is it me or is it hard to lose weight when you're already small?

i'm 5'5" and i weigh 111 lbs. im trying to lose some inches off my waist for physical reasons. i find that when you're already a small frame its so much harder to lose weight.

my best friend just had a baby and she is dropping the weight like no other. she eats probably as much as i do and does at home exercise. i hit the gym and eat at her rate and she loses 10 lbs and i lose 2.

why is it harder for smaller people to lose weight?

Original Post by lauricisakura:

sigh...try to be 5.2 like me...it's even harder.I try to loose 2 lbs for so much time,I don't know what to do anymore O.o.I'm 101 now

 2 lbs is not enough weight to make a noticeable impact on your appearance. You fluctuate 2 lbs just based on when you went to the bathroom last.

Original Post by emilyd22222:

Original Post by lauricisakura:

sigh...try to be 5.2 like me...it's even harder.I try to loose 2 lbs for so much time,I don't know what to do anymore O.o.I'm 101 now

 2 lbs is not enough weight to make a noticeable impact on your appearance. You fluctuate 2 lbs just based on when you went to the bathroom last.

 very true emily.  the people who try to lose 2 lbs to be 99 lbs have no idea how ridiculous it sounds when they cry about not being able to lose weight.  i bet skeletons and organs probably weight 99 lbs.  what else can you lose?

i dunno about that.  i definitely notice an extra 2 lbs on my own body (and i'm a lot bigger than 5'2" and 101), if not on someone else's.  i'm not agreeing that lauricisakura should be trying to lose weight, but she's certainly entitled to want that for herself.

reading this post i;m kinda just wondering what your waist it at now- at 5'5'' and 111 lbs i'm kinda guessing it must be pretty small anyway- is it really realistic that you could get it any smaller let alone a FEW INCHES??? and since your name is 23 inches is this what it is at now? i'm your height and quite a big bigger at 133 and my waist is 25 inches (it was 26 yeaterday though so i'm guessing it just depends on what i eat). it would be more realistic for me to get a few inches of my waist since i could still lose a bit of weight and still be in the healthy range. you however are already down there so it just doesn't seem reasonable that you would be able to get it any smaller,

and if you did think about how many calories you would have to eat just to maintain that!!! everyones natural healthy weight is different- i think that if it means having to eat less than a healthy amount of calories to maintain then its not natural and therefore not safe! sure you get the odd naturally tiny people but those are the ones who have to eat like 2500 to maintain!

how much are you eating now? and how much are you exercising?

Original Post by pgeorgian:

i dunno about that.  i definitely notice an extra 2 lbs on my own body (and i'm a lot bigger than 5'2" and 101), if not on someone else's.  i'm not agreeing that lauricisakura should be trying to lose weight, but she's certainly entitled to want that for herself.

 I think it's at least partly a mental thing. I've gained a couple over the last few weeks, but I didn't weigh myself until yesterday. I looked in the mirror and was OK with what I saw, but once you know the number attached to it, you start thinking, "Maybe my pants DO feel a little tighter..."

My point is mostly that people are so fixated on numbers that they don't realize that it often has little to do with how they actually look.

Original Post by 23inchwaist:

I have done some local runway events here in San Diego and I'm not looking to do catalog or anything like that. It's more like art photos and photos taken of me in swimwear and such.

I'm going to look into strength training. I am currently forcing myself to eat the minimal amount of calories a day since I am not really used to. I think this has to do something with my weight gain because my body is not used to eating the minimal amount.

Great news, please reach the minimum calories. You won't regret it and even if you notice a blip in the scales for the first few days after eating more, long term it will only help you healthwise, plus by eating more you might actually find it is easier to tone up the waistline better.

And I have to reiterate to you and all the posters what Claire said above:

Calorie Count's mission is to promote healthy and sustainable weight management. Please help our moderators follow this vision and respect the following guidelines.

We cannot and will not support diets that promote unhealthy lifestyle.

Original Post by emilyd22222:

 I think it's at least partly a mental thing. I've gained a couple over the last few weeks, but I didn't weigh myself until yesterday. I looked in the mirror and was OK with what I saw, but once you know the number attached to it, you start thinking, "Maybe my pants DO feel a little tighter..."

nope, not for me.  i know before i get on the scale what it's going to say.  i can tell by looking, probably to within a pound. 

as for 23inchwaist, i'm betting that her model buddies would have advice more along the lines of what she's looking for: cocaine, cigarettes, vomit, etc.

^^ I thought you seemed unusually nice today.

Original Post by pgeorgian:

Original Post by emilyd22222:

 I think it's at least partly a mental thing. I've gained a couple over the last few weeks, but I didn't weigh myself until yesterday. I looked in the mirror and was OK with what I saw, but once you know the number attached to it, you start thinking, "Maybe my pants DO feel a little tighter..."

nope, not for me.  i know before i get on the scale what it's going to say.  i can tell by looking, probably to within a pound. 

as for 23inchwaist, i'm betting that her model buddies would have advice more along the lines of what she's looking for: cocaine, cigarettes, vomit, etc.

 I'm impressed!

i can also pretty much tell what im going to weigh each morning.  not necessarily by looking at myself, but by the foods i ate the day before, how much water i did or didnt drink, etc..  it is discouraging when the scale says something more negative than you want, but at the same time, I dont notice a physical difference when i lose 1lb, so i dont notice a difference when i gain 1lbs either.  I find that taking an average of weights is way better than relying on one number.  as long as my average of the week isnt higher than the average of the last week, then things are fine.

