I’m standing in front of the club getting some air when this guy, who is blatently tipsy, decides to say…”Damn girl…you so skinny…how you stay so thin?” I pause….and ask him…”do you really want to know why I’m skinny or are you just harassing me.” He says…”I want to know..” while patting his beer gut. He started to explain how genetics are at fault for size as he took a puff of his cigarette and I started coughing. End of conversation.
Skinny, as I’m so often called, is NOT normal or healthy. Neither is my distended belly so often confused for 5 months of pregnancy. I’m skinny without choice. Genetics...Cystic Fibrosis, is the culprit, as the drunk guy said.
Having Cystic Fibrosis means that the mucus in my intestines prevents the normal absorption of fats and vitamins from foods which leads to poor growth, being underweight and challenges fighting infections like the cold or flu. I need extra calories (try 3000 a day minimum) and nutrients to help fight infection and keep my lungs strong.
An average female my age/height/weight, needs to eat 1600 calories a day and exercise 3x a week to MAINTAIN her size. In my case, I need to double the calories to hopefully maintain the weight. Now, if I exercise 5 days a week (we are talking cardio here), I'll need to eat an extra 1000 a day. That's 4000+ calories a day!!!
For example...a BIG MAC is 500+ calories. A California Sushi roll or a bowl of spaghetti with tomato sauce are about 350 calories each. One bowl of fruit (2 cups), depending on the fruit, is about 185 calories.
You see the issue here? On a good day I eat about 6 smallish meals (500 calories) and 2 BIG(1000) meals. On average, I eat 4 small meals and 2 big ones. Not to mention I snack all day.
Next time you wanna point out I'm skinny, just give me a sandwich. Two of these will work:)
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