, well I've never been "fat." I've weighed 130 pounds one time, which I was not at all happy with. I normally weigh between 118-124 pounds. I'm 5'6". Anything above that and I start to feel it weigh me down. I guess that mindset of "feeling" the extra weight and immediately doing something about it is what keeps me from getting overweight. I don't want to say I'm naturally thin, because if I overeat I gain weight. But I guess, unlike some people, I have an easier time of stopping myself from overeating, and I haven't been a fan of your traditional junk foods since I was a sophomore in high school.

Anyway, I'm not the diet and exercise type at all, in that I'm rubbish at following strict diet and exercise plans. That being said, I have gone through times when I was exercising a lot (running five miles a day four to five days a week) and while this exercise didn't change my weight, it DID make me look significantly more toned and healthier.

In my younger days--and I'm not proud of this and WOULD NOT recommend it--here's what I would eat:

Breakfast: Latte (who milk or low fat), sometimes with a pastry (pain au chocolat or similar) or biscotti, sometimes without the pastry if I was feeling "healthy"

Lunch: Coffee freddo made with whole milk? Or another latte with a muffin or bagel? Or a super veggie burrito? Or a sandwich and lemonade? The point is, I would get ONE super calorie-dense thing and eat it.

Snack: Sometimes I'd have a cocktail and cheese, or iced coffee and biscuits, sometimes I'd make it to dinner without a snack depending on how busy I was.

Dinner: Normally I'd go out to eat, accompanied by a glass of wine. At home it would be a glass or two of wine, and then I'd be sure to have a veggie dish (be it salad or steamed veggies or vegetable soup), a protein (I'm a vegetarian so it would normally be bean-based), a grain (bread or pasta, normally) and follow this with dessert.

Now that I'm older I'm becoming more concerned with my health and energy levels, so I've been trying to get myself to live by the rule "always make the healthy choice," so that when you go out for drinks or have a slice of cake for a friend's birthday you don't feel guilty about having eaten nothing but sugar all day.

So now:

For breakfast I still have the large whole milk latte, accompanied with either a couple biscuits or muesli with almond milk.

Lunch includes WHOLE grains, whole milk yogurt made with real sugar (Trader Joe's and Stoneybrook YoBaby are good options), another protein of some sort, and one or two servings of fruits and veggies. I have started eating the Sprouts compote packets, which have 1.5 servings of fruit and veg which are super convenient and taste good!

Snack: Tea and biscuits or a handful of nuts if I need it during weekdays. Maybe soft serve ice cream on the weekend or if I'm out and about a small latte for the added energy until dinner.

Dinner is often still out, but if I feel like I've got a pound or two I want to get rid of I'll choose the healthier options (either a salad or veggie-heavy dish) and get champagne or wine instead of a sugar-laden cocktail. I also tend to make lunch the heaviest meal of the day and then do raw veggies and a protein (hummus or similar) for dinner on the weekdays when I'm not at a restaurant.

On weekends I have a very light lunch because I know I'll be eating out for dinner and I tend not to restrict myself at restaurants, especially where dessert is involved.

I don't feel guilty about indulging, but if I indulge every day it DOES start to catch up.

As tempting as it is to say "one extra bag of chips with lunch won't kill me," what if you grabbed the mixed nuts instead? Nuts are dense in calories but also nutrients. They'll fill you up, and when you go out later for dinner with friends you'll be full on something healthy instead of hungry having eaten calories that did nothing for you. When you're full on healthy, you eat less junk. This is what I mean by "always make the healthy choice."

Notice I did NOT say "always make the low calorie choice." I don't believe in low calorie "diet" foods. They just make me hungrier. I do believe in healthy v. unhealthy, and it's usually easy to spot the difference. For example: I never feel guilty eating through three servings of muesli, even though that stuff is 220 calories for HALF A CUP. That's such a small serving size!! But it's full of nuts, dried fruits and whole oats. So I figure if my body wants to eat it, it must be because I'm lacking the nutrients it has. But ice cream? If you eat three servings of that in one sitting you'll get fat and no nutrients in return. I eat a serving of ice cream a week instead, and I don't get fat.

