Wow. It's so awesome to hear a doctor say humans have a biological determined natural weight, that varies from person to person. "Our bodies do their best to maintain that weight: whether it's fat or thin."
That doesn't mean you can't influence your body shape, but your body will constantly try to bring you back to whatever your normal body weight is. And that is different for every person!

Dr. Allison at the University of Alabama at Birmingham says our 'normal' body weight is shaped even before we are born. Factors such as how old your mother was when you were born, and the amount of calories taken during pregnancy play a role.

This video covers week one of the experiment -- boy, what a ridiculous amount of food these folks had to eat...I'd almost feel bad for them! It's super interesting to see big differences in weight gain at the very start of this experiment. Can't wait to see part 4!

Wow, I learned some CRAZY things in this episode!
Fat people used to be the survivors of society, having fat is a good thing, and...I probably would have never survived if I was born a few centuries ago. Phew, I'm glad it's 2012 ;) Watch the second episode here, and read my comments below :)

Why fat is good

Inside fat tissue, apparently, the fat cells have oil droplets stored -- which can be converted into energy if the body needs it. So, your fat is your body's built-in emergency storage system. The more fat you have, the longer you can go without eating. Apparently, one very obese man once lasted a year without food! (just watch the video, it's amazing).But the average person can last about a month without food.

Survival of the fattest

When food wasn't always readily available, people who were chubbier were more likely to survive, and pass on that gene to their children -- which could explain why a large part of the current population has a tendency to gain weight easily.

Survival of the thinnest

Fat storage used to help in survival,but that has changed over time. Nowadays, it's not needed to go without food for several days or even weeks. Nowadays, people who exercise and eat well are more likely to live longer.

Naturally thin? Go on a fat diet!

This video was SOOOO interesting for me to watch. It was great to see some fellow naturally thin people speak their mind. I kept saying: "me too, me too!" while watching the video haha :)

The study focused on men and women who said they hardly ever watched what they ate because they hardly gained weight. The researchers told them to STUFF IT. Literally.
The men and women had to eat at least double their regular calories (about 5,000 kcal), and on top of that - they had to avoid exercise for one month. The purpose is to find out why some people stay naturally thin, despite never having been on a diet.

It's a pretty controversial overeating experiment, and I have to admit, all the whipped cream, cakes, greasy fries and big burgers made me a tid bit nauseous!

Some people can never become obese: Vermont State Prison study

I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the American Vermont State Prison study...someone had already done research on this 40 years ago?!
In 1967, researchers tried to find out what happens to hormonal changes in the human body when we become seriously overweight. They took a group of prisoners and made them fat by letting them eat whatever they could physically handle. If they gained 25% of their body weight, they would get an early release from prison.
BUT: some of the prisoners could never reach the target. Two of them got stuck at 21%, and one of them at 18% increase. It seemed, that for some people, getting obese is not unlikely, it's practically impossible.

Skinny guys vs skinny girls

Another interesting aspect of this video was a short soundbite by a woman who said "a lot of people understand why a guy would want to eat whatever he can, but a lot of people don't understand why a girl would want to get fat." I have found this double standard SO often. It seems that it's much more acceptable for guys to be thin and eat a lot, then for a girl to be thin and complaining about her weight.

I am VERY curious to see how the guys vs the girls are going to do in this research study! I can't wait to watch the second video!!! :)

Win a pair of petite professional pants!

Petite Professional's Black Pants

Petiteprofessional.com produces very nice professional pants specifically designed and created for petite women under 5'3". I received a pair of black professional petite pants, which I'm very happy with, you can read the review here. I also interviewed the big brains behind the website, Dechen Lhewa, about her business and her desire to find well-fitting pants for petite women.

Enter as often as you want!

So, here's a chance for YOU to win one!
You can enter this giveaway as often as you want!
Leave a comment (with your size info), like us on Facebook,  and/or you can tweet about the giveaway every day. So, plenty of chances to win! Good luck!!

