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

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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.
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Replies

  • zellagrrl
    zellagrrl Posts: 439
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    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: 4,616 Member
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    I do lift, and I *still* find the phrase annoying, overused and a little bit trite.
  • chachadiva150
    chachadiva150 Posts: 482 Member
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    No one is on your back. You're an adult. Do whatever you want to do.
  • peuglow
    peuglow Posts: 684 Member
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    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
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    I agree! Hell I been fat so damn long skinny-fat would be a trophy for me. IJS lol
  • boo333
    boo333 Posts: 53 Member
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    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
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    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
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    Enjoy having little muscle mass and a saggy physique and brittle bones.
  • Hannah_Banana
    Hannah_Banana Posts: 1,242 Member
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    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
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    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
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    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
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    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: 8,326 Member
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    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
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    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: 4,616 Member
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    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: 4,616 Member
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    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
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    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: 767 Member
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    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
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    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: 13,248 Member
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    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:

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