I had my metabolism tested today

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Replies

  • galprincess
    galprincess Posts: 683 Member
    Ok soooo.... do what the doctor suggests get to that weight then why not try pr9ove him wrong? if you do that's fab if not well then he was right nothing lost except extra lbs. Im 5ft 5 or 165cm and I weigh 140lbs im not small boned at all I struggled to get to 150lbs but once there and saw how I did it I just kept applying the same and guess what it works. I would agree with lifting but you can start with your own body planks push ups walking out planks reverse crunches supermans burpees etc these will help define your body
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    honkytonks85 wrote: »
    The reasoning behind why he said 83kg is fine is because my waist is small. Currently I am obese but my waist is actually within a reasonably health range. He believes that the waist to height ratio and subcutaneous fat is more important for measuring health than the BMI is. Hence his recommendation for 83kg (for health) despite the fact that according to BMI is still obese for my height. He says I'd find it very hard to lose any more weight than that sustainably as I will always just store fat in my bottom half - but it is possible with a really low calorie diet. It won't stop me from trying anyway.

    Re; the metabolic assessment. The doctor is an endocrinologist who specialises in diabetes and weight management.. Basically I got a referral from my GP to go see him. They took some measures and did an ECG. Then I had a nose plug that stopped me from breathing through my nose and had to breathe through a tube. It measures oxygen in/out to determine your RMR.

    I am also getting a CT scan and some blood work done for a better assessment in a few weeks.

    Honestly, you shape doesn't mean you store fat any more likely than the rest of us. And knowing that your RMR is 1900, there is no need to eat a low calorie diet because you TDEE is above the 1900. Suggesting that you would have to do a low calorie diet is mind blowing since they already know you burn a ton of calories. Heck, you could eat at your RMR or slightly above (depending on activity level) and lose. And forgetting about BMI, at 83kg, you are still 40 lbs over the recommend weight for a person who is your height.

    Also keep in mind, the last place you gain weight is the first place you lose, so it's possible you lose weight in your arms and wrist, which is why you have a small wrist. Heck, have always been lean. As I have lost weight, they haven't changed too much but my arms, stomach, neck and shoulders have.
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    I've never heard in many years of reading diet forums of anyone who's been told their fat is too resistant to lose or that they're just fine at obese BMI. Not that you didn't hear that, but that's a new one. I personally would not be happy at all at that weight and would distrust that doctor.
  • girlviernes
    girlviernes Posts: 2,402 Member
    Gosh, you seem to have a well informed doctor!

    As an apple - I would love to be a pear shape. Body image is about first of all recognizing that healthy size varies and what is out there in the media is just one size but really not the right size for most people. So dealing with the disappointment of not being that "ideal" size can be your pathway to really accepting yourself and seeing all the great things about your body. You are healthy, shapely, and I bet your body lets you do all sorts of great things.

    I'd encourage you to counter the media ideal by reading some body positivity blogs, body positivity on pinterest, etc.

    I think most women are somewhat discontent with their bodies, which is sad but OK, but if you notice you are thinking about it all the time or checking your body a lot or avoiding things because of your body, you might want to work with a therapist and/or do self-help. There is a body image workbook you can buy on Amazon.
  • Relentless_0ne
    Relentless_0ne Posts: 38

    honkytonks85 wrote: »
    The reasoning behind why he said 83kg is fine is because my waist is small. Currently I am obese but my waist is actually within a reasonably health range. He believes that the waist to height ratio and subcutaneous fat is more important for measuring health than the BMI is. Hence his recommendation for 83kg (for health) despite the fact that according to BMI is still obese for my height. He says I'd find it very hard to lose any more weight than that sustainably as I will always just store fat in my bottom half - but it is possible with a really low calorie diet. It won't stop me from trying anyway.

    Re; the metabolic assessment. The doctor is an endocrinologist who specialises in diabetes and weight management.. Basically I got a referral from my GP to go see him. They took some measures and did an ECG. Then I had a nose plug that stopped me from breathing through my nose and had to breathe through a tube. It measures oxygen in/out to determine your RMR.

    I am also getting a CT scan and some blood work done for a better assessment in a few weeks.

    Yes. Your endocrinologist is looking at it from a health perspective. Meaning you can live at that target weight without the fear of negative health related risk factors for a very long time. So long as the subcutaneous fat stays put....which as we age....that doesnt happen, so you have to keep an eye on that.

    But there are several different perspectives that you can look at it from all of which the only ones that matter are the ones that are important to you and what your goals are. What do you want? Do you want to turn heads at the beach? Do you want to win a crossfit competition? Do you want to run marathons? Do you only want to be able to do housework without getting tired? Do you want to be able to sit in a cubicle for 10 hours a day staring at a computer and not be exhausted by 2pm?

