PCOS and weight loss (or lack thereof)

azulvioleta6

Metformin does not cause weight gain. In fact, it is a trend right now to prescribe it for people who don't have PCOS or IR...for weight LOSS. If you have problems tolerating the drug, make sure to try extended release--it works a lot better.

A lower carb diet and lots of exercise are the things that I have found to be the key.

If you are not seeing an endocrinologist for your treatment, I would strongly suggest that you consider doing that.

vivrevotrevie

Just want to throw some science in the mix here.

So Insulin resistance, what is it? In a simplified explanation... Typically, insulin resistance reduces your cells ability to sense and process sugars properly. AKA glucose. So when the glucose enters the bloodstream, insulin is produced to essentially help the cells convert glucose into energy. With insulin resistance, this process is impaired and as a result, some of the glucose stays in the blood stream. These high levels of blood sugar are sent to the liver, where it is turned into fat. With most (I believe over half) women who suffer from PCOS also dealing with insulin resistance, weight gain and PCOS can in fact be positively correlated.

I am not sure how this became a chicken and the egg debate, but I would say it is both. Gaining weight can exacerbate PCOS symptoms, and PCOS symptoms can lead to gaining weight. It is an unfortunate downward spiral that is more challenging to escape than just weight gain.

I don't think we need to harp on this anymore.

I would say that I agree with most of what people have to say in this thread here. I have actually never been on any medication for my PCOS and have been able to lose weight in the past with diet and exercise.

Something I would caution you about in regards to the carb counting you referenced. A lot of those low carb, low fat, low whatever options often have synthetic or sugar alternatives that are processed in the exactly the same way in our bodies as sugar! While they may not have as many calories, our bodies process them similarly and for people with insulin resistance, it is almost a wash.

Another tip I wanted to mention, from personal experience, has to do with entering your food diary. I know I have struggled with the same thing, feeling like I am doing the right things and not seeing success. What I noticed is that my food diaries were not as accurate as I thought they were. I would forget the pretzels I snagged from a coworker or the glass of wine at dinner and those things were adding up quickly (especially because snacks seem to be the worst for calories). Additionally as you will notice searching for food items in the MFP catalog can produce some wild differences. When I find a baked potato at 100 calories and the other at 250, you can bet I want to count the lower one. In my head I was justifying that it must be the right one. Because of this, I usually like to try and find the exact match (if I purchased something or went out for dinner) or do some research to make sure what I am adding to my diary is accurate. It sounds stupid and might not be your issue, but even when I thought I was bringing my A game to the food diary table, I was missing some big ones that resulted in not losing weight. Entering your best guess will not always be 100% accurate, but these little things can help us get closer.

Exercise is great for any weight loss. If you are even able to take a 30 minute walk each day, it can help. I try to get a little bit of exercise (usually a walk) in after dinner to help with digestion and burn those cals.

Best of luck to you in reaching your goal.