I have a question regarding the phenomenon of whether your metabolic rate is always lowered in response to weight loss. It is now common knowledge that weight loss via calorie restriction (and usually exercise) results in a lowered basal metabolic rate. But what happens when you lose weight doing keto? Is your body’s metabolic rate still reduced? What are the signs of having a lowered rate? I am curious because my body fat gets pretty low on keto and I have gotten amenorrhea again. Is having no period indicative of my metabolic rate going down? What about feeling cold? I am pretty sure I consume a good deal more energy daily than what my daily RMR says I “need”. But my weight stays pretty much the same. So, some confusing and seemingly contradictory physiological signs that my body must to some extent think it’s starving despite getting more than sufficient amounts of energy.
Signs of a lowered metabolic rate
It’s probably kind of hard to tell. As I lost weight on Keto, I exercised more. So, really hard for me to tell.
i was on keto for over 4 months before i ever stepped into a gym, only reason i did is my body wanted to move more, i sit at a desk for work, don’t get to move around much… so going to the gym helps counter balance this… i hope
I am extremely active, running and weight lifting. I have read that over exercising can actually decrease metabolic rate because the body compensates by moving less when not exercising. Gary Taubes even mentions this in Why We Get Fat. Since weight loss on keto works differently than weight loss Biggest Loser style, I am wondering if the body still interprets the weight loss as a kind of starvation and compensates by lowering metabolic rate.