How Thin People Stay Thin

We all come in different shapes and sizes. All good by me! But, some are not happy with either their shape or their size.  It is a shame our society is so overly obsessed with what the scale says as plenty of thin people are not very healthy at all and studies show it is not a measure of our health in all cases.  But, generally, maintaining a good range of weight for our height can be one indication of how well our body is operating.

Plenty of people this time of year want to shed the holiday indulgence pounds or are making losing weight a new years resolution. Those gyms are extra crowded these days and specialized diet programs are getting lots of sign-ons right about now. But, despite these kind of efforts and if you are not in the "naturally thin" camp, there may be other things to consider too to reach your goal.

What Skinny People Do

Do "naturally thin" people exist primarily because of genetics? For some, perhaps so.  But, other traits can play a big role in our weight, too.

Leaving food and exercise habits out of the equation and not taking into account whether or not the lean and mean make healthy food choices, exercise regularly, are snackers or grazers or stick to three square meals a day, I have noticed many thin people share some other similarities too:


They sleep well.  Of course, everyone has a sleepless night or two, but I have noted that generally thin people sleep pretty well.  There is a lot of research on this and about weight and sleep patterns (here and here).  If sleeping well consistently is tough for you, I wrote a post about techniques on getting good shut-eye here that may help.


They have a lot of interests.  They are not obsessed over food or even if they are, they can wait until they get to enjoy it later as they are so busy doing other interesting things or engaged in life, they are not thinking about consuming food constantly. So, hobbies are good, real good. Find a job you really like and you may lose a few, too.



They have other healthy habits.  They are conscious of their health and try to lead a healthy lifestyle in many ways. This could be in the form of regular exercise and sports, healthy eating and portion control as well as watching their stress levels.


They are fidgety.  They move around a lot, even when they are "sitting still."  Tapping their fingers, jiggling their keys, rotating their ankles, getting up and walking across the room are all common. So, walk while you talk (on the phone), think about a stand-up desk, choose a parking space far away, take the stairs . . . it all adds up.  They have a name for all that fidgeting: NEAT and it is explained here.


They like being thin.  Either they worked hard to get to their trim frames and want to keep it that way or they want to wear the latest fashion and look good doing it. Dare, I say they may be a wee-bit more conscious of their looks than others, but they are willing to make the sacrifices and create the discipline required for it.


So, what about you - are you "naturally thin" and share any of these traits or is this all ridiculous? What do you think keeps you at a healthy point on the scale? Or, are you working towards changing all that? I would love to hear how.

Need a bit more?

• Load of fitness tips all in one place right here.

• Get inspired with these healthy and easy entrees to keep to your weight loss goals.

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