# Are you fat? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 22, 2009, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238 "2009-12-22T21:25:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![GameHat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ed655f/32.png) [@GameHat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GameHat)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/61 "2009-12-23T07:11:49Z")
Yep. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 7:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/62 "2009-12-23T07:14:00Z")
Yes. Male, 59 years, 5’7, 225 lbs. No delusional excuses, either… I’ve been a compulsive overeater for most of my life. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/63 "2009-12-23T07:32:14Z")
Yup, sure am. The trouble I have is that all the normal incentives don’t really work for me, since most of them revolve around “just think how great you will look and feel!” I don’t care how I look. I never have. And since I’ve been depressed since I was thirteen, and I was really skinny back then, the great feelings part gets a shrug too. I like to eat, and I hate to move around too much. Bad news. Essentially, all the incentive stuff tells me is if I give up what I like, and do what I hate enough, I’ll feel really great. Which I never have felt, fat or thin. ---
**Author:** ![Lucky\_13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucky_13/32/13209_2.png) [@Lucky\_13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_13)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/64 "2009-12-23T07:49:46Z")
Yes. For someone of my height (4’ 10"), I’m grossly obese. I would look just right if I weighed what I do now, but was a foot taller.🙂 The weird thing is, my fat has not only settled on various parts of my abdomen, but also on my legs. I am starting to have health problems because of this, including poor circulation and pain to the point that I have to put my legs up several times a day. You would think my blood pressure and other stuff would be a problem, but it’s normal, as is my blood sugar. My cholesterol is a bit high, particularly my triglycerides - it’s hard for me to give up red meat, and I tend to get anemic when I cut down on it. I know I have to lose weight, and sometimes the effort to change my lifestyle and keep it changed seems hard, but then I think of my mom, who weighs 10 more pounds than I do now, and all the meds she’s taking for her cholesterol, blood pressure, etc. and suddenly it’s a lot easier. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 8:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/65 "2009-12-23T08:27:12Z")
Yes, I’m fat. Again. Yo-yo weight loss/gain is the only thing I have in common with Elizabeth Taylor and Oprah Winfrey. I’m seriously considering seeing a psychologist. ---
**Author:** ![Icerigger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icerigger/32/432_2.png) [@Icerigger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icerigger)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/66 "2009-12-23T09:19:15Z")
Yes about 240 LBS. I have put on about 20 lbs this year mainly due to severe depression and a lot of family and employment issues. ---
**Author:** ![Elyanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b5ac83/32.png) [@Elyanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elyanna)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/67 "2009-12-23T10:09:45Z")
No. 122 lbs @ 5’2". Do want to lose about five pounds, though. ---
**Author:** ![Radegast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c4cdca/32.png) [@Radegast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Radegast)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 10:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/68 "2009-12-23T10:15:39Z")
Definitely getting there. I’m a big guy, so it doesn’t look too bad yet, but I’m heavier now, I think, than I’ve ever been. I know gym time will take most of it off – I just have to get back into a routine. In a word, I would say “yes.” ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/69 "2009-12-23T10:21:42Z")
Nope. I’m pretty much normal. ---
**Author:** ![Weedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/weedy/32/301_2.png) [@Weedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weedy)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/70 "2009-12-23T10:54:05Z")
Not fat, but wouldn’t mind losing 10 lbs. ---
**Author:** ![Kayeby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de0a6/32.png) [@Kayeby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kayeby)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/71 "2009-12-23T11:46:45Z")
No, but I’d like to lose some fat. My walking around weight is 130lb, which is heavy for 5’2" but my bodyfat is low enough for visible abs. I’d be happy if I could maintain my muscle mass and cut to 120lb to get from slim to ripped. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/72 "2009-12-23T12:25:32Z")
Not fat, but according to the BMI calculator I am overweight at 5’10 1/2" and 198 lbs. OTOH, my waist is 35". The BMI charts don’t work real well for weightlifters. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![wolf-alice](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/9e8a1a/32.png) [@wolf-alice](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf-alice)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/73 "2009-12-23T13:22:27Z")
Captain Lard is currently trapped by some genetic miracle in the body of a 5"10 metabolically advantaged veg\*an fidgeting neurotic who slaloms between 137lb and 147lb depending on gym visits and starch, so no. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/74 "2009-12-23T14:15:52Z")
I used to be really thin, even bordering on underweight. Then when I was about 32, my metabolism shifted, and despite maintaining my minimal exercise regime, and not altering my diet, I started to gain a thickening of the waist. It didn’t impact me physically too much, though it did bother me a little to see it there. Now I have increased my sedentary life, and hardly exercise at all, and the thickening has become true pudge. I am not obese, but I certainly am wobbling and sagging in ways I had not anticipated, and it’s likely getting worse (though I don’t weigh myself so don’t know the stats). I’d love to return to being skinny again, but I can’t see a way to do it with any guarantee. It seems to me that exercise and diet might help me maintain my current weight, and perhaps, just perhaps, reduce it a tad, if only in some randomly targeted zone, but that’s a lot of continuous concentrated effort for small unpredictable improvement. I’m disappointed that I’ll never see those underweight days again. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/75 "2009-12-23T14:23:35Z")
Not even close. I’m 6’ and 160 lbs. On the other hand, I am currently as heavy and as out-of-shape as I have been at any point in my life. Working a desk job is not good for the waistline. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/76 "2009-12-23T14:36:53Z")
I’m 5-9" and 165 pounds, give or take, which puts me at the upper end of the healthy BMI range. So technically not fat, but I’d really like to weigh about 10 pounds less. Unfortunately I seem to be stuck in the 160s. I exercise five to six days a week, so I am in pretty good shape. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/77 "2009-12-23T14:37:31Z")
BMI says I’m overweight. However, six months ago BMI said I was obese, so I’m making progress. I don’t have to shop in the plus-size section of clothing stores anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/78 "2009-12-23T14:47:12Z")
> [@TheTerribleTako](#): > > Evening out the responses with another no. I’m actually underweight. It’s just small bones and a fast metabolism. This is me also. However, I also have some attitudes about food that I recognize as not being in line with reality. I don’t consider myself an anorexic because I don’t see myself as fat, but I do have strict guidelines as to what I allow myself to consume. I am about 5’ 4” and less than a hundred pounds. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/79 "2009-12-23T15:06:56Z")
Fat. 5’6" and 200 (as of this morning). I’m aiming to lose about 40 pounds for now, then reassess and see if it’s realistic to go any lower. In my defense, I’m only fat because I eat too much and don’t exercise. ---
**Author:** ![black\_rabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@black\_rabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/black_rabbit)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2009, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238/80 "2009-12-23T15:20:23Z")
> [@Super\_Kapowzler](#): > > No, but I can’t gain weight. > 6’, 155. > Haven’t gained a pound in 22 years. > It sucks. Word. 6’1", 145. I’ve been the same height/weight for 16 years, despite having never worked out a single day in my life and eating complete garbage for most of it. My cholesterol’s 140 and my blood pressure is usually something like 110/60. I’d probably gain a few pounds if I quit smoking, but not much. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-fat/522238.md?page=5)