Women with PCOS... two questions?

I managed to lose 50lbs while still on the pill (Yasmin) 23lbs to go. Iv recently been paying a bit more attention to my daily carb allowance, but i find counting calories works best for me, and changing white carbs to wheat!

Good luck X

It doesn't seem to matter what I eat when I build lean muscle mass. The increased metabolism always causes my body to decrease in size even while the muscles are bulking up.

Hi hi! I've been dealing with PCOS since I was 11 years old, and I'm now 22. Yeah, sucks. Anyway, I dropped the Pill a few years back because I started having bad reactions, and losing weight has certainly been easier since then. Also, I eat my carbs, and since I've followed a balanced diet, incorporating HEALTHY carbs (most of the time) healthy fats and lean proteins, I've lost 92 lbs. I'm not too far from my goal, but I'm not quite there yet. I just wish I'd started lifting WAAAAY earlier. Good luck, Sugarpie!

I started the pill when I was 16 and diagnosed with PCOS, since then I have lost about 10 pounds and hadn't been trying to lose weight at all. I don't necessarily think it's the pill that inhibits weight loss, I think it's the hormones from PCOS. I've only read about androgen levels of PCOS sufferers being higher. Androgen is a male hormone that is present in females but often seen higher in PCOS and is believed to be the cause of weight distribution mainly being around the stomach. Birth control only raises the female hormones but doesn't get rid of high male hormones

I have lost over 190 pounds and have PCOS. I havent taken the pill tho so not sure on that. I havent eaten a specifically low calorie diet except i try most days to have one meal carb free (as in no grains). The losses can happen it just takes time....It has taken me 5.5 years.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/3070-p-c-o-sis
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/4242-get-fit-with-1in10
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/4339-pcosers-unite

I am a PCOS sufferer too and yes I have reached my goal weight twice and being on the bc pill at the time. I take a pill that controls the excess androgens enough to make sure that my skin is acne-free :-) Also I take the pill without breaks/without bleeding. Every now and then I do take a break, but only maybe 2 -3 times a year as there is no evidence that women need that withdrawal bleeding in between taking the pill. I have never felt like the pill made any difference weight-wise but this could be different for everyone, so for you it might.

When you have PCOS you need to know that the key is insulin! INSULIN! You need to control the insulin in order to lose weight. You have to do that because insulin basically is the hormone, that stores fat. When it's high and spiked you're storing most of your calories as fat. Not what you want right? Insulin should be normal and you need to avoid things that will spike the release of insulin (fast carbs/sugar).

OK, so I'm 34 now and had a hard time controlling my weight forever, but I have managed to lose like 25 pounds several times over the course of about 4 - 6 months each time and recently I analyzed what I did. I should underline, that I managed to stay at a normal weight for many years and that the weight gains was because of emotional reasons and I also didn't have as much knowledge about nutrition and supplements as I do now, so I really didn't know what I was doing. That changed.

I'll try to make this as short as possible, but I'd like to share what I know and have experienced :-) You need to count calories!
My "breaking point" is around 1200 - 1400 calories per day. If I go much higher nothing much will really happen. You have to find your spot for weight loss. I would exercise about 45 minutes daily interval biking, so I would get my pulse up a couple of times and it helps, but also a long walk for 30 - 60 min. would really be a good choice because low intense movement favors fat loss.

When you do cardio two undesirable things happens: you burn your carbs primarily, so you will get ravenously hungry after and tend to binge on carbs and you will produce more cortisol and if you are already a bit stressed you will burn out your adrenals that way and seeing your adrenals are already exhausted because you have an endocrine disorder, you may do better taking long walks chilling with some music rather than going to the gym. Just walk at a pace where you feel the furnace going on after a while...like a nice heat rising in your body :-) Then you're burning fat.

Like I said insulin is the key, so living of fast carbs is a no go for a PCOS sufferer and this is initially and forever :-) So you need to get the few calories you do get from real food. No crackers, biscuits, deserts and all these sorts of weird things that may even say light on the label. Just don't go for it. In general - if it tastes sweet and has things in it you don't know what is - don't touch it! Also diet coke...I would lay off it. And I will.

I suspect my addition to coke zero is partly the reason why I have not managed my weight better and it overstimulates your brain and that is never desirable. Research indicates, that your insulin still responds even if you eat artificial sweeteners and not real sugar. And with constantly high insulin levels, you will never lose weight. Get real food for your cells :-) It will help you in many ways other than assist the weight loss.

