Yikes I'm losing weight !!

[AJM]

Okay so I've taken on this walk 1200km challenge and I've just clocked over 700kms so far for the year so I'm pretty pleased with myself. I'm averaging around 30kms a week, which to be honest isn't all that much in the grand scheme of things, and that includes a couple of hill walks/hikes of around 500m vert each.
I hopped on the scales the other day after a friend mentioned I was losing weight and to my horror I've lost around 4 kilos in the last couple of months (thats about the time I started upping the ante with the hill walks) which I really cant afford to lose.
I have a healthy balanced diet but my input versus output is obviously out of whack, I feel great otherwise but will be keeping an eye on it and if it continues then I'll check in with the Dr.
What should I be eating to support this new found love of exercise and to ensure I dont disappear competely ???

 

[altagirl]

I would think any high calorie snacks would do the trick and would just go with what you like? It's wild how different we all are. I have had the opposite experience and have to watch not to gain weight when I'm exercising a lot because I get SO hungry from significant exertion and really want to overeat. I suppose it's the same in a way and if your body's signals aren't balancing things out, more you know you need to sort of override it and make a change. Post exercise snacks would make sense, or perhaps even eating things like nuts during your walks?

 

[Pequenita]

I don't know how long it takes for you to get in to see a doctor, but I'd try to get onto their schedule now just in case, and eat more protein.

 

[Jilly]

I know a couple of tri-athletes. They eat, they drink beer, because they are expending so much energy and using up those calories.

Maybe you can into a sports nutritionist? And I'll send you a recipe from Hockey Ontario for "energy bites". Unless you're allergic to peanuts!

 

[AJM]

Thanks gals, I wondered about the protein element @Pequenita, it dosent take long to get into our Dr thank goodnesss so I'll be keeping a close watch on things and make an appt if it continues.

I know a couple of tri-athletes. They eat, they drink beer, because they are expending so much energy and using up those calories.

We have a friend who runs a guiding operation on Everest and his pre season training was down at the local pub eating pies and drinking beer so he had something in reserve !!

It seems like this whole input/output is very finely balanced and I've got to find my balance.
I tried the Stroopwaffles after reading and hearing about them but I'm sorry .... they are yuck !!

 

[scandium]

If you haven't already, take a look at some of the nutritional information from Stacy Sims - athlete focussed and talks about female specific things including that many female athletes underdo their protein and don't fuel appropriately (enough/timely) for exercise.

 

[AJM]

If you haven't already, take a look at some of the nutritional information from Stacy Sims - athlete focussed and talks about female specific things including that many female athletes underdo their protein and don't fuel appropriately (enough/timely) for exercise.

I've a feeling I'm guilty as charged !!
I'll check it out xx

 

[scandium]

I've a feeling I'm guilty as charged !!
I'll check it out xx

I remember being super surprised about the timing as well, as she suggests to eat within 45 mins after you finish exercising to refuel!

Her guidelines also talk about having enough carbohydrate either stored or available prior to exercise and glucose during if needed, to avoid low energy availability She also suggests between 3.5-7g/kg of carbs per day depending on exercise intensity - this is based on at least moderate intensity exercise. In "real bread" terms (Vogel multigrain sandwich sliced) 3.5g/kg for a 55kg woman is something like 14 slices - although obviously bread isn't the only source of carbohydrate, it does provide a good visual for how much your body might be needing for hill walks!

This is from a transcript hence timestamps.

Training Through Menopause—with Dr. Stacy Sims

Dr. Stacy Sims gives her advice on how to coach women through all stages of menopause.

www.fasttalklabs.com

Fueling and recovery in menopause
EK 5:05

And so then when it comes to fueling and recovery for these athletes—for the pre-menopausal, perimenopausal, menopausal, or postmenopausal—how does fueling and recovery then change? And what advice do you have for coaches to help these athletes on when it comes to fueling and recovery?

