What does being thin feel like?
 

I have never in my life been thin (ok maybe from the age of 0-4). What does it feel like? It may be an odd question but I honestly dont know what I am missing so maybe thats why I am so comfortable being so heavy.

I haven't been thin either, but judging by what being 65 pounds down felt like, I'd say it's probably pretty awesome. I gained back 40 lbs pretty darn fast. Because I gained it so fast, I really notice that weight and how much harder everything is. I can't wait to get back to where I was and beyond because EVERYTHING is easier. Right now I'm just so tired.

I was thin growing up and when I say thin I mean rail thin to the point where people thought my parents weren't feeding me. It felt awkward and sometimes painful (hitting your bones on things hurts). When I hit puberty I gained a bit of weight and simply because I wasn't as thin as I once was I thought I was fat. I look back at pictures of myself as a teenager and can now see that I was thin then.

I may have felt a bit self conscious but it was nowhere near as bad as it is now. I would wear spaghetti strap tank tops and shorts in the summer and could go into almost any store and buy what I liked and not be reduced to tears in the fitting rooms.

I think back to it and I really miss the confidence I had then; yeah I would never have worn a bikini but now I won't even wear shorts.
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.). I personally am really looking forward to it I know there will always be things about my body that I won't like but I just want to have the same feeling of pride and confidence I used to have or even just not always being so concerned with how I may appear. I remember being able to wear just about anything and feel comfortable and know it looked good but now I am constantly concerned that I look fat.

damn good, haha .....I only weighed about 115 up until I got married....and I, like Veela, just remember how much confidence I had and how I never worried about clothes fitting or shopping ...everything was so much easier...can't wait to get back there ...well not 115 but to a thin goal

Carri

I was only two lbs from my goal weight last summer (132) and thin felt so much easier. I could try on clothes and most things looked good on my frame. I felt so much more confident. I had no issue being at the beach without a coverup (I can't remember a time before last summer that I didn't have shorts on over my swimsuit) and felt great in shorts. I was no longer worried that when strangers would look at me in public they were silently judging me for being chunky. Running at the gym also became easier as I lost more weight.

I'm up about 10 lbs, and although I'm not overweight, I'm looking forward to the added confidence that I'll feel when I get closer to goal. :)

I also was skinny until puberty, and then fairly "not fat" until young adulthood. I first gained weight in my early 20s - coincidentally, one of the most hellish periods of my life - and then took it off again in my later 20s. Now I'm working off the baby weight.

Being shapely, or thin, or fit, whatever you want to call it, it feels good. Quite good. You enjoy having your picture taken, among other things. For me, it's worth fighting to be shapely, it's worth giving up favorite foods for a while to get back there, and then really monitoring myself to stay there. It's a good feeling. You can practice for this good feeling by feeling good about your hard work and the progress you do make with your weight loss efforts. :)

I was thin for a while a long time ago, too. But I think it was different then because I couldn't appreciate it. I was 5'8" and 130 lbs and I thought I was huge. BUT, at the same time, I could wear anything. I hardly ever tried clothes on because I knew that anything between a size 4 and a size 10 would probably fit me (not always flatteringly, but still...) I just eyeballed it. And it worked. I didn't have anxiety about people watching me eat, or run, or swim.

This time, I think it will be different because I've been truly fat for so long. I can only imagine how different it will feel to live in my body when it weighs significantly less!

I was thin as a teen/young adult and didn't get heavy until my 30's. In addition to being a healthy weight, I was also quite active- and that felt great. I have managed to lose 38 lbs, and it feels good. I'm not thin, but I can feel the difference in my body vs. 38 lbs ago. I have more spring in my step, I feel smaller, I am more capable of physical activity now and I have more energy. My goal is to achieve the weight I was prior to gaining all this, but mostly I want just to feel healthy and physically capable of doing the things I know I ought to be able to do.

I've been overweight my whole life. Being thin feels like I can accomplish anything.

I think the best thing is that we stop thinking about our bodies as obstacles but as tools. Though I would like to lose a bit more, I now feel lighter, not self-conscious, and use my body to do things: I walk, I jog, and I am more expressive with it, since I don't feel bad when people look at me. I like discovering bones under what used to be "padding"... Hightly recommendable!

I may not still be "thin" or as thin as I'd like to be, but I know I'm no longer 220, or anywhere near it, so when I walk, I walk around with confidence, with my shoulders back and as if I can do anything. I also feel like I get more attention, and people are nicer to me. It's strange, but I don't seem to be angry at the world anymore lol.

Once I get to my goal, I'm sure I'll be much more confident though, I think feeling thin comes with being happy with the way we look. :)

When I was at my slimmest, I had so much more confidence in my clothes and my appearance. My husband has noticed as I've lost weight that I love to go shopping, no longer avoid mirrors and I actually do put on makeup. He thinks I've been looking so much happier and excited about life in general (although this is probably partially due to tackling my social anxiety problems which kept me housebound most of the time).

I still have at least 12-15p to go but I have lost a lot in inches and I can tell you I feel sooooo much better, I don't know why I waited so long to do this but I guess I just wasn't ready. I have been thin before but the last 9 years I have been "fluffy" after having a child in 2002. The strangest sensation is my arms no longer touching my sides anymore when they hang down. The space feels so odd but awesome.

It feels good being thin, because you can wear anything you want. But being too thin is also not good, people may mistake you as anorexic or drug addict! lol!

I never thought I was thin (but in retrospect I realize that yes, I was thin) so I can't really tell you what it felt like. Shopping was a little easier but still not super easy because I'm so short. I had to wear a lot of little girls clothes. I remember it was better than being fat like I am now but that's about it.

