Anone with PCOS???

ntatbeeq · October 2013

Hi,
I have PCOS as well...my doctor put me on a LOW carb and high protein diet and I am finally losing weight. Wish you lots of luck!

Hi, can you send me the diet (low carb and high protein) to me???

ntatbeeq · October 2013

I have PCOS and have lost a lil over 180 pounds (started at 380 pounds am now 197 pounds). I find the combination of exercise and diet (moderate carbs) works best for me

Thas cool but my problem is i am not over-weight at all..i am 5'6'' and weight 137lbs so its taking too much with me to loose weight

by the way what do you mean by moderate carbs?? do u eat rice, pasta and bread??

kazsjourney · October 2013

I eat about 100-160 grams of carbs a day. I rarely eat rice, pasta, potato. But i do eat 2-4 slices of bread per day. I generally try to avoid grainy carb with my evening meal.

And yes I only have about 30 pounds to lose now and its definitely harder now.

toscarthearmada · October 2013

I HAD PCOS in April of 2012. Over the last 16 months I lost 101 pounds with a low carb diet. Low carb / high protein is the only diet that will work with PCOS.

chljlleal · October 2013

Check out the blogs on this site http://www.pcosdietsupport.com/ they have been really helpful to me and I have started to lose weight again, mainly by concentrating on the gluten free part. I hope they help you too

Lupercalia · October 2013

Hi, I have PCOS, though my symptoms have greatly improved since I've lost 100 lbs. I also found that a low carb diet was important for me, as I'm also insulin resistant. I tried, but never could tolerate metformin, and though I took birth control pills to regulate my cycles at one point, I don't anymore. So at this point, I'm totally drug free...just keeping everything in check with a proper diet and lots of exercise.

I eat a bit more carbs now, as my insulin sensitivity has greatly improved due to the weight loss and exercise--so now, I eat anywhere from 75-150g carbs/day....whereas when I began dieting, I kept it to 50g or less/day.

I can't recall if you said you're exercising regularly, but I found that to be really really important. I feel like I have to exercise a bit more, or harder, than a woman without PCOS...but that's ok, so long as I'm doing something I enjoy. I lift weights and train with kettlebells, and I walk everywhere. No steady state cardio, as I haven't found it interesting or particularly helpful or important for me.

ntatbeeq · October 2013

Hi, I have PCOS, though my symptoms have greatly improved since I've lost 100 lbs. I also found that a low carb diet was important for me, as I'm also insulin resistant. I tried, but never could tolerate metformin, and though I took birth control pills to regulate my cycles at one point, I don't anymore. So at this point, I'm totally drug free...just keeping everything in check with a proper diet and lots of exercise.

I eat a bit more carbs now, as my insulin sensitivity has greatly improved due to the weight loss and exercise--so now, I eat anywhere from 75-150g carbs/day....whereas when I began dieting, I kept it to 50g or less/day.

I can't recall if you said you're exercising regularly, but I found that to be really really important. I feel like I have to exercise a bit more, or harder, than a woman without PCOS...but that's ok, so long as I'm doing something I enjoy. I lift weights and train with kettlebells, and I walk everywhere. No steady state cardio, as I haven't found it interesting or particularly helpful or important for me.

So how long did u take medicin to regulate your periods??and when you stopped those medicines, dint your PCOS come back?

kar328 · October 2013

Jumping in here amongst fellow "soul cysters." (there's a great website soulcysters.com with tons of support and info). I've always been heavy but the whole PCOS thing jumped in about ten years ago. Did Metformin for a while, didn't lose a pound, did birth control pills and spironalactone, but since the excess facial hair growth gets zapped by lasers a few times a year and my testosterone level has been normal for a while, I stopped both meds.

I started doing MFP in January and lost an average of 6 lbs/month which was great, then in June I hit a plateau. I've played with numbers, percentages, the whole bit and even gained five lbs in August. i stayed off the scale for five weeks until yesterday and lost 5.6 lbs in those 5 weeks, putting me less than a pound below my last lowest recorded weight. ( I don't record the gains, no need to punish myself, I know they're there). Two people who run a group here have encouraged me to change the carbs to 120, which I'm finding extremely hard, although I've definitely made a dent in the numbers. I find it hard to do low carb without undereating the daily calories. It's definitely a work in progress, one that needs constant tweaking. Not sure why I suddenly stopped losing in June, it's frustrating because I should have been in Onederland by now, I haven't seen that number in many years.

Friends welcome :flowerforyou:

stephroberts17 · October 2013

yeah i have pcos too and it sucks i have pretty much every symptom of it

but losing weight low carb has helped me lose 170 pounds thus far......

becktoriatralala · October 2013

Your weight is fine - I am not sure losing 15lbs will help all that much. Are you showing a lot of symptoms besides irregular periods? Thinning hair on your head, excessive body hair, acanthosis nigricans (darkening of the skin in certain areas)? Is your doctor a gynecologist? Primary care? You really should consult a specialist.

