Big rib cage, can I ever look slim? (Photos attached)

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SimbaTheLion
SimbaTheLion Posts: 5
in Fitness and Exercise
Hello,

I appear to have what you could call a big rib cage. I have attached photos of me with and without my belly sucked in.
I have started exercising actively now, but the question is will I ever be able to look properly slim or will I have to be bulky to compensate for a permanently fat body?

Belly not sucked in: (37 inches, so pretty big)
http://imgur.com/119XMh8

Belly sucked in:
http://imgur.com/xykklcQ

Replies

  • jmangini
    jmangini Posts: 166 Member
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    I don't think you'll have any problem. If anything it may make you look like you have a bigger chest
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
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    .
  • tinkbaby101
    tinkbaby101 Posts: 180 Member
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    The angle is a little weird to be able to tell, but your ribcage appears very normal, IMO.
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
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    tumblr_mbh8bgmvbh1qm1xuto9_500.gif
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    I don't know what to tell you other than the fact that you look completely normal. Everyone's rib cage looks like that when they jut it out and suck in their stomach. Even if it were unusual, you can't change it so learn to love it. If anything, most guys would prefer to be barrel-chested, really.
  • SimbaTheLion
    SimbaTheLion Posts: 5
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    Thanks a lot for the responses people. Now I'm curious - do you know how I could improve my posture?
  • AllOutof_Bubblegum
    AllOutof_Bubblegum Posts: 3,646 Member
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    You're a guy...why do you want to look "slim"? Most guys would kill for a solid, large ribcage to build some big shmexy muscles around. I can't speak for every girl, but "slim" is not on my list of things I look for in a guy. "Looks like he can break me in half", sure :love: . "Slim"...not so much. :laugh:
  • Quasita
    Quasita Posts: 1,530 Member
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    Yeah, um, when you said large, I was expecting one like my dad's... He is a thin guy but 6'3" and when he lays on his back, his rib cage literally looks like a tent because it angles up from the floor, like an ape's chest.

    Improve posture? Stop pushing your butt back, for starters. Your shoulders should be almost squarely over your hips. You've got to make a conscious effort to stand up straight and push your hips forward from where they are in that picture, and not tilt back. If you stand like that a lot, you'll probably feel like you're leaning back at first.

    If you want more precise help or can't seem to get the hang of it, and you truly stand the way you are standing in that photo, ask your doctor for a referral to a physical therapist, as that's part of their job, to help people with severe posture issues and scoliosis.
  • Quasita
    Quasita Posts: 1,530 Member
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    You're a guy...why do you want to look "slim"? Most guys would kill for a solid, large ribcage to build some big shmexy muscles around. I can't speak for every girl, but "slim" is not on my list of things I look for in a guy. "Looks like he can break me in half", sure :love: . "Slim"...not so much. :laugh:

    Perhaps most straight men would be interested in a solid muscular frame. However... There are still many that prefer slim to bulky and definitely plenty of women who prefer their men lean.

    However, assumptions about sexual orientation and intent get people into trouble. It's entirely possible that he has no interest in what women like in men.
  • Squamation
    Squamation Posts: 522 Member
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    Yoga and strength training (back and abs) helped me with posture. When I do them on a regular basis (3x a week or more) my posture improves within a few weeks.

    I don't think your rib cage looks that big, but I was expecting a front view.

    If anything I would think a large rib cage (if you had one) would make you look slimmer sooner because it would stick out more than a "normal" one giving the illusion your stomach was smaller.
  • Going4Lean
    Going4Lean Posts: 1,077 Member
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    You're a guy...why do you want to look "slim"? Most guys would kill for a solid, large ribcage to build some big shmexy muscles around. I can't speak for every girl, but "slim" is not on my list of things I look for in a guy. "Looks like he can break me in half", sure :love: . "Slim"...not so much. :laugh:

    Perhaps most straight men would be interested in a solid muscular frame. However... There are still many that prefer slim to bulky and definitely plenty of women who prefer their men lean.

    However, assumptions about sexual orientation and intent get people into trouble. It's entirely possible that he has no interest in what women like in men.

    I was thinking the same thing.
    I am gay myself and i wish i had a smaller frame.
  • redmagpie91
    redmagpie91 Posts: 77 Member
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    You're a guy...why do you want to look "slim"? Most guys would kill for a solid, large ribcage to build some big shmexy muscles around. I can't speak for every girl, but "slim" is not on my list of things I look for in a guy. "Looks like he can break me in half", sure :love: . "Slim"...not so much. :laugh:

    Some women (or men if that's who he's trying to impress) like slim guys, some like bigger guys. SOme like hairy guys, some like them shaved. Some like a blond beach-boy type, some want a dark haired, tattooed biker. EVERYONE has different preferences and saying that this stranger should like his body type because that is your preference, is pretty ignorant.
  • SimbaTheLion
    SimbaTheLion Posts: 5
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    For the record, I'm heterosexual. I've simply been a big guy for most of my life and now that I've started making a serious effort into looking fit, rather than fat (one letter makes quite the difference), I got very self-conscious about my shape

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