Starting to look scrawny
- Thread starter Basil.B
- Start date
Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
dubhghall
New Member
- Location
- Highlands, Scotland
Depends on the person!
I'm 5'7" pretty fit and weigh 60kg (133lbs) - light you may think. But at my work medical I came in at 13% body fat and the doctor said I was a healthy weight -I certainly have plenty of fat round my middle and if you think a pro cyclist is around 5% body fat that would make me about 55kg!
ttcycle
Cycling Excusiast
Is your boyfriend a transvestite?
Have you never seen the mens section?
Dearie me
Back on topic though - everyone is different, if you're concerned that you're looking too thin then try eating a little more but staying on a healthy diet -maybe with a bit more protein as well as some concentration on toning and high reps of lighter weights.
If you feel fine though and eat well and if you've been given a clean bill of health by the GP then just enjoy it!
youngoldbloke
The older I get, the faster I used to be ...
10 stone, 5' 7" = BMI 21.6 - right in the middle of the healthy range. (18.5 - 24.9)
ttcycle
Cycling Excusiast
but the whole point of this is that you can't compare yourself with another random stranger on a forum.
You may be of a different build, different muscle composition, different metabolism...this all affects what a healthy weight is - 10st may mean you're unhealthy but it may not be the case for another person. No one is saying you're unfit or less fit at your weight which is a good range for you.
These BMI things are highly inaccurate -if the OP is concerned he's losing too much weight then he needs to see his GP to check and also needs to take into account his physicality and how he feels in himself. If he gets a clean bill of health and is eating well and not over exercising then hey presto..he's ok
You may be of a different build, different muscle composition, different metabolism...this all affects what a healthy weight is - 10st may mean you're unhealthy but it may not be the case for another person. No one is saying you're unfit or less fit at your weight which is a good range for you.
These BMI things are highly inaccurate -if the OP is concerned he's losing too much weight then he needs to see his GP to check and also needs to take into account his physicality and how he feels in himself. If he gets a clean bill of health and is eating well and not over exercising then hey presto..he's ok
Top Shop sell mens clothes?
In my day it was Top Shop for girls, and Top Man for boys.
Back on topic though, before I started cycling again after a few years off I was up to 82kg and I'm 5'9".
I was starting to get a bit of a spare tyre, but within nine months of riding again I'd gone down to 73kg without any concious effort to diet.
People who I hadn't seen for a while were telling me how much thinner I looked, and I needed a lot of new smaller clothes for my upper body.
If you can find clothes that are cut for a tailored fit then you won't look skinny. As has been said already though, most clothes are made for the average shaped person.
Globalti
Legendary Member
A bit of a thread hijack but I got a horrible shock once after a Polaris mountain marathon; the event centre was in some kind of old manky red brick building with nasty cold white-tiled showers. As I passed the showers I glanced in and saw a line of naked cyclists, skinny and white with 48 hours of beard and muscly legs, covered in mud, queueing for the shower, shivering and covering their privates with their hands. For one awful second I really thought I'd been transported to the gas chambers at Auschwitz.
spacecat
Active Member
- Location
- Cleator, Cumbria
I've always been the same weight as when I was in my teens, 67 kg and 5'10" tall, am now 43. I have always been concious of how skinny I looked, and people have always told me so.
I went to the docs recently for one of those well man checks, given my advancing years! Everything was okay, no problems whatsoever.
I am now starting to accept, age helps, that I really am okay. A couple of things recently really brought this home to me. A friend who I work with went for one of those checks, he is the same age as me and does call me skinny. He is what today would be described as 'normal'. However they found high BP and diabetes, and he is the one calling me skinny!!! WTF.
Also in April I tore a muscle in my back in a horrendous injury, I was on my back for two weeks and am still struggling with sciatica now. Long before I got back on the bike I was going out walking to try to get movement back and build some strength. I remember going into work one day and someone asked how I was. I said I was okay and managed a three mile walk at the weekend. She looked at me with suprise and said "well you must be okay now, as I can't walk three miles and there's nothing wrong with me". Again WTF!
I think the thing is that if we have no medical problems associated with weight, and can ride and enjoy our bikes (remember a lot of people can't) then **** what anyone else thinks.
I really do feel so thankful that I am now able to enjoy my bikes again.
I went to the docs recently for one of those well man checks, given my advancing years! Everything was okay, no problems whatsoever.
I am now starting to accept, age helps, that I really am okay. A couple of things recently really brought this home to me. A friend who I work with went for one of those checks, he is the same age as me and does call me skinny. He is what today would be described as 'normal'. However they found high BP and diabetes, and he is the one calling me skinny!!! WTF.
Also in April I tore a muscle in my back in a horrendous injury, I was on my back for two weeks and am still struggling with sciatica now. Long before I got back on the bike I was going out walking to try to get movement back and build some strength. I remember going into work one day and someone asked how I was. I said I was okay and managed a three mile walk at the weekend. She looked at me with suprise and said "well you must be okay now, as I can't walk three miles and there's nothing wrong with me". Again WTF!
I think the thing is that if we have no medical problems associated with weight, and can ride and enjoy our bikes (remember a lot of people can't) then **** what anyone else thinks.
I really do feel so thankful that I am now able to enjoy my bikes again.
