Short, relatively small women in long-term maintenance

segacs
segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
edited November 24 in Goal: Maintaining Weight
I'm 5'1" and recently hit my goal weight after losing 50 pounds this past year. I'm aiming to maintain between 105-110lbs (I'm currently at 106), all the while working on fitness and strength goals to keep motivated.

I think that maintenance for us small shorties presents certain specific challenges. For instance, our maintenance calories tend to be lower than many larger people's deficit calorie goals. Restaurant portions are still too big for us even at maintenance, and our daily food intake still has very little room for error. Also, shopping for clothes is just as frustrating as it was before weight loss, 'cause I've shrunk in weight but I haven't grown in height.

I'm looking for some like-minded short small women like myself to add to my MFP feed for motivation and support. I've had tons of great support from the MFP community during my weight loss, and I'd like to continue that into what will hopefully be long-term maintenance.

Send me a friend request (not blank, please) if you're in the same boat.
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Replies

  • amillenium
    amillenium Posts: 281 Member
    I am 5'1" and currently 117. I struggle with maintenance and am back on the losing side. For clothes, I shop petites (mostly at AT or BR) and depending on the store wear either a 0P or a 2P...feel free to add me if you would like :)
  • anna_jewel
    anna_jewel Posts: 127 Member
    I hit maintenance two weeks ago. I am 5'1 and 114 lbs. I haven't quite got the hang of maintaining yet, i have kept losing .3 these last couple weeks but feel free to add me.
  • flaminica
    flaminica Posts: 304 Member
    I'm 5'0" and sometimes shop in the kids and teens department. Some types of garments will be cut shorter in the sleeves and narrower in the shoulder. The pricepoint is much better too. The hoodie or jacket in the kid's dept. may be half the price of the same garment in lady's petite.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    Yeah but the kids' clothes don't have space for boobs or hips. I'm relatively small, but I'm still pretty curvy and wear a 30DD bra.

    I also prefer to shop petites. But almost no stores here in Canada sell them. There's a teensy anemic section at the downtown Bay, and some ugly stuff at Reitmans. Banana Republic has a little. That's about it. The US retailers are better, but they've started going online-only with most of their petites clothes, and of course, we Canadians can't order stuff online (or if we can, it's prohibitively expensive to do so, and we can't return anything that doesn't fit.)

    *Sigh*
  • flaminica
    flaminica Posts: 304 Member
    Give H&M a try. My kid's 14x hoodie fits my 36DD pear-shaped body. Maybe that's the trick. Try the "chubby kids" sizes. And yes, the off-sizes are certainly harder to find in Canada.
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  • megn529
    megn529 Posts: 16 Member
    5'2" and 105 (lost 55 so very similar stats). Feel free to add me!
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    What are everyone's stats and maintenance ranges?

    I'm still working on trying to find mine. I was eating at 1450 while losing, and now have upped it to 1600 to maintain, which I *think* is around my current maintenance range, though I'm still trying to work it out. (Those numbers include exercise, by the way. I use the TDEE method.)

    So far, maintenance doesn't feel much different from eating at a deficit. I don't know why, but I had this weird idea in my head that I'd be able to eat so much food at maintenance; the message boards are full of people transitioning to maintenance who are perplexed about how to add on so many calories. For me it's the opposite problem; I've arrived here and yet I'm still almost as restricted as I was during weight loss.
  • clarelara24
    clarelara24 Posts: 27 Member
    Hi I'm 5'2 and currently at 113 pounds, I seem to be able to stay at this weight fairly easily - I'm on 1,250 calories a day which I've got used to but often go over this at the weekend and manage not to put any weight back on. However losing more weight has been hard so I've decided to stay at 113 pounds for the time being.

    I have a fairly active job which probably helps and dog walk a lot but could definitely do more exercise!

    I've kind of accepted that due to my height I'm always going to have to count my calories as otherwise I tend to stick around the 122 pounds marker which I don't feel my best at. So i guess like you I still feel pretty restricted.

