How Skinny People Eat

[shann]

So there's a thread on anOtHer board where they're discussing how naturally thin people eat. The conclusion they've come to is that skinny people make healthy choices naturally- like choosing to snack on pickles. In my experience, this isn't what I've seen.

My naturally skinny friends (when I say naturally, I mean the ones who aren't constantly dieting and stay a normal size) all eat junk food like everyone else. The difference that I've seen is Quantity. We'll get a plate of cheese fries and they'll eat a few and then stop eating; they actually stop before the end of the ice cream cone and throw it away because they're full; they eat half their dinner and take the rest home (and I actually see them eat it again for lunch the next day instead of sneaking back into the kitchen at midnight to finish it off). I think naturally thin people are aware of when they're full.

The other thing I've noticed is that they seem to easily balance out their food. If they've had a rich lunch, then they are drawn to the salad type dinner. If they help on a rich appetizer, then they're more likely to order the grilled chicken for an entree. Not because they know they should, but because that is what their bodies are craving. Again, they seem to be so aware of their bodies.

Has anybody else noticed trends when it comes to the naturally thin people in your lives?

 

[Elizabeth N.]

My dad was naturally thin, indeed SKINNY, virtually all his life. He ate bacon, things cooked in bacon fat, heavy cream, butter, you name it..... But he did HARD physical labor virtually all his life, too. He burned what he ate.

Even when he slowed down in old age, he gained very little weight. His metabolism stayed similar despite a reduced (but still very active compared to you or me) activity level.

Interestingly, his siblings--well, I can't speak for the two who died before I was around--were ALL prone to weight gain at least to some degree.

My mom was naturally thinnish, too. She gained maybe fifteen pounds above where she wanted to be when I was a kid--barely enough to qualify her (according to the mid 1970's standards) to enroll in Weight Watchers with me. The main thing she changed in her daily routine was to eliminate a slice of bread with butter and jam after supper each night. The weight fell off.

*Her* siblings were, far as I could tell, all much more prone to weight gain with age.

Mom ate somewhat less fat and whatnot than Dad did, but nobody these days would have called her diet anything like what those idiots are claiming naturally lean people eat.

However, she, too, was physically active, not as much as Dad was, but she was a rancher's wife. She had her garden and her chores and the usual activities of life.

I'm rambling. Anyhow, my observations of other "naturally thin" people parallel what I saw in my parents: higher overall activity levels, perhaps correlating with a higher resting metabolic rate, and portion sizes that satisfied them, but that would be considered pretty tiny in the Super Size Me age in which we live.

 

[brooklyngirl]

Hmmm, the naturally thin people I know, like you said- the ones that aren't obsessed with dieting/being fat/exercise nuts- eat whatever the hell they want. My brother and his wife are in perfect shape, my brother is tall, lean and muscular, my SIL is a size 2 with huge boobs. They eat like fucking pigs. They are both obsessed with food, always talking about the next meal while eating the first one. Now, that being said, they do eat lots of healthy food because they know it's good for them, not because they're trying to watch their weight, and they are both active because they like it and not because they're obsessing over perfect bodies. My bother runs just because he likes it and my SIL does yoga because she likes it. They walk around the streets (hills) of SF instead of always taking the car everywhere, it's just part of their lifestyle. I don't know too many naturally thin people who don't have to REALLY TRY to be that way, but I think I'm going to start investigating because I find it interesting

 

[conceit]

My father's side of the family gains weight easily, but they are very physically active. If they let slip even a little, they pack on the pounds, though not at the scale and with the ease of those with metabolic issues. But, they are so anal about it that they go on a military style physical training regimen lol ASAP. My dad was very fit (until he suddenly developed cancer for no discernible reason lol), watched his diet and was extremely active physically. He was lean and muscular, more like a typical mesomorph, gained muscle easily, pretty much all his life. He was also ex-military and had been an athlete (track and field) when younger.

My mom's side is the more 'naturally thin' 'eat whatever' type. But, I've noticed that she ate smaller portions and got full earlier. She was more of a grazer and was also quite fidgety, always on the move, always doing something, couldn't sit still for long lol. Most people have to work to stay thin, though those with compromised metabolisms have more complex problems. The same amount of hard work and diet control yields relatively meagre gains. This is just scratching the surface, of course. The DS evens out the playing field more.

