no estrogen?

[shugrblossm]

This might seem silly but I'm curious. I've lost my period due to overtraining/undereating in my teens. I'm healthier and smarter now. The doc says it's b/c I don't produce Luteinizing hormone. I've been on the pill but have been off of it for 2 yrs so my period is not induced anymore and I still don't get it on my own. I was told one doesn't produce estrogen (or very little if any) when you stop getting your period. I understand that estrogen is the hormone that makes it hard for us women to loss weight. B/c of this fact and that I don't receive my monthly anymore shouldn't I see a change in body composition? Shouldn't it be easier to gain muscle. And shouldn't losing fat be MUCH easier?

23 y/o
118-124lbs (fluctuates all the time)
2300cals/day (average)
5'3
goal: keep bf low (currently 17%)
Fullbody 3x/wk, HIIT 3x/wk

 

[Rosie Chee]

This might seem silly but I'm curious. I've lost my period due to overtraining/undereating in my teens. I'm healthier and smarter now. The doc says it's b/c I don't produce Luteinizing hormone. I've been on the pill but have been off of it for 2 yrs so my period is not induced anymore and I still don't get it on my own. I was told one doesn't produce estrogen (or very little if any) when you stop getting your period. I understand that estrogen is the hormone that makes it hard for us women to loss weight. B/c of this fact and that I don't receive my monthly anymore shouldn't I see a change in body composition? Shouldn't it be easier to gain muscle. And shouldn't losing fat be MUCH easier?

23 y/o
118-124lbs (fluctuates all the time)
2300cals/day (average)
5'3
goal: keep bf low (currently 17%)
Fullbody 3x/wk, HIIT 3x/wk

Not necessarily. Just because you don't get your period doesn't mean that you're not producing estrogen, and in most cases, you will still be, with your estrogen levels rising and falling as they would, but just not in the same amounts. And unless you have regular bloods to show what's happening re your estrogen levels, you cannot say that they are low, because they might still be within normal ranges. I can say this from personal experience and having weekly bloods taken for years and years. Although I rarely bleed, I still get the signs and symptoms of a period (without the bleeding).

Having lower estrogen levels does not mean that you will see a faster or better change in body composition, or that it will be easier to gain muscle or lose fat. There are many other factors involved. Nutrition, for one. Training, for another.

Another thing is, even if you may have had amenorrhea before, you can STILL get your period back, once your nutrition is on pointe. The primary reason for loss of period is NOT from overtraining, but from lack of sufficient caloric intake - which can be caused by not eating enough coupled with overexcessive exercise causing even more of an energy imbalance, or just being plain stupid re eating habits.

Some things are not as simple as black and white; there are many things to take into account.


~Rosie
Team APPNUT

 

[Antigravity]

I lost my period for the same reason you did... for 4 years. I have since regained it, and I assure you that you have not stopped producing estrogen. I assume you have gone through puberty- like Guejsn said your cycles of hormones will continue to rise and fall, even though they do not produce menstruation. I had many rigorous bloodtests done during that 4 year period that can prove my presumptions. Consider post menopausal women- their ovaries stopped working and there are still fat old women. The reason is that estrogen although it plays an inhibitory role on lipolysis it is not necessarily the reason why you are fat. In fact there are many factors that play into fatness. Also you should know that your adrenal glands make estrogen as well as cortisol, and testosterone. LH only affects your ovaries. If you had low levels what you WILL notice is where you deposit your fat. Women with high estrogen would deposit fats in their hips thighs and butt, whereas men have adiposity mainly around their core, lovehandles chest.
I agree with rosie- in regards to eating and training impacting how you will gain muscle.

The reason girls lose their periods during caloric restriction is because its a survival mechanism of the body- it conserves energy for necessary life functions as you have little/no energy stores, so it shuts down all other functions.

However I would like to share with you that when girls with low body weight recover, they put on muscle mass first then fat. The shift is quick- but there is a caloric window where you can avoid fat gain.

