Really short girls (5"2 and under) tips and motivation!

LittleMelDavies · April 2016

Hi Ladies,

I'm 5"0 and I was just doing some thinking on how normal weight loss (calorie related) tips aren't catered to us shorter girls. After getting a Fitbit last year I found that even girls 5"3 to 5"5 were burning a significant amount more that me even when I would have a more active day than them.
I kind of always knew that being short had a bit of a disadvantage when it came to weightloss and diet but I never knew that a few inches made so much of a difference.

Anyway, I wanted to reach out to girls like myself and perhaps we can all motivate each other and give each other tips that work for us with weightloss and weight maintaining from people who actually know what it's like to be short. I feel it will be a lot more helpful than googling advice written by someone who is 5"7 and burns 2000 calories on a lazy day. You know what I mean?

So introduce yourself and your current goal and feel free to give tips or ask questions

I'll obviously start; as I mentioned, I'm 5"0 and I currently weigh around 51kgs (112 lbs). I'm at the other end of my weightloss journey where I'm now a healthy weight and I am just trying to stay a healthy weight and be comfortable with my body.
Lightest - 46kg (around 100 lbs)
Heaviest - 64kg (141 lbs)

When I started being an active MyFitnessPal user in 2014, I was 59.5 kgs (131lbs) and lost 10kgs (22 lbs) in 6 months. Now, the way I originally lost all that weight, I want to make clear, is not something I recommend and I know will probably be frowned upon but it's the truth. For the majority of that 6 months, I ate 500 calories a day. There were quite a few days I ate more and quite a few days that I ate less but on average, I'd say it was 500. I'll be the first to say that this kind of lifestyle is not sustainable and it's very very easy to gain all the weight back on (and then some). But thanks to staying on top of calorie counting and figuring out healthy ways to keep the weight off I've been able to maintain a healthy weight since then.

Two years on and having done a lot of trail and error, I have found that if I want to lose weight, I will eat 1000 calories in a day (along with an hour of exercise per day) and if I want to maintain, I eat 1200. I've found that it's very easy for someone of my size to eat 1000 and not feel hungry and not feel like I'm depriving myself. This 1000 includes all 3 meals and snacks (which includes chocolate). Nowadays I loosely aim for 1000 per day regardless because I find that there are days where I eat more (going out to dinner with friends for example) so if I have a day or two per week where I eat 1500-2000, I stay the same weight.

So on times that I want to lose weight (ie. after the gluttonous festive season teehee), I just am more strict on the 1000 calories per day rule but on times when I'm not to fussed, I'm just not as strict. It's a great routine and best of all, I never feel deprived or starved.

I'm in no way an expert or qualified in any way but I've had this regime for almost a year now and I find it really works for me. So if you're also a shorty, let me know what works for you or if you do something similar and are having the same or opposite results. I'm interested to find out

bigcountry0430 · April 2016

I'm neither short or female but I thank you for sharing your story with everyone. Congratulations on your progress and thank you again for being an inspiration.

Big Rob

twinkletoes62 · April 2016

hi, i'm only 5ft tall as well. I struggle with my weight. Wishing I was taller. I try and go for a 45 minute walk everyday or if the weather is bad, I go on my exercise bike and I find that helps me to loose weight. Add me as a friend if you like and i hope we can get thru this together.

squishprincess · April 2016

hi i'm only about 5 ft. maybe 5'1 now? if i'm lucky

i struggle with my weight, and i'm a pear shape, so most of my weight tends to be past my hips. you can add me if you want! i find staying active is a MUST to retain any weight loss & further weight loss.

SJBanks89 · April 2016

Also 5 ft tall. Started in Jan at 152 pounds now 138 pounds my goal weight is 112 pounds. I have been using the fitbit to make me move more. and it is working. I eat much better and make all my food. I am really watching my calorie intake as I can understand how easy it is to over eat. I worry about how I will go with maintenance as I am worried that I will gain most of it back again.

LittleMelDavies · April 2016

Thanks for the replies guys

My husband made a comment that weight has a big deal to play in it as well as height which probably explains the people I know burning more calories.
It was something I even saw in myself when I lost weight; suddenly I was burning less calories for the same jogging circuit I'd been doing for ages. I guess it's more of a good problem to have but just something to keep in mind if you're losing weight. Depending on how much you've lost, it may mean you have to adjust your activity and eating (high and lower respectively) which is why it's not a good idea to start off with really low calorie intake in the beginning

sira88 · April 2016

I'm 5'2 and barely getting back on track. I was working a 14hr a night job and with the grave yard shifts I got lazy and gained weight. On my good days I was 110 went up to 130 and now 126. I'm really motivated and have been documenting daily. Add me

ameeli · April 2016

I'm 5 ft, give or take. My weight has been around 115-135 in the past 10 years. When I was 115, I wanted to be 100 lbs, right now I'd be content at being 115. I'm set at 1200 calories a day, but I try to burn at least 500 calories a day so I can eat more. I'm also avoiding jumping on the scale too often because it can be extremely discouraging when you see that you lost a lb one day and then gain 2 the next day. I'm trying not to focus so much on the weight, but more so on how I feel about my body overall. Please feel free to add me on here.

