Last updated on September 29, 2020
Question:
I am 18 years old and still look like a kid. I have a skinny build, but I have put on fat around my stomach and breasts are sticking out. I don’t know where the fat has come from as I don’t really overeat.
I am concerned with my height because I am only 5’5 and look smaller than my mates. My shoulders are not that wide, but I have a lot of hair around my stomach and my chest. I have a lot of hair on my legs and thighs as well. So I am a hairy guy but look like a small kid, which looks weird. It feels like puberty has paused because my body hasn’t changed much in the last year. My facial hair is good, as I have a lot of hair on my neck and sideburns. My mustache has come in but not much hair on my cheeks. Will my beard fill in as I get older? I have to shave a lot, my beard grows quickly. I have good coverage, except on my cheeks.
Lately, I have been getting pains in my legs, around my calves and ankles and I don’t know what this is. My chest is very narrow and looks like a 10-year-old. I just want to know why I am physically not developing. Could it be I am a late bloomer in terms of height?
I get the pains at night and my legs feel stiff in the morning. It feels like my calves are tightening. Could the extra fat be due to any potential growth?
Thanks.
Answer:
From all that you described, I would say that you are in stage 5 of development. Of course, I can’t see you to verify the things you haven’t mentioned, but it sounds to me that you are just naturally a shorter and skinnier guy.
The fat is probably due to the fact that you are no longer growing like you were. Thus, the same amount of consumption is not being burned off. You need to either increase your activity or decrease your food intake. Increasing your exercise, especially upper body exercise will improve your shape. You are at the age when it should be fairly easy to develop good size muscles.
Facial hair continues to develop even after you’ve reached stage 5, so you will find your beard filling in over the next year or two.
The leg pains are not the type that would be associated with growth. More likely they are due to muscle development, such as from stair climbing. Make sure you stretch every day. What used to come easily has to be work on when you are an adult.