I weigh more than I look

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Chicgeek88
Chicgeek88 Posts: 10
in Health and Weight Loss
I am 5'5 and 149lbs. At my heaviest I was 170lbs. People are always surprised when I told them my weight. I have family members that weigh less than me but wear bigger size then I. Is there really a such thing as being "big boned"? Even when I was pregnant with my son I went the first 6 months without people noticing I was pregnant. I remember going to the ER at 7 months and the doctor thinking I was 7 weeks instead. Anyway, I just think it's weird how people that weigh the same can look so different and it's making me rethink my goal weight . 130 sounds good but I think If I lost another 20lbs I'd look sickly.
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Replies

  • fit_gal
    fit_gal Posts: 167
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    I think it all has to do with body shape and how you carry yourself. There are apple shapes, pear shapes etc. I think that you can be big boned to a point. You also get very petite people. We are all different shapes and sizes. Dont worry too much about it xxx
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
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    If you're close to your goal weight, it's probably best to ignore the scales and focus on health and fitness as well as how you look in the mirror.

    I actually weigh as much as I did when I joined MFP two years or so ago. I'm just the right way round now. :laugh:
  • motivatedmartha
    motivatedmartha Posts: 1,108 Member
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    I have always 'weighed heavy' - when being weighed for a light aircraft flight once they asked if they could search me because I weighed heavier than I looked. A couple of doctors have checked!

    Charts etc are great for national statistics - go by how you feel and what the mirror tells you
    :smile:
  • fitgirlandfoodie
    fitgirlandfoodie Posts: 1,014 Member
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    I sometimes get that..but then I feel big so it really doesn't make me feel much better when people are surprised :P
  • fit_gal
    fit_gal Posts: 167
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    I have always 'weighed heavy' - when being weighed for a light aircraft flight once they asked if they could search me because I weighed heavier than I looked. A couple of doctors have checked!

    Charts etc are great for national statistics - go by how you feel and what the mirror tells you
    :smile:


    Omg. Cheeky beggars!
  • JaneyB311
    JaneyB311 Posts: 80 Member
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    I have the same problem, when I started out I weighed 256 (I'm 5'6"), and now I'm down to 207. I keep telling people I want to lose another 50-ish lbs and they say 'no way, there'll be nothing left of you', but I know what I weigh!

    There's a test you can do to assess your true build. Put your thumb and forefinger around your opposite wrist:

    If they overlap - small build
    If they meet - average build
    If there's a gap - large build

    This works becuase the wirsit is non-fatty area, so even if you're very overweight you will still be able to tell your build type from this test. I didn't make it up, it's from the initial 'true body weight test' from the Dukan Diet! The Dukan diet said my true weight is 168 so that's my first goal to get to, but it still sounds a little heavy so I'd still like to get to 160 at least (ideally 156 so I can Ive lost 100 lbs!).
  • 2013sk
    2013sk Posts: 1,318 Member
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    Im exactly the same - I say to people that I want to lose 7lbs and there like.... from where!

    But I actually do feel very big!! Its crazy isn't it!

    Think it all depends on how you carry your weight.

    My best friend is 5ft5 & has lost 2 stone already, and wants to lose another stone. I think she looks amazing now. She def carrys her weight very well.
  • ravenmiss
    ravenmiss Posts: 384 Member
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    I'm the same but the wrist thing doesn't make sense with me, my wrists are scrawny but I carry weight amazingly well.

    People are often astounded when I tell them how much I weigh and I've had 2 doctors not believe me and tell me to get on scales to check and one even got on them herself to see if the scales were wrong.

    I know a friend who is the same height as me and is 2 or 3 dress sizes bigger than me at my weight and looks a LOT bigger.

    I do have big boobs too but they're not gigantic or anything!
  • jakkidoodles
    jakkidoodles Posts: 103
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    I'm 5ft 9 and my fingers do not touch around my wrist. In fact- they are no where near touching!!! That saying, I do have short fingers..... My I do believe i'm of large build. My ideal weight is between 8 st 11 and 12 st. I think if I hit 8st 11 I would look very underweight. I'm going to aim for 11 and take it from there.
  • xDawnsgrace
    xDawnsgrace Posts: 436
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    I have the same problem, when I started out I weighed 256 (I'm 5'6"), and now I'm down to 207. I keep telling people I want to lose another 50-ish lbs and they say 'no way, there'll be nothing left of you', but I know what I weigh!