I can feel your pain, although I am the same height as you, I am about 10 pounds heavier, which I feel is a bit over for me, as I feel most comfortable and healthiest at 117-118. Anyway, to answer your main question, about the waist issue, look into the Crunchless Abs video. I haven't used the video, but I know a friend who has and she seems to really like it.Also, pilates is very good for your waist/abs as well as the thing at the gym where you hang from it using your arms and lift your legs up into the air...lift your legs up straight out so that your legs are parallel to the floor. Do that until you tire your abs out, it burns but definitley worth it!

Just some ideas...good luck to you and your modeling career:)

Original Post by emilyd22222:

I also want to point out an important distinction- you are unhappy with your body shape, not your body weight. Losing pounds will not necessarily give you the body shape you want. With strength training, you may stay the same weight or gain a pound or two, but you may get closer to the body shape you want.

This is true. I really don't care if I gain a pound or lose it. Technically, it's the body shape that I'm most concerned with.

I'm with you on the low weight issue (I'm healthy though), but not the modeling. I'm too short for that (5'2"). It's understandable that you want to slim down for modeling but cc'ers take offense to people wanting to lose weight for vanity reasons and others consider discussion of low weights/calorie counts as triggering for those at risk for, suffering from, or recovering from an eating disorder. I'm sure you are fine and healthy. I am as well, but want to lose a few more pounds. What I do is discuss pounds lost, but not my current weight or goal weight, so as to not offend or trigger anyone. . . Who's gonna think anything bad about losing 2 pounds in a month? If anything, they'll think I'm not trying hard enough. . . I don't mean to encourage any unhealthy or deceitful behavior, but just suggest a way that healthy weight individuals can use cc without being lectured for wanting to simply LOOK better. That way, you can ask a question without feeling like you are trying to encourage starvation or promote an unhealthy standard. . . Oh, and I've noticed a big difference in my waistline a while back from upping cardio. (I still have a squishy waist problem now though that I'm working on). I've traded running for more walking and dancing as my cardio because I think it gives my legs a less bulky look. (How's that for vanity? lol)

Original Post by neslis:

I'm with you on the low weight issue (I'm healthy though), but not the modeling. I'm too short for that (5'2"). It's understandable that you want to slim down for modeling but cc'ers take offense to people wanting to lose weight for vanity reasons and others consider discussion of low weights/calorie counts as triggering for those at risk for, suffering from, or recovering from an eating disorder. I'm sure you are fine and healthy. I am as well, but want to lose a few more pounds. What I do is discuss pounds lost, but not my current weight or goal weight, so as to not offend or trigger anyone. . . Who's gonna think anything bad about losing 2 pounds in a month? If anything, they'll think I'm not trying hard enough. . . I don't mean to encourage any unhealthy or deceitful behavior, but just suggest a way that healthy weight individuals can use cc without being lectured for wanting to simply LOOK better. That way, you can ask a question without feeling like you are trying to encourage starvation or promote an unhealthy standard. . . Oh, and I've noticed a big difference in my waistline a while back from upping cardio. (I still have a squishy waist problem now though that I'm working on). I've traded running for more walking and dancing as my cardio because I think it gives my legs a less bulky look. (How's that for vanity? lol)

Yeah, I realized that I got some snappy remarks because of my current weight. I eat. I exercise. I should just refrain from saying my current weight and how much I want to lose...it isn't about losing weight necessarily...its the shape of my body that I'm most concerned about.

I've been upping my cardio too. About 1000 calories a day and I've noticed a huge difference. I've started doing HIIT and I feel like the weight melting. I've also lost another pound off it...I just need to keep up with my ab and love handle exercises to have a smaller waistline.

Try HIIT training on your cardio next time...trust me, you will feel the pounds melting.

Thanx for the suggestion! I am going to look up the info on HIIT in the fitness forum and try it tomorrow when I can go to the gym. I doubt I'll be motivated or energetic enough to burn 1000 calories though! I'll probably have to work up to that. Congrats on the weight loss and good luck with your modeling career!

http://www.intervaltraining.net/Lose_Belly_Fa t_Fast.html for the interval training. good luck and thanks!

Woah, if you gals who are over 5 feet are having trouble I'm totally screwed!!! I am only 4 foot 10.5 inches tall... that's 1.5 inches away from being considered a midget :P... I'd better get my workout act together!!

I agree - it is difficult to lose weight on a small frame.  I'm 5'1" and 110 and have been trying very hard to lose about 5 lbs but they don't really budge.  I do agree with the strength training to lose inches.   My weight hasn't really gone anywhere, lost a few lbs (107 lowest I got).  But I did lose a couple inches (of which I gained back after the holidays not to mention the lbs!) 

My opinion - Just keep working your cardio and strength training (high weights, low reps) and you should see results.  It just takes a little longer for us small frame short people.  It's definitely not overnight for sure.  Your body is probably very happy with the weight, etc.  So you have to push yourself.  HARD. 

And don't worry about the other posters tell you that CC won't support your efforts.  Your efforts are your efforts.  You are not starving yourself.  And you are being healthy.  Your goals are truly just to lose inches and in your mind you think weight goes with it.  They are separate and you can totally do it.  :-)  Good luck!