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Under 5'4 Ladies

latinatinacg
latinatinacg Posts: 2 Member
edited May 2024 in Introduce Yourself
Hello! I'm a petite, cis woman working on losing body fat. I've been researching the nutritional needs of smaller statured women to increase fast loss while increasing muscle mass with weight training. So far, I've landed on a 1400 calorie, 35/25/40 macro split. I've only just started this experiment, so any advice from fellow short girls is appreciated. We are all different, but I'm curious what may have worked for others. Good luck on your personal health journeys!

Replies

  • MargaretYakoda
    MargaretYakoda Posts: 2,995 Member
    This is a very helpful calculator, but especially helpful for anyone whose height or activity level is outside the typical range for adult humans.

    https://www.sailrabbit.com/bmr/
  • latinatinacg
    latinatinacg Posts: 2 Member
    edited May 2024
    Thank you, Margaret. Wow, this is such a highly individualized calculator! I'm eager to discover my result. Appreciate you sharing.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 35,347 Member
    Hello and welcome!

    I'm maybe too tall to comment ;) (5'5").

    Your calorie goal and split seem like a reasonable place to start. It's always good IMO to follow the starting goals reasonably closely for 4-6 weeks (whole menstrual cycles if you have those), then compare your average weekly real-world results to your goals. From there, you can adjust on a personalized basis.

    Even the best calculator (or even fitness tracker!) is only giving a statistical estimate, basically the average for similar people, and we're each unique individuals . . . plus those statistics can be a little more approximate for those who are less typical of the population as a whole.

    You mention wanting to "increase fast loss while increasing muscle mass with weight training."

    IMO and IME, pursuing fast loss can be a trap. So sadly many people get here with what amounts to a "lose weight fast then go back to normal" approach that only results in yo-yo weight.

    I'm a big fan of trying to figure out practical, sustainable new routine habits that lead to sensibly moderate weight loss, then help us stay there long term almost on autopilot. (Some people think maintenance is harder than loss. That's also individual. Me, I'm in year 8 of maintaining a healthy weight at this point, after around 30 years of overweight/obesity.)

    Weight training is an excellent plan. Odds of gaining much muscle mass are low alongside fast fat loss. (If you think about it, we're trying to gain one kind of mass, muscle, while losing another, fat. Those goals are somewhat in tension with each other.) Slower fat loss makes muscle gain a bit more likely. Regardless, strength training is 100% worth doing, if only to keep as much existing muscle mass as possible, and potentially add strength (useful in daily life!). If muscle mass gain also happens, so much the better!

    I'm wishing you huge success: The results are worth the effort!
  • lesdarts180
    lesdarts180 Posts: 3,199 Member
    Well thanks for the link @MargaretYakoda , I followed it and found that at 73 yrs and only 152 cm my BMR and TDEE are both under the "magical" 1200 calories that MFP uses as it rock bottom calorie allowance. In fact, they are both supposedly under 1,000.

    NB I wasn't able to select my actual activity level - I'm retired and keep very active but little intense exercise and no physical labour.

    When I was trying to lose weight I did use 1,000 as my goal and now, very active, maintaining at 49 kg I have to keep to about 1,500 per day.
  • MargaretYakoda
    MargaretYakoda Posts: 2,995 Member
    edited May 2024
    lesdarts180 wrote: »
    Well thanks for the link @MargaretYakoda , I followed it and found that at 73 yrs and only 152 cm my BMR and TDEE are both under the "magical" 1200 calories that MFP uses as it rock bottom calorie allowance. In fact, they are both supposedly under 1,000.

    NB I wasn't able to select my actual activity level - I'm retired and keep very active but little intense exercise and no physical labour.

    When I was trying to lose weight I did use 1,000 as my goal and now, very active, maintaining at 49 kg I have to keep to about 1,500 per day.

    Nice maintenance! Congrats on that.
    Ann’s advice above is good too.

    For any other outliers reading this: It’s also a good practice to keep an eye on your energy levels. If you are fading and feeling sluggish and unmotivated? Bump the calories up a bit for a week or so and see if you feel better.

    At any size or activity level, weight loss should not feel like punishment. It needs to be sustainable.

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