Fat and Fit, the new skinny fat

jhardenbergh
jhardenbergh Posts: 1,035 Member
edited October 6 in Fitness and Exercise
I see all this talk about skinny fat and how no one wants to be skinny fat, except for maybe a couple people. I would prefer to be Fat Fit, which hopefully pretty soon I will be. I am currently 5'7", I weigh in at 196 lbs. I am technically obese by the BMI charts at 30.7. However I had my body fat done with calipers as well as a commercial grade fitness scale and my body fat was around 20%, I think the exercise physiologist told me that 15-18% would be recommended for someone my age. So my plan is to shatter the recommendations. Lose 20 more lbs which would put me closer to 10% body fat with a BMI of Overweight or as I term it Fat Fit. Barring I lose no muscle along the way and I understand that calipers and the commercial scale aren't 100% accurate but it's accurate enough. Any thoughts or should I get down to 140 just to be in the healthy range which for me is 118 to 150, I don't think I weighed 118 the day I was born.

Replies

  • EricNCSU
    EricNCSU Posts: 699 Member
    My goal weight is over 200 which the stupid paper charts will still label me as "Obese" or as I like to say "OMGWTFBBQ YOU ARE GONNA DIE".... but I'm sure any doctor in the world will say "Well it sure beat the *insert expletive of choice* out of 355".

    I will see how things go at 225, and maybe then shoot for 200, but I'll never be under 200 (I'm 6 foot).
  • trefor
    trefor Posts: 2 Member
    I think those scales (BMI, fat %) are good guides but according to those the BMI scale for example I should weigh between 160 and 180...I started at 274 and looked like the marshmallow man...I'm 213 right now and have a few more pounds to go...but if I was to go down to under 180 I'd look like I had an eating disorder...for me, it's not so much about the weight as it is about the health! When I was "fat" I felt gross! Since shedding the weight I've felt amazing! I can do things I've never been able to do before (running 5k)...and besides, I LIKE how I look now...something I couldn't say a year ago! I watched a video that said the majority of people according to the BMI scale are obese but you'd never know to look at them...I think that's true! My BMI is 29 and technically I'm obese...but I don't LOOK obese and I don't FEEL obese...so where's the disconnect? *shrug*
  • mkmacf
    mkmacf Posts: 101
    I don't know much at all about body fat % and things like that, but part of my goal isn't just numbers on the scale, but also feeling fit. I want to have all around health, including a healthy weight, a decent fitness level and mental wellness!

    I think your goal sounds great, and you have such a positive perspective on it! Good luck!
  • mysteria_
    mysteria_ Posts: 44 Member
    I see all this talk about skinny fat and how no one wants to be skinny fat, except for maybe a couple people.

    The term is thrown around pretty loosely on here, and I don't think half the people even understand what it means. Someone messaged me one time to tell me I was "skinny fat," actually... And of course, this is someone who has never met me, has only seen the ONE picture of myself on my profile, does not know my nutrition/activity levels, etc etc... So, a valid opinion for sure. :indifferent:
  • MissMollieD
    MissMollieD Posts: 130
    Fat and Fit is not the right terminology for 10% body fat - strong and fit would suit your goals better. BMI is BS and don't put any stock in it. First, BMI only takes your height and weight and force fits you into a statistical curve - which is impossible for most people to fit in that curve. It's meant to be a basic indicator for a very high level view of a persons health. Second, muscle weighs more than fat for a given volume. So you can be smaller and weigh more.

    Skinny fat is very unhealthy. If a person is skinny fat, then they have too much visceral fat - the kind of fat that surrounds your vital organs and strains them to operate. In men, and some women, you can see when this visceral fat is completely out of control when they have really hard big bellies - the fat is under their ab muscles. This is the "heart disease belly". Jelly like fat is over the ab muscles.
  • jhardenbergh
    jhardenbergh Posts: 1,035 Member
    I think those scales (BMI, fat %) are good guides but according to those the BMI scale for example I should weigh between 160 and 180...I started at 274 and looked like the marshmallow man...I'm 213 right now and have a few more pounds to go...but if I was to go down to under 180 I'd look like I had an eating disorder...for me, it's not so much about the weight as it is about the health! When I was "fat" I felt gross! Since shedding the weight I've felt amazing! I can do things I've never been able to do before (running 5k)...and besides, I LIKE how I look now...something I couldn't say a year ago! I watched a video that said the majority of people according to the BMI scale are obese but you'd never know to look at them...I think that's true! My BMI is 29 and technically I'm obese...but I don't LOOK obese and I don't FEEL obese...so where's the disconnect? *shrug*

    Was that video you watched the one with the guy that ate McDonalds for every meal not Supersize Me the one that makes fun of Supersize Me. I can't believe I can't remember the name of it. I know the filmakers name is Tom McNaughton, but I can't think of the name of it. I loved the documentary watched it on Netflix streaming. Yeah, I am shooting for Fat by BMI, Fit by everything else.
  • jhardenbergh
    jhardenbergh Posts: 1,035 Member
    I see all this talk about skinny fat and how no one wants to be skinny fat, except for maybe a couple people.

