I know what my "thin" or "ideal" is: it's not a number, it's just what's been my average, kinda happy weight for the majority of my adult life. And it's just slightly smaller than I am currently. I don't think I could describe it well, but I just know and can feel it, lol. Basically very toned, well-defined muscles, pratically no jiggly bits, hands fit around my upper thighs, quite small sizes. And about 5-10 pounds less than that "thin" is where I start thinking "skinny," smaller than my average, where I might get to occasionally and feel really awesome about my body but not really sustain it long term.
I was also thinking just today actually, though, that recently my perception of thin for other people has changed! It's a big difference: I used to live in a place in central U.S. where overweight was not uncommon, and also come from a larger-sized family. Whereas, my current environment in a very health/fitness-driven urban city, and even more than that, at a university full of 17/18 year-old Asians. So while I felt "thin" and fit in the past, even at 20,30 pounds heavier than I am now, I now am surrounded by girls that make me look distinctly average and not particularly thin at all in comparison.
Whereas, my current environment in a very health/fitness-driven urban city, and even more than that, at a university full of 17/18 year-old Asians. So while I felt "thin" and fit in the past, even at 20,30 pounds heavier than I am now, I now am surrounded by girls that make me look distinctly average and not particularly thin at all in comparison.
When I first read the above I chuckled and said to myself "sounds exactly like my city". and then I saw you were from Vancouver which is where I live too! LOL. I feel ya girl. Size 00 is the majority here, hard to feel normal in our world...
The answer to this journey has changed for me throughout this whole weight loss process.When I started my journey, I thought a size 12 was teeny tiny. I'm talking minute! My goal was to be a straight 14 (as opposed to a 14W).
When I finally got to those sizes circa Onederland, I realized that vanity-sizing irrespective, they weren't as tiny as I thought and being that size and not considering myself skinny or slim at all, kind of influenced that. Now I'm in a size 6 (a size I'd never ever even imagined) and I think I'm "normal"-sized (in terms of neither chubby nor slim) but I wouldn't go as far as to say I'm skinny/thin/slim. I agree that part of the issue is that never having not been obese before and seeing some of the ravages a lifetime of being obese have wrought on my body, it would probably be hard for me to identify as thin which is fine. I don't have to be thin or whatever.
However, to answer the question, I've done a little research on "MyBodyGallery" and I'm thinking for me, slim/skinny/thin would probably be somewhere in the mid 120s range, which I think would be around a modern day size 0. But that's just for me. I have "skinny" friends who I've been friends with forever and now we wear the same size or I wear smaller sizes but I still consider them skinny or thin even now that they're bigger than me and even whilst not considering myself skinny also.
Last edited by toastedsmoke; 11-09-2012 at 07:06 AM.
I love all the answers! And, thank you, LaurieDawn!
I find I hold myself to different standards than others as far as my idea of "thin". I easily would have considered someone my current size slim, when I was over 200 pounds. I may even look at someone my exact size now and think they are slim, yet think I look bigger than them. I don't know.
I still don't know when/if I will even consider myself skinny/thin/ideal! I really would love to fit into a size 6 or 4, and I don't think it's as far off as I originally thought it would be. I constantly bug my thin friends asking what size they are thinking once I reach that size I will too be thin, but I think I will probably think what I do now -- that while *others* look thin at X size, I still actually look just normal/average/a little bit chubby.
When I was at my heaviest, or even at my mid-range weight (I was there for a couple of years) I would look at someone my size now and think that was the ideal, or at least close to it.
Now that I have been much more lean than I am now I see my current size as too big/chubby/thick.
For me my thin ideal is between 105-120 lbs. I've been 117 as an adult, somewhere around a size 6 and at that point could fit into my younger sister's clothes.
I have an "apple" shape so I'm very top-heavy. Clothing hangs off my chest like a circus tent, making me look larger than I am. For me I think I look best on the lower side of normal if you're talking BMI.
16-20 percent body fat for a woman. Probably 12-16 for men? My "skinniest" goal has always been to get too 18 percent body fat. I think the lowest I have even been was 22 percent. And 22 percent looks good and looks healthy, but in a swimsuit I still had plenty of cellulite and some fat rolls. I imagine at 18 most that aren't impossible to get rid of would be whittled away.
I do have this dream of fitting into a size six. Since I am so tall that would maybe be too thin for me. When I was my thinnest I looked great in cloths but like I said had some vanity areas I wanted to see shrink. At that time I wore a size 8. Now I'm almost busting out of my size 12's.
Who know on size though? This time I am working on lifting heavy and I didn't lift weights at my thinnest before. I dont know how that could effect size, I know it could effect weight. This is why I prefer to set a body fat percentage goal.
Now that I have been much more lean than I am now I see my current size as too big/chubby/thick.
Ditto that.
I hate it very much, that though for a long time I had great body image with being in shape and in the 110's, having got a glimpse of myself 10 pounds thinner, it's just not the same anymore. /:
For me, I don't know anymore. I was anorexic at my thinnest so... I'm taking it as it comes. I know I'm certainly unhealthy now. I also had a baby so I'm not too concerned with having a flat stomach like I did in high school. But I do have a double chin, larger arms and a bigger butt... I'd like to trim down to around 150. But we shall see.
And everyone looks so different it's hard to pinpoint on others. It's easy to tell when someone is slightly heavier and still happy and when others are skinny and miserable. So I take that into consideration, too...
I'll know when I get there. This is about the smallest I've ever been, prepregnancy, and that was a size 12/medium tops. I am almost positive another thirty pounds off that would be better for my frame and the look I'd like, but having never been that small I have no idea what size that would actually be!
I do have this dream of fitting into a size six. Since I am so tall that would maybe be too thin for me.
I'm the same height as you and my original goal weight was the same as yours. Then I dropped an additional 15 pounds while trying to figure out my maintenance calories. I don't think I look too thin -- just slender, which I'm really enjoying at age 55.
My clothing size varies widely, but a U.S. 6 or 8 is the norm for pants. (I have a pair of very stretchy Jag capris in a size 2, but that's a fluke.) For tops and coats I have to get a 10 or 12 because of my broad shoulders and long arms. I sometimes buy high-end designer coats on end-of-season sale, because I find the cut to be MUCH better for my body type.
Thin for me is between a 6-8 and around 135-140 pounds.
However, I notice that even though I'm wearing size 6 now, I have a little bit of extra boob beneath my boobs (KWIM?), so I think my most ideal thin will be getting rid of that extra fat pad, and minimize even more that spare tire and belly fat. More firm, fit and trim, rather than just skinny.
And for me, thin really means that I look skinny in all photographs, no matter what the angle, or if I'm sucking in my gut! LOL!
As a teen my smallest was 12-13-14. I know my nutrition is mostly far better than then so I hope I could get lower. I would love to be 12 again but since I'm medium boned maybe if I work at it 8? I don't know but to me I feel that would be thin for my general build.
) and small on top. No worrying about my stomach would be the ultimate skinny dream
