I have, more or less. I'm 5'3" and at my heaviest I inched toward 128lbs (thanks to living in the San Fernando Valley for a year and making poor eating choices for all those munchies, if you know what I mean) but I've gone back to a fairly consistent 118-120lbs in recent years and am currently hovering closer to 115.

Mostly genetics, and very likely being "skinny fat" as they like to say on MFP. But being more conscious about my eating choices and cutting back on fast food were also big factors.

I'm only nineteen, but I've always been slim. I have been heavier and I have been lighter than I am now. Mainly, I think my weight is due to the fact that I was a poor kid, and my family couldn't always afford to go out for dinner or to always have soda on stock.

Now, I did say I've been lighter. Two years ago, I weighed about 120, but I had been 140 and I lost twenty pounds in two weeks because of depression and complete lack of appetite. While I had lots of compliments and my teachers said my weight loss looked good, I wasn't happy that I lost the weight in such an unhealthy way. I gained weight back when I started eating fast food -- I'm not complaining though; I think in that sense, fast food saved my life, because I wouldn't have eaten anything else if I hadn't started with fast food.

I'm rambling now.

I gained weight when I quit smoking but was never overweight. I was able to lose most of it, but I had to adjust my expectations and try not to focus on the scale too much anymore because I want to build muscle and eat appropriately to do that.
When I was a smoker weighing 107 I didn't workout or eat well either, I ate fast food everyday for lunch, but I didn't eat breakfast and overall, while I remember eating when I was hungry and eating until I was full, I wasn't very concerned with food and probably did not eat all that many calories, even though I considered myself "naturally thin". Once I was out of school and quit smoking and started exercising, I definitely like to eat more than I used to, and am more focused on food, whereas before I never thought about it-dinner might be a mountain dew and a snickers but that was it. I think it was also because I was so frugal, I spent the least amount possible on food.

When I first reached my height of 5'4" I was around 102 pounds. I was naturally thin and could eat whatever I wanted. Then I had anorexia and got down to 80. In treatment, I got up to 112. The last time I was weighed was last fall, and I was 108. I don't know how much I weigh now, but I am trying to eat healthier and exercise because my metabolism has definitely slowed down and I want to get in better shape.

I'm only sixteen years old, currently i weigh around 108 pounds, however I am only 4' 11". I'm naturally thin and had the luxury of eating whatever i want, and however much i want of anything. I was a gymnast, and did other various sports as well, until i had spinal fusion surgery in 2009 which put it all to a hault. I'm a junior in high school now, and during my freshman and sophomore years i did not watch what i ate nor was i exercising due to my surgery. Prior to the surgery i was a solid 95 pounds until the beginning of my sophomore year. Since then, i've obviously gained a substantial amount of weight. This year i've been exercising and dieting and am trying to get back down to 95 pounds!

I've always been, what I consider, curvy. While I've looked the same size my weight has changed. For the longest time I was the 'skinny fat' and now I'm up from 120 to 140 ... I contribute most of that to eating more meat and crossfitting. I still have a soft look to me though.

While everyones goals are different, mine is to compete (bikini or figure). I read an interesting article how we're trying to take a stand against eating disorders; and the idea of the article is to be in the fitness world 24/7 it's almost like having an eating disorder and that obsesivness to track everything you do. I can see that being for true for people who, like myself, sort of stay the same "shape/look" regardless of what the scale says. I obsess over wanting to get there but have slow progress.

I started off as a very scrawny and active child, but gained a lot of weight when I hit puberty and then more in my 20s. I had lot some of it, and regained it before I decided I was actually going to get to my weight goal for once as of last year. I admit I've had setbacks but it's so nice to be so close.

I see my joining this group as a mental reminder to myself that I'm not as fat as I was. I sometimes feel like on the large end of 'not so heavy' but it's still been a mental switch to get that far.

thanks for all the feedback! Most of my friends are thin. They don't even work out consistently or watch their diet too much! They kind of just eat what they want, but try to make healthier choices. Seems like you girls have that pattern too. I wish I had those good genetics!

i used to be that way!! eat anything and everything in sight and still be "under weight" as i got older, mid 20's my metabolism slowed down and i was gaining weight slowly and losing muscle. i was 118 when i graduated HS. hit my top @ 155 last year i was 32. i was still in the "normal" category for my height 5'9". I am back down to 127 now, i think that is a good weight for me, if i go down to 118 than thats underweight and skin and bones.

