I was what you would consider a "thin person" back in my first year of college, I was still 5'4'' and weighed around 100-105 pounds. The thing is, I took my silhouette for granted, I didn't even give it too much thought. I knew I could wear whatever I wanted and make it look good, so I just threw on the first piece of clothing I could find in my closet and that was that. I'm actually a lot more "fashionable" now than I was back then. I only started paying attention to my weight when I started gaining pounds. It was like turning on a switch I didn't know I had. On the other hand, once I reach my goal weight now (which is somewhere around the 105 mark) I'll definitely appreciate it more.
I was slender and fit for my entire life, until I hit middle age. I was interested in health and fitness even as a child. I didn't think I'd ever gain weight. I still have a hard time believing that I let it happen.
For me, being thin and fit = feeling confident and comfortable in my own skin.
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I think many people who lose weight have a very difficult accepting their new body and the changes that come with it (additional attention from opposite sex etc.). ......
This is SO true! I suddenly love clothes shopping and I'm driving my friends mad because I still won't go into shops I've always avoided because "I'll never fit into anything in there". They keep telling me I will now but I still can't get my head round it. I've just bought my very first ever pair of skinny jeans and only because they all said I looked amazing in them. The attention I get when I go out is helping my self-confidence no end so I guess that's what feeling thin is all about. Self-confidence and self-belief.
I think the only time I was ever "skinny" was when I was 7 years old. After that, things went downhill. I was really awkward in Junior high and gained a lot of weight. In 10th grade, I'd evened out a bit, far from skinny, but probably the most "normal".
I didn't really start to feel "thin" or "thinner" until the past 2 weeks. I'm still far from thin, but it's the most phenomenal feeling in the world. Although I know I'm working my butt off for it, it seems like magic. I keep thinking I'll wake up
If this is what it feels like to be here, middlin', I can't wait to see how I feel when I hit Onderland.
I'll admit I've never been overweight, but I have been heavier and struggled a lot in the past with disordered eating and body dysmorphia. I have sort of ambient sense of feeling better about myself these days, but for the most part it doesn't feel like much of anything to me. There are always things I could pick apart or feel pretty good about... but honestly I just don't look in the mirror that much. I just kind of fail to be wow'd by my own reflection. lol But I am pretty grateful that because of my chosen habits and the personal growth I've undergone, I'll probably be in pretty good control of my health for the rest of my life (granted something life-altering doesn't occur.) I'm also relieved that I don't worry about my weight as much anymore (if I were overweight I might still be dysmorphic,) and if I ever were to wear a bikini in public, I probably wouldn't have to fret too much about it. I guess that's called satisfaction..
i have been up and down(mostly up) for 25 years and when i first lost my weight 3 years ago-i went from 235 to 160/165 and was wearing womens size 8--which for my DENSE frame/body was great! i remember going shopping by myself and standing in the fitting room crying because everything FIT-- i didnt even need to buy anything--just try stuff on--what an accomplished feeling--its hard to explain how i fell "off the diet/fitness wagon" but i have had alot of personal stresses that i let get the better of me--but i can not wait for that feeling again
i simply felt so fit and any kind of exertion was no real exertion--it was enjoyable and do-able
i have enjoyed reading all of your experiences--thank you!!
Last edited by caroline1; 06-13-2012 at 03:11 PM.
Reason: spelling!
A couple years ago I was very thin. I'd walk into a store and usually nothing fit—even size 0 was too big. I was ecstatic when I found the only store at the mall that sold size 23 (I don't know how it is elsewhere, but in the States it's nearly impossible to find anything smaller than 24). I wore 6 inch heels every day and my feet never got tired, because I had so little weight to carry. The thigh gap is the best feeling. My hips were so narrow that when my arms hung straight down they barely even touched them.
I'm so glad you asked this question, because I have always wondered this myself. I was "chubby" by age 5 and weighted 200lbs by 16. I have never been small (and I have to remind myself I'm always going to have a larger frame, wider shoulders, etc. I'm never gonna be a willow, even when I reach my GW). But I know that no matter the fact I will have a more stocky build when I'm thin, I'm gonna LOVE being thin.
And thanks to everyone who answered, it gives me something to think about when I get discouraged!
I gotta tell ya, it feels great! At one time I was over 200 pounds when I was pregnant with my 2nd child, and I felt truly awful. I was around 190 after I had him. I stayed at 180ish until 2 years ago when I gave up sugar and wheat. I hover in the upper 130s now. I really would like to get about 15-20 more pounds off, but so far I'm just amazed every day that I am finally thinner. I can go a whole day without needing a nap. I can get up off the couch without groaning. I can feel my hip bones when I lay on my side. I can run without effort. I can climb stairs and not be exhausted. It has been an endlessly fascinating year for me.
I ask myself this question every day, hopefully soon we'll no cant wait to not have to worry if there will be anything that fits me in the same two shops i shop in!
It seems to me that the best part of being thin is not constantly thinking about your body - as in not feeling heavy/clunky. Looking forward to this feeling. I haven't been thin since I was about 10 or 11 so I don't remember it. I asked my thin friends and they don't know how to answer as they have nothing to compare it to! Haha.
More and more lately I've been imagining my excess weight coming off like heavy leather coats, but it's hard to picture how it might feel beyond the point I'm already at. Then again weight loss is such a slow thing anyway that it's hard for me to remember how I felt when I was 100 pounds heavier than I am now, or even 25 pounds!
Something tells me it will be amazing when my stomach is smaller.
In my late teens, I was 5'7 and 125 lbs. I saw myself as "chunky", and would not wear a bikini of any sort. When I hit 20 years old, I gained a few pounds up to 140. I thought I was enormous! After that, I gained 60 more lbs and went into denial. I would look for clothes that would hide me completely, so I didn't have to look at myself. Point is, if we've always been thin, we don't realize what we have until we lose it (true of so many things in life). And I've had body dysmorphia my whole life. After a year of going between 190 and 200 over and over, I decided to take control and lost 40 lbs. I feel a lot more confident, but I still wish I could go back to what I used to look like 6-8 years ago. Now that I look back on it, I could throw on anything and look good in it.
However, at 160 lbs, I can wear many things I couldn't 4 months ago, and I am very grateful for that. The best thing about being smaller (I can't say thin with a BMI of 25.6) is being able to go grocery shopping without fear of judgment, to be able to fit in rides at the amusement park, and to make skinny jeans look good!
I want to add that sometimes, people judge thin people for wanting to lose weight. "Like YOU need to lose anything". But because I've been through it, I know that even a thin person can feel fat. I imagine you usually feel better about yourself the "second time" you are thin, because you learned to appreciate it
I've have never been what you would call "thin". The lowest I remember was when I was 12 years old and I was a Size 10 (US Size 6). After that and for the next 9 years (up to now), I went up in size. Up until last year I was nearly a Size 16 (US Size 10) but now my Size 14s (US Size 8) are getting loose on me.
While I wouldn't consider myself thin or anything and while I have only lost 5lbs and around 10 inches from various places of my body, I can tell you that even now my confidence is growing. I feel so much better about myself and my body even though the chance has been little so far. And this seems to be a common feeling among people who would be consider thin/slim/slender. I look forward to losing more weight and feeling even better about myself.
