I'm sick of the term "skinny-fat"

andreachirillo
andreachirillo Posts: 52 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
if I wanna do cardio instead of lifting "heavy" then get off my back about it! This is still the beginning of my journey, let me get comfortable with the fact that I am even moving my body anywhere besides from the bed to the couch. I haven't lifted one single weight yet and I've lost 30 lbs.

30 lbs down from 279 is healthier...any way you look at it.

That is all.
«13456

Replies

  • zellagrrl
    zellagrrl Posts: 439
    I hate cardio, so you can do mine for me :) Seriously though, it's a vast improvement, so good job so far!
  • meerkat70
    meerkat70 Posts: 4,605 Member
    I do lift, and I *still* find the phrase annoying, overused and a little bit trite.
  • chachadiva150
    chachadiva150 Posts: 453 Member
    No one is on your back. You're an adult. Do whatever you want to do.
  • peuglow
    peuglow Posts: 684 Member
    Just a word of caution: if your body doesn't have much muscle mass (lean or otherwise), it will be harder to fit into what most people consider an 'ideal bodytype'

    Not saying it's right, just the truth. Muscle you build with weights will help create a new structure for your skinnier self.


    --- That being said, do what makes you happy, because that is all that really matters.
  • CorinthiaB
    CorinthiaB Posts: 488 Member
    I agree! Hell I been fat so damn long skinny-fat would be a trophy for me. IJS lol
  • boo333
    boo333 Posts: 53 Member
    You will wish you had taken that advice because when you lift you are toning your body . Good luck with that:drinker:
  • BronnersHarris
    BronnersHarris Posts: 247 Member
    Isn't 'skinny fat' referring to very skinny people who are unhealthy? So whilst they aren't fat, because of their lifestyle it's more like a 'fat' persons?

    Not sure what this has to do with cardio V lifting? Except that for skinny people they don't need the cardio to lose weight, they need the lifting to get a better body?
  • Lift_hard_eat_big
    Lift_hard_eat_big Posts: 2,278 Member
    Enjoy having little muscle mass and a saggy physique and brittle bones.
  • Hannah_Banana
    Hannah_Banana Posts: 1,242 Member
    I agree the self-righteous fluff can be more than a bit irritating. I enjoy strength training but I didn't always. Ease into it, reach your goal and then use strength training as a way to keep improving.

    Also - did everyone just ignore the fact that she said she just started her journey? One step at a time. I'd be afraid of how judgemental you people would be of a person that decided to start with JUST giving up soda. She ate a COOKIE?! She only walks 3mph and not 4mph?! My god, the world is coming to an end. :huh:

    Baby steps. I ignore the pompus parade whenever I feel like. :wink:
  • sapalee
    sapalee Posts: 409 Member
    Yeah, I think of skinny fat as thin but soft and unhealthy. A deceptively unhealthy rather than an obvious. I'm a recovering "skinny fat" myself, people assumed I was healthy and fit because I was relatively thin but I had honestly let myself get very deconditioned, both cardiovascular and strength.
  • sapalee
    sapalee Posts: 409 Member
    And congratulations on what you have accomplished so far! Your goals and what you are motivated to do will change as you progress, so for now be proud of where you are and where you are going.
  • chrisb75
    chrisb75 Posts: 395 Member
    Isn't 'skinny fat' referring to very skinny people who are unhealthy? So whilst they aren't fat, because of their lifestyle it's more like a 'fat' persons?

    Not sure what this has to do with cardio V lifting? Except that for skinny people they don't need the cardio to lose weight, they need the lifting to get a better body?

    High intensity cardio teaches your body to do more with less. While this may sound ideal, its not really. If you do only cardio and do not develop strong, lean muscle to go with it, that 350 calorie burning run will turn into 250, then 150. etc. You will still be eating the same calories, yet burning LESS. Building lean muscle causes you to burn MORE calories as it takes more to maintain. This allows you to eat the same OR more calories than before, while toning and shaping your body.

    There are several posts of before and after pictures of heavy lifters. You would be impressed.

    With that said, NO one is on your back. We are all here to help each other, and if you don't want the advice of other's then no one is forcing you to take it. By making this post however, I think you are looking for someone to justify or disprove your belief.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    Isn't 'skinny fat' referring to very skinny people who are unhealthy? So whilst they aren't fat, because of their lifestyle it's more like a 'fat' persons?

    Not sure what this has to do with cardio V lifting? Except that for skinny people they don't need the cardio to lose weight, they need the lifting to get a better body?

    skinny fat means people who are close to a healthy body weight but still have high body fat. basically for them it's more about increasing their lean body mass (through weight training) than losing weight.


    the broscience people want to have us believe that cardio makes you fatter because it burns muscle or something like that.

    i'm also a lifter, have been since I was 18, and I hate the term.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    I agree that I'm sick of the term skinny fat, but it is highly misused in these forums.

    I'm sorry if people harass you about cardio. I also love it. It's a good....better...best thing.

