Hi Everyone!

I've been on HRT for six weeks, and, although my fat has shifted to down to my butt and other places, while my waist has gone from 30 inches to 27 inches, I'm not really seeing any weight gain.  I would like to gain weight since my ribs are still visible, and since my body has taken on more of a female fat distribution pattern...

So, does weight gain on HRT just happen regardless of how much you eat/exercise, or does it actually entail an increase in calories in order to gain fat?  Also, does anyone know if eating more in order to gain weight will hinder muscle loss?  I've lost a noticeable amount of muscle since starting HRT, but I'd still be too muscular to pass most likely; I'd like to lose it as quickly as possible. (:

Thanks,

Jasper

Six weeks? Give it some time 

You're eating at least 2,000 calories per day, right?

Gaining weight (or at least gaining fat) is literally a case of continuously eating more calories than you're burning.  Sounds simple enough, although for people with high metabolisms, the food required to comfortably consume sufficient calories to gain weight also comes with high sugar, salt, and other ingredients which bring their own negative health effects.

Eating candy throughout the day seems to work well for me.  My dentist might beg to differ.  Around this time of year when I can buy a giant bag of Halloween candy every trip to the supermarket "to give to kids who knock on the door" (yeah, not "to eat myself"), I find it very easy to put on lots of weight.

But as Stephe said, give it time.  Six months, not six weeks.  Time is your friend.

Go figure.  I'm having the opposite problem.  Want some of mne?

Quote from: Brenda E on October 25, 2014, 05:38:29 PM
You're eating at least 2,000 calories per day, right?

Gaining weight (or at least gaining fat) is literally a case of continuously eating more calories than you're burning.  Sounds simple enough, although for people with high metabolisms, the food required to comfortably consume sufficient calories to gain weight also comes with high sugar, salt, and other ingredients which bring their own negative health effects.

Eating candy throughout the day seems to work well for me.  My dentist might beg to differ.  Around this time of year when I can buy a giant bag of Halloween candy every trip to the supermarket "to give to kids who knock on the door" (yeah, not "to eat myself"), I find it very easy to put on lots of weight.

But as Stephe said, give it time.  Six months, not six weeks.  Time is your friend.

Thanks, Brenda E!  I understand the basic mechanics of weight gain/weight loss and such because I've been a gym rat most of my life, but I've also been a MALE gym rat most of my life, not female lol.

I'm pretty sure I eat well over 2,000 calories each day, since I now eat Nutella by the jar, but I also walk at least 90 minutes a day because my college campus is so huge. 

Also is muscle mass something that dissipates the longer you're on estrogen, or is that also a function of people eating low-protein?  I have like fifteen more pounds to lose before I look okay....

And lastly, sorry if I'm over-scrutinizing for six weeks.  It's crazy, though: Sometimes I can't imagine the body changing THAT much between the six week mark and the six month mark.  Hopefully I'll be in for a surprise

Jasper

Quote from: Jill F on October 25, 2014, 07:06:25 PM
Go figure.  I'm having the opposite problem.  Want some of mne?

Yes, I'll gladly take it! Hahaha.

Quote from: Jasper93 on October 25, 2014, 07:11:05 PM
Also is muscle mass something that dissipates the longer you're on estrogen, or is that also a function of people eating low-protein?

I believe its more related to your testosterone level, which anti-androgens (eg spiro) take care of much more effectively that estrogen.

  I always had the same problem - a ferociously-high metabolism.  I could hardly even build muscle mass back when I was still trying.  I am surprisingly strong but it is slowly fading away from HRT.  My body has remained virtually unchanged in fat deposits after over a year on HRT but I can say that I've finally gotten consistently a few pounds heavier than I've ever been.  My weight used to be rock-stable but now it fluctuates in roughly a 7-pound range.  My doctor said it's probably hydration that's causing the fluctuations.  The Spiro seems to be making it difficult to keep hydrated even though I'm drinking more water a day than I used to.  I get a laugh when people notice the subtle changes in my face and ask if I've lost weight.  They get really confused when I tell them I'm actually heavier.  Breast growth to over an A-cup is the other significant change.

  It's possible age is one factor now that I'm in my late 30's, and I suppose it will continue to help as I get older.  I can definitively state though that my minor weight gain to my current record high came about as a direct result of HRT because of how quickly it happened.  My weight was virtually the same for twenty years straight and suddenly rose after less than a year on HRT.  You might not gain much either but be happy for what you do get.

