My stomach-I have PCOS-Please help me

hopefulweightwatcher

Hi everyone.

Im 35 years old and fat.

I have pcos. I have fat all over but my stomach is disgusting. Its like a massive hard stomach all the way round that goes down over my groin!!!!!!!

Ive been on slimming world 7 weeks and lost 11.5lbs and I am also on week 2 of the couch to 5k (although im repeating week 1 again).

What can I do about my stomach? Im so sad about It at my worst moments I have joked about getting a knife and slicing the bottom off so the nhs have to fix it!!

I think even if I lose weight this hang with still be there.

Its a different hang to what I see in overweight ladies photos who have had kids, theirs is a soft pouch at the front which hangs. Mine is all the way round and hard and round up under my boobs like im pregnant or like a beer belly and sags all way round the bottom and round the sides onto my groin and side of thighs.

Please please help.

usmcmp

You can't spot reduce fat unfortunately. As you lose weight you will lose it from all over, but you will likely get to a point where you feel like the rest of you is skinny and all that is left is belly fat.

Through time and effort you can lose the belly. It really comes down to being patient enough to stick to it no matter how slow it is.

jemhh

You just need to keep at it. Do not expect a great improvement in how your stomach looks until you are much closer to goal. I'm saying that so that you can have realistic expectations. It is exceedingly common for stomach fat to be the last area to really clear up. It likely will go from full and hard to squishy. That's because you are losing the visceral fat that's packed around your organs and are left with the subcutaneous fat.

Purplebunnysarah

You describe me before weight loss to a T. I seriously looked and felt like I had an extra-large volleyball shoved in my shirt.

I have lost about 68 lbs and let me tell you it is shrinking. Still round and hard (although having kids changed the shape slightly) but smaller. Just start logging your food honestly and keeping to a deficit and you will see results. If like me you lose everywhere else first, don't give up. It will shrink eventually.

jemhh

Yeah, here's a comparison for me. I carried so much weight in my stomach. I don't get the big hips and butt when I'm overweight. It's just stomach stomach stomach for me. I'm in the 190s on the right and 156 on the left. I still don't wear form fitting stuff on my stomach much because it's a work in process.

hopefulweightwatcher

Thanks for the replies.
It was my i week weighin tonight and ive maintained. So thats only 11.5lbs in 8 weeks. Im beyond gutted!!!

Is there anything I can do to help?

RodaRose

hopefulweightwatcher wrote: »

Thanks for the replies.
It was my i week weighin tonight and ive maintained. So thats only 11.5lbs in 8 weeks. Im beyond gutted!!!

Is there anything I can do to help?

Some weeks go like that. Not a big deal. Keep doing what you are doing.
Good loss of 11.5 pounds! Congratulations. You are doing well.

MySweetLavinia

Excess abdominal weight on a woman can be a sign of insulin resistance, something which is also associated with PCOS as I'm sure you know.

I was a really bad apple shape too. When I decided to lose weight, I chose to go low carb (with my doctor's blessing) because it can help a lot with the insulin resistance. So far I have lost 11" on my waist. My waist measurement is now slightly smaller than average for my height/weight. I still have quite a bit of weight loss to go but I'm not an apple shape any longer!

Many of the women here seem to have success just eating at a calorie deficit though, so it's best to try different things and find what works best for your body.

Edited to add: 11.5lbs in 8 weeks is great work, don't feel gutted! You're doing fantastic!

morningstar_amanda

I have PCOS, too. I've been diagnosed for about 5 years, but I know suffering with it at least 11. Gosh what a crazy road it has been. I know exactly what you're talking about! I have the same thing happen with my stomach. In 2014-2015 I lost 80 lbs. Most of that disappeared. I still needed to lose another 50 lbs to get to goal weight, so I never saw what I'd look like at goal weight and if that would ever completely go away but I can tell you it can reduce SIGNIFICANTLY. Sadly, between a new happy relationship and some major heart problems I gained all of my weight back so I am back to square one. Here I am back again. I am struggling along the PCOS weight loss journey. I will tell you that losing weight with PCOS isn't as easy for us as it is for everyone else. Our bodies hold on to it for dear life. Measure yourself. Keep track of the changes in your body that way as well as on the scale. You'll need those extra ways to track success to keep from losing momentum. Just know that even if nothing is moving you're on the right track because you're trying. You may go weeks without losing anything then suddenly lose a bunch, or you may lose very small amounts steadily. PCOS makes the body do crazy things (as if bodies weren't weird enough). Even though I failed by gaining everything back, I have navigated this world before and I'd be glad to give you any advice that I can and I'd certainly be more than happy to be your cheerleader along the way. I am proud of you for taking this step! It's not the easiest one to take but it is rewarding.

jemhh

hopefulweightwatcher wrote: »

Thanks for the replies.
It was my i week weighin tonight and ive maintained. So thats only 11.5lbs in 8 weeks. Im beyond gutted!!!

Is there anything I can do to help?

Your expectations are unreasonable. Your loss rate is fine. You are not going to lose every week. There is nothing wrong and thus no need to look for help.

MizMimi111

hopefulweightwatcher wrote: »

Thanks for the replies.
It was my i week weighin tonight and ive maintained. So thats only 11.5lbs in 8 weeks. Im beyond gutted!!!

Is there anything I can do to help?

You're averaging a pound and a half loss a week. That's great progress. Steady weight loss is easier to maintain long term as opposed to big rapid loss.

Be proud of what you've accomplished so far. Be proud of every day you log your calories and make better choices. It can be overwhelming and self -defeating to focus too much on the long term goal, especially if you've a lot to lose. So focus more on each small victory - whether it be logging food each day, moving more than you did yesterday, not snacking when you've used up your daily calorie allotment - all these are small victories which will get you where you want to be in the long term.

Hang in there! You can do this!

hopefulweightwatcher

Thank you everyone for your help. All I can do os see how next week goes x

ruqayyahsmum

I have pcos (diagnosed 17 years ago)

I have stomach from right under my boobs to my thighs and its still there after 150lb loss
Ive even had an absess that had to be cut out in surgery in my hip crease
At goal i will be taking out shares in spanx

tabletop_joe

You're doing well; watch those viscous thoughts, though! You're doing everything you can to get on a healthy track and should be sure to tell yourself that often.

Lgcoulter33

I also have pcos. I had it under control and in remission for almost five years and then my obgyn put me on depo, knowing that I have pcos, and when I went off it it was retriggered. So now I am back up to 332 from 220 in less than a year. Meaning i gained most of the weight back that I had lost. So now I am on the first month of a managed weight loss plan to qualify for the gastric sleeve surgery. I'm 3 weeks into a change in eating habits and I started adipex today. I had to wait to start taking it because I had a severe uti and couldn't take it with the medication they had me on. I have the hard stomach flap too. It sucks because it used to be almost gone and now it's bigger again.

Lgcoulter33

P.s in 3 weeks I have lost 7 pounds. I also have a spark people account which is where most of my food diary is as I just got mfp back on my phone today

DebLaBounty

Congrats! You've been losing about a pound and a half per week, which is fabulous. Hang in there, you're doing great!