    There's a test you can do to assess your true build. Put your thumb and forefinger around your opposite wrist:

    If they overlap - small build
    If they meet - average build
    If there's a gap - large build

    This works becuase the wirsit is non-fatty area, so even if you're very overweight you will still be able to tell your build type from this test. I didn't make it up, it's from the initial 'true body weight test' from the Dukan Diet! The Dukan diet said my true weight is 168 so that's my first goal to get to, but it still sounds a little heavy so I'd still like to get to 160 at least (ideally 156 so I can Ive lost 100 lbs!).

    however they do have fat on them. When i was at my highest, i couldn't get my forefinger and thumb to touch, wrapping it around my wrist. Now they overlap by an inch.
  • lewoldt
    lewoldt Posts: 630 Member
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    I have yoyoed up and down in weight for years. Nobody ever believes I'm as heavy as I am and when I am thinner people say I'm too thin even though I'm nowhere I want to be for a goal.. and still over weight according to BMI.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
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    So do I...

    "big boned" could be a lot of things such as bones are denser, you carry more lbm among other things...

    I personally wear a size 8 shoe...5 ft 7 and people never believe that I weigh what I do either.

    I've have heard of lots of measurments to tell if you are big boned...

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

    and according to this I am big boned as my wrists are just over 6.5 inches when measured.
  • oxers
    oxers Posts: 259 Member
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    I've always carried my weight pretty well. I'm still 195, but most of my friends think I'm a lot lower than that. To be honest, I'm not too worried about the numbers themselves. I'm just gonna go until I find what looks best on my frame. I set my goal weight pretty high for just that reason - I don't think I wanna go any lower than an 8-10, and another twenty pounds should do the trick.

    But then, I'm okay with not being thin. I'd rather NOT be thin, but I don't wanna be fat, either. Just soft and curvy and cute and strong. Depends on what you like and where you're comfortable, I think.
  • ROBOTFOOD
    ROBOTFOOD Posts: 5,527 Member
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    I have a tiny frame, so do my sisters. I'm 6'0 and 131lb and my sisters are 89 and 96lbs too.
    My wrist is 5in and the fingers overlap, also on the forearm area too. Waist 28.0, thigh 19, arms 10.0
  • TaraRichardson913
    TaraRichardson913 Posts: 157 Member
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    Me too.
    People are very surprised at my weight but I think I just have learned how to hide it well under clothes!!
  • Meerataila
    Meerataila Posts: 1,885 Member
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    I have the same issue. It's my face. As I've gotten older, it has really thinned out. My sister (who is fit and thin and who I trust to tell me the truth) said yesterday that I was too thin. So I showed her my ginormous gut.

    One thing we disagree on is that exercise alone will fix it. I've been fighting this long enough to know where abs are made. Though more exercise certainly wouldn't hurt my cause.
  • Stopin_da_yoyo
    Stopin_da_yoyo Posts: 138 Member
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    Wow...this is so interesting to read. I guess everyone worries or obsesses over weight but funny hoe most dont talk about it or at least not in my experience. Im definitely on the big side ..I did that wrist test thumb and finger and theres at lest an inch maybe inch and quarter gap.

    Ive always been a big guy though..even as a kid...i remember as a kid always getting picked on about having large calves...then started powerlifting before hs and lets just say most things stopped....I wish I had learned how to balance things out though....then I prob wouldnt have gotten deppressed and stopped working out.

    But heres to a new day for us all!!

    May we all hit our weight goal marks!! :)
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 17,959 Member
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    Body shape has a lot to do with it. I'm morbidly obese but a lot of people don't think I'm anywhere near as heavy as I am, because I have huge boobs, then carry my weight on hips and legs, and so have a defined waist. Makes me look a LOT smaller size than I am.
  • dym123
    dym123 Posts: 1,670 Member
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    I'm the same way, people think I weigh 25lbs less than I do. When I tell people I lost over 100lbs, they're shocked, because no one thought I was that big. I am no longer surprised when I see a woman the same weight as me but with larger measurements. I use the scale to make sure I'm staying on track, but I don't let it determine where I "should be". That also goes for my BMI, which says I'm overweight, but I guess in some universe being a size 8/M can be overweight.

    btw, I'm 5'41/2" and 161lbs
  • lisajtubs
    lisajtubs Posts: 62
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    what if you have really fat fingers though?!

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