Quote from: Violet Bloom on October 25, 2014, 09:56:37 PM
  I always had the same problem - a ferociously-high metabolism.  I could hardly even build muscle mass back when I was still trying.  I am surprisingly strong but it is slowly fading away from HRT.  My body has remained virtually unchanged in fat deposits after over a year on HRT but I can say that I've finally gotten consistently a few pounds heavier than I've ever been.  My weight used to be rock-stable but now it fluctuates in roughly a 7-pound range.  My doctor said it's probably hydration that's causing the fluctuations.  The Spiro seems to be making it difficult to keep hydrated even though I'm drinking more water a day than I used to.  I get a laugh when people notice the subtle changes in my face and ask if I've lost weight.  They get really confused when I tell them I'm actually heavier.  Breast growth to over an A-cup is the other significant change.

  It's possible age is one factor now that I'm in my late 30's, and I suppose it will continue to help as I get older.  I can definitively state though that my minor weight gain to my current record high came about as a direct result of HRT because of how quickly it happened.  My weight was virtually the same for twenty years straight and suddenly rose after less than a year on HRT.  You might not gain much either but be happy for what you do get.

It doesn't sound like I have as much difficulty gaining weight as you might.  This past summer, I still weighed over 180 (I'm 5 ft 10, was nothing but lean muscle....absolutely hated it), but as I ate less, I lost weight before even starting HRT.  I dropped down to about 165 pounds pre-HRT, and that number has reduced some during the six weeks I've been on HRT.

Now, I still weigh around 165, but my arms have gone from 16 inches to under 13, while my hips have gone from 35 to 36.5.  So, there's absolutely no way in heck that I haven't experienced SOME fat gain -- since I weigh nearly the same in spite of muscle loss.

I'm just concerned because the difference in body fat percentages between a lean male (~7% body fat) and a lean female (~20% body fat) is obviously significant. 

Quote from: Jasper93 on October 25, 2014, 07:11:05 PMI'm pretty sure I eat well over 2,000 calories each day, since I now eat Nutella by the jar, but I also walk at least 90 minutes a day because my college campus is so huge.

A physically active person will need way more than 2,000 calories a day to gain weight - I think maintenance intake is generally thought to be around 2,500 kcal for a physically active person with normal metabolism. Military field rations are often at 4-5,000 calories a day!

That said, weight gain should be done as carefully as weight loss - too rapid gain is tough on more than one system. I once heard a nutritional physiologist say that for a person with a normal metabolism, three extra potatoes for dinner a day would be her recommended weight gain regime. Of course, if metabolism or physical activity is super high, the person will need more to gain weight. But the keyword is slow gain, unless one is life-threateningly underweight.

I have been 145 lbs at 5'10" from the age of about 15. After 6 months on hormones I started gaining weight. Now it has been 9 months and I am up 15 lbs. I have to eat around 5ooo calories a day or I start losing. Just be patient.

It took a considerable amount of time for my metabolism to slow down and gain weight. On Spiro I'd even lose more weight, and not only from muscle mass.

Right now I'm in hell gain weight. Since I started with androcur I gain weight easly and it's hard to lose it. I've been unsuccessfully trying for months. Right now I'm back to cardio whenever's possible (at least four days a week), and trying to get back into diet...

Between Depression and later spiro I went down from 70 to 56. Then with Androcur I decided to finally break diet to see if the fat went to more female places and... nothing mangut again.

As soon as I increased my estrogen and later added some progesterone, I started to gain weight eating the same. Within about 2 years.

Some gain weight simply by increasing the amount of carbs and contrary to the popular notion that it's all about calories, it may in fact be more due to WHAT you eat, rather than how much. You should go check Gary Taube's book, it's really interesting stuff, will make you rethink things.

I'm pretty well-versed in nutrition/fitness, and so have tried a diet completely opposite of that which I adhered to back during my fitness modeling days....

Basically, in the last several days, I've increased my calories as much as I can, but have made sure that my protein has been low (~40 grams/day).  Consequently, I've dropped down to to 155 pounds, and my waist is 27.5 inches around.  I think I'm seeing fat gain also, though, because my face is round (unlike how it was before HRT), and my hips have increased to 37 inches in circumference.  That, in combination with the constant muscle pain I feel all over my body and noticing that I can't really flex my chest or arms anymore, have led me to believe that low protein + HRT is enough to do the trick.

This is also pretty significant because I weighed 180 pounds before starting any HRT whatsoever.  Hopefully I'll keep seeing muscle loss, though, because as light as I am for 5 ft. 10, my body still wouldn't pass, in my opinion.  Oh, and I guess another indication of obvious muscle loss is that (keeping in mind that I'm a university student) my shoulders are ALWAYS sore from carrying around my backpack, which I keep only one textbook in.  Pretty crazy.