A FEW WAYS TO STOP WORRYING ABOUT BEING ‘SKINNY’
People are always trying to get more skinny. It’s the main reason a lot of people start exercising — to lose weight, lose weight, and lose more weight. And no matter how much we lose, there’s always a little bit more to go. Especially for people relatively new to exercising, it’s extremely hard to reach a solid, happy level of satisfaction.
But should being skinny be the ultimate, actual goal of exercise, of any attempt to lose weight? Now, before we get into this question further, one thing we should say: there are people who are just naturally skinny. A lot of this depends on your body type and metabolism, which we’ve talked about elsewhere on the site.
But let’s go back to ‘getting skinny’ as a goal — although exercise will help you lose weight, there’s got to be a better direction than just ’skinny’. There are a few reasons why we think the whole focus needs to shift, and they drive everything we put on the site. Let’s talk about them.
WHY THE FOCUS SHOULD CHANGE TO ‘GETTING FIT’
Becoming skinny isn’t very realistic over the long term. Besides the fact that the whole process of losing enough weight to actually become fashion-model skinny is really difficult, maintaining it — while still eating well and having enough energy to live your life — is extremely hard.
Getting fit, on the other hand, is far more measurable — you can track your progress, see specific, satisfying changes to your body, and not be holding yourself up to an unrealistic standard.
That’s actually the most important thing — psychologically, it’s far easier to work towards getting fit than getting skinny. One is a specific goal that’s sustainable, the other is a societal idea that changes with the times and is famously elusive.
If your goal is simply ‘to be a skinny person’, you’ll always find ways to not measure up, no matter how skinny you might get. Fundamentally, it’s just not realistic.
When you combine these two things — a realistic physical goal with something that’s actually easy to deal with, psychologically — you’ve got an unstoppable combination. As an overall direction, getting fit is infinitely preferable to getting skinny.
But besides that, there are tons of other benefits, too:
OTHER WAYS GETTING FIT CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE
Your full-body health. Trying hard to get skinny can have terrible effects on your body, because you likely won’t eat enough, nor will you get a balanced amount of exercise. When you switch your goal to simply ‘getting fit’, it’s much easier to concentrate on making your entire body healthy, and you go from counting and denying calories to something much more healthful, well-rounded, and holistic in approach.
Your everyday strength. This one is great, just because it’s something you might not consider beforehand — but getting fit makes you way stronger (not super-muscular, just stronger!). Those little things you need to do around the house, or anything involving physical strength — they become a huge pleasure when you’re in shape (or even just getting in shape). You’ll seriously enjoy being able to actually feel your body, and feel each muscle as you use them.
Your physical confidence. Connected to that is just the sheer physical confidence that comes from being in shape. It makes you feel grounded, more present, and more at home in your own skin.
Psychological rewards. It’s not just about the attainable psychological rewards of being in shape, but other, more chemical ones, too — nearly nothing about the mad drive to ‘get skinny’ will give you the natural, amazing high that strong exercise will, and it’s proven that you’ll feel way better pursuing a plan that concentrates on fitness rather than one just concerned with dropping the pounds.
TELL US YOUR STORIES
If you’ve made the ‘switch’ from ‘getting skinny’ to ‘getting fit’, we want to hear about it: what pushed you to it? What keeps you there, psychologically? What do you use to avoid the constant ’skinny’ push from popular culture, women’s magazines, or the fashion world? Tell us about it!
Best,
Frederick
my gole used to be skinny, there was a time when i had a BMI of 18. now my goal is to be fit, to have some muscle pr definition to show, ive already gained weight, i´m 19.5 in my BMI and i love it, i feel stronger, i feel.. just better, i´m happy, my body has more shape, and i´m still thin.
Zuzana, you saved me from anorexia.
i have come to realise the same thing. in the past my goal was to see dropping the number on a scale, which was driving me crazy, i was lacking energy due to not eating enough. Nowadays (and thanks to you Zuzana and Frederick) i took a more relaxed approach – now my goal is to be fit, no counting calories or measuing/weighing my food. Now it is more about listening to my own body, aiming to be fit, stronger. and on this journey i am discovering a lot about myself.
being fit is the fountain of youth! how many truly fit people look their age? but look at a skinny person. they do not usually age very well. their skin hangs and they do not radiate health. yes, it is very important to become fit and even more so to remain fit. this is a lifestyle for me. i will always be fit even when i am unable to do some of the things i do now. thanks guys for the thought provoking topic.
i love this subject on being skinny vs being fit, ive always been naturally skinny and when i started going to the gym, first thing ppl would say is why you going to the gym? your so skinny already! the reason why im going to build muscle and show some definition in my body and so far its been good! people now notice im not just skinny! im fit :)
i´d wish that tv and magazines promove be fit not skinny cause girls go for anorexia instead a nutritional plan and exercises.
Thanks Zuzana for create this space.
soooooo true..!
I’d just understood it when I became loving myself more. Getting skinny is a nice idea to everybody, but it doesn’t seem natural. I understood that you can say that the thing is good – when you feel good. some years ago it happened to be that i started to loose weit, and i liked it. it wasn’t actually anorecsia, i used some doping… offcorse i felt awful. I was happy with my 45..44…43 kilogramms (156 sm hight) but I became to feel really exhausted. I new nothing about my body or how to eat right, that it is nessesary to drink water every day. After that I understood that my goal was stupid, that you need the balance and it is the only thing that make you happy! ^))
Suzana,
I love this site very inspirational.