Glover Fan
Well-Known Member
- Location
- Almondsbury, Nr Bristol
I'm 5'10 and 10 stone bang on. According to the BMI index am not underweight. I have little muscle, but I don't need it, only muscles that count for me are on my legs and they are doing nicely.
When I was a 38" waist buying clothes was easy, now I'm a 30" waist it gets increasingly difficult and I have found I can't go to cheap clothes shops because they don't do good fitting or correctly sized clothes.
What I don't understand is why people who are skinny get so much concern from outsiders yet we see on a daily basis massively overweight people on this forum and it is just accepted as a norm.
I'm healthy, I haven't been Ill for years, only had one cold last winter. So there is obviously nothing wrong with being 10st.
When I was a 38" waist buying clothes was easy, now I'm a 30" waist it gets increasingly difficult and I have found I can't go to cheap clothes shops because they don't do good fitting or correctly sized clothes.
What I don't understand is why people who are skinny get so much concern from outsiders yet we see on a daily basis massively overweight people on this forum and it is just accepted as a norm.
I'm healthy, I haven't been Ill for years, only had one cold last winter. So there is obviously nothing wrong with being 10st.
spacecat
Active Member
- Location
- Cleator, Cumbria
Different to what's accepted as normal these days?
My boss blames my Roadie for my back injury. Although the Physio said it had nothing to do with it. Same thing really. He blames the bike cos he can't ride one. So he's comfortable with being 'normally' large and convinced bikes wreck backs.
Denial, the most predictable of all human responses (points for who gets the film that's from)
My boss blames my Roadie for my back injury. Although the Physio said it had nothing to do with it. Same thing really. He blames the bike cos he can't ride one. So he's comfortable with being 'normally' large and convinced bikes wreck backs.
Denial, the most predictable of all human responses (points for who gets the film that's from)
Scilly Suffolk
Über Member
Without a proper assessment from a medical professional, it's impossible to say if you are unhealthily underweight: any measure such as BMI is a necessarily broad scale. If you are in any way concerned, go see your Doctor.
If you do want to "bulk-up" usefully, the following should be remembered: exercise - nutrition - rest. Exercise provides the stimulus your body needs to change; nutrition fuels the change and rest provides the opportunity for that change to happen.
Compound, weight-bearing exercises focusing on the big muscle groups will produce hormones that will stimulate the whole body to grow, not just the targeted muscles. Deadlifts, squats and the chest press are good examples. Additionally, weight-bearing exercise addresses the decline in bone density (which accelerates past forty years old) which cycling doesn't.
Eat more, smaller meals rather than fewer, bigger ones, about five or six times a day. Three hours after a meal have a snack, two and a half hours after a snack have a meal; this will keep your metabolism fired-up, rather than peaking and slumping as with the traditional "three square meals a day". Breakfast should be larger than Lunch which should be larger than Dinner.
Getting sufficient rest means sleeping enough and not over-training. Eight hours sleep is a good starting point: if you need an alarm clock to wake-up, you're not getting enough. Allow at least a day and preferably two between gym sessions: once or twice a week is plenty to get good results. Gym-fascists who do whole-body workouts five times a week are idiots; "no pain, no gain": b*llsh*t.
But before you do anything else, get professional advice: until you know where you're at, you can't decide where to go!
If you do want to "bulk-up" usefully, the following should be remembered: exercise - nutrition - rest. Exercise provides the stimulus your body needs to change; nutrition fuels the change and rest provides the opportunity for that change to happen.
Compound, weight-bearing exercises focusing on the big muscle groups will produce hormones that will stimulate the whole body to grow, not just the targeted muscles. Deadlifts, squats and the chest press are good examples. Additionally, weight-bearing exercise addresses the decline in bone density (which accelerates past forty years old) which cycling doesn't.
Eat more, smaller meals rather than fewer, bigger ones, about five or six times a day. Three hours after a meal have a snack, two and a half hours after a snack have a meal; this will keep your metabolism fired-up, rather than peaking and slumping as with the traditional "three square meals a day". Breakfast should be larger than Lunch which should be larger than Dinner.
Getting sufficient rest means sleeping enough and not over-training. Eight hours sleep is a good starting point: if you need an alarm clock to wake-up, you're not getting enough. Allow at least a day and preferably two between gym sessions: once or twice a week is plenty to get good results. Gym-fascists who do whole-body workouts five times a week are idiots; "no pain, no gain": b*llsh*t.
But before you do anything else, get professional advice: until you know where you're at, you can't decide where to go!
Although its only 1045, my money is on this being the best post of the day!
jimmys
Regular
- Location
- Chesterfield
Hard to see how you keep your energy levels up with only 3 meals a day.
I have 5, all fairly small portions, and it keeps me going all day - guess is depends on what job you do.
tsddave
New Member
- Location
- Bergen, Norway
Add 3 days a week of weight training.Start off working the whole body then after 3 months split each workout into seperate bodyparts.
Only do core exercises like Bench press for chest and bent over rows for back.
Aim to lift more each workout but do not sacrifice proper form of each movement.
Add more protein to your diet.
Do this for some months and you will bulk up and feel not only fit and healthy but strong also
Only do core exercises like Bench press for chest and bent over rows for back.
Aim to lift more each workout but do not sacrifice proper form of each movement.
Add more protein to your diet.
Do this for some months and you will bulk up and feel not only fit and healthy but strong also