icklekimmy · April 2016

Hey am 5ft 2. I really struggle with losing weight. Its taking me forever! Fellow shorties feel free to add me!

yolokazimambi · April 2016

I must really be a midget but thank God that in South Africa, short girls are a norm. I'm 143cm, I think that's 4ft7
With PCOS. It has not been the easiest losing weight but generally weight loss for me comes easily, once I dedicate myself. I guess, previously, I was not ready for the drastic diet change and the #fitness lifestyle. My biggest weight was 68/70 kgs. Smallest 53 kgs. I'm not really keen on weighing myself so I usually measure my waist and hips. My largest being 100cm for my waist and 115cm for my hips. Currently I'm at 77cm on my waist and 106 cm on my hips. It's been fun. I believe this is my third week on this site. I joined the site weighing 59.1 kgs, 86 cm waistline and 110cm hips. So there's been progress

SJBanks89 · April 2016

I tape measure myself more than scales as I think you see more of a change.

mom23mangos · April 2016

Fellow shorty here. 5'2" if I stretch. I've found the same thing as you. At 1200 I maintain (that's 1200 of not super accurate logging, so probably a bit more). I also usually get around 1000 calories a day eating a LOT of food. However, I usually have one free day a week where I eat between 2000-2500. That pretty much kills any deficit I had during the week and I still maintain. If I wanted to lose, I would need to not have the free day or take my weekly calories down. But I am lifting and doing HIIT and I am seeing good changes in my composition, so I am OK with basically maintaining. I only had 10-15lbs to lose and I lost about 7lbs quickly. I'm OK to take it slow now.

MrsRachelS · April 2016

Hi all! I'm Rachel, and I'm 5'2" (or maybe 5'3"). For most of my late 20s, my weight was sitting around 125, while not doing anything (no calorie counting, minimal exercise).

But, I hit 30 and started a sedentary job where I sit all day and travel a decent amount and within 2.5 years, I'm now up to around 147. My lowest weight was 118, but that actually looked a bit thin on me (I'm a naturally curvy girl). So, my current goal is back to 125. That seems like a reasonable weight for me to be able to maintain without making fitness and food-tracking a central focus in the long-term. My hope now is that I will track and exercise and create healthy habits, so that after I'm near my goal, the portion-control/exercise will come more naturally and I can just spot-check (i.e. weigh myself every week or two) to ensure that I'm maintaining.

I'm really glad to see this post, because I do think some of the tips for taller people just don't have the same impact when used by us shorties.

WinoGelato · April 2016

OP your numbers sound exceptionally low, even for a petite person at a healthy weight. I can't imagine that your TDEE is only 1200. What is your activity like? What does your FitBit say that you burn in a day?

LittleMelDavies · April 2016

Hi WinoGelato,

I'm assuming you're taller than us shorties? Correct me if I'm wrong, and sorry for the assumption if I am but I just ALWAYS get that comment from taller people because they can't fathom it but it's true, that's the numbers I have to work with and seeing all these other posts just confirms this for me as well.

On a day where I don't move (ie sick day) I burn around 1200. On an average day of going to work at my desk job and no extra activity, I burn 1400 per day. If I add a half and hour to an hour walk, it can be up to 1700 a day (on a good day) I have to to at least 15,000 steps per day to even get close to 2000 calories burned and often times I still don't reach 2000.

From these numbers you'd think I'd have at least a 500 deficit per day but I must note that 1000 is only what I aim for. I don't often hit it lol I'll go over quite a lot (but always make sure I never go under. Those kind of quick results aren't worth the metabolism screw up) but I've found aiming for 1000 prevents me from overeating which is very very easy for me. And I dont really calorie count on the weekend so I will probs eat 2000 per day there.

Also, I've been doing this for quite a while and it works very well for me personally. As I said, I'm no expert, I'm not qualified, I just know what works for me

WinoGelato wrote: »

OP your numbers sound exceptionally low, even for a petite person at a healthy weight. I can't imagine that your TDEE is only 1200. What is your activity like? What does your FitBit say that you burn in a day?

WinoGelato · April 2016

I'm 5'2, so no, I'm not a lot taller than people posting. The numbers you posted just now (ranging from 1200-1700) sound more realistic. Your original post seemed to indicate that you believed your TDEE to be 1200 which is very low, even for a petite person who is not completely sedentary.