I have had PCOS since I was a kid. Periods were always a mess. No one could help me til I went to see a reproductive endocrinologist and she was a godsend. She knew exactly what was wrong with me and didn't just tell me to "lose weight and everything will even out". I was on metformin for a few years - high doses - 2500mg/day. It wreaked havoc on my digestive system for about 6 months. But I learned how to eat the right way for my body. PCOS causes insulin resistance - a sort of precursor to diabetes. Your body doesn't process sugar properly. I found that cutting out refined and "white" carbs (bread, rice, past, potatoes, flour, sugar) I lost a ton of weight and more importantly felt enormously better. More energy, less sluggish - just better. I was about 260 lbs and dropped to 200 without counting any calories - just cutting out carbs. I ate a ton of lean protein and vegetables. Then I hit the wall and started counting calories and working out. I dropped to about 180 and promptly got pregnant with my son. With no fertility drugs, no in vitro - the old fashioned way - the new way of eating and the medicine kicked me back into gear. That was 9 years ago. After the boy was born I was able to get off metformin. I have been fine ever since. I still get checked every year and it's very easy for the weight to creap back on if i start grazing on carbs again. This isn't a fad diet thing - your body doesn't process carbs like everyone else's so cutting them back or out isn't a bad thing. Moderation helps but I personally do best when I am off them completely. Again everyone is different.

If you need help or support I am here and would be happy to help.

Good luck.

This!!! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I was on metformin and had IBS. I just recently started back when I went to an OBGYN (rather than just an endocrinologist). I have consistently been on spironolactone as well.

I am finally getting off of my plateau because I am being more careful with my carbs this time around. When I started the metformin again, I slowly built it up (per the OBGYN, who by the way, also has PCOS). I try to stick to fruit and veggie type carbs, but yes, it is hard.

She also recommended, and I struggle with this, is at least 30 minutes of exercise a day. It pushes the insulin through your body since you've got your blood moving. (Makes since, now doesn't it? I was like, "Oh, yep!")

PCOS is something I have always had and will always have. Many of the symptoms (acne, facial/body hair, absent/irregular periods, infertility) will be reduced/go away with continued medication, diet and exercise.

On the OTHER hand, i know of some who once they were able to conceive, periods, etc. came back just fine. Their bodies must have reset themselves???

Everyone is different.

Keep trying and don't give up.

And for goodness sake, if you want a cookie or need to be lazy, its okay! Just don't do it all the time!

Good luck and you have great support group here on MFP that can share their personal stories.

Jessica_Mujahidah · October 2013

I don't have PCOS but I have extremely high insulin resistance. I've lost 23kg so far through diet and exercise. I've switched to a low GI, high protein diet and it seems to be effective in the interim.

I've just purchased a book called "The Insulin Resistance Diet". I haven't read it yet, but it came highly recommended from lots of ladies around the www suffering through slow weight loss due to insulin resistance.

Feel free to add me. Would love to support each other on the journey to a healthy lifestyle!

Jess

wowgirl30 · October 2013

PCOS is a little different for everyone. The diagnosis isn't really regulated, it is often diagnosed to anyone with irregular cycles - even if they don't have cysts on their ovaries or a hormone imbalance :indifferent: I started to have symptoms when I was 10 but was diagnosed when I was 18. I was only put on bcp's and told to lose weight (like I hadn't tried before lol)The cysts often grow very large and then burst and it is extremely painful. I have a pretty severe case (so I've been told) along with insulin resistance and am currently on metformin (2000mg/day) and spironolactone (100mg/day) along with bcp's. They made a huge difference in the way I feel and with the acne and hair issues. When my eating is under control and I exercise they make it possible for me to lose weight slowly rather than pull-my-hair-out-so-frustrated-going-nowhere pace. :laugh:

Weight loss can ease symptoms and even reduce/eliminate the need for meds in overweight PCOSers but with you being at a normal weight to start I am not sure that it would do anything for you. I would see an endocrinologist and work with them to come up with a treatment/management plan. Feel free to add me if you want

BaconSlanger · October 2013

My doc told me as lower weight would i have, would be better to get rid of PCOs quickly...............Have read many posts and articles about it and everybpdy was repeating same thing "lower your weight, shed some kgs" etc etc so lets see what happens

I think you should change doctors hun because you can't "get rid of" PCOS AT ALL let alone quickly. I've had since I was about 15 so for almost 11 years now. It's really difficult to lose weight when you have PCOS but as long as you eat at a deficit and work out (even if you just walk for half an hour every day) you should find the pounds start to shed. Also, because you are not overweight to start with it will be more difficult for you to lose weight because your body doesn't need to. x

^^^ I agree. I have had since about the same age as well. You cannot just "get rid" of it sadly

And I also agree with the whole rest of the comment. It's tougher for us, but you just got to try your hardest to eat right and work out. And since you aren't overweight, it may not show on the scale much. You just got to keep in mind it doens't matter what the scale says. Everybody looks different with numbers. Everybody has their own body. My skinny weight works for me because I am super tall, but it may be a fat weight to you bc you may be short. All that matters is how you feel and how your clothes fit. I wouldn't even worry about the scale that much.

Anone with PCOS???

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