    The term is thrown around pretty loosely on here, and I don't think half the people even understand what it means. Someone messaged me one time to tell me I was "skinny fat," actually... And of course, this is someone who has never met me, has only seen the ONE picture of myself on my profile, does not know my nutrition/activity levels, etc etc... So, a valid opinion for sure. :indifferent:

    You know what they say Opinions are like *kitten*, everyone has one and they usually stink. Someone really private messaged you that, that's crazy. Sorry you had to put up with that.
  • shoppie
    shoppie Posts: 618 Member
    I definitely do not buy into BMI at all. My husband and I are the same height, so have the same 'acceptable' weight range. That just feels fundamentally wrong to me. He is slim build and I'd say I'm average to large. Having lost 45ish lbs, I am now pretty much in the middle of the acceptable BMI for my height, and husband is right at the top end of it - and I'd say we look pretty similar in terms of overall size/ fitness. This is depite me weighing around 18 lbs less and exercising a LOT more AND him being a very slim build. I cannot see that most average build guys could healthily be within 'acceptable' BMI, especially not if they have a lot of muscle.
  • mysteria_
    mysteria_ Posts: 44 Member
    I see all this talk about skinny fat and how no one wants to be skinny fat, except for maybe a couple people.

    The term is thrown around pretty loosely on here, and I don't think half the people even understand what it means. Someone messaged me one time to tell me I was "skinny fat," actually... And of course, this is someone who has never met me, has only seen the ONE picture of myself on my profile, does not know my nutrition/activity levels, etc etc... So, a valid opinion for sure. :indifferent:

    You know what they say Opinions are like *kitten*, everyone has one and they usually stink. Someone really private messaged you that, that's crazy. Sorry you had to put up with that.

    LOL it's okay, there is a nice little button that says "DELETE" :laugh:
  • dargytaylor
    dargytaylor Posts: 840 Member
    my son is in the same boat....he is appx 5'9 and weighs at least 185

    does NOT look fat one bit! He is solid (he hates when I say that :smile: ) ever since he was a little boy, he has been this way. People would pick him up expecting him to weigh what he looks like, but almost put out there back (not really, but his weight was always unexpected)

    he unfortunalty thinks he is fat becuase of what the 'calculators' tell him his BMI is. hopefully he will understand some day that he is just plain solid :laugh:
  • jhardenbergh
    jhardenbergh Posts: 1,035 Member
    It's funny cause I can run/jog for an hour without having to stop at pretty decent rate, not Kenyan by any means, but I could probably finish a marathon in 4 to 5 hours. Just today when working out I had a heartrate in the 150's and within a minute after stopping it was down to 100, my buddy who's a personal trainer said that my cardio health is actually better than his. He's been a great asset in helping me achieve Fat Fit.
  • rwattson
    rwattson Posts: 4
    Skinny fat? Fit fat? These are new terms to me and I have been in the health industry for almost a decade. It's all about the way you feel. If you feel comfortable in your body and can be active exercising and go through daily life without huffing and puffing you are fit... end of story. When it comes to BMI, it is a measuring tool that is all. Don't read too much into it. For example: Maralynn Monroe was a size 14. Pounds, measurements, and inches mean NOTHING! Feel healthy, stay active, and you will have no regrets.
  • belgerian
    belgerian Posts: 1,059 Member
    My goal weight is over 200 which the stupid paper charts will still label me as "Obese" or as I like to say "OMGWTFBBQ YOU ARE GONNA DIE".... but I'm sure any doctor in the world will say "Well it sure beat the *insert expletive of choice* out of 355".

    I will see how things go at 225, and maybe then shoot for 200, but I'll never be under 200 (I'm 6 foot).


    Im 5 ft 11 and 185 never say never. looks like close to same body build.
  • jhardenbergh
    jhardenbergh Posts: 1,035 Member
    Skinny fat? Fit fat? These are new terms to me and I have been in the health industry for almost a decade. It's all about the way you feel. If you feel comfortable in your body and can be active exercising and go through daily life without huffing and puffing you are fit... end of story. When it comes to BMI, it is a measuring tool that is all. Don't read too much into it. For example: Maralynn Monroe was a size 14. Pounds, measurements, and inches mean NOTHING! Feel healthy, stay active, and you will have no regrets.