Regardless, I still think only eating 1000 cals if you are already at a healthy weight for your height and your TDEE is 1500 or more is too low. It again sounds like your average consumption over the week is higher though, since you said you don't track on the weekends.

This paints a different picture than your first post though which is why I asked for clarity. Most people, even petite women, can lose weight eating more than 1200 cals/day. However since that is the default setting for a lot of people based on their stats and goals, many cling to that number without trying to see if they are able to eat more and lose.

WinoGelato · April 2016

Also for what it's worth I started out as one of those people thinking I had to eat 1200 or I wouldn't lose. I started reading on the forums about people who were eating more than that and still losing, so I increased my calorie goal to 1400, then 1500 (net, eating back exercise cals) and was still losing. I got more active, got a FitBit, and realized that I could increase even more and lose an appropriate 0.5 lb/week (at that point I only had 15 lbs to lose). I lost the 30 lbs I set out to lose eating 1600-1900 cals per day and am maintaining that loss with a TDEE of 2200 according to my FitBit.

I'm 5'2, 120 lbs, 41 female with a desk job. So being a petite female does not automatically mean that a person has to eat 1200 cals or less in order to lose.

zira91 · April 2016

WinoGelato wrote: »

Also for what it's worth I started out as one of those people thinking I had to eat 1200 or I wouldn't lose. I started reading on the forums about people who were eating more than that and still losing, so I increased my calorie goal to 1400, then 1500 (net, eating back exercise cals) and was still losing. I got more active, got a FitBit, and realized that I could increase even more and lose an appropriate 0.5 lb/week (at that point I only had 15 lbs to lose). I lost the 30 lbs I set out to lose eating 1600-1900 cals per day and am maintaining that loss with a TDEE of 2200 according to my FitBit.

I'm 5'2, 120 lbs, 41 female with a desk job. So being a petite female does not automatically mean that a person has to eat 1200 cals or less in order to lose.

+1 to this and I'm 5'1
I've lost 38lbs..

squishprincess · April 2016

Personally, being 5 ft, I can only eat more calories & still lose weight ONLY if I'm constantly active. If I'm sedentary and lazy, I usually maintain around 1390-1450 cals. So 1200 cals is such a slow loss for me. I can easily eat around 1000-1050 cals a day and be perfectly fine. Of course if I'm active I bump up the cals to 1200-1250. I'm not constantly active due to things like depression so I just stick with sedentary cal numbers most of the time if I want to lose some weight, then switch back to maintenance. Maintenance is a tricky game lol

LittleMelDavies · April 2016

WinoGelato wrote: »

Also for what it's worth I started out as one of those people thinking I had to eat 1200 or I wouldn't lose. I started reading on the forums about people who were eating more than that and still losing, so I increased my calorie goal to 1400, then 1500 (net, eating back exercise cals) and was still losing. I got more active, got a FitBit, and realized that I could increase even more and lose an appropriate 0.5 lb/week (at that point I only had 15 lbs to lose). I lost the 30 lbs I set out to lose eating 1600-1900 cals per day and am maintaining that loss with a TDEE of 2200 according to my FitBit.

I'm 5'2, 120 lbs, 41 female with a desk job. So being a petite female does not automatically mean that a person has to eat 1200 cals or less in order to lose.

Thanks for the reply. It just goes to show that even if we're similar sizes, our bodies react differently. I find that if I eat 1400 per day, I can gain, maintain or lose depending on what I eat. But I eat a bit of chocolate and savory treats on the daily and I do that so I don't ever feel deprived. I find that regardless of whether I want to lose weight or maintain, the way I eat and exercise always keeps me at this weight. When I gained a lot of weight over Christmas, I didn't drastically change my eating habits to only healthy food. I just went back to my normal 1000 calorie ways and my weight came back to normal in a month. It's just what works for me.

I did try to make it clear I'm not suggesting anyone follow suit or that I am trained to give advice in any way. I know what works for me from focusing on it in detail for years. For the last 10 years, this lifestyle is the only one that has worked for me. I've stayed the same weight for 2 years now and never in my adult life have I been able to maintain weight for longer than a few months. Which is why I'm proud to tell everyone what I've done and proud of my achievement.

