5'6 130 lbs and feelin like a whale!!!!!!!!!!!

ive recently gained 20 lbs in the matter of one month. im super self conscious and worried that im going to balloon further. ive been told i have weight issues and self image distortion. i look at myself and think im huge. i feel nasty and fat. i want to get back down to my weight a month ago- 110. my boyfriend says thats too skinny but i think he is just bein nice. could any one tell me what u think? id love to look at a pic of someone else who looked like me and determine what i need to do. its such a sticky subject. HELP! i would appreciate any comments, advise, etc. thanks!

How old are you? 130 is a perfectly good weight for a 5'6" woman (I'm 135 at that height, but don't have pictures on here).  Weight lifting might help you look firmer, so you might consider that.

110lb would put you at a BMI of 17.8 which would be considered underweight and it is not a healthy goal.

Perhaps a therapist might be a better person to ask.

Assuming you are an adult...at 5'6" and 110lbs you are underweight with a BMI of 17.8

130lbs puts you at a BMI of 21.0 in the middle of the "normal weight" catagory

if you want to "split the difference" and maybe get back down to 120 you would still be in the "normal healthy weight" catagory, albeit on the lower end.

I'm two inches shorter then you and 130 is my goal weight.  I'm 140 right now and am starting to get just a tad bit bony in some places.  For you 110 would give you a BMI of 17.8 which is clinically underweight, so i would definitely not advise you to try and get back to that.  What you likely should do is work on changing your body image because you very likely do have a distorted view of yourself.  Also, if you really are not comfortable with the body you have now try focusing on toning it up a bit without losing weight.  That in fact will not only make you smaller as muscle takes up less room then fat, but it will also get you in better shape.  I really would advise working on your weight and self image issues first though because those can really lead you down a dangerous road if you let them go.

i know that according to bmi thats considered underweight, but im not sure if i agree with the bmi index completely. i do agree that mayb a firmer stomach arms and legs would prob make me feel better and look ok. weight lifting is something i should do, but i dont know where to start with that to get the best results. ya i guess 120 would work.... thanks for the help.... the more the better! i appreciate it very much!

interestin... i didnt know that muscle takes up more room than fat! in the past month i know ive only gained fat bc i have a serious weakness for sugar and carbs

Original Post by kerry143:

i know that according to bmi thats considered underweight, but im not sure if i agree with the bmi index completely.

Whether you agree with it or not is irrelevent.....  Once your BMI slips below 19 you're statistically highly likely to lose your periods, for example.  Go below 18.5 and you're in the realm of 'clinically underweight' with all the medical problems that entails...... some very serious.

To get to a weight that is clinically underweight you have to be eating next to nothing.  This is also unhealthy because it means you'd be chronically malnourished.  Anaemia, scurvy, hair/tooth loss, busted immune system, loss of bone-density.....   It's a quick way to look really, really old before your time and possibly end up in hospital in the process.  If you used to be 110lbs, be very grateful you're no longer in that state.

130lbs is a perfectly healthy weight for someone your height. It's at the low end of the normal range.  If you were to focus on toning your body with exercise and get as nutritious a diet as possible you'd benefit physically as well as mentally.

If you have body-image distortion then tackle the problem directly by seeing your doctor - not by dieting yourself into a sick and emaciated state.

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At 5'6", 130 lbs is definitely on the lower end of the healthy range.  If you feel like a whale, it's not due to the number on the scale, it's probably because you gained 20 lbs in a month.  Why did you gain so rapidly?  In most cases, rapid weight gain is just as inadvisable as rapid weight loss, barring the usual exceptions of being under medical care, etc.

Most people even if they're overeating are not going to gain 20 lbs in a month.  How much of that is attributable to water rentention?  Have you started a new diet that's higher in sodium?  How about an exercise program?  Do you gain weight during your menstrual cycles?

You sound like someone very young overreacting in the extreme.  There are many possibities for that including being very young and overreacting.  I do have to wonder though when I see a new user with no profile if it's really a legitimate concern or if you're just seeking attention or are a sockpuppet or even a troll.

Have you visited your doctor to check out possible medical issues?

I just wanted to say thank your for posting here. (I am new to this whole weight loss on-line, writing in a journal thing, but it seems to be working for me so far. )

You said "Once your BMI slips below 19 you're statistically highly likely to lose your periods, for example."

This one sentence has just made me understand that my dopey sister, I love her dearly, is in need of help. She is 5'4" and wants for some unknown reason to look like an 11 year old boy. She used to weigh 105 in high school- and thought that was fat. Now she weighs 112, we have been out of high school for 30 + years. She just lost 17 pounds in nothing flat and thinks she need to lose more. She is telling me she is going through menopause and that is why she doesn't get her period. As I am older and still get mine, I could not figure this out. I am e-mailing her right now with your post. I hope she will see the light.

Original Post by iansmom27:

I She is 5'4" and wants for some unknown reason to look like an 11 year old boy.

 If she's in her 40's now then that's probably some kind of 'mid-life crisis', trying to capture lost youth.  Although it sounds like she's had body-image issues for some time.  She could be menopausal, of course.  But even if she wasn't it would still be desperately unhealthy for her to be crash-dieting herself to an underweight state..   Get towards 50 and the last thing you need are nutitional deficiencies because your body will struggle to extract the nutrients, even from a really good diet.   Whisper 'osteoporosis' to her and point her in the direction of this article about Britt Ekland.   http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/5004992.stm   Diagnosed at age 53 most probably because she spent her life dieting and cutting out important foods.  