    Cardio is good. strength training is good. Cardio and strength training is better. Cardio, strength training and flexibility is best.
  • meerkat70
    meerkat70 Posts: 4,605 Member


    High intensity cardio teaches your body to do more with less. While this may sound ideal, its not really. If you do only cardio and do not develop strong, lean muscle to go with it, that 350 calorie burning run will turn into 250, then 150. etc. You will still be eating the same calories, yet burning LESS. Building lean muscle causes you to burn MORE calories as it takes more to maintain. This allows you to eat the same OR more calories than before, while toning and shaping your body.

    There are several posts of before and after pictures of heavy lifters. You would be impressed.

    With that said, NO one is on your back. We are all here to help each other, and if you don't want the advice of other's then no one is forcing you to take it. By making this post however, I think you are looking for someone to justify or disprove your belief.

    Are you really, really sure about this? Because yes, our bodies become more efficient, certainly. But I know a really large number of runners, and they all seem to still get pretty big burns from their endurance runs....

    I think that those who want us all to 'lift heavy' tend to oversimplify these issues, and rarely seem to provide appropriate scientific evidence to fully support their claims.

    And in fairness to the OP, actually any time someone asks about cardio, they do tend to be told to 'lift heavy' and are warned that if they don't, they'll get 'skinny fat'. it happens all the time on these forums, and I think it's a little disingenuous to suggest this is not the case.
  • meerkat70
    meerkat70 Posts: 4,605 Member

    Cardio is good. strength training is good. Cardio and strength training is better. Cardio, strength training and flexibility is best.

    Nice.
  • Lift_hard_eat_big
    Lift_hard_eat_big Posts: 2,278 Member
    Isn't 'skinny fat' referring to very skinny people who are unhealthy? So whilst they aren't fat, because of their lifestyle it's more like a 'fat' persons?

    Not sure what this has to do with cardio V lifting? Except that for skinny people they don't need the cardio to lose weight, they need the lifting to get a better body?

    skinny fat means people who are close to a healthy body weight but still have high body fat. basically for them it's more about increasing their lean body mass (through weight training) than losing weight.

    the broscience people want to have us believe that cardio makes you fatter because it burns muscle or something like that.

    Brofessors don't claim that running makes you fatter, but long distance running cuts through muscle like a hot knife through butter. So even though you are losing fat, you are losing a lot of muscle as well. So when you do lose a significant amount of weight, you total body fat % may remain unchanged despite being a thinner version of your pre running self.
  • JenAiMarres
    JenAiMarres Posts: 743 Member
    I mostly do cardio...I can assure u I am not skinny fat in any sense of the word...I started lifting for about two months and started feeling huge (thighs) ...to each his own!! And good job doing what feels right!!!
  • Elizabeth_C34
    Elizabeth_C34 Posts: 6,376 Member
    You're an adult. You don't have to do anything you don't want to do with your body. You don't have to lift if you don't want to.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    I agree that I'm sick of the term skinny fat, but it is highly misused in these forums.

    I'm sorry if people harass you about cardio. I also love it. It's a good....better...best thing.

    Cardio is good. strength training is good. Cardio and strength training is better. Cardio, strength training and flexibility is best.

    This, exactly. Skinny fat is hugely misunderstood. It's a pretty extreme condition caused by pretty extreme circumstances.

    And I also agree that a combination of different exercise types is best, except I say it's like having just bacon, or just a cheeseburger, when you could have a bacon cheeseburger. :love:
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    Isn't 'skinny fat' referring to very skinny people who are unhealthy? So whilst they aren't fat, because of their lifestyle it's more like a 'fat' persons?

    Not sure what this has to do with cardio V lifting? Except that for skinny people they don't need the cardio to lose weight, they need the lifting to get a better body?

    High intensity cardio teaches your body to do more with less. While this may sound ideal, its not really. If you do only cardio and do not develop strong, lean muscle to go with it, that 350 calorie burning run will turn into 250, then 150. etc. You will still be eating the same calories, yet burning LESS. Building lean muscle causes you to burn MORE calories as it takes more to maintain. This allows you to eat the same OR more calories than before, while toning and shaping your body.

    actually this isn't true. there are some really good explanation on bodyrecomposition. come that explain why this isnt true.

    you're body doesnt burn that few calories as it gets more efficient. basically what perpetuates this myth is because so many people use HRM and go by the calorie burns. the thing they arent taking into consideration though is that as your fitness level changes, so do your heart rate levels. so you need to consistently update your HRM with your new fitness level information otherwise it'll go with the old data and assume your burning less than you actually are.
  • Jeff92se
    Jeff92se Posts: 3,369 Member
    OP. You do understand that if you didn't post the thread in the 1st place, no one would be getting on your back about anything.
  • Lift_hard_eat_big
    Lift_hard_eat_big Posts: 2,278 Member


    High intensity cardio teaches your body to do more with less. While this may sound ideal, its not really. If you do only cardio and do not develop strong, lean muscle to go with it, that 350 calorie burning run will turn into 250, then 150. etc. You will still be eating the same calories, yet burning LESS. Building lean muscle causes you to burn MORE calories as it takes more to maintain. This allows you to eat the same OR more calories than before, while toning and shaping your body.

