I have thought quite a bit about this as I pondered what might end up being too skinny for me...

It comes down to priorities for me, everyone's are different.

I want to be as skinny as possible without compromising my health, energy or quality of life.

My priorities are:
- preventing injury
- being properly fueled all day long with whole foods that are as local/organic as possible
- strength, mobility, agility, hearth health, muscle tone, bone density, endurance
- ability to have fun! I travel to amazing places all the time, I got out a ton, I drink a little, and I eat at amazing places. Will not live a lifestyle that doesnt support the activities I love.
Weights, body fat and bmi measurements are too general to work.

If I reach 17% body fat, but have zero muscle that is clearly not ok. If I somehow were to reach 17% body fat and be in competitive athlete shape that is a whole different story.

I think it is really excellent that your body now matches who you always felt you were on the inside. This experience can definitely lead to more happiness. A really interesting thread you could write would be on the difference you felt being 'average' vs being 'skinny'. For example, are you more outgoing or are you actually quieter (you don't feel the need to strive for peoples' approval). How do you think others treat you differently in general? Are you doing better or worse at university? Have your goals changed in life now that you are 'waify'?

I've always been 'normal' size, and part of me has always wanted a bit more of a feathery look (just wanted to experience it) - so I guess I'm just curious.

I think worrying about being "too skinny" is something that I struggled with for WAY too long. I was worried about what others would think and if I would look sickly, etc. When it comes down to it though, I trust ME. I have faith in my ability to make good decisions for myself. I believe that if we listen to our bodies we'll know when/if we've gone too far. To me, too skinny is something that is unmaintainable without going to unhealthy measures. It's like being overweight. Some are healthy when their BMI is considered "overweight" but when you're overweight and unhealthy you KNOW it, even if you don't want to believe it. Your body tells you.

"Too skinny" is something I'll never know firsthand, that's for sure! Hyuck hyuck.

I have lived in Japan the past 2 years so I have very lenient standards for "too skinny." The average woman here is a size 2-4 (US) and very petite and contrary to what a lot of people say, is not anorexic or otherwise eating disordered. Which is impressive, considering weight loss adverts in magazines' "before" and "after" weights boast success stories that end with BMIs in the 16s.

I suppose if I look at you and see a "lollipop" with a bony face and ears that look comically large, you are registered as "too skinny" from a strictly aesthetic perspective. Other than that, like many other posters have said, it's a matter of personal individual health and a sustainable lifestyle.

Everybody is different, but don't rely on your own judgement, and don't rely on your man's judgement. If you are really concerned that you have a problem talk to a GP.
Is it that you are scared you have body dismorphia or a unhealthy relationship with food - do you use it to get control in your life?
Do you know deep down you need help - if so do something about it. Tell somebody and ask them to hold you accountable for what you need to do if it's going to a doctor or counsellor, or just not to loose too much weight.

I can only determine "too skinny" for myself. Too skinny is when I'm below my maintenance weight and I start to feel icky and fatigued. I know that that is a vague description but I really have no other way of describing it. It's similar to feeling dehydrated but not as bad as that. In order for me to be really "too skinny", I would have to seriously restrict my food intake and start exercising much more than I do now. I not ever one to avoid social events to that I won't eat either. At my current weight, I'm a 4/6/8 and feel really good. I'm not willing to make that effort to strive for a lower weight that is clearly unsustainable for me.

Others around me do feel that I'm too skinny and do make comments. I agree that America's idea of skinny is skewed to probably within the overweight bmi category. I try not to let it get to me, although sometimes it does.

Too skinny is when you stop getting your period and your hair falls out... Too skinny is when your health suffers. Too skinny is when your friendships suffer because you are behaving like a lunatic and leaving charcol in your friends bathroom.

Just like I think too fat is when your health suffers. If you are skinny and healthy and happy, then that is fine. If you are chubby and healthy and happy, then that is fine, too.

Thanks guys, I think you all have about the same definition as I do. There is no set metric standard of too skinny. It's an individual thing based on how that person feels about themselves, their health and energy level, how maintainable their lifestyle is, if they're able to find moderation and maintain their weight, etc. And even appearance-wise, it depends on the person's features, build, and frame and so on.

Jay, one minor insignificant correction...I'm 126.4lbs (as of this morning) and 5'7, not 5'5...if that makes a difference. I'm not skeleton thin, or even celebrity thin. But at size 0-2 (and a rare 4) and extra small or small, I am thin enough, lol.

