TMI - Metabolism boost whilst on Shark Week?

anna_toffee
anna_toffee Posts: 31 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
i'm really sorry if this has gone in the wrong section, and if i'm just talking out my butt here, so mods, i concede to any judgement you make.
also, this is probably going to be a bit TMI, so if you're a bit squeamish, i'm very sorry and you have been warned :P




ladies and people who get periods: i read (ages ago, a long way off somewhere) that being on that time of the month boosts your metabolism by about 50%. my science brain says that's dumb, and my non-science brain is saying "well.."

the reason i ask is, i always lose a little extra weight after mine. so if i have an avg. loss of about half a lb a week, after my time of the month, i find i've lost a little more, like 3/4 of a lb, or a full 1lb. also, i don't gain it back.

i've realised as i'm typing this that i sound really dim, and probably a bit like a spambot spouting crap about metabolism shifting and moving.

so, does anyone else get this? could it actually be a slight change in metabolic rate? am i in the wrong section? D:

Replies

  • ThinLizzie0802
    ThinLizzie0802 Posts: 863 Member
    I'm sorry but I have no good response other than calling it shark week is amazing an I'm stealing it.
  • clambert1273
    clambert1273 Posts: 840 Member
    LOL I don't know but you made me laugh... :bigsmile: I go on rambles as well... but if it is true.. I don't care.. would rather NOT have that time :sad:
  • BarbieAS
    BarbieAS Posts: 1,414 Member
    I think I remember reading in a women's magazine or some such back in the day that you do get a slight boost during that time, though 50% seems much much too high (just an educated guess, but I'd figure something like that would max out at maybe 100-150 calories/day at absolute best, probably less). Don't remember what, if any, science was behind it. Water balance can have a lot to do with your loss around that time of the month as well.

    ETA: And here I thought one of my friends invented calling it "shark week." Lol. We've been calling it that for years, and I find it fantastic. :laugh:
  • Alassonde
    Alassonde Posts: 228 Member
    I've noticed that too. Sometimes i think it's just because I gain so much in water, etc. the week or two before, and then it just all comes off at once.
  • Mistraal1981
    Mistraal1981 Posts: 453 Member
    I always gain between 3-8 lbs a few days before my period. I do always find that although I feel achy and sore, that I have a lot of energy and often go nuts doing a deep clean of the house or garden. This lasts about 2 days. Not sure why I get this boost, but I do. When its all over I normally return to what I was weighing before, no less. This is probably due to giving in to cravings a bit more.
  • anna_toffee
    anna_toffee Posts: 31 Member
    i just call it Shark Week because that's when i see documentaries on Great White Sharks and i think "i can relate.."

    and yeah, i thought it was water weight too! but i'm not sure because i simply don't gain that much weight beforehand, if at all. (i'm very lucky in that sense)

    yeah, BarbieAS, it was either a women's girly mag or some website purporting to be an online version. i probably overestimated it at 50%, hence why my science brain is like "..naaaaaaaaaaaahhh!"
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    In because...well... "shark week".
  • KylaDenay
    KylaDenay Posts: 1,585 Member
    I have to laugh at "shark week" hahaha!! I have never heard of it like that before, but now that I think of it, so very true!!
  • ReenieBelle
    ReenieBelle Posts: 11 Member
    I don't have an answer for you but.....Hahaha; Shark Week. That's great. I'm stealing it too.

    The first thing I thought of was possible water gain during Shark Week to, like Alassonde. The female body is pretty amazing, and complicated. I believe a shift in anything during that time of the month is possible so why not metabolism.

    Honestly I don't pay much attention to any fraction under a full pound. I THINK I have a decent digital scale, but I can shift my weight or step off and back on the scale and the number fluxuates a little.

    By the way.... Ya'all are doing great! I've been OFF MyFitness Pal for almost a year! I just started back. I hope to see progress like yours over the next year. I'm determined to stick with it this time. Seeing your progress is very encouraging.
  • Lauren8239
    Lauren8239 Posts: 1,039 Member
    It's just water retention.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    My understanding was that there is a slight increase, but it is not during the menstrual period, it is in the luteal phase, the 2 weeks before when the uterus lining is thickening up, preparing for a fertilized egg.

    I have seen nothing to suggest as high as 50%, just a slight increase in calories.

    ETA - there is also a slight drop during the follicular phase, the first part of the cycle.
  • ReenieBelle
    ReenieBelle Posts: 11 Member
    This makes more sense. Thank you.
  • SrMaggalicious
    SrMaggalicious Posts: 495 Member
    I'm sorry but I have no good response other than calling it shark week is amazing an I'm stealing it.

    ^^yep! that was CLASSIC! :laugh: :bigsmile:
  • AliceSwarthout
    AliceSwarthout Posts: 808 Member
    I've noticed that too. Sometimes i think it's just because I gain so much in water, etc. the week or two before, and then it just all comes off at once.
    ^This. I think it's the bloating FINALLY leaving after.
  • happycauseIride
    happycauseIride Posts: 536 Member
    i'm really sorry if this has gone in the wrong section, and if i'm just talking out my butt here, so mods, i concede to any judgement you make.
    also, this is probably going to be a bit TMI, so if you're a bit squeamish, i'm very sorry and you have been warned :P




    ladies and people who get periods: i read (ages ago, a long way off somewhere) that being on that time of the month boosts your metabolism by about 50%. my science brain says that's dumb, and my non-science brain is saying "well.."

    the reason i ask is, i always lose a little extra weight after mine. so if i have an avg. loss of about half a lb a week, after my time of the month, i find i've lost a little more, like 3/4 of a lb, or a full 1lb. also, i don't gain it back.

    i've realised as i'm typing this that i sound really dim, and probably a bit like a spambot spouting crap about metabolism shifting and moving.

    so, does anyone else get this? could it actually be a slight change in metabolic rate? am i in the wrong section? D:

    I would be curious to see if there is any science behind it because I have had it happen to me too. So, no I don't think you are spouting crap. I don't have periods anymore because I had a hysterectomy but I still have my ovaries so I still go through the symptoms. I would often gain a couple before due to water then when it was over I would lose 3-4. A lot of times I came out of it lower than where I started. I have no idea why. But I wanted to offer support that you are not alone. :)
  • stickersticker
    stickersticker Posts: 140 Member
    Why do I always miss shark week? This needs to be a fixed date to help me.

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