Harder for Short Women?

2»

Replies

  • littlelol
    littlelol Posts: 539
    im only 4ft 11 its a pain ha
  • iplayoutside19
    iplayoutside19 Posts: 2,304 Member
    It's simple physics. There is less of you to move around....this means calories requirements are lower.
  • seansquared
    seansquared Posts: 328 Member
    A 175 lb woman at 12% body fat is bordering closely on unhealthy (10-12% BF is ESSENTIAL fat for a female).

    Exactly why I didn't go lower; 12% being the suggested absolute minimum for all women outside of the pro bodybuilding circuit.
    Lean Body Mass matters, but a smaller frame can only go so high.

    Lean body mass is still the most important thing here. I don't really understand why you showed what I had already showed? My point is that no, height really doesn't matter. Ultimately lean body mass is #1, with everything else a distant 2nd. A really tall person at 40% and a really short person at 40% could both look completely different at the same weight, but they have the same LBM, which means the same caloric deficit is required for weight loss.

    Proof? Your own calculations: at 175lbs and regardless of whether you're 5'10" or 5'2", BMR and TDEE are exactly the same.
  • baisleac
    baisleac Posts: 2,019 Member
    A 175 lb woman at 12% body fat is bordering closely on unhealthy (10-12% BF is ESSENTIAL fat for a female).

    Exactly why I didn't go lower; 12% being the suggested absolute minimum for all women outside of the pro bodybuilding circuit.
    Lean Body Mass matters, but a smaller frame can only go so high.

    Lean body mass is still the most important thing here. I don't really understand why you showed what I had already showed? My point is that no, height really doesn't matter. Ultimately lean body mass is #1, with everything else a distant 2nd. A really tall person at 40% and a really short person at 40% could both look completely different at the same weight, but they have the same LBM, which means the same caloric deficit is required for weight loss.

    Proof? Your own calculations: at 175lbs and regardless of whether you're 5'10" or 5'2", BMR and TDEE are exactly the same.

    The point being, the original point of the post. It is harder for short people.
  • seansquared
    seansquared Posts: 328 Member
    The point being, the original point of the post. It is harder for short people.

    That makes no sense. You yourself just posted math that says 175lbs = 175lbs. All you changed was bodyfat%. Height had nothing to do with it.

    Katch-McArdle requires weight, bodyfat %, and activity level. Height is nowhere in the math.
  • seansquared
    seansquared Posts: 328 Member
    Back to the original poster I'd say it's "harder" because it looks different. It's not actually harder at all, the caloric requirements are the same, but being 5'0", 150lbs, 20% bf looks completely different from being 6'0", 150lbs, 20% bf.
  • baisleac
    baisleac Posts: 2,019 Member
    The point being, the original point of the post. It is harder for short people.

    That makes no sense. You yourself just posted math that says 175lbs = 175lbs. All you changed was bodyfat%. Height had nothing to do with it.

    Katch-McArdle requires weight, bodyfat %, and activity level. Height is nowhere in the math.

    Is it harder to get to 40% body fat or is it harder to get to 20% body fat? They had the same LBM, yes. But which one had to work harder to get there?
  • seansquared
    seansquared Posts: 328 Member
    Is it harder to get to 40% body fat or is it harder to get to 20% body fat? They had the same LBM, yes. But which one had to work harder to get there?

    Height doesn't matter there either, unfortunately. Just means Person A has lower LBM than Person B.
  • baisleac
    baisleac Posts: 2,019 Member
    Is it harder to get to 40% body fat or is it harder to get to 20% body fat? They had the same LBM, yes. But which one had to work harder to get there?

    Height doesn't matter there either, unfortunately. Just means Person A has lower LBM than Person B.

    Let's try this from a different angle:

    Now let's show that 5'10" female at 20% Body fat:

    5'10" female
    170 lbs
    LBM: 136 lb
    BF: 20% (athletic)
    BMR: 1705.32
    Moderate activity TDEE: 2643.25


    Show me a 5'2" woman with 136 lb LBM. Hint... it will have to be a pro body builder or significantly overweight.
  • bellinachuchina
    bellinachuchina Posts: 498 Member
    Shout out to the shorties! Hahaha

    It definitely depends on a ton of factors. Being shorter, it's entirely possible our metabolisms aren't as fast. And we do need less calories per day so getting a big deficit is difficult unless we undereat (which is also really bad). I've realized that us shorties can have WAY different distribution of fat, so if it likes to hang out in one place like our stomach or thighs, it's hard to get rid of. Like I could fit in size 6 pants if the thighs weren't so darn tight. However there is a plus side. If we lose 5 lbs, it's most likely more noticeable since our fat is concentrated on a smaller frame. And I've managed to build up muscle so that I'm a size 6/8 even with weighing 150 lbs still, overweight for my 5'2.5" frame. But every person has challenges losing weight, short or tall.

    But in general, I'd say that the calorie deficits have something to do with it. Our resting calorie burn is lower than a taller person, so if we eat the same amount as them, they might lose and we get stuck. It's hard to strike a balance.

    All of this ^ :)

    Fellow shawty here, and oh, how I've wished I could just grow a few inches. I would look so much slimmer if I was taller lol. Oh, well!

    Plus, I agree, it's not more difficult to lose if you can get past the BMR/less calories factor, our weight just looks different.
  • seansquared
    seansquared Posts: 328 Member
    Plus, I agree, it's not more difficult to lose if you can get past the BMR/less calories factor, our weight just looks different.

    This is what I tried to say earlier ;)

    150lbs is 150lbs, it just is what it is and no height doesn't matter with regards to weight loss or weight gain. Where it does matter? The mirror. Given the same weight, BF%, and therefore TDEE you will still look completely different at 6'2" than at 5'5" or at 4'11"! :)
  • fteale
    fteale Posts: 5,310 Member
    If you are tall with a big build you just do have a lot more of you to fill out. A 150lb person who is 6ft will look thin. A 150lb, 5' person will look stocky, even with 15% body fat. most people don't want to look stocky, they want to look lean.
  • lauz45
    lauz45 Posts: 243
    I still think us shorties need less calories..on Supersize vs Superskinny (a tv show here in the UK) they always say the average woman should have 2000 cals a day..I would pack the weight on eating that much! I'm 5'3, high body fat, yes, but BMI of 25.5.
  • HaleyAlli
    HaleyAlli Posts: 911 Member
    Yeah, everything I'm seeing seems to indicate that we "need" less calories. But I'm still ALWAYS HUNGRY. It's so frustrating! Sometimes I wish I could just stretch my body up to a taller height because I am almost at ideal weight for some heights, just not MY height, lol.
  • kathyhull
    kathyhull Posts: 327 Member
    Yep, I've always said - I'm just a tall thin person who got squished into a short fat body!
  • HaleyAlli
    HaleyAlli Posts: 911 Member
    Yep, I've always said - I'm just a tall thin person who got squished into a short fat body!

    Hahaha!! Me too! Especially since people always compliment my face, I've heard a couple people say before that I have the face of a model. If only my body matched it! :P
  • MiniMichelle
    MiniMichelle Posts: 801 Member
    bump
This discussion has been closed.

Categories