Thread: A realistic body fat for off season lifters

they all get pretty fat my dads girl friend gains about 45 pounds off season but you can stay at 11% forever and it will be healthy...i think

Originally Posted by ihateschoolmt

they all get pretty fat my dads girl friend gains about 45 pounds off season but you can stay at 11% forever and it will be healthy...i think

Dude, a normal woman is between 18 to 23 percent bodyfat. At 12 percent many of us stop menstrating,,,,,not that you reall wanted to know that

Could Jodi or someone please stop by?

Originally Posted by Jeanie

Dude, a normal woman is between 18 to 23 percent bodyfat. At 12 percent many of us stop menstrating,,,,,not that you reall wanted to know that

Could Jodi or someone please stop by?

No menstration? And the negative is?

Originally Posted by largepkg

No menstration? And the negative is?

Osteoporosis
Increased risk of cardiovascular disease
Increased degeneration of the central nervous system
Increased central adiposity
Decreased immunity
Thin, dry skin
Brittle, dry hair
Increased degenerative changes in eyes
Increased joint pain
Decreased ability to build muscle


Oestrogen is a lot more useful than females give it credit for...

Originally Posted by Jeanie

Dude, a normal woman is between 18 to 23 percent bodyfat. At 12 percent many of us stop menstrating,,,,,not that you reall wanted to know that

Could Jodi or someone please stop by?

Most maintain between 15 and 20%. It varies a lot - some girls can maintain lower (13-15%) without a problem while others are much more comfy at 18%. You usually have to listen to your body, signs like massive binge tendencies, low libido, icky skin/hair, poor immunity, tiredness etc are all signs that you are too low.

It also depends on hw much mass you want to gain in your off-season. Obviously, if you want to gain quality muscle you usually gain more bodyfat than if you just went up to maintainence....

It is really not healthy to try to maintain anything under ~12% for any length of time. This is what most people refer to as your 'functional BF%' - which is generally considered to be the point at which your body starts to endocrinologically malfunction.

Thank you Emma-Leigh. That is the kind of information that I was looking for.

I must say it is tough to say good bye to the lean and vascular physique that took so much hard work to get to. Thanks again

wow i didnt know you can have too low of a body fat %. interesting. Google here i come.

wow, i learned somethin here, i feel FAT at 11 % bodyfat right now, im at 10% now and im trul;y not satisfied (im a man, (boy),lol) i just dont know i never feel completely satisfied with my body, but i didnt know that pros go up so high off season..

Sabre81......!!!!!!!! be honest now, that picture you ave on the left here, what % body fat are you at or were you at in that picture??? , im just asking to compare your % vs mine

Originally Posted by QuestionGuy

Sabre81......!!!!!!!! be honest now, that picture you ave on the left here, what % body fat are you at or were you at in that picture??? , im just asking to compare your % vs mine

i have no idea. id guess 11 maybe?

Originally Posted by Emma-Leigh

Osteoporosis
Increased risk of cardiovascular disease
Increased degeneration of the central nervous system
Increased central adiposity
Decreased immunity
Thin, dry skin
Brittle, dry hair
Increased degenerative changes in eyes
Increased joint pain
Decreased ability to build muscle


Oestrogen is a lot more useful than females give it credit for...

Not to split hairs here but... Are these symptoms of no menstration or lack of estrogen?

There are birth control pills out there that will prevent a women from menstrating for periods up to six months!

Just curious.

yeah, i had a girlfriend do that once, (it was long time ago) but that girl scared the shit our of me, because of that

Originally Posted by largepkg

Not to split hairs here but... Are these symptoms of no menstration or lack of estrogen?

There are birth control pills out there that will prevent a women from menstrating for periods up to six months!

Just curious.

Those are the concequences of a lack of oestrogen due to amenorrhoea associated with low BF%, low body weight, low energy intake, over-exercise and the plethora of other conditions that will cause females to loose their periods (such as premature menopause associated with ovariohysterectomies - or surgical removal of the uterus and ovaries).

The lack of menstruation caused by pills will not have the same effect because the pills are usually 'combination pills' - that is, they have both oestrogen and progesterone in the pill. The progesterone is what tells the womans body not to ovulate (it is like a 'mock pregnancy'). But, when a woman doesn't ovulate she produces little endogenous (natural) oestrogen - as the wall of the developing egg is what is responsible for producing this. So the pill acts to replace this as well... That is why females on the pill do not suffer from those side effects.

Originally Posted by sabre81

wow i didnt know you can have too low of a body fat %. interesting. Google here i come.

Yup - it is a very serious issue for females/female athletes. Read up on 'The female Athlete Triad' if you want to learn more...

Originally Posted by ihateschoolmt

they all get pretty fat my dads girl friend gains about 45 pounds off season but you can stay at 11% forever and it will be healthy...i think

LMAO @ that!

