Looking for support for PCOS. Any ladies here whose height is at 4'11 with PCOS and is struggling w.

TwistedSassette wrote: »

Hi, I've sent you a friend request.
I am a little taller than you at 5'3" but alot heavier! I also have PCOS, and like you I don't get a lot of the symptoms like hirsutism, but I definitely know all about that fatigue!
I would like to share with you a little of my journey, and you can take from that what you will, as we all know that none of us are the same.

I have so far lost just over 14kg (over 30 lbs), but it's taken me some time to settle into what is working for me. I'm sure that you know that weight loss is a function of burning more calories than we consume. But with PCOS it's harder to figure out what our calorie burn is, since it seems to be lower than the typical levels, somehow. I decided some time ago to treat this weight loss attempt as a personal experiment - I wanted to collect data as a baseline, then make some changes and see what happens to the data. This lead me to taking a really slow approach, but it is working. I started out just tracking everything that I ate/drank for a couple of weeks, so I could see how much I really was consuming and what was happening on the scale by weighing myself every day.

With this data, I was then able to identify a couple of small changes that I could make, that I thought would have a big impact - things like skipping that can of creaming soda I was having every night or only using half as much cheese on my meal. I started to see the impact that these things had on the scale. Then I realised I was eating a whole bunch of my calories in the late afternoon, and that I wasn't really hungry I was just eating because I was bored - so I started going for a walk instead and this also impacted the scale.

I've continued on in this way, making changes, seeing what happens, making more changes etc. and now I have a pretty good idea of what really works for me. There have been a lot of ups and downs, don't get me wrong, and times where I thought I was doing everything right but it wasn't showing on the scale - I've learned that I need to be patient and consistent in order for this to work, there are so many factors in what you see on the scale and it doesn't always mean that you're not improving your health (e.g. if you're retaining water that day because of your hormones, it doesn't mean you haven't lost fat, you just can't see it yet). This is a chart of my weight for about the last year, which is when I started this process:

You can see there are periods of ups and downs, and a solid month or so over Christmas where I hovered around the same. But the general trend is down, and that's what I'm aiming for.

At one point in the past, I went to my GP for something completely unrelated, and within 20 seconds of me walking in the door, he started asking me if I wanted gastric sleeve surgery! I was offended, but he proceeded to lecture me for 20 minutes on how he hasn't eaten bread for 10 years and he goes to the gym for 2 hours a day and so on. He wanted to refer me to a dietician, but I walked out of there and did my own research. I found a dietician who specialises in diabetes education, and since the dietary recommendations are quite similar for PCOS (due to insulin resistance), she was quite happy to help me with advice that was relevant. I asked her about low-carb and keto, if that's something I needed to do, and she flat out told me no, it can do more harm than good. She talked about making healthy swaps for things I regularly eat, for lower-GI alternatives that don't spike the blood sugar levels as much. This matched up with what I'd already found out for myself, and if you're looking for a recommendation, check out the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet. I have all the books and while I don't follow the actual diet plan, I do follow the principles.

Sorry, I just realised how long this has become, and I really haven't scratched the surface! Anyway, I know how frustrating this journey can be, so I wanted to at least give you some info on where to start. You don't need to start with a lot of exercise, and certainly don't do exercise that you hate doing! Sometimes I like to walk in place while watching a favourite TV show, or I do dance videos on YouTube that are fun. I do love yoga so I do some of that as well. But find what you enjoy, otherwise it will always feel like a chore. Think of one small change you can make today that you can see yourself doing for the rest of your life (like, drinking an extra glass of water, or buying your treats in individually-wrapped portions to discourage you from eating the whole bag/box), and keep doing it until it becomes a habit. Then find another habit to work on. Take small steps and build your momentum - you can do this!

tarunnurat wrote: »

Hi, I'm a guy and I just came across this post. I just wanted to mention that I'm living with my girlfriend who has PCOS. A few weeks ago her doctor told her that her cysts have got smaller for the first time ever, and this is mostly down to her consistency with her workouts and diet. She does a mix of strength training(body weight and w/ dumbbells), endurance, zumba and yoga. Basically whatever she's in the mood for on any given day. She struggles with hitting 1200ish calories everyday, but manages to keep it up most days. Just thought I'd share her journey in case it helps anyone, and can pass on any questions if anyone has any.