Now I can't stop losing weight...
NotoriousLink
Posts: 15 Member
Hey guys, I'm a 5'2" female. I weighed around 125 before I started getting into fitness. I started cutting my fats, increasing protein, etc and my weight dropped off so fast! I recently increased my calorie goal by about 50 calories (1800) and have been trying to focus on either maintainin weight, or gaining it (I'm getting stronger at the gym and am trying to increase what I can lift/push/pull). I've been surprised to see now that I'm still losing weight but what concerns me is I've never fallen below 115lbs before as an adult, and this morning I stepped on the scale to see 114.8. I'm not increasing my calories anymore- 1800 is enough. I do not have a fast metabolism; we tested it on the Adonis machine. Maybe I'm supposed to be closer to 114. What are your thoughts/personal relations about this?
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Replies
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My thoughts are that you should eat more if you want to maintain or gain weight. Why is 1800 a limit?0
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Because I'm not a big person. I've always been petite, however the recent metabolism test I took showed that I have a low metabolism. I'm also trying to get rid of lower body fat. It has melted off of my upper body, but my sticky spots are my legs.0
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Correction: my calorie goal is currently 1850 for the past two weeks. It was originally at 1750 a few months ago.0
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My macro goals are 40%p 40%c 20%fat, but getting my protein over 35% has been a challenge for me.0
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Have you calculated your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure)? It is obviously higher than you think. You can use the calculator at scoobysworkshop.com to see your TDEE. You will probably still need to tweak based on what results you see.
Or you can keep raising your calories (50 per day or so) until you quit losing. If you are losing on 1800 per day, you need to eat more.1 -
Those are just numbers. If you are losing more than you want, don't be afraid to increase calorie intake. I'm in the exact same boat. I'm 5'2" as well and have been floating around 105-115 lbs. for the last year or so.1
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One of the fitness accounts I follow on instagram is a girl who is under 5' tall and she mentioned in one post that she eats at least 2000 calories when she's maintaining. I maintain on less than that and I'm much larger than her. TDEE can vary wildly from person to person, the true test of TDEE is finding a calorie intake that you maintain your weight on. Then go from there.1
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Bump up your Fat to 30%, protein to 30%, and carbs to 40%0
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NotoriousLink wrote: »
The fat on your lower body isn't from dietary fat. Fat doesn't make you fat.3 -
I'm confused about this statementNotoriousLink wrote: »Because I'm not a big person.
Why does eating more that 1800 calories per day mean you would be a big person if you did. That's obviously something mental if you fear eating more calories when your body is in fact telling you that you need more. Also, if you have been gaining muscle then your metabolism is going to be higher so that 1800 calories won't be doing much for you. You need to increase until you find your maintenance and not think that a certain number means you are a big person if you eat that much.
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Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »NotoriousLink wrote: »
The fat on your lower body isn't from dietary fat. Fat doesn't make you fat.
^^^ Agree.
OP I'm 5'2 and 46 yrs old and lose weight at 1800 calories, up your calories until you no longer lose.2 -
NotoriousLink wrote: »I've never heard of a TDEE calculation. Thanks! I'll definitely go try to figure mine out.
It doesn't matter what you calculate. Your body doesn't care. If you are still losing weight at 1850 calories, that is not where you maintain at this body composition.
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Yes, @bowlerae, it's very mental. I like the change I see in the mirror, I like how healthy I feel and how much stronger I am now. You can't tell me fitness does not have a mental aspect....
Anyway, I love the feeling that people are now telling me I look strong instead of tiny, cute, little, etc. Those words are synonymous of weak, to me.
I'll up my calories little by little, but why change my macro ratio from high protein to Hugh fat and carbs? Fat doesn't necessarily make fat, but protein is what I need if I want to keep building muscle, right?0 -
You can't spot train fat.
Eat more build more muscle up top.
Cut fat after to reduce on legs.
Bulk/Cut/Bulk/Cut....life of a recomper.1 -
NotoriousLink wrote: »Yes, @bowlerae, it's very mental. I like the change I see in the mirror, I like how healthy I feel and how much stronger I am now. You can't tell me fitness does not have a mental aspect....
No, they are saying that there's something mental going on with you and calories if you're too afraid to eat more than 1850. Like a mental block of sorts with numbers.
But if you're still losing weight, as others have said, you NEED to eat more. You're working out more, your body needs more to maintain. If you don't eat more you're going to get smaller and you won't see those nice muscle gains you're going for.1 -
Dietary fat does not make you fat, too many carbs do. I would up the fat (avocado and coconut oil), lower the carbs and hit the weights really hard. Leg/glute day should be your best friend.1
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If you don't want to eat more, then exercise less.
If you don't want to do that but still want to maintain your weight and exercise levels... then I'd suggest slowly eating more until you stop losing weight. Lift weights. Eat at ACTUAL maintenance (forget your 1850 limit) and lift lift lift. Give it time. Like 2-3 years. See if your composition has changed then.3 -
TrailNurse wrote: »Dietary fat does not make you fat, too many carbs do. I would up the fat (avocado and coconut oil), lower the carbs and hit the weights really hard. Leg/glute day should be your best friend.