PM me if you need more advice. Im always up for helping a sister out....

 

[shugrblossm]

Not necessarily. Just because you don't get your period doesn't mean that you're not producing estrogen, and in most cases, you will still be, with your estrogen levels rising and falling as they would, but just not in the same amounts. And unless you have regular bloods to show what's happening re your estrogen levels, you cannot say that they are low, because they might still be within normal ranges. I can say this from personal experience and having weekly bloods taken for years and years. Although I rarely bleed, I still get the signs and symptoms of a period (without the bleeding).

Having lower estrogen levels does not mean that you will see a faster or better change in body composition, or that it will be easier to gain muscle or lose fat. There are many other factors involved. Nutrition, for one. Training, for another.

Another thing is, even if you may have had amenorrhea before, you can STILL get your period back, once your nutrition is on pointe. The primary reason for loss of period is NOT from overtraining, but from lack of sufficient caloric intake - which can be caused by not eating enough coupled with overexcessive exercise causing even more of an energy imbalance, or just being plain stupid re eating habits.

Some things are not as simple as black and white; there are many things to take into account.


~Rosie
Team APPNUT

lack of sufficient cals was my problem then. Now I consume 21-2300cals/day but still don't get my period. I do fullbody workouts 3x/wk and HIIT 3x/wk. Am I training too much? Should I drop the HIIT down to 2x/wk? It's been years now and still don't get anything. I don't think even get the symptoms. No cramps, no breast tenderness, nothing. Thanks for the estrogen facts.

 

[Rosie Chee]

lack of sufficient cals was my problem then. Now I consume 21-2300cals/day but still don't get my period. I do fullbody workouts 3x/wk and HIIT 3x/wk. Am I training too much? Should I drop the HIIT down to 2x/wk? It's been years now and still don't get anything. I don't think even get the symptoms. No cramps, no breast tenderness, nothing. Thanks for the estrogen facts.

Perhaps you're still in too much of a caloric deficit. 2100-2300 doesn't sound close to Maintenance for someone of your sex, age, weight, height, and activity level (i.e. still too low).

I cannot tell you whether or not you are training too much. I would recommend that you structure your training to achieve a specific goal, though - if you haven't already - as opposed to just doing what you think you should be doing.

As far as not having it for years, then I cannot give you an answer for that either. Maybe you did more damage to your body than you thought you did. The only way to really be sure would be to monitor yourself and see an endocrinologist and other specialists re this issue...Or, you could be like me, and just let it be...If you want to bleed, then using the pill would be a good place to start. I know that that works. Having it induced is better than not having it, if you wish to try and get your body back into some sort of balance. Try again. Maybe you just need longer of inducing it for it to start coming naturally on its own.


~Rosie
Team APPNUT

 

[CodyK7]

:squint:

 

[shugrblossm]

Perhaps you're still in too much of a caloric deficit. 2100-2300 doesn't sound close to Maintenance for someone of your sex, age, weight, height, and activity level (i.e. still too low).

I cannot tell you whether or not you are training too much. I would recommend that you structure your training to achieve a specific goal, though - if you haven't already - as opposed to just doing what you think you should be doing.

As far as not having it for years, then I cannot give you an answer for that either. Maybe you did more damage to your body than you thought you did. The only way to really be sure would be to monitor yourself and see an endocrinologist and other specialists re this issue...Or, you could be like me, and just let it be...If you want to bleed, then using the pill would be a good place to start. I know that that works. Having it induced is better than not having it, if you wish to try and get your body back into some sort of balance. Try again. Maybe you just need longer of inducing it for it to start coming naturally on its own.