So count calories, keep and eye on the carbs and where they come from. Make sure you get them from veggies, whole grains like bulgur or rye bread and no more than one piece of fruit daily if you are having a hard time losing weight. Fruit is healthy but you have to decide if you want to lose weight or not and fruit is too sweet for most people with PCOS.
When eating fruit I only eat it as a part of a meal where there is plenty protein and fats. Like putting diced apple or pear in a lettuce salad on the side of some meat.

Take care not to eat excessive protein. It converts to glucose when you eat more than you need raising insulin. I eat about 1 gram per kilo I weigh. So if you work with pounds, you'd need to divide your weight by 2 and you have the grams of protein you need but this varies from person to person due to exercise level and other stuff.

If I eat 1400 calories I eat 30 - 40 % from carbs. I try to hit a spot between 75 and 100 grams of carbs. The important thing many PCOS women get wrong is cutting out fat. This is a big mistake. Fat is needed for your cells and for your brain, your glands and yeah...everything. DON'T avoid fats. Please! It is the only macronutrient that does not influence insulin. Protein and carbs do.
Fats make you feel satisfied. It is important and many vitamins and minerals need fats to be utilized. I will give you an example of a day and what I eat later at the end. I got 46 % from fats. 23 % from protein and 31 % from carbs in this example. This is close to ideal in my opinion. Fats cost more calorie-wise but you really won't do well to exclude them and if you do I promise you will struggle forever. Fats are crucial. Even saturated fats. We store our own fat as saturated like the animals we eat. So that form is not unhealthy for us as many proclaim. Watch the documentary "Fat head" = eye opener. I get my fats from cheese, olive oil, coconut oil, sesame oil and some heavy cream, but the trick is always amounts. Just use a little for flavor. I fry stuff in the flavorless coconut oil and poor the other oils over veggies or salad. Not much but enough to make it more interesting. Also salmon is a good choice as it contributes with good fats. Avocado. Eggs. Cream or some shredded cheese makes veggies more delicious :-d

I use a program online to manage my daily intake and do it days in advance and so I "build" days up that are right in ratio between protein, carbs and fats. I can recommend doing that so you know what you're eating. So basically; Control carbs and calories, eat real food, ditch light products, load up on veggies, fats, meat, eggs, some fruit, a bit of nuts and some whole grains. No fast food, but I think that's a given to most people and do some exercise every day.

So NO, low carb diets are not the only way to go for PCOS sufferers and frankly I tried it and failed. I was told not to count calories and I gained weight doing LCHF (like Atkins). And after 3 - 5 days I had used up my glycogen storage and crashed. I felt really sick and dizzy. Maybe because people with PCOS have weak livers and it's the liver that needs to work harder, when you need to switch to ketosis. And people told me to stick it out until I reached ketosis, but I just couldn't. I prefer smaller meals and cutting calories with a focus on the right ratio and quality of carbs. Look at the carbs and see to it, that they are slow. Find the carbs that don't make you tired and feel like taking a nap after eating. You need fats and protein in all meals to stabilize and satisfy.

Make sure you drink enough water, easy on the coffee and caffeine. Take some good vitamins and minerals. Extra D important for PCOS. Some have told me inositol is good (a B vitamin). Extra C is good for adrenals along with B complex. Magnesium very important as it plays a role in insulin resistance and how insulin works in the body. Take magnesium as citrate = best absorbed. Taking the amino acid L-glutamin is good to curb cravings. You should read up on supplements for PCOS :-) And btw: always keep your morning meal carb free basically. It's better to have the carbs later because you program the brain for the day with the morning meal and having oatmeal, fruits or juice is the worst things. Do Atkins-like diet for the morning meal and have your carbs in the following meals. You will feel more energetic. Try it ;-)

I have never done resistance training, but it is often recommended for women with PCOS. I am convinced it's good, but I just don't see myself doing it, so I bike or walk for exercise. You need to be realistic. Pick things you stick with and I personally don't like too vigorous exercise, so I don't force myself. Cortisol from stress will definitely hamper your weight loss. 100 %. Also get enough sleep. This is due to the impact on the whole hormonal system.


I hope this helps :-)

Example: (81 grams of protein/73 grams of fats/ 98 grams of netcarbs) 1394 calories.

Morning: 1 smiley egg, 100 g broccoli, 30 g fried bacon, 10 g mayonnaise, 25 g rye bread with 3 g butter.

