At 5'4" I would imagine you're starving as a model so it is a good thing you
are a scientist. Use your scientific background to your advantage and do
some research. I suggest starting here: www.stumptuous.com/weights.html

--
Matthew
185/177/160
To reply by e-mail, heat things up a bit.

The doctor is correct in that according to official guidelines, you
are underweight.

Not all fat is excess fat. People in general, and women in particular,
need a certain amount of fat to properly function, such as, for women,
to have periods and being able to conceive.

A lot of people are in this situation.

I have to wonder though, are you positive that if you become even
slimmer, you would become a more successful freelance model? Is that
something you are supposing, or is that something you verified with
knowledgeable people? Is there a serious perspective for more modeling
income if you lose extra pounds?

The reason for my question is that it is not clear to me that women
who are so thin as you want to be, would have looks that appeal to
very many people. If so, then, is losing extra weight going to help?

It is great to be thin, but, like anything in life, you have to be
careful in not going too far. Just how far is too far is not clear.

my

eat

anyone

If you lose 5-10 lbs you will be much more than "slightly" underweight,
you will be extremely unhealthy. And your "excess" fat might be
something you can never eliminate, unless you become so emaciated that
your fat is at a dangerously low level; some people just have fat
deposited in certain places. You might want to try muscle building, but
definitely do not lose more weight purposefully.

Change your workouts to focus on muscle growth with weight training.
Increase the protein in your diet as well.  (generally vege's tend to not
get enough protein).

Check out www.stumptuous.com/weights.html and www.exrx.net

In your case, the focus on weight training and muscle growth will make your
muscles more defined giving you a better appearance for modeling and will
probably also help in eliminating that little extra fat you say you have.

Just remember - your body needs some fat and if you lose too much, you will
experience health problems.  

Quoting amyliz569 <amyliz569.1lla40@news.weightlossbanter.com>:

At your height, 105# is *more* than low enough to have a totally kick
a.s bod.  Even by "model" standards.  

If you're truly dissatisfied at how you look at your current size, I'd
recommend you stop focusing so much on scale weight and work on
building muscle mass.  

With a good body composition, you could probably weigh, say, 110-115#,
still wear a 2, AND look better than you do now.

Oh, and you'd be able to eat calories than you do now.

Lift heavy, lift hard.  Emphasize compound exercises; deep squats,
deadlifts, etc.  

Eat well.  Rest.

see also
http://www.stumptuous.com/weights.html

*cough*
Are you getting enough protein?

What's your current workout?

At your current weight and height, your Body Mass Index is 18.0.  As your
doctor noted, this puts you into the "Underweight" category.  Assuming
you're 25 years old, you are around the 9th percentile for weight (compared
to US averages for 25 year old, 5'5" women). If you're 35 years old, your
weight would be below the 2nd weight percentile (meaning, 98% of 35 year
old, 5'4" women weigh more than 105 lbs).

Given that you're already in Underweight territory, losing 5-10 lbs would
probably be a bad idea.

Are you menstruating regularly?  If not, this is a major warning sign that
you are jeopardizing your health.

If you are menstruating regularly, then perhaps you just need to focus on
making some small changes in body composition.  To see if this is feasible,
you should have your body fat percentage measured.  Women should generally
have body fat percentages above 15% for best health.

You can get your body fat estimated at a health club (generally with
calipers), by using a "body fat" scale (but these can be somewhat
unreliable), or by using the "Navy" method (from this website
http://www.he.net/%7Ezone/prothd2.html , or from my WeightWare software).

If this indicates that you have some fat to spare, then you could follow
some of the previous suggestions to increase muscle mass and burn fat.  But,
you're already close to the danger zone so be very, very careful.

Finally, are you *sure" that you have "excess fat".  Ask some of your
friends and family if they see "excess fat" on you.  Many people have
distorted self-images (technically, "body dysmorphia") and see "problems"
that others don't.  This can lead to eating disorders, so be very careful.