~Rosie
Team APPNUT

Really? I thought 2300 was decent. That was the average number i was getting in calorie calculators for maintenace. I do 3 fullbody and 3 HIIT/wk. What do you think I should be eating for maintenance (to start out with) Please let me know what calculator you used to get that number. My goals are more to keep my bf low, strength up and muscles hard but not growing anymore. That's why I do fullbody workouts keeping the rest time low. I think I have enough muscle on me. I'm not competing.
Yea I decided to let it be. I'm really not concerned about having kids cause I really don't want any. Do you think my bones are still absorbing calcium though? That was one of my major concerns. I havn't had any broken bones or fractures yet.

thanks for your help

 

[Rosie Chee]

Really? I thought 2300 was decent. That was the average number i was getting in calorie calculators for maintenace. I do 3 fullbody and 3 HIIT/wk. What do you think I should be eating for maintenance (to start out with) Please let me know what calculator you used to get that number. My goals are more to keep my bf low, strength up and muscles hard but not growing anymore. That's why I do fullbody workouts keeping the rest time low. I think I have enough muscle on me. I'm not competing.
Yea I decided to let it be. I'm really not concerned about having kids cause I really don't want any. Do you think my bones are still absorbing calcium though? That was one of my major concerns. I havn't had any broken bones or fractures yet.

thanks for your help

You can't just go on an "average"; your reading must be specific for YOU. Calories calculators can only give you an ESTIMATE and most do not take into account enough factors to give you an estimate close enough to be good enough.

I am not going to tell you what I "think" your Maintenance should be.

I've used many different methods of calculating Maintenance calories, including recording all energy expenditure (and intake) for SEVEN days, to give me an average, and that average being fairly close to accurate, because it is based on ACTUAL energy expenditure, and this was NOWHERE near any of the results that the caloric calculators/methods gave me (in fact, was at least 2,000 calories/day OVER).

If your period has stopped you are risking osteoporosis, because the lack of menstruation affects the calcium levels in your bones. And regardless of whether or not you are lifting then you are STILL going to be affected. It is NOT an ideal situation. Osteoporosis is not going to show up immediately, but is most likely to become symptomatic when you are older.

And note that you can STILL have children, even if you do NOT get your period, be aware of that.


~Rosie
Team APPNUT

 

[shugrblossm]

If your period has stopped you are risking osteoporosis, because the lack of menstruation affects the calcium levels in your bones. And regardless of whether or not you are lifting then you are STILL going to be affected. It is NOT an ideal situation. Osteoporosis is not going to show up immediately, but is most likely to become symptomatic when you are older.

And note that you can STILL have children, even if you do NOT get your period, be aware of that.


~Rosie
Team APPNUT

doesnt this concern you. You said something like you werent going to do anything about your lost period. (Is this what you meant by "let it be" I could be wrong) What's happening to all the dietary calcium I'm consuming? Going out in urine. Is stressing my bones from weightlifting counterproductive? I cant get a bone density test yet, I'm too young. i'd be paying outta pocket.
Wow, this is scary.

 

[Rosie Chee]

doesnt this concern you. You said something like you werent going to do anything about your lost period. (Is this what you meant by "let it be" I could be wrong) What's happening to all the dietary calcium I'm consuming? Going out in urine. Is stressing my bones from weightlifting counterproductive? I cant get a bone density test yet, I'm too young. i'd be paying outta pocket.
Wow, this is scary.

Actually, I said: "Although I rarely bleed, I still get the signs and symptoms of a period (without the bleeding)." I know what concerns me. I also know what my body is doing. And by "let it be" I let my body do as it does, since I know why it does why it does what it does when it does it. Besides, I still have periods; I just don't bleed, but if I WANTED to bleed I could do that easily enough without using anything to do it.

There are many things that could be happening to the calcium you ingest. Stressing your bones from weights is not counterproductive, but it's not going to be helping you that much, especially if you have been YEARS without your period in the most crucial years of your life for building up your bone density.

Yes, there are so many things that we can do when we're younger to screw up our body when we're older. That's why it pays to know what we're doing to ourselves and do everything we can to be as healthy as possible. Not only does it make you feel better, but it also increases your quality of life.


~Rosie
Team APPNUT