Stacy Sims 5:49

Yeah, so for peri- and postmenopausal women, the post-exercise protein intake is super important, where we’re looking at 35 to 40 grams post-exercise, within that 30 to 45 minutes. Because as our hormones change and we get older, we become more anabolically resistant–our muscle tissue becomes really anabolic and resistant. And we need that. And we also need regular doses of protein throughout the day. That becomes the big nuance, when we’re talking about protein [and] protein intake. When we’re pre-menopausal, we can get away with a little bit more because we have estrogen that really helps with lean mass and recovery.

But the biggest thing is carbohydrate availability, regardless of age. So we need to make sure that when we are pre-menopausal, we are increasing our carbohydrate intake in and around training in the high-hormone phase so we have more carbohydrate availability. Because if we are not paying attention to carbohydrate availability, then we’re not going to be able to hit those intensities or those workloads that we want."

 

[AJM]

In "real bread" terms (Vogel multigrain sandwich sliced) 3.5g/kg for a 55kg woman is something like 14 slices - although obviously bread isn't the only source of carbohydrate, it does provide a good visual for how much your body might be needing for hill walks!

Crikey !!! I'm waaaay off the mark, thats basically a whole loaf !

 

[scandium]

Crikey !!! I'm waaaay off the mark, thats basically a whole loaf !

I mean this assumes you have no other carbohydrate at all, but definitely a good visual for how much fuel you might actually be needing!

 

[AJM]

I mean this assumes you have no other carbohydrate at all, but definitely a good visual for how much fuel you might actually be needing!

That is way more than I thought, pretty incredible !

 

[MrsPlow]

I remember being super surprised about the timing as well, as she suggests to eat within 45 mins after you finish exercising to refuel!

Her guidelines also talk about having enough carbohydrate either stored or available prior to exercise and glucose during if needed, to avoid low energy availability She also suggests between 3.5-7g/kg of carbs per day depending on exercise intensity - this is based on at least moderate intensity exercise. In "real bread" terms (Vogel multigrain sandwich sliced) 3.5g/kg for a 55kg woman is something like 14 slices - although obviously bread isn't the only source of carbohydrate, it does provide a good visual for how much your body might be needing for hill walks!

This is from a transcript hence timestamps.

Training Through Menopause—with Dr. Stacy Sims

Dr. Stacy Sims gives her advice on how to coach women through all stages of menopause.

www.fasttalklabs.com

Fueling and recovery in menopause
EK 5:05

And so then when it comes to fueling and recovery for these athletes—for the pre-menopausal, perimenopausal, menopausal, or postmenopausal—how does fueling and recovery then change? And what advice do you have for coaches to help these athletes on when it comes to fueling and recovery?

Stacy Sims 5:49

Yeah, so for peri- and postmenopausal women, the post-exercise protein intake is super important, where we’re looking at 35 to 40 grams post-exercise, within that 30 to 45 minutes. Because as our hormones change and we get older, we become more anabolically resistant–our muscle tissue becomes really anabolic and resistant. And we need that. And we also need regular doses of protein throughout the day. That becomes the big nuance, when we’re talking about protein [and] protein intake. When we’re pre-menopausal, we can get away with a little bit more because we have estrogen that really helps with lean mass and recovery.

But the biggest thing is carbohydrate availability, regardless of age. So we need to make sure that when we are pre-menopausal, we are increasing our carbohydrate intake in and around training in the high-hormone phase so we have more carbohydrate availability. Because if we are not paying attention to carbohydrate availability, then we’re not going to be able to hit those intensities or those workloads that we want."

I tend to go out for a hike or a run straight after finishing work - I've been snacking on cheese and nuts when I get home, to keep me going while I make dinner. Good to know this is broadly the right thing!

 

[SnowHot]

If you haven't already, take a look at some of the nutritional information from Stacy Sims - athlete focussed and talks about female specific things including that many female athletes underdo their protein and don't fuel appropriately (enough/timely) for exercise.

This is pretty much what I was going to say.
Make sure your protien levels are up.

 

[AJM]

So basically a month out from when I first posted and success !! My weight has stabilised and my new best friend is peanut butter.
Thanks for all your suggestions, I've increased my protein and carbs and all is good

 

[scandium]

Amazing! Glad to hear things are stable.