I made this thread so girls like me could connect. If you're short as well but the ways of taller people works well for you as you've said, then that's awesome. I can see you're not alone as per one of the posts agreeing with you. Also, great. But I have people who are like me as well. I've added these people and their diaries are exactly like mine. I don't see any drastic or unhealthy weight loss from any of us with it. Just looks like healthy lifestyles to me

Each to their own

LittleMelDavies · April 2016

squishprincess wrote: »

Personally, being 5 ft, I can only eat more calories & still lose weight ONLY if I'm constantly active. If I'm sedentary and lazy, I usually maintain around 1390-1450 cals. So 1200 cals is such a slow loss for me. I can easily eat around 1000-1050 cals a day and be perfectly fine. Of course if I'm active I bump up the cals to 1200-1250. I'm not constantly active due to things like depression so I just stick with sedentary cal numbers most of the time if I want to lose some weight, then switch back to maintenance. Maintenance is a tricky game lol

Yes that's it exactly! I'm exactly the same

peg_online · April 2016

I'm only 4'9", current weight is 116lbs. My goal is 100lbs. I have a desk job and find it difficult to stay active. I have only recently started with MFP, and I'm finding that 1200 calories is plenty of food for the day, even too much if my Fitbit steps give me extra calories. Does anyone else feel they are eating TOO MUCH to actually lose weight when following the default recommendations?

Raevynne · April 2016

I'm just shy of 5'2" & currently 127lbs. I also have a desk job. I hear you loud & clear!

Unknown · April 2016

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lbc31girl · April 2016

I can relate! I'm 5'1 and wanting to lose 20lbs. My struggle was going to happy hour with coworkers. They are much taller so a beer or a glass of wine is nothing to them. That made me gain weight.
I'm finally serious about no more drinking during the week... Starting to see results

plami_9209 · April 2016

Hi, I`m 5′1″ and my current weight is 61 kg (134 lb), I used to be 70 kg when I started MFP and I`ve lost the weight only eating about 1200 calories, I don`t think I`m loosing slowly, about 0.5 kg a week. Even though most women try to lose weight fast( I`ve done it before, no good comes after), I think it`s better to lose slowly because you maintain a lot easier. I lost my 9 kg for about 6 mounths, though I was in MFP for a year, but after the 6th month I stopped counting and started eating whatever junk food I wanted, and I didn`t gain any back. Just started again, because I really want to drop to at least 55kg to look better. Good luck to all

pvju · April 2016

I'm about 5'3" and I have exactly the same issue! I eat about 1000 calories to lose give or take. Like others have said, I can lose at 1200 - but it's very little. 1400 is about maintenance for me. If I ate 1700 calories a day - I'd be right back where I started in no time. I'm not super active but I do work out a few times or more a week, but other than that my life is pretty sedentary, which may explain my low calorie needs. There are desk jobs and there are desk jobs - mine I'm not up and down at all - I'm down all day

Skinnybetcher · April 2016

I would advise you not to eat only 1200 calories. This is not really a sustainable number. Instead, aim for 1500 at a minimum I'd say. Just make sure to add in some light-moderate exercise too. And if you're still hungry after 1500, eat more! A good rule of thumb is make sure you get two servings of vegetables and two servings of fruit per day. You can use that towards your calories, but it will also make you feel much more full - so you won't feel the need to over consume. :P

Lillyloooo · April 2016

4ft 11 here

elaineamj · April 2016

There are seasons and times when I am content with the lower calorie restrictions of being 5ft nothing tall...and times when it is frustrating being so short. (Especially with 5'11 DH).

I do get envious when other MFPers talk about how many snacks they get to eat. I'd have to be super careful with my other meals to have room for 200-300 calories in snacks daily. Some days I can if I only have 300-400 cal lunches and dinners - but throw in a 600 calorie dinner and I'm at my daily limit. There are many days I skip snacks and I am even cautious with fruit intake.

When I started in January, I originally set myself to sedentary, losing 1 lb a week, starting at 154 lbs. Naturally I got the default 1200. I have discovered I am not as sedentary as I think and was losing an average of 1.5-2 lbs a week. I have stalled for the last month due to vacation and binging. I am now 137 lbs and updated my settings to "lightly active". That gave me a whopping 1230 calories!

Anyway, I do find I burn more than that and have not figured out my sweet spot. Eating only 1200 + half my exercise calories left me fatigued and cranky. I have found eating all my exercise calories gives me the extra cals I need while still losing weight (at a fast 1.2-1.5 lbs a week).I do spend at least 1-2+ hrs a day on cooking and housework that I don't log so my guess is this is what is bumping up my calorie needs.

I think 1250-1300 + all my exercise calories is likely my sweet spot but for the next 3 weeks, I will try 1230 + all exercise cals and see what my trends are.

Btheodore138 · April 2016

5'2 here. I'm eating about 1400-1500 calories a day and the weight is coming off pretty fast. Of course, this could have something to do with the fact I'm 157 lbs (down from my original 165 less than two months ago) and I've been doing Zumba 4 days a week. Any fellow shorties, feel free to add me!

Really short girls (5"2 and under) tips and motivation!

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