Leg day is always killer, but I have definitely grown to love it. I think it's just taking so much longer to see more definition in my lower body than my upper, so the idea of eating more before I even see a big change in my lower body is hard to think about.
I like the bulk/cut/bulk/cut idea. That's a good way to look at it.
To the rude ones, the one mental "something" I have, is issues with condescending people. This community is supposed to support, not attack.0 -
OP, all the formulas out there are just estimates. If you are losing weight, you are eating less calories than you burn. If you want to maintain your level of exercise, and don't want to lose more weight, you need to eat more. Not to be flip, but no matter what the tests and machines are telling you, the only thing that really matters is what your body is telling you
There are plenty of lean, fit woman on this site who maintain their weight eating over 2,000 calories. 1,800 isn't really all that high! I am 5'4", 130 lbs, lightly active and 43 yrs old, and I'm maintaining on 1,700. If I got my butt in gear to get more fit, I could easily need 2,000 per day to maintain my weight.
Macro percentages are mostly personal preference, so do whatever you're comfortable with those. Good luck!3 -
I'm 5'2' & 47 yrs old and my TDEE 2100-2300 with exercise. 114-117 lbs. eat more if you need it or you will keep losing.1
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There is no such thing as slow or fast metabolism. There was an extensive study done, where 68% of the people fall within the range of 300 calories. 98% of the people fall within the range of around 400 calories. So the probability is that your resting metabolic rate is no different than the next person.
https://examine.com/faq/does-metabolism-vary-between-two-people/Metabolic rate does vary, and technically there could be large variance. However, statistically speaking it is unlikely the variance would apply to you. The majority of the population exists in a range of 200-300kcal from each other and do not possess hugely different metabolic rates.2 -
TrailNurse wrote: »Dietary fat does not make you fat, too many carbs do. I would up the fat (avocado and coconut oil), lower the carbs and hit the weights really hard. Leg/glute day should be your best friend.
Correct with the first sentence and wrong with the "too many carbs make you" fat statement. Weight gain has nothing to do with eating one particular macros more than the other. It's the overall caloric intake that makes you gain weight.2 -
Thank you, guys. I've increased my calories and while I've been shooting for more protein, the difference has come from carbs because food.
I'm getting there, though. Thanks for the positive suggestions from most of you!0 -
NotoriousLink wrote: »TrailNurse wrote: »Dietary fat does not make you fat, too many carbs do. I would up the fat (avocado and coconut oil), lower the carbs and hit the weights really hard. Leg/glute day should be your best friend.
Leg day is always killer, but I have definitely grown to love it. I think it's just taking so much longer to see more definition in my lower body than my upper, so the idea of eating more before I even see a big change in my lower body is hard to think about.
I like the bulk/cut/bulk/cut idea. That's a good way to look at it.
To the rude ones, the one mental "something" I have, is issues with condescending people. This community is supposed to support, not attack.
No one is bring rude. They are letting you know that you need to align your caloric levels to your goals. If you want to keep cutting body fat, then keep calories as is. If you want to maintain your weight, then you need to increase calories. If you want to gain, you need to add enough calories to go above maintenance levels.
Keep in mind that if your calorie goal doesnt align to your goals, then you wont reach your goals.
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If you're losing weight and don't want to, you have to eat more. Your arbitrary number is arbitrary. Your body is telling you that the number is too low for maintenance.
(That's the first time I've typed that sentence on MFP.)1 -
TrailNurse wrote: »Dietary fat does not make you fat, too many carbs do. I would up the fat (avocado and coconut oil), lower the carbs and hit the weights really hard. Leg/glute day should be your best friend.
Fat, carbs or protein are not the culprits of fat gain. Over intake of energy is.
OP, reducing carbs is not going to spot reduce anything.0 -
At my lowest weight (120lb), I maintained on 2400kcal + exercise as logged on mfp. It took me a while to accept too, but that's how it is. Now I wouldn't lose on 1800 because it would be too great a cut.
Saying something is 'mental' should not be insulting to anyone. If you can't change your mind about something, when reality proves itself to be different, you have a mental block. I hope you can see now that no one was trying to insult you.1 -
Interesting topic and somewhat contentious too... @Notoriousink i think we are or wereat some stage programmed by media and society to believe that FAT is fattening and unhealthy!! This was started with best intentions by the National Heart Foundation many years ago. It seems logical given ipids in the bloodstream were assumed to be sourced directly from the gut.
Without fat in the diet vitamins would not be able to be assimilated, over and kidney function and even construction, being made entirely from fat! The greatest fat out there is Coconut Oil check it out in Google!!
What to do?
Take photos now
Log your measurements now
Tinker with your Macros and add coconut oil, nuts and seeds
Monitor the results down the track later and reassess and adjust
Fact - everyone responds differently to foods! That's why medicine and fitness is an ART, not a SCIENCE! The great experiment of life is to find out what works best for you!
Good luck and great work on your achievements so far!!!0
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