The White House has released a photo of President Obama accepting Mitt Romney's concession call on the night of the presidential election, which is cool and all for historical purposes, but the thing you can't help but notice is how skinny the president has gotten during his time in office. Obama has always been thin — in his famous 2004 Democratic National Convention speech, he referred to himself as a "skinny kid with a funny name" — but it's clear he's lost weight.

Just compare the three photos below, taken in August 2008, in August 2009, and in November. In 2008, Obama's doctor said Obama's "build was lean and muscular with no excess body fat." But he certainly looks stockier in his topless beach photo from August of that year compared to now. In October 2011, Obama was 6-foot-1 and weighted 181.3 pounds. Now he reportedly weights 174 pounds, though it looks like he's lost more than that. If he has, he doesn't want to say so, because he told David Letterman he weighed 180 in September.

(Photos via Associated Press.)

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments or send an email to the author at ereeve at theatlantic dot com. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.
Elspeth Reeve