Knee injury and calorie requirements

xxzenabxx
xxzenabxx Posts: 935 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey everyone, I twisted my knee and fell a couple of weeks ago. It hurt so bad and it was swollen too. I was wondering if the body requires extra calories during the healing process because my hair has been falling out for the past few weeks and it’s really distressing. I’m worried that I was unintentionally undereating and that’s why it’s fallen out OR I haven’t had enough protein because I’ve just been eating intuitively and not tracking my food as it was too much work for me. I’ve been pretty sedentary aside from some light movement in the house and some gentle physio exercises.

Replies

  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    Hey everyone, I twisted my knee and fell a couple of weeks ago. It hurt so bad and it was swollen too. I was wondering if the body requires extra calories during the healing process because my hair has been falling out for the past few weeks and it’s really distressing. I’m worried that I was unintentionally undereating and that’s why it’s fallen out OR I haven’t had enough protein because I’ve just been eating intuitively and not tracking my food as it was too much work for me. I’ve been pretty sedentary aside from some light movement in the house and some gentle physio exercises.

    Since you're concerned about your calories and protein, I suggest you start tracking again.

    If you were under-eating a few *months* ago that would be a more likely cause of your hair falling out over the past few weeks, due to the way the hair growth cycles responds to malnutrition. However, the stress of the twisted knee could also have caused the hair loss.

    I shed more hair during my period, but I have very heavy periods and without iron infusions I'm anemic, so hopefully that does not apply to you :smile:
  • xxzenabxx
    xxzenabxx Posts: 935 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    Hey everyone, I twisted my knee and fell a couple of weeks ago. It hurt so bad and it was swollen too. I was wondering if the body requires extra calories during the healing process because my hair has been falling out for the past few weeks and it’s really distressing. I’m worried that I was unintentionally undereating and that’s why it’s fallen out OR I haven’t had enough protein because I’ve just been eating intuitively and not tracking my food as it was too much work for me. I’ve been pretty sedentary aside from some light movement in the house and some gentle physio exercises.

    Since you're concerned about your calories and protein, I suggest you start tracking again.

    If you were under-eating a few *months* ago that would be a more likely cause of your hair falling out over the past few weeks, due to the way the hair growth cycles responds to malnutrition. However, the stress of the twisted knee could also have caused the hair loss.

    I shed more hair during my period, but I have very heavy periods and without iron infusions I'm anemic, so hopefully that does not apply to you :smile:

    Thank you! I do suffer from anemia and I feel like diet alone won’t help me with my iron levels.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    Hey everyone, I twisted my knee and fell a couple of weeks ago. It hurt so bad and it was swollen too. I was wondering if the body requires extra calories during the healing process because my hair has been falling out for the past few weeks and it’s really distressing. I’m worried that I was unintentionally undereating and that’s why it’s fallen out OR I haven’t had enough protein because I’ve just been eating intuitively and not tracking my food as it was too much work for me. I’ve been pretty sedentary aside from some light movement in the house and some gentle physio exercises.

    Since you're concerned about your calories and protein, I suggest you start tracking again.

    If you were under-eating a few *months* ago that would be a more likely cause of your hair falling out over the past few weeks, due to the way the hair growth cycles responds to malnutrition. However, the stress of the twisted knee could also have caused the hair loss.

    I shed more hair during my period, but I have very heavy periods and without iron infusions I'm anemic, so hopefully that does not apply to you :smile:

    Thank you! I do suffer from anemia and I feel like diet alone won’t help me with my iron levels.

    Have you had your doctor do blood work recently? A simple blood test will confirm your iron levels. Tracking your calories will help you know what you are getting through your food. Iron supplements are inexpensive, if you do need them. But truly, I do not recommend taking any supplements until a blood test confirms a need for them, AND you actually know what you are eating and that you are actually eating ENOUGH.
  • xxzenabxx
    xxzenabxx Posts: 935 Member
    callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    Hey everyone, I twisted my knee and fell a couple of weeks ago. It hurt so bad and it was swollen too. I was wondering if the body requires extra calories during the healing process because my hair has been falling out for the past few weeks and it’s really distressing. I’m worried that I was unintentionally undereating and that’s why it’s fallen out OR I haven’t had enough protein because I’ve just been eating intuitively and not tracking my food as it was too much work for me. I’ve been pretty sedentary aside from some light movement in the house and some gentle physio exercises.

    Since you're concerned about your calories and protein, I suggest you start tracking again.

    If you were under-eating a few *months* ago that would be a more likely cause of your hair falling out over the past few weeks, due to the way the hair growth cycles responds to malnutrition. However, the stress of the twisted knee could also have caused the hair loss.

    I shed more hair during my period, but I have very heavy periods and without iron infusions I'm anemic, so hopefully that does not apply to you :smile:

    Thank you! I do suffer from anemia and I feel like diet alone won’t help me with my iron levels.