    I may or may not of just made up Fat Fit or Fit Fat. Skinny Fat, I do not know where that came from. I always thought it was called out of shape.
  • jhardenbergh
    jhardenbergh Posts: 1,035 Member
    I think those scales (BMI, fat %) are good guides but according to those the BMI scale for example I should weigh between 160 and 180...I started at 274 and looked like the marshmallow man...I'm 213 right now and have a few more pounds to go...but if I was to go down to under 180 I'd look like I had an eating disorder...for me, it's not so much about the weight as it is about the health! When I was "fat" I felt gross! Since shedding the weight I've felt amazing! I can do things I've never been able to do before (running 5k)...and besides, I LIKE how I look now...something I couldn't say a year ago! I watched a video that said the majority of people according to the BMI scale are obese but you'd never know to look at them...I think that's true! My BMI is 29 and technically I'm obese...but I don't LOOK obese and I don't FEEL obese...so where's the disconnect? *shrug*

    Was that video you watched the one with the guy that ate McDonalds for every meal not Supersize Me the one that makes fun of Supersize Me. I can't believe I can't remember the name of it. I know the filmakers name is Tom McNaughton, but I can't think of the name of it. I loved the documentary watched it on Netflix streaming. Yeah, I am shooting for Fat by BMI, Fit by everything else.

    Fathead was the name of the documentary I was thinking about.
  • jenniet04
    jenniet04 Posts: 1,054 Member
    my son is in the same boat....he is appx 5'9 and weighs at least 185

    does NOT look fat one bit! He is solid (he hates when I say that :smile: ) ever since he was a little boy, he has been this way. People would pick him up expecting him to weigh what he looks like, but almost put out there back (not really, but his weight was always unexpected)

    he unfortunalty thinks he is fat becuase of what the 'calculators' tell him his BMI is. hopefully he will understand some day that he is just plain solid :laugh:

    My son is the same way, at 11 he's 5'4" and 145 lbs - he takes after my husband who is 5'10" and was skinny at 190 when he was wrestling in high school. I don't know that he could ever get back to that, but anywhere close to 200 would be better than the 270 he is now.
  • rainman3k
    rainman3k Posts: 174 Member
    Jay just a quick question. Being at 196 and a low BF%, do you account for that skin weight? Since your post on the insurance I have been really researching options to cover my bases to try and get the insurance company to pay for it if needed down the road.

    Long story short I had read an article about a doctor who did a case study on a person that went from 388 to 198 and when the doctor performed surgery to remove excess skin it was 34 pounds worth.
  • jhardenbergh
    jhardenbergh Posts: 1,035 Member
    Jay just a quick question. Being at 196 and a low BF%, do you account for that skin weight? Since your post on the insurance I have been really researching options to cover my bases to try and get the insurance company to pay for it if needed down the road.

    Long story short I had read an article about a doctor who did a case study on a person that went from 388 to 198 and when the doctor performed surgery to remove excess skin it was 34 pounds worth.

    I am including the loose skin in my weight of 196, I figured I have about 20 lbs of loose skin, 34 seems like a lot, but if that's the case then damn, I am really just needing the skin removal. I will be at 160 and then put on about 15 lbs of muscle. I started at 376.4 lbs pretty close to the 388.
  • cmoe25027
    cmoe25027 Posts: 26 Member
    You can't put much stock in BMI on a personal level. It is not appropriate to use on individuals(even though it does), it is meant to be used to measure populations, but because it's such an easy formula it gets over used in too many areas.

    Cheers,
    Collin
  • runnermama81
    runnermama81 Posts: 388 Member
    Yeah, according to the BMI chart i am borderline obese....ok i know i am not ultra thin, but look at my pic....do i look borderline obese? I sure dont think so!
  • jhardenbergh
    jhardenbergh Posts: 1,035 Member
    Yeah, according to the BMI chart i am borderline obese....ok i know i am not ultra thin, but look at my pic....do i look borderline obese? I sure dont think so!

    Yeah, you definately don't look obese, you are glowing in your profile pic. BMI for the most part is a sham.
  • runnermama81
    runnermama81 Posts: 388 Member
    Yeah, according to the BMI chart i am borderline obese....ok i know i am not ultra thin, but look at my pic....do i look borderline obese? I sure dont think so!

    Yeah, you definately don't look obese, you are glowing in your profile pic. BMI for the most part is a sham.

    Glowing!! ha ha! That's great! i guess the flash of my camera sort of hid my face....:)
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