body fat percentage and periods

Why are you struggling with your weight so much?

A body fat % under 15% is dangerous- and considered anorexic. I'm not saying you have an eating disorder because I don't know anytihng about your situation- but there has to be some reason (medical or otherwise) why you're not keeping weight on.

Of course, if your body fat % is so low, you will not get your period. When you don't have enough nourishment, your body will stop supporting your reproductive cycle and focus on the basic necessities (like eating, breathing, thinking), because there isn't enough energy to support every body function.

You need to get your weight up!

I have seen my doctor about the weight issue a while back and he ran a bunch of tests and all came back fine. The only explanation he could come up with is that my metabolism is just fast. I have kept records of what I eat and I don't have a problem with eating and just for clarification I don't have an eating disorder. While tracking my intake I found that I consume just over what my daily exertion consumes. I eat small meals, but frequently throughout the day and I have a snack or two. I don't force food down when I am not hungry and stop when my body tells me I am full. I also don't eat much bread and don't drink soda at all and don't eat chocolate or any candy for that matter.

Anyhow, does anyone know where I can find a chart that helps identify necessary body fat percentages for your specific type of height, wieght and build or if there is anything like that out there? I am a very small build so that accounts for me not having as much weight as others that are built bigger than I am. My doctor and I agree that a healthy weight for me is between 107-110 pounds. I just have a hard time getting up there.

If I can increase my body fat, how would I go about doing so in a healthy fashion? I am not going to eat candy and fattening stuff that is not healthy since I don't like it. I just want to find out how to increase so I know that my body can be healthy and will function properly.

Thanks for the input and suggestions and sorry this post is so long but I am having a difficult time searching online for body fat percentage charts like I asked for above and need some suggestions from anyone.

Normal body fat % for women is 25-31%. Of course, for very slim women or athletes, this will be lower. But still, under 15% is not considered healthy- as you are finding out- your body can't support itself.

I would push the doc about it- especially if you're not getting your period, that's a sign that your body isn't operating as healthy as it should.

Healthy ways to gain weight are just increasing calories. You should consume about 300-500 more calories than you burn if you want to gain weight. So, depending on how active you are, you will need to adjust. There are lots of good websites to help you figure all that out- if you pm me I can send some to you.

Lots of people have reported success with nutrient shakes and that type of thing- high nutrition, high calorie shakes and bars and such. Plus, just eating enough!