    There are several posts of before and after pictures of heavy lifters. You would be impressed.

    With that said, NO one is on your back. We are all here to help each other, and if you don't want the advice of other's then no one is forcing you to take it. By making this post however, I think you are looking for someone to justify or disprove your belief.

    Are you really, really sure about this? Because yes, our bodies become more efficient, certainly. But I know a really large number of runners, and they all seem to still get pretty big burns from their endurance runs....

    I think that those who want us all to 'lift heavy' tend to oversimplify these issues, and rarely seem to provide appropriate scientific evidence to fully support their claims.

    And in fairness to the OP, actually any time someone asks about cardio, they do tend to be told to 'lift heavy' and are warned that if they don't, they'll get 'skinny fat'. it happens all the time on these forums, and I think it's a little disingenuous to suggest this is not the case.

    Endurance runners may have large burns but take into consideration how long they run. I've burned up to 1,000 in 50 mins doing HIIT or Circuit Training with weights. Plus I get the benefit of strengthening and improving my bone density, something that typically doesn't occur when merely running.
  • Toddrific
    Toddrific Posts: 1,114 Member
    I work in an office doing clerical work. There are all body shapes and sizes, all of them are some sort of fat. There has to be a term for sedentary flabby people that don't happen to be obese and that term is skinny fat.

    If the purpose of losing weight is to be healthier, as long as your moving, who cares. It seems to me most people also have the goal of looking good. It just seems to me it's more efficient to do it one way than the other.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    Isn't 'skinny fat' referring to very skinny people who are unhealthy? So whilst they aren't fat, because of their lifestyle it's more like a 'fat' persons?

    Not sure what this has to do with cardio V lifting? Except that for skinny people they don't need the cardio to lose weight, they need the lifting to get a better body?

    skinny fat means people who are close to a healthy body weight but still have high body fat. basically for them it's more about increasing their lean body mass (through weight training) than losing weight.

    the broscience people want to have us believe that cardio makes you fatter because it burns muscle or something like that.

    Brofessors don't claim that running makes you fatter, but long distance running cuts through muscle like a hot knife through butter. So even though you are losing fat, you are losing a lot of muscle as well. So when you do lose a significant amount of weight, you total body fat % may remain unchanged despite being a thinner version of your pre running self.

    it's not the running so much as most marathoners arent lifting heavy weights. no matter what they were doing, if you dont use your muscle then it becomes more efficient for your body to get rid of it. back when i played rugby i did tons of long distance running for conditioning (maybe like 30-45 miles a week) and never had any issue keeping my muscle mass because i was also lifting like crazy and eating what i needed to stay at the weight i wanted

    i'm friends with a few pro athletes in rugby and football. these are HUGE dudes. they lift serious weight and they also do crazy amounts of cardio, lots of it steady state. they have no issues with losing muscle either.
  • mynameiscarrie
    mynameiscarrie Posts: 963 Member
    You obviously don't understand what the term "skinny-fat" means then. As other people have said, "skinny-fat" is when skinny people are unhealthy.
  • meerkat70
    meerkat70 Posts: 4,605 Member
    "Endurance runners may have large burns but take into consideration how long they run"

    Yes, I understand that.... but it's not actually the point I was making. Indeed, the point I was making was closer to your previous post....
  • treeeee
    treeeee Posts: 39 Member
    Just my 2 cents:

    A year ago when I was really beginning my journey, I did mostly all cardio. It's what burned the most calories and that is all I cared about! As I got more comfortable at the gym I slowly started utilizing different machines. When I got within 5lbs of my goal, I ditched the scale, started eating more, and starting lifting.

    I sometimes wonder to myself if I had told the "old me" from a year ago that I should only be lifting weights, and not doing any cardio, if I would've actually been successful. I think no, just because I was so uncomfortable with myself and unsure of what I should be doing. It took a year for me to do enough research and learn enough about my body to successfully train with heavy weights. The cardio really helped me drop the weight, now that the weight is gone, I am focusing on building muscle to give my body a nice shape. So far, it's working wonders, and seeing muscles grow is absolutely amazing. But I'd never see those changes if I didn't drop the weight first.

    So what I'm trying to say is, although I am on the light cardio/heavy lifting train now (I do also do some HIIT too), I wasn't always and I don't think it would've worked for me from the beginning. Don't worry about what anyone else says, when and if the time comes for you to switch over, you'll know it and be ready for it!

    Good luck on your journey!!
  • KBGirts
    KBGirts Posts: 882 Member
    If you workout regularly I don't think you're going to be skinny fat. Yes, lifting weights will define your body more, but if you don't want to and prefer cardio that's fine. That's not what skinny fat is.
  • Pohudet
    Pohudet Posts: 179 Member
    Good job losing so much weight! Of course cardio burns more calories than weight ligting.
    Only very muscular people who are experienced weight lifters can burn some calories doing weight lifting. People who are just starting, it will take them a long time before they start doing it right or with any effect (unless you have a personal trainer who works with you every day - and even then it will be effective only in combibnation with aerobic workouts)

Categories