    Have you had your doctor do blood work recently? A simple blood test will confirm your iron levels. Tracking your calories will help you know what you are getting through your food. Iron supplements are inexpensive, if you do need them. But truly, I do not recommend taking any supplements until a blood test confirms a need for them, AND you actually know what you are eating and that you are actually eating ENOUGH.

    Thank you!
  • xxzenabxx
    xxzenabxx Posts: 935 Member
    Can anyone answer my original question if the body needs more calories whilst recovering from an injury?
  • JBanx256
    JBanx256 Posts: 1,479 Member
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    Can anyone answer my original question if the body needs more calories whilst recovering from an injury?

    Yes, it does. I don't have studies/references but during the healing process there is definitely an increased caloric demand on the body. When I managed to injure myself during contest prep, my coach had me take a diet break and eat at maintenance.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    Hey everyone, I twisted my knee and fell a couple of weeks ago. It hurt so bad and it was swollen too. I was wondering if the body requires extra calories during the healing process because my hair has been falling out for the past few weeks and it’s really distressing. I’m worried that I was unintentionally undereating and that’s why it’s fallen out OR I haven’t had enough protein because I’ve just been eating intuitively and not tracking my food as it was too much work for me. I’ve been pretty sedentary aside from some light movement in the house and some gentle physio exercises.

    Since you're concerned about your calories and protein, I suggest you start tracking again.

    If you were under-eating a few *months* ago that would be a more likely cause of your hair falling out over the past few weeks, due to the way the hair growth cycles responds to malnutrition. However, the stress of the twisted knee could also have caused the hair loss.

    I shed more hair during my period, but I have very heavy periods and without iron infusions I'm anemic, so hopefully that does not apply to you :smile:

    Thank you! I do suffer from anemia and I feel like diet alone won’t help me with my iron levels.

    Aha! Low iron can cause hair loss too. Diet alone isn't enough for me. I had it under control with diets + supplements til last year when I wouldn't stop bleeding >.<

    Are you supplementing now? What form of iron are you taking? Some are more bioavailable than others.

    I take iron bisglycinate.

    https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0001OP028

    The 25 mg refers to *elemental* iron, not to be confused with the *chemical* iron, a much higher number some other brands use.

    This does not give me gastro-intestinal symptoms like other forms of iron. For example, I ended up in Urgent Care with the worst pain in my life when my GP over prescribed ferrous gluconate.
  • xxzenabxx
    xxzenabxx Posts: 935 Member
    JBanx256 wrote: »
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    Can anyone answer my original question if the body needs more calories whilst recovering from an injury?

    Yes, it does. I don't have studies/references but during the healing process there is definitely an increased caloric demand on the body. When I managed to injure myself during contest prep, my coach had me take a diet break and eat at maintenance.

    Thank you, makes sense…I feel like due to lack of movement my appetite has plummeted and I’ve been possibly eating 1000-1400 calories a day (it’s very easy for me to undereat without realising for weeks). Could this also be adding to my stress levels? I really don’t want to track my food either…ughhh! It’s just too much effort.
  • xxzenabxx
    xxzenabxx Posts: 935 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    xxzenabxx wrote: »
    Hey everyone, I twisted my knee and fell a couple of weeks ago. It hurt so bad and it was swollen too. I was wondering if the body requires extra calories during the healing process because my hair has been falling out for the past few weeks and it’s really distressing. I’m worried that I was unintentionally undereating and that’s why it’s fallen out OR I haven’t had enough protein because I’ve just been eating intuitively and not tracking my food as it was too much work for me. I’ve been pretty sedentary aside from some light movement in the house and some gentle physio exercises.

    Since you're concerned about your calories and protein, I suggest you start tracking again.

    If you were under-eating a few *months* ago that would be a more likely cause of your hair falling out over the past few weeks, due to the way the hair growth cycles responds to malnutrition. However, the stress of the twisted knee could also have caused the hair loss.

    I shed more hair during my period, but I have very heavy periods and without iron infusions I'm anemic, so hopefully that does not apply to you :smile:

    Thank you! I do suffer from anemia and I feel like diet alone won’t help me with my iron levels.

    Aha! Low iron can cause hair loss too. Diet alone isn't enough for me. I had it under control with diets + supplements til last year when I wouldn't stop bleeding >.<

    Are you supplementing now? What form of iron are you taking? Some are more bioavailable than others.

    I take iron bisglycinate.

    https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0001OP028

    The 25 mg refers to *elemental* iron, not to be confused with the *chemical* iron, a much higher number some other brands use.

    This does not give me gastro-intestinal symptoms like other forms of iron. For example, I ended up in Urgent Care with the worst pain in my life when my GP over prescribed ferrous gluconate.

    Thank you and I’m not taking any medication/supplements recently. I’m definitely going to try this one out! Anemia runs in my family as my mum, aunts and grandma have it too.

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