How much of your weight/shape is just genetics?

bfanny wrote: »

I bet I could go to the lowest on the BMI chart and still have fat in my lower abs, I'm in the middle at the moment...genetics!

I think that's the case with my ARMS...since I've been lifting they are trying to shrink and shape up now though...do you lift? My core responded very well to body weight exercises but now that I am lifting (albeit only recently at a consistent rate), I am already noticing some newbie progress for sure!

I think your body shape is genetics. But your weight isn't. I do not believe people are not prone to obesity because of genetics. Just because your grandmother was obese doesn't mean you will be too. But they may be prone to larger frames, wider hips, etc.

hopeandtheabsurd wrote: »

When I had my DNA tested, there were a few genes that were associated with higher/lower weights. For me, it could possibly account for about 4 pounds. There weren't any (known at that time, anyway) genes that could account for much more than that.

That sounds about right, honestly.

berylw49 wrote: »

robininfl: I only know my body fat percentage from my Withings scale (which I know isn't fully accurate), and that gives me a % in the mid-30s, which I know is high. I've only had the scale for a month so I haven't been able to track any changes in that %, but I bought it for that very reason. I'm hoping that continuing at the gym will show me a reduction. My waist (in inches) has not budged since May, though, when I first started maintenance. That's where a lot of my discouragement is coming from!

Hi BerylW. If your bodyfat is mid 30s, you don't necessarily have your final shape yet, that's really good news because if you are holding the fat in your middle, that's where it will have to be lost, and if your legs are thin, they may get bigger with exercise, so the overall look would be more proportionate with more muscle and less fat, even if your weight holds at the same number. And yes, it's slow....building muscle can't be rushed, it happens slowly. But as it happens, the fat decreases and muscle increases, your shape can change, because fat areas shrink and other areas grow. If you are, say, 150lb, and move from 35% bodyfat to 25%, that's 15lbs of fat gone and 15lbs of muscle added - that will look different!

I didn't have high bodyfat at any point, really - mine has held at 20% when I was skinny and now when fit, but can say that adding muscle and weight gave me only 1" more in boobs and waist (aargh, I do wish it could get smaller) but 3" more in hips, 3" more in each leg, that's all muscle, and so the overall look is more shapely, though still pretty much straight up and down. I don't want to be under 20% bodyfat, really, so my shape is not going to change much. My change was from about 120 to 135lb (5'9") so in the course of getting fit I added roughly 3lb fat and 12lb muscle.

There is a recomposition thread, I think it's in Fitness? There are definitely people who know more than me about that! I have heard good things about the book Thinner Leaner Stronger.

Lifting heavy, as far as I know, is by far the most efficient way to build muscle, but not burn fat. Overloading so that they are stressed and grow. Running, as far as I know, is the most efficient exercise to burn calories, raising your heart rate by moving around. If your waist hasn't shrunk with your current routine, then yeah I'd ramp it up slowly until you start getting results, I think for sure waist is your barometer if your bodyfat is high and you are holding it there.

I was going in the other direction (didn't have extra fat, just trying to add some muscle and get better cardiovascular fitness) and did yoga and running (changed from Jazzercise, which kept me reasonably fit and skinny and happy), the yoga was 'heavy' enough for me as far as looks, my arms are lean and have visible muscle and I can do push-ups and pull-ups, that is big progress from where I started.

Also, be happy, you know? You lost a bunch of weight and are getting in good shape, it's a process, there isn't really an end to it...you just have to find a lifestyle that works for you, that either lets you maintain or incrementally changes you for the better, bodies aren't just to look at, they are to live in. If you feel good, you have a good body.

snowflake930 wrote: »

I have read that weight loss is 80% eating at calorie deficit, 10% exercise, and 10% genetics.

It stands to reason that genetics play, at the very least, a part in our body type. We inherit eye color hair color, health issues and so on.

That makes sense to me.
There are also certain health conditions (e.g. PCOS, which one of my sisters and I have) that are linked to stubborn belly fat. It can be a bit of a vicious cycle. That's definitely where I tend to carry weight, as well, and have to get to a relatively low BMI to get rid of it. I'm below original goal weight but still eating at a deficit a bit longer to get rid of more of that belly fat. I've definitely made progress and hope to see more the longer I keep up strength training, too.