Expert: Meg - 6/26/2007

Question
Hi, I'm 17 years old, 5'1" and 105 lbs. I was always really skinny compared to others at my high school, but lately ive began putting on all this weight and im not sure why. back in january, i was about 99 lbs, and ive gained 6 lbs since then... some of my friends told me this doesnt seem like a lot, but i can see a difference: mainly, my face has become rounder, my thighs/calves have become bigger, and my stomach bulges out. I also started taking a birth control pill every day to prevent acne, but I just started that about 2 weeks ago, so i know that the pill isnt the only reason im putting on weight (my doctor warned me i would probably gain 5-7 lbs after taking this pill). I already started gaining this weight at least two months before i started taking this pill. Im really desperate on getting the skinny thighs/calves that I had before, and i want my face to go back to being not-so-round. i work out everyday for about an hour at a gym -cardio/running, ab workouts, but nothing seems to be helping. If anything, i feel like my legs are getting BIGGER (especially my calves). I know there's more muscle there, but i also want to slim down. I dont know what to do anymore! If i dont do something about my weight (even though it might not seem like a big deal to some people), i feel like im going to lose interest in everything else besides my weight. All i ever see when i meet people on the streets are how skinny their calves are, and how slim and angular their faces are. It's driving me crazy, but I cant help obsessing over it unless I slim down! My tennis coach tells me to eat super healthy, but i dont know how many calories i should put in every day to lose some of that weight, or what foods to eat (I know to avoid junk, deep-fried foods, but i dont know what meats i can eat, etc)
Please give me some advice on how to:
1. slim down my face/get rid of all the fat thats making my face look so round
2. slim down my thighs (so my tennis shorts dont bulge so tightly around my thighs) and calves (i have HUGE man-like calves and its really embarassing when i wear skirts)
3. make my stomach flatter. (only my stomach bulges out a lot, while the rest of my upper body is pretty slim/small). I do ab workouts, but they only harden the stomach bulge i seem to have.
PLEASE HELP ME! Im so desperate! I'm not looking to become super skinny, i just need to lose this extra fat i have lying around!
Im really sorry this is such a long message, but I didnt know how to shorten it. Thanks for your time,
ali

Answer
Hello Ali,

Thanks for your question and I hope that I can be of some help.   

First of all, I'm sorry that you're feeling that you look fat and need to lose weight.  I think everyone has had times when they feel this way and I know that its not fun to feel that you look unattractive because of how you perceive your weight and body.  Now, from a strictly physical standpoint, you are already thin and at a perfect (not even close to being *fat* and probably a little below normal) weight for your height.  But, I understand that you feel fat, which can become a big problem and doesn't make my telling you that you're not any more helpful.  

My guess is that while you mention that you've gained a few pounds, you are seeing even more than that on your body (which is common with women and girls who have eating disorders and even in those who do not).  In general, body distortion can lead to developing eating disorders and its good if you can try to stop and see what is happening now.  

One thing that you might try is yoga or pilates.  This is good in that it will help you lengthen your muscles which can help if there is any muscle bulkiness.  So, this is one thing that you might want to try.

As far as what to eat, you don't really have any excess weight to lose so I don't know that you need to cut down on calories.  General healthy eating is always good and you should try to get all of the food groups and especially some protein into every meal.  In general, eating fruits and veggies is good for dieting and also for general health.  Some people think that the best way to maintain a healthy diet is to eat mini meals throughout the day so that your metabolism stays as fast as possible.  So, I don't know what your eating schedule is like now but you might want to consider something like this.

So, for your calves and thighs, I would suggest stretching and/or yoga and pilates which will help lengthen your muscles.  

Since you don't need to lose weight, I would suggest eating as healthy and diverse a diet as you can.  Try to limit sweets and fats to occasional treats and make sure to get an abundance of protein, fruits and veggies and whole grains.  If you have more specific diet questions, feel free to write again and I can try to answer in greater detail.

As far as your stomach, I would continue on with the ab workouts and overall exercise and healthy eating plan.  One thing that sometimes can cause a stomach bulge is actually undereating so make sure that your diet is healthy and that will actually help to keep your stomach flatter.

As for a round face, I don't know that there is any real diet answer for this one.  I, too, have a round face and have come to learn to love it over the years but I know that it can *feel* like you're fat because your face isn't angular like the supermodels in magazines.  I will tell you that its  been my experience that people actually find round faces "cute" and it doesn't mean at all that your are not thin due to the bone structure of your face.  So, while you might not be able to change this, you may find down the line that its not such a bad thing ;)

Hope this helps at least a bit and please write again if there is anything else I can help with or if anything in this answer isn't clear.

Take care, okay?

Meg