  • Yoga108
    Yoga108 Posts: 3 Member
    I hear ya! I'm 4'11" and find it impossible to maintain. I lose weight easily, then within a couple of months it has climbed by about 5 lbs, then 10 within 6 months. I keep doing this over and over again because, even with exercise, a balanced high protein, high fiber, medium carb (all "good" carbs), high veggie, moderate fruit and very low sugar diet I still can't find the right amount of food my body needs. What I do know is that if I eat over 1400 calories a day (even with exercise) I always begin to gain weight. Less that that, though, I'm so hungry! I burn anywhere from 150 - 450 calories a day from exercise, depending on what I do (yoga and pilates burn the least, hiking and gardening the most). I weigh and measure, not only my portions but also when I cook to make sure the recipe is accurate, nutrition-wise. So, in the last 2.5 years, after losing 45 lbs AGAIN, I've crept back up from a low of 111 lbs (which I maintained for about a year-and-a-half... longest maintenance ever) to 139. I'm so tired and frustrated. I have a busy life (single parent, full-time job, small farm to run/maintain on top of the full-time job). I think stress may be a big contributing factor to my gain. I welcome any and all input! :smile:
  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,590 Member
    Five three, 47 years old, 120 lb. Also prediabetic and hypothyroid. I am built like a fireplug, thick and solid, but apparently I still have to subsist on very few cals. (got my BMR measured, bone density checked, and all that.) I get about 1400 a day maintenance, then add any exercise. It's restriction for life, it seems. X( I eat a lot of salad and drink a lot of coffee. For you ladies with big boobs, or heavy quads, try swimsuitsforall dot com. You can also buy bra-fitted swimsuit separates from Her Room and Bare Essentials online.
  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,590 Member
    ... wait, why does Canada not permit you to order and return garments online freely? That's crazy in this day and age.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    5ft 2 / 46 yrs/ maintaining 133lbs for 2 years now (am slim/fit at this weight)
    I'm a UK size 8-10 depending on brand/retailer.

    I maintain on approx 2200 cals gross.

    I workout 5 days a week / run / walk/ lift / yoga.

    For me maintenance rocks :smile:
  • flaminica
    flaminica Posts: 304 Member
    At my age, maintenance TDEE at goal weight is only 1600 or so. I can boost that a bit with an active job, but I too am looking at restriction for life.
  • megn529
    megn529 Posts: 16 Member
    I've been trying to figure out my maintenance. I've slowly upped my calories over the last few months. At 105 and 5'2", I think I'm finally maintaining around 1600, but I'm still testing my weight at this amount of calories over the next few weeks.
  • clh72569
    clh72569 Posts: 280 Member
    I am 4'11" and 53 years old. I started at 150 and am now 105. I plan to go to 100 and range from 100-105.
  • amillenium
    amillenium Posts: 281 Member
    clarelara24 wrote: »
    Hi I'm 5'2 and currently at 113 pounds, I seem to be able to stay at this weight fairly easily - I'm on 1,250 calories a day which I've got used to but often go over this at the weekend and manage not to put any weight back on. However losing more weight has been hard so I've decided to stay at 113 pounds for the time being.

    I have a fairly active job which probably helps and dog walk a lot but could definitely do more exercise!

    I've kind of accepted that due to my height I'm always going to have to count my calories as otherwise I tend to stick around the 122 pounds marker which I don't feel my best at. So i guess like you I still feel pretty restricted.


    This sounds like me to a T--I seem to naturally gravitate to 118-122 whenever I try to go on maintenance. I feel I look my best at 110 but struggle to stay there.
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  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    My 'naturally gravitate towards' weight increased every decade. In my teens it was around 110-115. In my twenties it was around 125-130. In my 30s it jumped up to 140-150. I hit a high of 155 before deciding to finally do something about it definitively. So yeah, the "naturally gravitate" thing, I hear you ladies. I think we tend to gain weight faster just because society portions out food for bigger people, and we have a habit of eating the same amounts as they do if we don't watch ourselves.

    Nice to hear from so many of you in the same boat. Feeling less alone!
    gothchiq wrote: »
    ... wait, why does Canada not permit you to order and return garments online freely? That's crazy in this day and age.

    It's not Canada that does it. It's market forces. We're a small population in a big area. Shipping costs are expensive. Most US retailers don't bother to ship to Canada 'cause it's expensive and the market isn't particularly worth it for them to enter. Or if they do, they team up with one of those international shipping companies that tacks on a ton of fees and service charges, not to mention tax and duty which we have to pay on everything. Then, return shipping is usually at our expense, and takes ages. Plus, coupons, discounts and promos usually aren't available to international customers. Not to mention the exchange rate. Oh, and certain brands aren't licensed to export, so, for instance, Macy's will ship some brands to Canada but not the ones I like. And so on and so forth.

    Basically, when it comes to shopping, I'm always gonna be screwed.
  • clh72569
    clh72569 Posts: 280 Member
    About clothes... I shop everywhere, but I learned to sew. Especially hem.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    clh72569 wrote: »
    About clothes... I shop everywhere, but I learned to sew. Especially hem.

    Me too. Well, I'm still learning. But I can do most basic hemming myself. I think it's a survival skill when you're our height, basically.
  • anna_jewel
    anna_jewel Posts: 127 Member
    I do a lot of shopping from old navy.ca, they ship for free if u spend $50 (even to the Yukon). They have petite clothes too. I am 30 yr old, and my maintanence calories us 1650, I tend to eat between 1600 and 2000 calories a day and have lost .3 these last couple weeks. I will figure out my cals though.
  • ilfaith
    ilfaith Posts: 16,769 Member
    Feel free to add me. I am 5'2.75 (of course those fractions count) with a small frame, and maintain between 100-105.

    It does get frustrating sometimes when other people seem to lose weight eating more than my maintenance calories...whereas I gain if I go beyond 1200-1400...even when I do work out...which I do most days. Being in my mid-40s (and not getting any younger) doesn't help either.