NICE work BTW... 11% for a woman!!! that is LOW!

Originally Posted by young d

LMAO @ that!

NICE work BTW... 11% for a woman!!! that is LOW!

Thank you. It was fun I can't wait to do it again but it is so freaken cold here in Ohio

I have ammenorrhea, but my bf isn't too low. It's about 25%, but I haven't had a period in about a year.

Originally Posted by Emma-Leigh

Those are the concequences of a lack of oestrogen due to amenorrhoea associated with low BF%, low body weight, low energy intake, over-exercise and the plethora of other conditions that will cause females to loose their periods (such as premature menopause associated with ovariohysterectomies - or surgical removal of the uterus and ovaries).

The lack of menstruation caused by pills will not have the same effect because the pills are usually 'combination pills' - that is, they have both oestrogen and progesterone in the pill. The progesterone is what tells the womans body not to ovulate (it is like a 'mock pregnancy'). But, when a woman doesn't ovulate she produces little endogenous (natural) oestrogen - as the wall of the developing egg is what is responsible for producing this. So the pill acts to replace this as well... That is why females on the pill do not suffer from those side effects.

I have no idea what the hell you just said but GOOD JOB anyway!

As you can see my knowledge of the vast inner workings of the female anatomy pale in comparison to yourself.

This is why I'm always up for a hands on lesson.

Jeanie....aim for the higher end of the low. 16% to 18%. Anymore you might feel too fluffy and it could play with the mind bigtime.

Originally Posted by sabre81

wow i didnt know you can have too low of a body fat %. interesting. Google here i come.

It isn't as much of a problem for men. Women's hormonal system is tied into their bodyfat levels. Men's hormonal system isn't affected nearly as much, if at all.

Originally Posted by JLB001

Jeanie....aim for the higher end of the low. 16% to 18%. Anymore you might feel too fluffy and it could play with the mind bigtime.

thanks! I just hate to gain it back, it is already playing tricks on my mind ! I have gained a couple of pounds of fat and I am freaking out, come of it may even be water! Candy corn sounds so good after Jodi's thread Darn her I can't stop with one serving. I would end up eating the whole bag...seriously...how normal is that for all of us I wonder

Originally Posted by Emma-Leigh

The progesterone is what tells the womans body not to ovulate (it is like a 'mock pregnancy').

Care to elaborate a bit on this? It's the amount of progesterone that controls quality ovulation. Because a woman doesn't ovulate, doesn't mean she (or not all) won't get her menses.

Lack of ovulation is more than just lack of progesterone.

Originally Posted by SpinQueen

I have ammenorrhea, but my bf isn't too low. It's about 25%, but I haven't had a period in about a year.

You should get an ultra sound of your ovaries

are you taking calcium supplements? Get hot flashes?

Yes, take calcium supplements to avoid ostopenia or ostoprosis

karl malone's bodyfat % is about 2.6

Originally Posted by sara

Yes, take calcium supplements to avoid ostopenia or ostoprosis

You can take calcium until you are blue in the face, but without the correct hormonal balance you will only be slowing the progress, not preventing it. Oestrogen is vital to prevent the degredation of bone mass - and without it your bone is 'chewed up' faster than it can be repaired...

I am not saying do not take it (In fact I am a strong advocator of taking calcium for bones - TAKE IT!!! PLEASE!!!) but you need to address the underlying reason for the bone loss.

Originally Posted by BabsieGirl

Care to elaborate a bit on this? It's the amount of progesterone that controls quality ovulation. Because a woman doesn't ovulate, doesn't mean she (or not all) won't get her menses.

Lack of ovulation is more than just lack of progesterone.

I never said lack of ovulation was a lack of progesterone.

Constant higher levels of progesterone (such as those found in the contraceptive pill) will PREVENT your cycles.

Progesterone is the hormone in the womans body which tells her to stop cycling. This is becayse it is one of the strong 'pregnancy hormones'. It is produced (initially) by what is known as the 'corpus luteum' - which is what remains in the ovary AFTER you ovulate (it is like a scar).

What this progesterone does is cause a 'negative feedback' into your brain (your hypothalamus and pituatory) to stop the high surge release of Follicle Stimulating Hormone and Lutenising Hormones that causes eggs to develop and for you to ovulate.

It does this because, as you have just ovulated, your body is 'hoping' you will become pregnant (the progesterone 'primes your uterus', breasts and body for the implantation and growth of the embryo - which is why it alters your metabolism and other things) and so it is your bodies way of preventing you from 'wasting' eggs (as, if you cycle when you are pregant).


But yes, a woman can get her mensus without ovulating and yes, there are a plethora of other causes of primary and secondary amenorrhoea, but I was explaining the reasons as to why the pill prevented mensus/cycling.