    I could go on and on and on with this list in which body comp and weight will have an impact on how much easier (better) or difficult (worse) achieving them are. I am glad the doctor checked you out and gave a clean bill of health. Now it seems like the next thing for you to answer for yourself is how you want to improve the quality of your life.
  • lambchristie
    lambchristie Posts: 552 Member
    I see where others are saying you are 5'4" and the goal weight your doctor suggested 184. I am at 5' 4-3/4" tall and currently weight 165 and my doctor said to try for the low 150s to high 140s. Not sure what body shape has to do with it. I agree you should get to the suggested weight and then re-evalulate. My doc is also an endocrinologist. I was pre diabetic. I have gotten off three prescription drugs related to being overweight and feeling great. I want to continue to lose and the last ten pounds are tough to lose.

    Do not know your workout routine but be sure to get in some weight and strength training not just cardio. Talk to a trainer to develop a routine to know how to target the areas you desire to work on. I even if you can't afford a trainer all the time investing in two or three visit with one will put you on the right track.

    Good luck in your journey.
  • jesiann2014
    jesiann2014 Posts: 521 Member
    I recommend 'Strong Curves' by Bret Contreras. The 'Bootyful Beginnings' 12-week workout in this book totally changed my rear and thighs. I never thought I could have such a firm and shapely tush and leg but I'm rocking it now. :) Then I really got into lifting and I 'get' it now! I get why all the lifting ladies are always recommending lifting heavy things. They (and now I) really know what they are talking about. So thanks Lifting Ladies!
  • esjones12
    esjones12 Posts: 1,363 Member
    I didn't read all the posts but I didn't see this mentioned, and I'm not saying it definitely applies to you, but it is something important to note:

    Make sure you realize that reaching a specific weight doesn't necessarily mean your body image will improve. It might, but it might not. There are a lot of girls that lose a bunch of weight and still have body image issues. In addition to shedding excess pounds, try lifting, doing 5ks, etc. Keep track of non-weight measurements and a list of things you can do now that you couldn't do before. Also make sure you are not letting the rest of your life fall to crap while you are focusing on getting fit....that can effect the way you view yourself as well. There are different body shapes and we aren't all going to look like a magazine cover model (who really doesn't even look that way anyways), but we all can be healthy and fit.

    Best of luck!!!!
  • boredlimodriver
    boredlimodriver Posts: 264 Member
    http://www.nifs.org/fitness-center/fitness-assessments/resting-metabolic-rate

    sounds like a bunch of bs
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    What is barbaric about dividing your weight by your height and telling you which range healthier people fall into, statistically? If you're a well-muscled athlete, you know you're different. The rest of us, not so much.

    BMI is actually more likely to say we're 'normal' when we're 'obese' by body fat percent than the opposite.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    Don't stress so much about the end goal weight. Almost nobody ends up at the exact goal weight they set in the beginning, and you can tell the people who end up fixated on a single number because they sound INSANE. ("Omg, I was 120 pounds two days ago and then I ate a bagel and today I weighed 121.1 pounds! Help! I'm cutting out everything except skinless chicken breast and spinach until the scale says exactly 120 pounds every single day!!") You don't want to be that girl. Nobody should have to be that girl. Just keep your head down, do your work and see how you look and feel as you're losing.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    honkytonks85 wrote: »
    The reasoning behind why he said 83kg is fine is because my waist is small. Currently I am obese but my waist is actually within a reasonably health range.

    My insurance company has a similar analysis, in that they seem to check as a risk factor either being obese OR being overweight plus having too large a waist measurement.

    Similarly, like I said above, my own doctor said it was no big thing for me to be 5 lbs overweight according to BMI (although I wanted to lose more weight, so I did), because I was fit, had good test results, etc.

    What neither does/did, and what I think is strange about what you said your doctor said, is that being at a healthy means that you won't be able to lose more if you want to or that you would need a really low calorie diet to do so. That doesn't make sense.

    Given your RMR, you should be able to keep losing at a nice sustainable level of calories, so I'd say not to worry too much about it and if you want to lose more you can. If you don't really want to, that's another matter, there's no obligation to--be happy as you are! But I find the doctor's defeatism kind of odd.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Eh I'd get another doctor if he thinks you shouldn't be under 83 kilos at your height, unless you have a lot of muscles or something. Your RMR is high, you won't have any issue losing more weight.
  • SXMEnrico
    SXMEnrico Posts: 89 Member
    doctor or not, someone else placing limits on what you can do with your body is complete and utter *kitten*. Pardon my french.
  • honkytonks85
    honkytonks85 Posts: 669 Member
    Thanks all :)

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