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. :D

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.

This is such an inspiring thread...chasing a feeling is much more inspiring for me than a look, which is supposed to make you "feel" a certain away.

Originally Posted by Veela:
........
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!!

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. :dizzy:

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.

Like some other ladies have mentioned I was never super thin, but in high school I was what you'd call "jacked." I was a three season athlete and solid. When I gained after college, after the sports stopped, I missed feeling strong. Strong and confident made me feel sexy and I miss that, I think.

Also, other things have had me thinking recently, not so much what I missed about being thin but what I DIDN'T miss about being heavier. The other day I carried a 20lb box of cat litter up three flights of stairs and when I got to the top I realized that when I was at my highest, I had 4 of those boxes on my all the time and that sucked. I guess I miss being thin and I know what it's like to be heavier and I plain old didn't like it.

I think this is a GREAT question. When I use food to numb out on a regular basis, my whole body goes a little numb. I've gone up a down a few times, so here's what I can tell you about my body's feelings (NOT about looks/confidence, but physical sensations):

--My lower back doesn't hurt
--My stomach doesn't overbalance my lower back
--My weight feels centered over my legs and pelvis
--My breasts are smaller, and my upper back doesn't have to work as hard to be upright, sitting or standing
--My knees don't hurt
--I feel light and springy, like I'm energized by a physical challenge

From a whole person perspective, I personally feel that it is vital to separate how we look from how we feel. Looking good is great, but feeling good and being able to feel one's own bodily sensations is a bedrock of physical and emotional health. I'm on a journey toward that place!

When I walked, my thighs didn't rub together. My posture was better. And I loved wearing things that were sleeveless during the summer, I didn't have to worry about upper arm chub rub, and I sweated less!

It feels amazing. I reached "thin" for about 2+ years of my adult life (2009-2011).

For me...

It feels like all of my physical insecurities are gone.

When I was thin...

I felt like a tremendous burden had been lifted in that I NEVER worried about how I'd look in something. I felt excited to put on clothes. I felt excited to shop for clothes. I felt excited to see my reflection. I felt like I could do anything I wanted to do. I felt amazing. I wanted to be outside. I wanted to be seen. I really enjoyed doing things.

But, I mean, I had been heavy my entire life so this "being thin" thing was like being reborn for me.

I've never been "thin", but when I know that when I weigh less, I have so much more energy. I felt at my worst after Baby No. 1, when I hovered around 215 for several months. I got winded so easily, it was embarrassing. And none of my clothes fit, so I had to buy "fat clothes" even though I had lost a whole lot of weight before I got pregnant. That just caused a downward spiral and it took me months before I got mny butt in gear and did something about it.
And even now, my goal isn't thin so much as it is fit. I have a large frame and broad shoulders and I can really only get so thin without looking and feeling kind of sick. I'd like to get down to about a size 6 or 8, from the 16 that I am post-pregnancy. At least this time around I started exercising and losing weight sooner, and I can already run a couple of miles fairly easily.

I was thin my entire childhood into my early twenties. I didn't gain weight till I had my first child. Life was definitely way easier when I was skinny. I just took it all for granted. I loved shopping & I for sure bought clothes that highlighted my slim body. Now when I shop I buy shoes, handbags, jewelry, or scarves. My goal is to be able to buy a pair of tight leather skinnies by the end of this year. I think when I do get skinny again that maybe I will make more of a effort on my appearance. I want to cut my hair like Michelle Williams, something I would never do this fat. So what I am trying to say is thin feels really good. However if you were like me (skinny most of your life) you never enjoyed it, you simply took it for granted.

Light, beautiful, perfect, ... hmm ... feels like everything is right with the world.

Amazing.

I know many people who say that being thin doesn't solve problems, and that women need to feel happy no matter their size. However, that's just not true! When I was thin I was generally happy, and not so self conscious. I wasn't trying to stay out of pictures, and I wasn't afraid to be in pictures.

I'm trying hard to feel like that now that I'm a hundred pounds bigger, but it's hard :(

At my thinnest 15 years ago, I felt fantastic. I felt way more confident, dressed nicer, felt sexier....clothes shopping was fun. I couldn't have cared less about food, either. I only ate to get rid of the hunger - that was it. Then moved on to the next thing. I didn't count calories, either. Come to think about it, I didn't obsess over food at all.
Like others said, too - I felt so light, so springy - energetic, I guess. Now I feel tired and weighed down.
Must get back to that place.....it was so lovely!

I've never been thin, but I have been average at about 160lbs. At 5'8 it wasn't too bad and I could fit a lot of things at stores. Of course at 15 years old I felt humongous and all I wanted was to be super thin at 120 lbs. My goals have since changed. :P

One thing I really imagine will be nice about being at goal will be to put on a t-shirt and not worry about my rolls pushing out. Right now I usually wear t-shirts or tank tops but then I put on some sort of jacket/hoody/sweater to smooth out the belly area. Obviously I still look overweight but it makes me feel better.

It will be really cool to just wear a shirt the way it's meant to be worn. It sounds silly, but I'm personally looking forward to it. I don't really have a desire to wear shorts but I do have a desire to wear dresses more often. I'm a pear shape and a lot of my weight goes to my butt and legs so it'll be a while before I feel really comfy in a dress but it'll be really nice.

:)

Also, I imagine the other great thing about being at goal will be a higher level of fitness. Lifting things, walking, climbing stairs...these things are all difficult for me right now. I can do them, but it's not really pleasant. I think it would be great to be at a place where I can wear things I want and go out with confidence that no flight of stairs is going to ruin my day.