Hey All,

I ate 1300 calories a day for the past three months. I lost twenty pounds.

Now, my mother and sister say I look anorexic at 135 lbs because my ribs show above my breasts.

I weighed 135 lbs before and my ribs did not show.

Have I lost muscle? If so, how? Also, how can I regain it?

I've attached a picture to give you an idea.

Thanks in advance.

It might have to do with the fact that you dropped the weight in such a short period of time. I'd give your body a few weeks to adjust to your new weight. If YOU feel that your collar bone and ribs are an issue that make YOU feel you look a way you don't think is best, then make the change. Sometimes family can mean well, but this was something you worked hard to achieve and they may just be concerned that you want to drop another 10 pounds or something.

Hmm... I am not really sure, but it is brave of you to post your pic and ask for input. In all honesty, I would say you do look rather gaunt in your pic, and unless you are modeling, I don't personally feel it's a great look. I am not trying to be hurtful or judgmental, but it looks a bit unhealthy to me. 1300 calories a day is very reasonable, and it's about what I lose at. An anorexic is certainly not taking in 1300 calories a day. However, since you do maybe look to bony, maybe you could see what adding 5 lbs. to your frame looks like? And with some weight lifting maybe you could get a stronger healthier look.

We all have very different bodies, so this is a tough one - how do you feel?

Some people are bonier in some places than others, specially when they lose weight, we're all really different in that respect.

I find when someone loses weight it takes a while for the family to adjust because they aren't used to the new slim look. Just reassure your family that you don't intend to lose more weight but you will focus on being healthy.

If you exercised regularly, weight trained more specifically, you should not have lost any muscle. If you didn't exercise at all you may be what is called "skinny fat". My suggestion would be to start weight training if you haven't been doing it all along. Adding a bit of muscle to a small frame will give you more curves. Keep eating healthy adding maybe 100-300 calories/day till you are happy with your look...

Good luck and keep us posted on your progress...

Goes along with the territory of losing weight.

I lost around 30-40lbs in 1 year and at a size 2, 117-118lbs, I get that comment occasionally. I am certainly not anorexic and can complete many of the same physical fitness exams that my boyfriend does (and he is a police officer who trains 2 hours a day!) - anorexics cannot do that!

Keep in mind that you cannot sustain 1300 cals/day at 5'9 and you will eventually have to increase. At 5'4 and my weight, I require 1350 calories just to SUSTAIN my body, and I eat 1800+ on an average day (2100+ on a workout day).

Keep in mind that 2 months is a very very short period to lose that amount of weight. Make sure you have a healthy strategy for maintaining HEALTH (what should always be our TRUE goal - not numbers on scales!)

I'm you height and I had a period of time when I started to think like an anorexic. I got down to about your weight and was looking very skinny. My parents were worried about me, but I just kept wanting to lose more weight. One day, I was sitting at the kitchen table w/ my family (picking at my food) and I started to faint in the chair. My brother said I turned really white. For some reason, that experience jolted me into stopping myself from goint to the direction of anorexia. I don't know what to tell you about your situation. On the one hand, your family loves you and they might notice something is not right, even if you don't. On the other hand, they might be over-reacting. My suggestion is for you to definitely not lose any more weight. Maybe increase your calories a bit and add strength training to your workouts (as others suggested).

I know that the few times that I have told my friends I am concerned about their weight, I really was concerned. It didn't come from a bad place at all. I think they love you and know that you probably respect their opinion. I think it is a hard thing to tell anyone that you are worried about their health. They may not have come about it gently, but they sound like they love you.

20 lbs in 3 months doesn't sound like you lost too much too fast...since that's less than 2 lbs per week. However, the calorie amount does sound quite low. What about increasing some calories, and at the same time, adding some strength workout?

Congrats in weight loss though! =)

from only the top look, it does seem abit unhealthy to me. Well, add many other suggest, you should add more calories, and donot lose any more pounds. Ppl have different body types, so even with same height, same weight, some will look skinnier and unhealthier than other.

Honestly, if you feel good about your weight then it shouldn't matter what other people say! People have different bodies and of course weight change will affect how they appear. I wouldn't worry to much about it, you've done an amazing job so congratulations on it!

I feel great about my pre-college weight. I still don't feel great about my weight distribution. At any weight, I'm thin on the top and heavy on the bottom. I thought losing 20 pounds would even the two out.

I didn't do too much exercising to lose the weight. I did yoga a couple of times a week and walked for 30 min. every now and then.

In addition to having the chest of a 70 yr. old*, I could be skinny fat. I want to be healthy and fit more than anything. (When I was 155 lbs., I wasn't healthy or fit either.)

I want to fill out the top and have a stronger upper body. I'm a little worried that it will just go to my butt and thighs. Where can I find info about building muscle? Should I see a personal trainer?

Annita: I'm posting a better pic. The dress is a size 4.

*I hung out with some 70 yr. olds this weekend and noticed a lot of the women's ribs (above their breasts) were showing. Apparently, when you get older you lose muscle. I'm hoping this is what happened to my body. I know I've supported 135 on my frame before without looking so skeletal.

I have the same body type as you hun! And I think u look amazing Below the waist u look fit and healthy - it's amazing tho that u are only 5 pounds lighter and 4 inches taller and u look so much smaller than i! I also have that frear of gaining on the *** and thighs!

I say what everyone else says - go for the weight training, work your chest a bit, etc etc...but really it's just your body type!

Dont worry fairy, at my lowest waist I'll have more fat on my *** than you probably would at 200lbs! You learn to live with it.. You all look gorgeous in my books just as you are

I'll take your body! I'm 139 right now, lost about 11lb so far, and 5'7". I'm aiming for 125, and I'm the same in the sense that my weight isn't distributed evenly no matter what. As I lose, I tend to lose from my upper body (even though I didn't know that was possible, haha). My thighs and butt look the SAME as when I started. But you honestly do not look bottom heavy to me. Do you have a before/after photo? Sometimes it's hard to see it yourself but others definitely notice.

I think only you will know if you are being unhealthy in your weightloss habits.


that aside - there are a number of moves that can increase your pec muscles and those might help?

you can see a trainder or look them up online.

either way its never fun to have people commenting negatively on your weight. (hugs)