If I'm starving in between meals, I grab the healthiest item near me and eat it--preferably not a processed one. If I need to snack because I'm starving then I choose raw veggies or nuts to get me through. If I'm desperately craving a certain food, I give into that craving because I've realized over the years that if I deny myself it doesn't go away. But when I eat a balanced diet, cravings are rare. Like, only happen every few months rare.

In terms of exercise: I wish I did more because it helps my confidence, not my weight. It does make me toned and I'm sure if I were overweight, it would make me lose. However, I DO WALK *AT LEAST* 45 MINUTES A DAY. I sit at my desk constantly for work. But after hours, I walk everywhere I need to go. And I live in a city with a lot of hills, so this helps a lot. I'm constantly active. I don't stay in bed watching tv if it's nice out. I'm outside. Even if it's just a walk to grab a cup of coffee with friends, I walk to the cafe, I walk back--or at least I walk to the bus and I never say no to a place because it's "too far of a walk." On the weekend I'm on my feet for a good five hours. Not sitting, but actually on my feet, whether that be shopping, dancing, hanging out in the park, or going for a hike.

I also NEVER SNACK. Well, not "never"--obviously I eat between lunch and dinner and if I get starved. When I do, it's something small, and normally with caffeine to give me that jolt I need to get me to dinner. Other than that, I never feel satisfied on snacking, so why do it? I made the commitment eight years ago to never snack. It was hard, but I don't regret it. I'm so much happier and healthier and have a better relationship with food when I rely on complete meals rather than snacks. Obviously, people with blood sugar level imbalances or other health issues *need* to snack. Luckily I don't suffer from those issues.

I stay away from diet foods and corn syrup. Mostly because I feel the chemicals in them give me bad skin, bad hair, and might cause cancer. But if I have junk food (you know, cake or M&Ms at a girls' night or whatever) I don't care what's in it because I know it's a special occasion. No need to obsess over everything.

I have diet sodas once every three months or so, and that is the only time I have artificial sweeteners, except with gum since there's no way around that. I always choose a latte or black tea or kombucha for mid-afternboon caffeine instead if I can, or Mexican Coke if I need the jolt since it's got real sugar.

I never drink juice. It's either water or coffee or drinks out with friends. Mostly water. I very, very rarely have soft drinks and I only really have them if I need the caffeine late at night, which very rarely happens. The exception to this is on hot days when I get sparkling lemonade with lunch because really there's nothing better than lemonade on a hot day.

I use MyFitnessPal as a guide, not a rule. I don't obsess over everything I track. Some days I eat more than I put on there because I know that at least for the first part of the day, I was healthy and balanced. Every now and again I need it to put my consumption into perspective. I really have a sweet tooth and I really worry about getting enough nutrients that I need. MFP helps me have a reality check with how much sugar I'm consuming, which is my biggest downfall. And as someone with a potential heart condition, sugar--no matter how much you weigh--is something that really needs to be kept in check.

On holidays, I eat whatever is there (besides the meat). It's a holiday and I never allow myself to feel guilty. It happens only a few times a year. Enjoy it. But I never buy candy to keep in the house. I save the gorging for the day itself. Leading up to the holiday, I eat as normal. There are plenty of holiday parties to make me feel like I haven't missed out even if I don't have Christmas chocolates in the pantry.

I listen to my hunger. If I'm not hungry and someone offers me food, I say no. I eat very, very fast, so chewing more slowly is something I'm working on. It does help make you feel satisfied faster.

The best advice I can give to someone who wants to lose weight without dieting? Keep busy. It doesn't have to be exercise, but keep on your feet with a group of people or your favorite hobby. Boredom makes you hungry, depressed and ultimately just plain unhealthy. To be honest, when I get super busy I can easily drop down to 114 without even trying.

Also, I don't follow this advice to a "t", but she has some good points here that basically state what every healthily-thin woman already knows: if you eat healthy most of the time, tackle your cravings in a healthy way, and don't eat unless you're actually physically hungry, then you will eventually get to a weight you're happy with: http://www.thelondoner.me/2012/01/anti-diet.html

That was probably the most boring mini-novel of all time I just wrote there, sorry!