I've only really seen one or two thin people ('naturally thin') who can literally whatever they want in whatever quantities, not workout much..and still stay thin. However, I would NEVER classify them as healthy. Absolutely not. When I was overweight, I was still far healthier, stronger and more physically active than them. I had great endurance and my cardiovascular health was significantly better than theirs. I earned my black belt in Karate, practiced Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, loved lifting and more, while those few super thin folks sat around and pigged out all day long, without any kind of social condemnation, let alone ridicule.

 

[Joanne]

The year before my surgery, I traveled on business extensively with a few of my sales reps - all thin women. I ate 3 meals a day with them, snacks and all from morning until bed, I noticed they didn't obsess about food, or count anything. they ate what they wanted - but - they did eat smaller amounts. I recall noticing that many ties. One night in an Italian restaurant we all got manicotti. Two of them exclaimed how huge the dish was...while I fully intended to eat it all. One day we stopped t Starbucks and a thin one went in to get our drinks. I was disappointed that she bought us all "talls"...I was a "venti" dammit! Also one day on the road with nothing but fast food choices I was horrified they suggested two snack wraps each from McD for lunch,

But the quantities didnt limit their choices. They drank wine, ate cheese, etc. I was the only one at Starbucks who ordered sf syrup. One of them got up early every day to work out.

Coincidentally, they didnt think I ate that much, After I lost weight Skinny Bitch #1 confided in me, remembering our months on the road, hat she assumed I was closet eating from the mini bar and room service. She said she couldnt understand how I was so overweight but she never saw me "pig out". It pissed me off at the time, now I'm not really sure how that perception makes me feel. Sad, I think.....

 

[Joanne]

Sorry for typos. I have a cast and a broken arm! ^^^^

 

[Jo777]

My husband is one of those naturally skinny folks. I notice a few things, besides the common thread of not really obsessing or giving much thought to food- he usually eats smaller portions, or more likely- stops when he's satisfied.. but he will occasionally go crazy with something like pizza or burgers/fries when we get them, which is not often anymore.. that last part leads into pt. 2, he only does this rarely! It doesn't create an eating monster for days running the way it can with me if I let in too much sugar/grains. If he eats big/carby/unhealthy.. he doesn't do it again for some time.. Frequency. He tends to (gasp) only want/think about eating when he's hungry. Sometimes this leads to him eating only 1-2 times a day. I also think he's more active, generally.. but not after work- otherwise, he's usually moving, fidgeting, or on task someplace. Home after work=couch, compy.

 

[Munchkin]

Watching what really thin people eat has been a lifelong hobby for me. I will never forget a young woman I knew back in the 70's. She was probably a size 0, petite, and gorgeous. We worked together so I was around her for 40 hours a week. She was so impressive that I still remember 40 years later. I spent untold hours damning my metabolism after watching her eat. Even if she ate nothing other than what I saw, she still ate 4 or 5 times what I did per day. Here's her normal. Breakfast, 3 egg McMuffins. Morning snack, full size candy bar. Lunch, burger, fries, shake. Afternoon snack, a pint of ice cream and sometimes another candy bar.

I just knew if there was any justice in the world, she would wake up one morning weighing 300olbs. But as far as I knew, it never happened. I often wonder how this worked as she aged but we both moved on and I lost track of her.

 

[southernlady]

My brother in law is naturally skinny...and he eats anything he wants, mostly junk food. I just HOPE my niece got his genes not my half sister's (ours) since she is MO even now and has been most of her life. I've mentioned the DS to her but she won't do anything surgical. She has other medical issues including a bad heart.

 

[Tabitha]

My best friend is very thin, and always has been. My ex husband is thin. My Mother is thin(and 5'10, with legs and 36DD, natural. Sigh. Its hard having a Barbie for a Mom) and one trend I did notice is that they do not pig out on sweets very often. They eat salty things.

 

[Jo777]

My best friend is very thin, and always has been. My ex husband is thin. My Mother is thin(and 5'10, with legs and 36DD, natural. Sigh. Its hard having a Barbie for a Mom) and one trend I did notice is that they do not pig out on sweets very often. They eat salty things.

Yeah, Todd is not a sweets person.. he'll have a snickers maybe a couple times a year.. but otherwise, it's meat, cheese, meat.. salt. Not sugar, but gyros. He's always been that way. The only time he gained up any sig weight was shortly after moving in with me, when I was still in the throws of carbo crazy pasta/zita fest.. when I started going a little healthier a few years prior to wls, and cut a lot of that out, he dropped 10 or so, then when I went mostly grain free months pre-op, and started eating more fat and veg, he got back to his 20-something lean level in the 140's at nearly 6' tall. He's the stereotypical ectomorph body type, long, lean and leggy ala David Bowie, sans cocaine.