I've been around the same weight, give or take 10 pounds, since I was 16. I run (I used to compete in triathlons), I'm very active in my daily life and I make healthy food choices. There are times that I've carried a little extra and times I've been completely happy with my size. Most of the time I'm one pants size larger than what would be totally fit and healthy, but I don't obsess about it. I had 2 friends in high school who ended up in the hospital b/c of eating disorders and I could never do that to myself. There are more important things in the world than worrying that much about what size I am. For me, it's much more about health than about looks. That puts me in the minority, I know, but that's fine with me.

I have overweight friends who constantly exclaim how lucky I am "to be naturally thin", and I find that frustrating. Yes, genetics do play a role in our size, but it's more within our control than people like to admit. One entire side of my family and part of the other side are all VERY large people, both in height and weight, yet I am not. I make many choices every day that influence my shape and health. I worked in the nutrition field so I know that fat cells produce their own hormones that truly do make it even more difficult for very overweight people to lose weight. I didn't, and don't, want to ever face that extra challenge.

It's the hundred little choices you make every day that determine your size and, more importantly, your health. I have no desire for chips/crisps - I have 2 bags that my mom gave me that have sat in my pantry for 4 months. Good ice cream, on the other hand, I could eat for every single meal for the rest of my life. So I don't have it in the house. I have a bowl of apples, avocados, peaches and other fresh fruit on my table. I keep leafy greens and celery in my fridge. I leave my blender on the counter to encourage me to use it more often. I buy arugula and mesclun and make sure I eat them. Rather than ask my significant other to do something, I get up and do it myself. I park in the middle of the parking lot so people are less likely to ding my car and so that I get a little exercise walking across the lot and into the store. I work at my computer while standing or balancing on one leg. I do lunges while brushing my teeth, I sometimes do squats while washing my hair. I started this in high school b/c I had so much energy that I had to burn it off somehow and exercising made me feel good. Then I found out that they're actually some of the healthiest exercises you can do and I figured if I do that in the morning, then no matter what happens during the rest of my day, at least I've done SOMEthing good for my health. I always take the stairs. Sometimes this is NOT a good idea - like the time I was in Chicago, US, and walked up to the 38th floor for a meeting only to discover that the door was locked!!! They should post signs that all doors will be locked except for the ground floor!!

The first place I bought I chose a top-floor walk-up flat/apartment with laundry in the basement. I walk to anything less than a mile away, though that's more challenging now that I've moved and live in a place that doesn't have sidewalks. I haven't returned to heavy lifting in the gym yet, but I have 16 and 20-lb dumbbells that I use at home and I installed a chin-up bar in a closet doorway. Even a few times a week makes a big difference vs never. I have 2/3 of an acre. All my neighbors have rider mowers. I bought a push-mower (gas-powered). Yes, it's slightly hilly land. Yes, it's hard work and it takes me almost 2 hours to mow (less if I jog while mowing), but it's great exercise AND it saved me well over $1,000. I borrowed a friend's rider mower once and it still took well over an hour and I had to use the push mower for close trimming anyway!

This is a really long post to a really good question. It's interesting to read other people's experiences with this as well.

I only ever remember being normal weight when I was around 15 and from there it just kept building, in November 2010 whilst on holiday with my husband we won a free couples photo shoot, I did not want to take it at the time but was talked into it as we would recieve a free mounted print. The photo's came in late December and I was devestated 350 pictures and I could not even find one that I would want, at that point I had reached 160lbs and for 5ft tall this is a lot, I started on MFP on the January 2011 and have lost 37lbs so far, as far as the BMI chart goes I started well into obese and I am now within the "normal" bracket, current weight 123lbs (24 on BMI). I would like to loose a further 8lbs which would leave me sitting comfortably in the middle of this. My weight however had settled itself at 126lbs since around September last year I lost faith and stopped logging been back on track now for the last 3 weeks and the lbs are moving again. I think this 8lbs will be the hardest to move!

We're SO much alike!!!! I lost 40#'s last Jan-Jun...and have tacked 15 or so back on. I exercise religiously, but until today had not been tracking my calories!! I'm 5'4" and was up to 178!!!!! Got to 137, now at 151...goal: 120-125...fingers crossed!! I live in a small town with a small gym room inside a community center that I have a gym key for-I've done it all myself thru exercise and eating habits...I'm stuck!! Wish I could find someone here as motivated as I am!