    Of course not only don't we get to eat as much as our bigger, taller friends, but we don't burn nearly as many calories through exercise. I have a friend who wears a Fitbit with HRM and after a class she'll be like "hey, I just burned 500 calories" and I know I didn't come anywhere near that even though we did the exact same workout.

    I guess I am just fuel-efficient. Like a compact car.

    And my wardrobe comes mostly from Banana and Loft, as their petite sizes usually work for me...of course they never have much inventory in-store, so I do a lot of online shopping.
  • zkhanman
    zkhanman Posts: 132 Member
    Many people struggle with restaurant portion size. My strategy is to ask them when I'm ordering it, if they can just put half in a togo box as soon as they're done prepping it. That way you get a reasonable amount of food on your plate and don't feel like you "have to finish it". Plus you have left overs.
  • clh72569
    clh72569 Posts: 280 Member
    I also saw a strategy that I plan on using. A green, yellow, and red weight. Green ok, yellow watch what you eat, red full on diet mode. A weight yourself regularly.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    Yeah, I do the portioning thing in restaurants, too. I often don't take it home, though. Sometimes I'm not going straight home after a restaurant, or other times it's the sort of food that doesn't reheat well and would just go to waste. I've gotten a lot more comfortable simply leaving food over on my plate and sending it back. I used to feel really guilty about doing this, but now I figure it's going to waste either way so better in the trash than on my hips.
    (Having said that, I'm super supportive of restaurants who have programs to donate unused food to shelters and to offer smaller portions upon request.)

    Old Navy / Gap / Banana Republic (yep, it's all the same company) is pretty much the only e-tailer offering petites clothing with good shipping and returns in Canada. Too bad their quality has gone way downhill these past couple of years, and the styles -- which used to be classic and, in the case of Banana, work-appropriate -- have gotten much more casual. It's getting really hard for me to find anything that I can wear to the office there anymore.

    Ann Taylor/LOFT sizes often work for me too. I wish we had them here.
  • clarion_r
    clarion_r Posts: 53 Member
    Another shorty.
    RunRutheeRun wrote: »
    5ft 2 / 46 yrs/ maintaining 133lbs for 2 years now (am slim/fit at this weight)
    I'm a UK size 8-10 depending on brand/retailer.

    I maintain on approx 2200 cals gross.

    I'm in awe of your maintenance calories! Any calorie calculator I use to calculate my calories (height, weight, workout 5 days a week) give me about that as maintenance - but at 1800 my bf has been increasing. It's under 20% still, but not a trend I want to continue. Boo!
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,486 Member
    Hi segacs, and everyone else, long time maintainer here, 6yr.

    5'1, 62yo. 33/25/34. (Bra 32D makes me laugh as I am so small chested)

    Weight range 100-105lb, 23-25BF% (according to on line sites)

    1200-1400 cals a day, depending on activity and inclination.
    Went straight from losing at 1200 to maintaining at 1200, I must have just bottomed out.

    Right now I am testing out my intake for my autumn/winter workout plans. I nearly always do an autumn log to work out my own TDEE for the rest of the winter. I am finding I work out my TDEE, count for a couple of weeks more, then have no need to log for most of the winter. Just work off portion.

    Spring and summer I am a lot more casual, minimum formal exercise, rarely log, drink lots of wine and beer, but still don't go over my weight range.

    Clothes; H&M are good, and otherwise I use independent retailers. I can do alterations. I live in Canada too, the wet coast, but often shop when I travel.

    Swimsuits. For actuall swimming I get Dolphin Uglies from swim2000.com. They are shapeless, so if you need support they won't work. Long lasting though. Otherwise I get bikinis and take the back strap in.

    What size shoes does everyone take?
    I have child size 2 US/Can, 33 Europe, 2 UK. It is murder finding shoes or runners without pink hello kitty on them.

    I am not a good friend, as I don't post on my feed often, but if anyone wants to be friends, send me a message and I will encourage you when I can.

    Cheers, h.
  • hotbabe772
    hotbabe772 Posts: 1 Member
    Hi there everyone! ;) I am 5'2. Was 104 but I think I am up to 112 pnds now. One scale says I am 112, then another says 105. Gotta figure that out! I had gallbladder attacks for 6 months in the beginning of the year, then had to have my gallbladder out in June 2015, so because I was so sick and couldn't eat without ending up in emergency, I was down to 100 pnds. Now want to maintain and get back to 105 pnds. Back to tracking hehe. I feel the same as how others wrote about feeling like they are hungry to maintain their weight. It's crazy that just because we are all so small, that we can barely eat to keep our weight at a decent place. It's not fair! Sad face. ;) I am definitely looking for tips to keep my weight down. Have a foot issue atm that slows me down from exercise, although I do massage for a living, and walk a lot, (out of need, as well as trying to get exercise), in spite of my sore foot. Trying to figure that out atm. Cheers everyone!
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