Enter here:

Just use this cool Rafflecopter tool to enter.
Don't forget to click 'I did this'! Otherwise Rafflecopter doesn't recognize it.
It will automatically select a winner on Nov 14th.

That's why I was very excited to receive a pair of black pants from Petite Professional.  This pretty new website was started out of a desire to find well-fitting petite pants. I recently interviewed the site's founder, you can read more about her here.

VIDEO Review: Petite Professional Pants

Professional pants are usually so big, I could swim in them -- and if I’m lucky enough to find pants that fit around the waist...they’re way too long!
Petiteprofessional.com is a brand new site, started by a fellow petite, who was tired of spending too much money on the tailor as well!

They asked for my size, which is 0, and then my inseam, which is 28 I believe. That way, the pants are never too wide or too long. My black pants fit well around the waist and hips, and they aren’t too long! This never happens to me!! :)

So, I think they’re really cool. If you’re a petite professional woman looking for some nice, well-fitting pants, definitely go check out petiteprofessional.com!

Since it's breast cancer awareness month, I figured this will be the perfect time to ask an expert about mammograms on small breasted or flat chested women.

Mammograms on small breasts

Radiologists can image any type of breast. They have seen and dealt with any kind of breast you can imagine, and also image men's chests.
Radiologist Greg Mogel told me on Twitter:

"Breast size is not a factor in mammography. Mammograms can be effectively performed on even men when necessary."

Radiologist try to get a good side view of your pectoral muscle area behind the breast, and the breast tissue in front of it. Since everybody has a pectoral muscle - men or women - everybody can get a mammogram.

Another radiographer writes:

"The compression will be uncomfortable, but not painful (..). It lasts for about 10 seconds per picture, and the whole exam lasts less than 5 minutes.I've never met a woman (or a man for that fact) that I haven't been able to get 4 clear, diagnostic quality pictures on."

All women (and men) have enough breast tissue to have a mammogram. Another expert writes: "A good mammography technologist should be able to image all breast sizes and shapes, including very small breasts. Women with small breasts should have enough breast tissue for a mammogram. In fact, most men have just enough breast tissue to cover the first photocell of a mammography machine. If there is not enough breast tissue, the technologist may have to time the mammogram manually, though it is still possible to obtain an image."

So, whether you have AA, A, C, or F sized breasts - you can get a mammogram. And some women should get them regularly. Greg Mogel tells me:

"although there is some controversy, most women should receive a mammogram every 1-2 years from age 40-50 on."

Breast cancer does not discriminate against large or small breasts

There are some myths that small breasted women have a lower chance of developing breast cancer, but the fact is that the amount of breast tissue a woman has does not affect her risk factor for developing breast cancer.
Breast cancer does not discriminate against large or small breasts.
So be smart, and get a mammogram.

Take care of your breasts!
Stay happy, stay healthy :)

Related:
Pictures: Beautiful celebrities with small breasts
Reasons why small breasts are great!
Where to buy bras for small breasts

Well, this post on one of my favorite blogs 'Back in Skinny Jeans' features some great insight in the differences in sizes.Apparently, there can be a difference in as much as 2" in waist size! Holy cow, that's a big difference!

Size 0 has different waist sizes in different stores!

Size 0 in different stores - different waist sizes

Most brands/stores carry size 0 with a 23"-24" waist:

• Abercrombie & Fitch (24"-25")
• American Eagle Outfitters (24.5")
• Bebe (24.5")
• Banana Republic (24")
• Victoria's Secret (23.5")
• The Gap (23.25")

However, if you shop at other lines/stores - size 0 can be significantly bigger!
If you find nice Beyonce Knowles House of Dereon jeans, for example, they'll be 25".
And most Target brands size 0 carry a waist size of 25.5"!