Many thanks for the info. I will do what I can to save her from herself.

Original Post by kerry143:

interestin... i didnt know that muscle takes up more room than fat! in the past month i know ive only gained fat bc i have a serious weakness for sugar and carbs

 muscle does not take up more room then fat I have no idea where you would have gotten that from. muscle weighs more then fat that could be what your thinking. as you can see from this pic 5 lbs of fat takes up more room then 5 lbs of muscle.

http://app1.unmc.edu/PublicAffairs/TodaySite/ sitefiles/today_full.cfm?match=5476

Original Post by elizamary77:

muscle weighs more then fat that could be what your thinking.

 Muscle is more dense than fat... that could be what your (sic) thinking.  (Sorry, it's pet peeve and I'm not picking on you especially)   A lb of muscle is the same weight as 1lb of fat, or 1lb of feathers, or 1lb or diamonds.... but they're all radically different densities.

Original Post by gi-jane:

Original Post by elizamary77:

muscle weighs more then fat that could be what your thinking.

 Muscle is more dense than fat... that could be what your (sic) thinking.  (Sorry, it's pet peeve and I'm not picking on you especially)   A lb of muscle is the same weight as 1lb of fat, or 1lb of feathers, or 1lb or diamonds.... but they're all radically different densities.

 yeah my bad I just meant the same size of fat weighs less then the same size of muscle, I think I made that clear by the pic but pet peeve away, seems to happen a lot on here lol.

edited cause I said it backwards and didn't want ppl to be confused and think I was arguing my own point ;)

That's OK then...  You know, even my bloody doctor said the same thing to me just the other day. "Muscle weighs more than fat you know!"... grrrrrrrrrr....   Had to smile... bit the lip... .sit on the hands.... IT WAS HELL....

Original Post by elizamary77:

Original Post by gi-jane:

Original Post by elizamary77:

muscle weighs more then fat that could be what your thinking.

 Muscle is more dense than fat... that could be what your (sic) thinking.  (Sorry, it's pet peeve and I'm not picking on you especially)   A lb of muscle is the same weight as 1lb of fat, or 1lb of feathers, or 1lb or diamonds.... but they're all radically different densities.

 yeah my bad I just meant the same size of fat weighs more then the same size of muscle, I think I made that clear by the pic but pet peeve away, seems to happen a lot on here lol.

 Sorry, that's still wrong.  A cupful of fat weighs LESS than a cupful of muscle. 

to my a long story, short, i quit drinkin. i was drinkin on a regular excessive basis. once i quit drinkin, i switched to eating. my lifestyle while drinking was very unhealthy and i would eat lil for a few days then eat junk for a day and repeat the process. for various reasons i knew that was unhealthy and my first step was the quit drinkin. well now that ive quit drinkin, im eatin too much and gotta deal with that. but i guess after readin all the polite helpful posts ive realized maybe drop 5-10 lbs and tone up a lot more. id luv to have a tight butt, arms and legs! as well as eatin more healthy. its just a balance and im horrid at balances! unfortunately all my weight seems to collect in my stomach which i get to look at constantly! ugh.

im 22

Original Post by jenningermany:

Original Post by elizamary77:

Original Post by gi-jane:

Original Post by elizamary77:

muscle weighs more then fat that could be what your thinking.

 Muscle is more dense than fat... that could be what your (sic) thinking.  (Sorry, it's pet peeve and I'm not picking on you especially)   A lb of muscle is the same weight as 1lb of fat, or 1lb of feathers, or 1lb or diamonds.... but they're all radically different densities.

 yeah my bad I just meant the same size of fat weighs more then the same size of muscle, I think I made that clear by the pic but pet peeve away, seems to happen a lot on here lol.

 Sorry, that's still wrong.  A cupful of fat weighs LESS than a cupful of muscle. 

 wow are you serious I think its pretty clear I said it backwards on accident lol killin me

Original Post by kerry143:

to my a long story, short, i quit drinkin. i was drinkin on a regular excessive basis. once i quit drinkin, i switched to eating. my lifestyle while drinking was very unhealthy and i would eat lil for a few days then eat junk for a day and repeat the process. for various reasons i knew that was unhealthy and my first step was the quit drinkin. well now that ive quit drinkin, im eatin too much and gotta deal with that. but i guess after readin all the polite helpful posts ive realized maybe drop 5-10 lbs and tone up a lot more. id luv to have a tight butt, arms and legs! as well as eatin more healthy. its just a balance and im horrid at balances! unfortunately all my weight seems to collect in my stomach which i get to look at constantly! ugh.

 Thats good, sound like you will be on the right track 5-10 lbs weight loss but just focus on being healthy and feeling good about urself rather then what the scale is telling you.  ur in a healthy weight now so if you were to say just tone everything up you would probably still feel good try taking measurements and judging by that rather then the scale or just the scale. Cause as we have learned muscle is more densethen fat ;) so you can weigh the same but look and feel smaller if you have more muscles and less fat!! good luck!

Original Post by gi-jane:

That's OK then...  You know, even my bloody doctor said the same thing to me just the other day. "Muscle weighs more than fat you know!"... grrrrrrrrrr....   Had to smile... bit the lip... .sit on the hands.... IT WAS HELL....

 yes I would expect a doc to get it right too, me I get things wrong all the time.