[GradPhase]

I was usually the "skinny" one of the group growing up, I don't think it had anything to do with my own preference for being the "small" one but rather, I had my own insecurities and sense of humor about it all, and similar interests that were best appreciated by my best friends, who happened to be much much heavier than myself. That said... there was definitely a nice self esteem boost in being the "small" one, and it seemed to come up a lot. Like... "Eskinomad, we need something on the top shelf - get your skinny butt up there and grab it, will you?" That doesn't ever not feel good.

Now I'm the "chubby" one in my social circle, and it does make me very, very uncomfortable. Not because I'm the chubby one, but because I'm the one who is too out of shape to enjoy hiking, and rock climbing, and learning how to snowboard... I hate it every day.

[guamvixen]

I felt this way at my biggest. I was ALWAYS the "biggest" friend in the circle, heck, I was the biggest one on my floor at work. Now I'm one of the smallest. And people I come across that don't know me, or didn't know I used to be big, give me the usual "Eat a sandwich" or "Here, I brought you a piece of cake, you need it" But my absolute favorite, the one that REALLY pushes my buttons, are the people that complain about their weight, and when I try to help them, they tell me I don't understand because...wait for it...

I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO BE FAT!

HA! I may not advertise the fact that I was once morbidly obese consuming 3500-4000 calories a day and thought I was having a heart attack at least 3 times, but I do KNOW what it feels like to be fat. And for that reason, I know I will NEVER go back to that!

[Eliana]

My two closest friends are my college friends and weight was never a factor in our relationships at all. We were best friends instantly from circumstances, thrown together in a dorm and sharing similar interests none of which centered around anything active. I was the smallest of the group, which was sometimes commented on, but really only as a matter of fact. We've all gained weight pretty much pound for pound so our ratio remained constant, which is weird. Now we're all losing it together. One has lost 75 pounds right along with me! The other's loss is a bit slower but she's doing the best she can. And none of it matters.

I have no other "friends" and I've never felt weird about being the fat one other than those feelings I put on myself.

There is another "fat phenomena" I find interesting which is that if your friends are fat, it's more likely that you will be too. I fit that. Look at how my friends and I gained weight together pound for pound! We all gained 100 pounds from the time we met in the same amount of time. How weird is that?