Snack: a piece of rye Wasa bread with 40 g of semi fat cheese, 300 ml of bouillon

Lunch: 50 g of rye bread with 5 g of butter, a boiled egg with 10 g of mayonnaise, a small carrot and a small pear.

Dinner: 130 of chicken with skin and all from the oven, boiled bulgur mixed into a salad with 20 g lettuce, 75 g of tomatoes, 20 g of diced bell pepper, 10 g of diced onion with 20 ml of olive oil and 5 g vinegar drizzled over it.

PCOS person here. I can't address the pill part of it. You need to remember however that a key portion of PCOS is insulin sensitivy / insulin resistence. Following the research on this, it becomes IMPERATIVE that you adopt a low carb lifestyle. Not only to reduce your risk of developing diabetes (which PCOS sufferers are prone to do) but also because your insulin resistences means you are ESPECIALLY sensitive to weight gain via carbs. Also, there are additional studies now demonstrating a link between fat, carbs and cholesterol.

This isn't an option. Your key to better health - long term - is a low-glycemic, low carb diet.

Combined with resistence training (not just cardio - but weight lifting), the low carb life plan will get you down in all key areas: fat, cholesterol, weight. This is the most recent protocol recommended by the medical field in light of recent studies.

PCOS person here. I can't address the pill part of it. You need to remember however that a key portion of PCOS is insulin sensitivy / insulin resistence. Following the research on this, it becomes IMPERATIVE that you adopt a low carb lifestyle. Not only to reduce your risk of developing diabetes (which PCOS sufferers are prone to do) but also because your insulin resistences means you are ESPECIALLY sensitive to weight gain via carbs. Also, there are additional studies now demonstrating a link between fat, carbs and cholesterol.

This isn't an option. Your key to better health - long term - is a low-glycemic, low carb diet.

Combined with resistence training (not just cardio - but weight lifting), the low carb life plan will get you down in all key areas: fat, cholesterol, weight. This is the most recent protocol recommended by the medical field in light of recent studies.

With regards to this, OP have you been tested for insulin resistance?
It's very common in PCOS but by no means automatic. I have PCOS but no insulin resistance.
If you have got IR low carb is the best way to go.

Hi there,

I have PCOS, and have lost 5.5 stone (77lb) over the past 18 months.

This was largely achieved by portion control and a lot of exercise (5 - 6 times a week for at least an hour). I did try low carb recently when my weight loss plateaued, but I found it hard to sustain. That said, it shifted a stubborn 7lb pretty damn quick. I am currently in the process of switching to a more low GI-style diet - carbs, but 'good' ones.

PCOS doesn't have to be a thorn in your side - honestly, it can be done. Weight gain, difficulty in losing weight and the other myriad of delights that PCOS brings aren't life's joys, but they aren't the end of the world. I battered PCOS into submission with a kettlebell

For information, I am on Dianette and Metformin 1000mg daily.

Hope this helps! x

But EVERYONE loses weight on Metformin

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But EVERYONE loses weight on Metformin
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No. Not everyone. It's inconsistent and depends on the patient. I've been on it for 1 year now and at best, have lost 10 lbs. And I work out like crazy.

I have PCOS, and have lost weight while on the pill. I'm not on metformin as it does nothing for me but make me nauseated. I do not do low-carb - I have my macros set to 40/30/30, and try to meet them as closely as possible.

For me, portion control and clean eating, weight training, and HIIT have done the trick.

But EVERYONE loses weight on Metformin
[/quote]

No. Not everyone. It's inconsistent and depends on the patient. I've been on it for 1 year now and at best, have lost 10 lbs. And I work out like crazy.
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maybe your dosage needs to be increased .. i started at 500 mg and now at 1000 mg .. and i have to say it has helped me in my weight loss journey ..

No. Not everyone. It's inconsistent and depends on the patient. I've been on it for 1 year now and at best, have lost 10 lbs. And I work out like crazy.

I guess you don't understand the joke with the caps + winky face. You must be new to the internet.

I can’t answer the pill question that isn’t an issue for me.
I started the low carb eating kicking and screaming!! I was already exercising so just upped that and change it up periodically.
If I don’t do low carb I don’t lose I will gain. I have been successful in losing almost 45 pounds in 9 months with a 3 month plateau.
I am happy to do low carb now with occasional cheats, but when I do I pay for it now from the carb overload I get.
I also feel better, I look better, my hair and skin are better than ever before.. I won’t go back even once I get to goal which is another 20-25 pounds.
Good luck