Bonnie, I'm not really sure how to describe the differences I feel between average and thin. My entire life I was on the chubby side of average. Always a "big girl," but never truly fat. I was definitely on my way to fat in these last few years though (minus this year, obviously). So although I never really had the full fat experience, I have spent a lifetime wanting to be thin. It's nice to be on the thin side for a change.

It sounds grossly vain and silly to "type it out loud," but I honestly am proud of being a waif. I like weighing 126lbs even if I'm the only one who knows the number. I like saying the number when weight is brought up in conversation, and I like when people say "wow, that's tiny." We were watching football, and they were saying the weights of the players, and I liked that most of them weighed more than two of me. I liked that people commented on that fact, lol. I like all the thin comments. I don't even mind being poked in the ribs and called too scrawny. I like being the thinnest or one of the thinnest in the room. I like when my fiance picks me up and can fling me around like it's nothing. I like going into any store and picking any size small or 2 and being confident they'll fit and will most likely be decent looking. I don't even bother trying on clothes sometimes. I like feeling small and light and dainty and little.

And yes, I do recognize that all this sounds pretty lame. I realize that I have been brainwashed by the media to believe that thin is beautiful. But who hasn't had horrendously vain thoughts? Again, I feel great, I eat plenty, I exercise very moderately (probably should work out more, in fact), I indulge without bingeing, I know when to have a beer and burger with friends or when to order a salad with no dressing. I do not think I fall under any definition of "too thin."

Megan, I love how well you articulate your vain thoughts. Come on now! Honestly, your thoughts are too well thought out to truly be vain. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the way you think at all. You have so earned the right to your pride in many, many ways.

I like being small and feeling light as well, it isn't vain in my opinion. It is being happy with yourself and liking who you have become. I don't think you are crazy skinny like some of the people we see in the media, and I know I'm not.

It's not lame. It's okay - it is how you feel and how you choose to be comfortable in our own skin. Personally, I didn't like being waif-like (I was for many years) and chose a more athletic look for maintenance. To each their own - as long as we are happy and healthy, you should be proud, you've done a great job!

I think "too skinny" is a personal decision, based on the intersection of your mind and your body.

First, there's your mind - the aesthetic that appeals most to YOU, whether that be tiny, muscular, rounded and soft etc.

Then, there's your body, which may or may not match with your mind. My body DOES NOT match with my mind. I would love to be tiny. It is a physical impossibility. I can be strong, I can be muscular, I can be fairly lean, but I have shoulders like a linebacker, carry a ton of muscle, and look (and feel!) sick when I get even into the normal BMI ranges (when I hit my "goal", which was just barely a normal BMI, I had to eat a calorie level such that even with quality, nutritious food, I was starving and exhausted all the time and my hair fell out. No good! So I adjusted my goal weight upward and let go of the idea of being "normal", BMI-wise).

Likewise, someone whose aesthetic ran to higher weights might run into issues where their body starts struggling with carrying that weight...knee problems, other health problems, etc.

So "too thin" can only be determined when taking into account your body, your aesthetic, and where the two can reasonably intersect.

For me, too skinny would be under 95 pounds. I also don't think that 125 at 5'7 is "skinny," I mean I don't even think I'm "skinny." I could definitely lose 10-15 pounds without starting to look emaciated.

See, this is an interesting perception. I think it depends on how we view ourselves personally. If you are 5'5 and have a goal of 98lbs, that would put you at a BMI of 16.1, which is underweight/bordering on severely underweight (16), a common BMI of people with anorexia. Having been 5'5 and 109lbs, I looked pretty ill. At the time, I thought I looked normal. I suppose you have to take into account self-perceptions and body frames.

When I was younger and weighed 130lbs everyone mentioned how thin I was. Now I hear from people that knew me back then that they thought I looked sick....ummmmm thanks people!
I want to lose another 5lbs and judge from there how I look and feel but I will go by how I feel...do I feel healthy or do I catch every cold that goes by me? I do not feel overly thin by any means but I have had a few people tell me that I am thin enough. I feel good right now and if I still feel good in 5 lbs thats great and I will take it from there but you know your own body and how you feel. I think you look beautiful, really, and as long as you are feeling healthy then I think you are just fine.