WOMEN- Question about birth conrtol and weight loss!

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vhaymakerv
vhaymakerv Posts: 37
in Health and Weight Loss
Okay so i've started my weight loss plan a little over a month ago... and have already lost 12lbs. I sort of screwed my cycle by missing a couple days of taking my pill.. so i decided just to wait after i got my next ermm..lady time:blushing: .. to take it. I'm now nervous that if i start BC again it will hinder my weight loss. I'm currently taking Avaine. Any thoughts?

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  • vhaymakerv
    vhaymakerv Posts: 37
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    Okay so i've started my weight loss plan a little over a month ago... and have already lost 12lbs. I sort of screwed my cycle by missing a couple days of taking my pill.. so i decided just to wait after i got my next ermm..lady time:blushing: .. to take it. I'm now nervous that if i start BC again it will hinder my weight loss. I'm currently taking Avaine. Any thoughts?
  • TudorRose
    TudorRose Posts: 238 Member
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    The general consensus is that BC will only cause a couple of pounds weight gain, if any. Some do affect appetite, but that's a temporary thing. So in short, it shouldn't affect your long term goals and you shouldn't let fear of a few pounds affect taking it.

    If you do have problems, go back to your doctor and see if you can switch to a different type
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
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    You should still take your pills as soon as you remember them. If you miss more than one day, use a backup method if necessary. Missing pills happens, but it's really important to get right back to it as soon as you remember. You can take 2 at the same time if you need to.

    As far as the weight loss, I have only had issues dropping below 20% body fat, but I've been on the pill a very long time, and have been leaner in the past. I can't really say whether it's the pill or just me, as I haven't tried dropping body fat without the pill. Estrogen does promote fat storage in certain areas, but not fat storage in a caloric deficit. :smile:
  • firewalking
    firewalking Posts: 335 Member
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    Agree with everyone above me....

    I'm taking Ortho Tri-Cycline Lo and have not had weight gain because of it.
  • TudorRose
    TudorRose Posts: 238 Member
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    Often when women gain weight after going on the pill it's more a result of lifestyle change.
    For example, take me. I went on the pill when I met my boyfriend- who made me feel good about myself after I'd struggled with eating disorders. I felt I no longer had to watch what I ate, because he loved me as I was. We'd go out for dinner, he'd buy me chocolates. I was havaing, y'know, relations... which made me hungry, so I'd eat. We went to the cinema and have popcorn and candy. I think they may have contributed more to my weight gain than the pill. (No bad thing, I needed to losen up about food. I just losened up TOO much.)(Okay, I got obsessive about food in another way.)
    I'm on Ovrenette and, now I've put my mind to it (and other times previously), it's been no hinderance to my weightloss.
  • lromay
    lromay Posts: 2
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    I would have to disagree. I have always been about 120 pounds and fairly lean without thinking about what i ate, but once I started taking birth control about 10 months ago, I gained about 10 pounds very easily and with no lifestyle change. Now that I am trying to lose the weight, it is proving very difficult, despite the calorie deficit that I create. I believe that when on birth control, your body basically thinks it is pregnant (because of all the extra estrogen). As we all know, pregnant women gain weight easily. So obviously weight gain, increased appetite, and the difficulty of weight loss can be contributed to the pills. No doubt.
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
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    I would have to disagree. I have always been about 120 pounds and fairly lean without thinking about what i ate, but once I started taking birth control about 10 months ago, I gained about 10 pounds very easily and with no lifestyle change. Now that I am trying to lose the weight, it is proving very difficult, despite the calorie deficit that I create. I believe that when on birth control, your body basically thinks it is pregnant (because of all the extra estrogen). As we all know, pregnant women gain weight easily. So obviously weight gain, increased appetite, and the difficulty of weight loss can be contributed to the pills. No doubt.

    Well, pregnant women gain weight easily because they're housing a rapidly growing fetus. :wink: They have to overeat to gain fat like the rest of the human race. It's actually hCG and progesterone that are the 'pregnancy' hormones.
  • lromay
    lromay Posts: 2
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    Oh witty are we? Look maybe I am being overly dramatic but I did say "basically." In the long run, a good portion of women do report weight gain while taking birth control pills. There may be an associated tendency to retain water as well. All I can say is that I never once had to worry about my weight, and once I started taking the pills, I gained about 10 pounds. I think that is it is a valid claim. It may not cause weight gain in all women, but of myself and all my friends who take it as well, it has contributed to weight gain.
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
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    Quite witty. :bigsmile: Well, from your profile you're only 18. At certain developmental stages, both men and women experience hormonal changes and changes in fat storage and pattern. Unless you're eating the same things each day and burning the same number of calories each day, which is impossible without a metabolic chamber, a lot of things could contribute to weight gain. Even if there is an increase in water weight, what's the big deal? It's still not fat.
  • vhaymakerv
    vhaymakerv Posts: 37
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    thanks for the input.. i'll take it all into consideration!:smile:

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