Size 00 in different stores, different waist sizes

Even more interesting, some brands carry a size 00 that is comparable to a size 0 in other brands. Check this out:

• Abercrombie & Fitch (23"-24" waist)
• American Eagle Outfitters (23.5")
• Lucky Brand (24")
• Banana Republic (23")
• Citizens of Humanity (22")

There you go - hopefully this saves you some time in shopping. Simply avoid the stores/brands with waist sizes bigger/smaller than you!
If you're looking for more jean sizing charts, check out the size charts on this great blog.

In the meantime - Live happy, stay healthy! :)

Here's the video:

- Women with small breasts have faces.
- When you get hired for your dreamjob, you know it’s because of your talent, not because of...something(s) else.
- You will never have to worry about your boobs reaching your knees and getting stuck in your zipper.

- You don't cause a traffic accident every time you bend over in public
- You can wear cute triangle bikinis and without feeling like you might pop out a breast.
- You can sing along with this Shakira song 
- You can always see your toes
- When you’re running, you don’t have to worry about your breasts flapping over your shoulders.
- Small breasts are beautiful!! You are beautiful the way you are!!

ALSO INTERESTING:
Find and buy small nursing bras cheaply on eBay
Pictures: Beautiful celebrities with small breasts
Best places to buy bras for small breasts

Well, I recently came across Petite Professional, a website with a very cool concept: professional pants specifically designed and created for petite women under 5'3" - awesomeness! It's a wish come true for every budget-minded petite professional woman.

Dechen Lhewa, Founder of Petite Professional

I had the chance to talk to the big brains behind these small pants, Dechen Lhewa, about her inspiration for starting Petite Professional. 

Why did you start Petite Professional?

How did you get the idea to actually start a website to sell professional petite pants?

When did you start Petite Professional, and how is it going so far?

Petite Professional's Black Pants

 How are professional women responding to your website?

 Where do you order your petite pants, or do you make them?

Thank you, Dechen! I think you're making a lot of petite women very happy :)

Melanie Shebel talks about being naturally thin

When did you figure out you were 'different' from other people?

I was completely oblivious to the fact that I was thinner than other girls until around 4th or 5th grade. I was playing on the playground after school and some much older girls (junior high) were picking on me. One asked me how much I weighed and I answered. The girl responded in disbelief with something like, "You can't weigh that. If you weighed that, you'd be dead. That's how much my brother weighs and he's in kindergarten." It wasn't until then that I'd had any knowledge that I'm "skinny." To this day, I'll look in the mirror and think I look pretty normal.

What are the advantages of being naturally thin? And what are the biggest disadvantages?

I don't have to worry about dieting, I can imagine that having to deal with being over-weight would be really rough. I LOVE food and I literally can eat whatever I want without putting on the pounds. I still have to worry about things like cholesterol, though. The biggest disadvantages, by far, are other people's perspective of me. I don't know how many times I've been called anorexic. I can't even deny it as denying anorexia is apparently a symptom of it. I also get a lot of nasty comments from larger women. Many assume I'm judging them because they are overweight, but they are, in turn, judging me because I'm thin.

How has your handling of criticism changed over the years?

As a child and a teenager I would be deeply hurt by some of the nasty comments I'd get. Now I just let people think what they want, if I don't meet their approval based on how I look, then they don't meet my approval. Sometimes, of course, if someone's snarky about my weight, I can get snarky right back with something like, "Yeah, I'm working on that. Your thighs are kind of chunky, that's something you could work on." I try to be nice, but sometimes I just don't feel it's fair that I have to take it because I'm skinny and "thin" isn't considered a sensitive issue.

What would you tell young naturally thin girls struggling with their self esteem?

It's easy to find something wrong with how you look and how other people look. No matter what, you'll never look perfect to other people, you just have to be happy with yourself. The only time people say mean things about how others look is when they are feeling bad about themselves. Spend your time doing things you enjoy instead of finding imperfections. I could seriously stand in the mirror and spout off a list of things that would, ideally, be different about how I look... but doing things I enjoy, things that make me feel good is a better use of my time.

Read more articles by Melanie here. And follow Melanie on Twitter here.