I need some advice getting off a plateau. I run 30-35 miles do 3/1 hr cycle classes and 3/1hr weight lifting sessions a week. I keep a 1200 cal diet on most days except the weekends where the calories pile up> I am home with the family> Can two days of over eating really un do a week of hard work and spot on meals? please please any and all advice from anyone is appreciated. 6 months at this weight working my butt off is driving me insane.
Heather
Hi Heather
It might be a combination of everything you’re doing not just the two days of overeating. I know it sounds mad to even suggest it because we have all been conditioned over the years that running for miles on end is the best way to keep fit and lose weight but the most powerful way of losing it is diet and anaerobic exercise (just look at Zuzanna if you don’t believe me). The problem with endurance exercise (running for example) is that your body becomes more efficient i.e. it gets better at going for longer on less fuel this is due to the type of muscle tissue you use whilst performing endurance exercise. Its quite a complicated thing to explain but a book that helped me to understand was The New Rules of Lifting for Women by Lou Schuler.
You could probably replace the running with Zuzanna’s workouts five times per week along with eating smaller portions of ‘real’ food 5-6 times per day and I bet you’d see results within a few weeks (you’ll also have more time to spend with your family or doing something else you enjoy). I used to run 3-4 times per week and spend hours in the gym and my body always looked the same but I’ve ditched that and follow the routines on here plus lift weights 1-2 times per week and I’m so pleased with my results.
I hope this helps – have a look into the book as it goes in depth and explains things far better than I’d ever be able to. Good luck and let us know how you get on. You don’t need to be working out for this many hours per week honestly;)
My problem was that losing weight was (is) incredibly difficult even when I was backpacking all summer; when I spent a couple months in Tanzania, I hiked Mt. Meru with some friends, most of whom were (in my opinion) in better shape than me – certainly thinner. Out of all of them, I had the easiest time hiking even before the altitude started to kick in. It was a great feeling to see that the months of hiking in the northern Appalachians had actually paid off, even if they hadn’t made much of a dent in my gut.
I used to have a problem with anorexia on and off ever since childhood (age 7-22). I have always been skinny and to me it seemed that was all that was good about me so I desperatly tried to maintain it. It wasn’t until a guy I had a huge crush on kept forcing me to work out and eat properly that I started to see that I dont need to be unhealthy thin for people to like me. The greatest treat however, was that when I finally got into shape, I started to like and respekt myself and that was then I shanged my goal from being thin to being healthy.
I started working out to gain weight. I’ve always been really skinny, to the point that people assume I don’t eat or something, and it has always bothered me. Other than when I was pregnant, I’ve never been over 95lbs(I’m 5′3″). I also have some health issues, gluten intolerance and a thyroid problem. I hate hearing people say things like “I wish I was that skinny.” My response is always, ” No, you don’t.” It is incredibly hard for me to put on weight, but with allot of effort I’m starting to build up some muscle and I’m LOVING it!
People just don’t seem to realize that when you are really skinny, you get just as much crap from others as someone who is over weight. Instead, people mumbling things like “what she do, eat a cow?” you get “Do you ever eat?” or “you’re so skinny its gross.” All of which is incredibly rude! I’ve had people say things like that, or even just point out to me(like I dont know it) that Im skinny. Gee thanks, I never knew…
Being fit is waaaaaay better than being skinny, trust me.
P.S. Not all skinny girls are anorexic =)
I just had a conversation about being skinny yesterday. I will never be skinny and I am happy about that. I am a big guy.
I have dropped a lot of weight since I started training. And that is good. But I have put on a lot of muscle mass and that is more important. It helps me lose the fat I still have and feel like a super hero. :)
I did not believe eating 5 times a day or more would make a big difference as long as I watched caloric intake. But now that I do eat at least 5 times a day I see true difference. I also FEEL different and don’t focus on food.
Power couple indeed :)
they are dedicated to shaping lives, not just bodies. In such a hectic world it’s sometimes difficult to keep sight of what is really important and how to maintain a balance, but when I come to this site I feel like I have my own personal support system (not to mention watching Zuzana is so inspirational)
The benefits of being fit FAR outweigh (no pun intended) those of being skinny. Longer life, healthy functioning organs, better mood, more energy. I have started my journey slowly but will definitely dedicate more time to becoming fit again.
Just have to create a decent playlist of workouts to get me started….so many choices! :)
you guys are the best
Hello Zuzana! Thank you for being here for us, for great tips. I’m tall(190cm) and was very skinny all my life(60kg)But last few years I finally put on weight, now I’m (75-78kg) its was very difficult to put on weight(all my weight on belly). My arms and legs are still thin. Last summer I started to work out in gym, now I’m in shape, but I got these addiction to gym, to exercise. Now looking for new exercises for abs. I work out out every other day, but still can’t get rid of fat(if its fat ) under belly, I do exercise for lower abs, but still no effects. Please tell me what do to. Shall I do exercise everyday and have diet? in the same time I don’t want to lose weight. Please any advise, thank you.