As many of you know, I've been having a rough time lately. And I'd really like to start off this entry by thanking all the people that have been there for me, for their support. I'm still dealing with lots o' craziness, but I'm trying to keep doing what I've been doing and keep my mind off of the negative parts of what I'm dealing with. SO... I thought I would start by tossing some interesting (or perhaps not-so-interesting--that's up to you) little tid-bits into the void.
To the other ladies, especially the trans women, out there: You know the feeling, when you look at your tummy and you swear it's actively trying to compete in size with you're bust or your butt? Or maybe once you loose that tummy you feel like your just wasting away to skin and bone?--Certainly, we always feel like we could improve certain areas, but that's not really what I'm talking about. I'm talking about when weight (or lack thereof) gets out of control.
First off, I
want to say: I am not a nutritionist or dietitian or doctor. I am a curious
college student that just happens to be interested enough in nutrition
to take a class on it.
That said, one of the first interesting things I
discovered in this class I am currently taking has to do with qualifications. Mainly, the only person qualified--with enough
training--to give you personal nutritional advice is a licensed
dietitian, not an article or a tv commercial, not family, and not even
your doctor! The doctor thing is what surprised me. And I'm not saying
you shouldn't follow your doctor's advice, but I am saying you should
definitely question it, and if you're really concerned, see a dietitian--that's what they went to schoollege for.
Here's
the thing: I've been under the impression for a long time from various
sources--articles, other women, and even my doctor--that I should be
consuming about 1600-1800 calories a day since I started taking estrogen and suppressing my excess androgens. I always thought it seemed kinda one-size-fits-all, but I never really questioned it much, because--hey--I was coming from 60 pounds overweight--who am I to question it? Then, since I lost all that weight, I've had a ton of people turn around and ask me how I lost all my extra weight before starting HRT.
The answer to the second question is pretty simple. The main thing I
did was cut down on the amount of calories I was eating, took in more
nutritional value per calorie, and began exercising regularly--I'll
get more into the specifics of all that in a proper blog post or video at a later time.
But
there was a point where I kept on loosing weight, even though I was
eating the full recommended 1800 calories that doctors
say I should target as a woman. I really didn't want to eat more, because the thought of going back to being a big blob really scared me. I think I had put so much willpower into myself to achieve what I did that, I was afraid any change would break the floodgates and send me back to fatty lethargic hell. But eventually, I began to feel so terrible and
so thin and wasted that I would be light-headed and also exhausted most of the time. So I did start eating more.
Well,
come to find out a year later in my nutrition class... at my height and within my
ideal weight range (I'm just 3 lbs over it at the moment--thank you very much), without any exercise, I
should actually be eating a whopping 2000-2200 (of course,
nutrient-dense--avoiding soda and lots of simple sugars and too much
fat) calories. And on my prior rigorous exercise schedule, I should have
been eating even more!
Yet I've been previously advised by my doctor and many other trans women that I shouldn't eat more 1800 calories a day? Why is this?
I
can't be sure of course, as I am not really in the position to do any
type of legitimate experiment on it, but I would guess it is because, at
an average height of 5' 3", most women are smaller than I am. Another
"tall" woman of 5' 5"--my height--would probably have similar calorie
requirements. And I can imagine that my broader skeletal structure--as much
as I hate to admit it--must require some extra intake as well.
My
point here is mainly this: On hormones you should definitely be
concerned with remaining healthy. And I think if you have been
overweight in the past, I think it gives great results to start hormones having a
low-normal BMI. But if you're like I was and you are eating what's
"recommended" and yet you feel like your wasting to nothing and your curves are nearly non-existent.
Definitely do try out eating more and see how you feel. You'll probably
feel better and feel you look better too. And if you can, take the time
to talk to a dietitian. Then, if you're gaining an excessive amount of weight on a recommended amount of (nutrient-dense) calories, that could signal other physical issues, perhaps even hormonal imbalance (I say that because I've dealt with that too), which then its time to update you're endocrinologist, or perhaps see a new one.
I think a lot of effort goes into trans
medical--although, admittedly, still lacking--but nearly nothing goes into transition and post-transition wellness and nutrition.
That's something I think should be given a little more interest. After all, post transition is going be the rest of your life, and you want to make sure its a happy and healthy one!
