Should we adjust our food intake to the needs of cis women

[Lucie]

The amount of food you should need daily is still going to depend primarily on your body mass provided your thyroid is in healthy order.

That's right. I'll have a thyroid check-up next month. Hopefully they will find nothing of concern.

[DawnOday]

I used to weigh 297lbs. I now weigh 220. I still eat mostly the same. The changes I made were smaller portions, iced Tea with a Splenda instead of soda's. I limit treats to just one  serving a day. Instead of eating a bag of cookies I eat 1 serving.I limit carbs by cutting out bread.  I use olive oil wherever  And I eat before 6 pM.

[RobynD]

Without a doubt my metabolism has changed. My intake has gone down and my weight has remained the overall the same, but it has taken consistent attention.

[Lucie]

you can offset slower metabolism by being more active.

I am not sure of that. There is scientific evidence that exercising indeed slows down basal metabolism, especially for overweight people.

[KayXo]

Being more active will just require you to eat more as you need more to replace the lost energy. If you don't, you will be fatigued and feel lousy.

[Deborah]

Exercise is great for improving health and building fitness.  But it is not the way to control bodyfat and weight.  That is all diet.

Exercising by itself will not slow metabolism.  However, when combined with the typical low calorie low fat diet that nearly everyone uses for weight loss the metabolism will slow down to preserve itself.


Conform and be dull. —James Frank Dobie, The Voice of the Coyote

[Lucie]

Exercising by itself will not slow metabolism.

That's not what science tells us (see Volek and Phinney's book: The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance).

[Deborah]

Low carbohydrate training will shift the body's primary fuel source from glucose to fat.  That's what I've been doing for the past six weeks.  I have read that book also.  This is what I got from it.

Sports Implications The direct metabolic benefits of keto-adaptation translate into two general effects relevant to most athletes.
Improved body composition (power-to-weight ratio).
Improved prolonged endurance performance resulting from better sustained fuel delivery.

However,  as you said the book also states.

Although genetically lean people as a group may respond differently, when overweight humans do more than one hour of endurance exercise daily, resting metabolism on average declines between 5 and 15%.

I was not aware of that and didn't remember reading it.

From that, and other sources I've read, I've come to believe that one can minimize any metabolism reduction during weight loss, either with or without exercise, using a very low carbohydrate diet.  There is a long explanation behind that but it amounts to a lesser reduction in overall calorie intake combined with the body's ready access to stored energy (fat).  The result is that the internal hormonal regulation systems do not get signaled that there is a famine underway and it therefore doesn't need to do whatever it can to preserve energy.  So the metabolism theoretically remains elevated.

So, the lesson learned is that weight loss is a result of diet and that one should exercise for health and fitness but not for weight loss.  Pick a sport or exercise because you enjoy it.

There was a time about four years ago when I was running 10 to 15 miles a day and lifting heavy weights three times a week.  A lot of exercise; too much in fact.  During that time I gained nearly eight pounds.  I also crashed my endocrine system.  That took nearly a year to recover from but it was a catalyst to face this trans thing head on instead of once again trying to hide from it through exercise induced exhaustion.


Conform and be dull. —James Frank Dobie, The Voice of the Coyote

[Lucie]

So, the lesson learned is that weight loss is a result of diet and that one should exercise for health and fitness but not for weight loss.  Pick a sport or exercise because you enjoy it.

I totally agree.

As for me, I do not exercise and I am not overweight. I just try to understand before my next appointment with my endo why I've gained some weight (though moderately) during the last three months whereas nothing has changed either in my calories intake, my hrt or my activity rate, and to what extent the feminization process is involved in that weight increase.

[Brooke]

My doctor told me years ago "if you need to exercise to lose weight, you're doing it wrong "

I believe it is the consistent caloric deficit that messes with your metabolism, not diet , not exercise.


~Brooke~

[Lucie]

I believe it is the consistent caloric deficit that messes with your metabolism, not diet , not exercise.

What caloric deficit are you talking about ?

[Brooke]

What caloric deficit are you talking about ?

The consistent caloric deficit typically associated with dieting. Where in a daily basis your intaking less calories than what is needed to sustain your current weight/bodily functions. In almost all cases (besides a ketogenic diet or fasting) when you go on a diet that includes reducing calories weight loss becomes more difficult as your body's metabolism slows down in order to compensate for less caloric intake.

Why most dieters get to a point of equilibrium. They've reduced the energy intake and/or increased their energy output and the body attempts to maintain homeostasis. Why even though your doing really well in sticking to your diet and exercise you end up in a weight loss plateau.

It's also the reason that contestants in the biggest loser often have to eat 30% less than somebody else who was never overweight that has their same bmi. The extreme dieting, and cardio slowed down their metabolism indefinitely, possibly for life.

When you fast, your body releases counter regulatory hormones, specifically norepinephrine (maintains or increases your metabolism) and growth hormone (tells your body to lay down lean mass when you do eat again, rather than storing that energy as fat.

Because the ketogenic diet mimics fasting, (both force your body to run off of fat rather than sugar) your metabolism acts in a similar fashion, even if you have a caloric  daily deficit.


~Brooke~

[Lucie]

A diet is a way of managing one's food intake. It dos not imply in any way a caloric deficit. A ketogenic diet is not based on calories deficit but on a low carb intake. As for me, my calories intake has been so far greater than what I am supposed to eat according to a standard western diet. And I must recall that I am not trying to loose weight.

[Brooke]

A diet is a way of managing one's food intake. It dos not imply in any way a caloric deficit. A ketogenic diet is not based on calories deficit but on a low carb intake. As for me, my calories intake has been so far greater than what I am supposed to eat according to a standard western diet. And I must recall that I am not trying to loose weight.

No arguments from me there.

I was simply trying to clarify the context of caloric restriction. When I think of someone going on a diet I think of weight loss in the vast majority of cases.

Though you are definitely correct. A diet does not necessarily equate to a caloric deficit or weight loss goal.

My apologies


~Brooke~

[Kendra]

I've found the best way is don't think of it as a diet - it's a budget.  Ignoring that can be fun momentarily but has consequences.  100 calories can add up just like any other budget item.