polycystic ovarian syndrome & weight loss

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angelitapm
angelitapm Posts: 1
in Health and Weight Loss
Does anybody here Suffer from polycystic ovarian syndrome and are you having trouble losing weight?
Any nutritional and weight loss tips that you can share?

Replies

  • MeguPARN
    MeguPARN Posts: 13
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    Did you talk to your doc about it? I don't have it but I am a nurse and have heard that it can make it tough to lose weight. A good endocrinologist could probably give you some helpful tips. Though mine just tells me to eat protein with every meal, maintain blood sugar control (I guess that would be like low GI), and try to weight train morning and night in smaller spurts if possible. Again I don't have PCOS but his advice has been useful in the past when I was trying to lose and maintain. I just fell off the wagon and need to get back on!
  • theyear
    theyear Posts: 2
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    Hi I have it, to be honest this is the first year I'm dead set on trying to overcome it. Cutting carbs and sugar out help and I take Chromium, magestium, multi vits and omega 3 6 9. I find that the chromium helps with keeping the weight off but that may just be me. :smile:
  • Lyric82
    Lyric82 Posts: 119
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    I have it. It's been REALLY, REALLY hard and frustrating to lose weight. I feel as though I do everything I am told and the scale is not budging. However, i think eating 6 small meals a day (to balance blood sugar), and minimizing carbs does help! Exercising is key!!! I am reading a book right now about PCOS and weight loss (I can't think of the name off the top of my head) but I will let you know if I find any tips that work!

    Feel free to add me so we can support and encourage each other :flowerforyou:
  • sandy2006
    sandy2006 Posts: 483 Member
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    Yes very frustrating especially when you work so hard with very small results. My plan is this: No white stuff sugar or flour, no processed foods, eat a protein healthy fat and a good carb every meal. I take fish oil and cinnamon every day. There is also a group for pcos on here if you want to join that.
  • athearenee
    athearenee Posts: 110
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    Yes!
    In fact, I believe there is a PCOS support group here on MFP.
    My Gyno told me that I have a "magic bullet" to lose weight...low carb.
    I try to make diet up of mostly Lean Protein, Veggies and a little High Fiber Fruit..
    Now I do eat brown rice, oatmeal and sweet potatoes...Sparingly but I try to
    keep it in check...
    So Far So Good...

    Good Luck!:flowerforyou:
  • anberlingasm
    anberlingasm Posts: 177
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    Minimise carbohydrates in your diet (more sustainable than cutting them out entirely) and try to stick to wholegrain foods - avoid white bread, white rice, white pasta. Try to add more protein because your body will burn that better - it just turns carbs straight into sugar, which then make fat (I'm sure someone will correct me here with a more technical explanation).

    Try to eat 5-6 smaller meals to maintain your blood sugar, rather than just three meals. PCOS is all about insulin resistance, so treating it as you would treat diabetes is helpful.

    I have PCOS and it is more difficult but not impossible - I lost 4.5lb last week! Cutting down on your alcohol intake is also good, I think that's where my loss came from this week.
  • sandy2006
    sandy2006 Posts: 483 Member
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    Also forgot to add my obgyn says to concentrate more on strength training.
  • Cindy311
    Cindy311 Posts: 780 Member
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    I too have PCOS. It's taken me over three years but I've lost 121 lbs! During the three years though, I lapsed...completely fell off the health wagon a few times, but I got back up and trudged on. I probably could have gotten the weight off quicker, but I feel that three years isn't that long now that I look back at it. Please be patient with yourself, mind and body. It took awhile to put the weight on and it will take awhile to get it off. Add weight training into your exercise routine. It not only makes your body look nicer it helps burn fat easier. Keep your carbs lower (100 per day) and try steering clear of refined sugars. I eat fruit sparingly, but I get my carbs from other sources. Carbs aren't bad, they just have to be controlled lol! It is completely amazing how you'll feel after dropping the weight down and changing your eating habits! Best of luck :o)
  • Lyric82
    Lyric82 Posts: 119
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    Question for PCOS'ers that have had luck...

    How many grams of carbs do you have a day on average?
  • Cindy311
    Cindy311 Posts: 780 Member
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    Question for PCOS'ers that have had luck...

    How many grams of carbs do you have a day on average?

    My carbs have changed over time. When I first started out it was important, to me, to stay right around 100g per day. That was a reasonable number for me and I had good results. Now I find I'm averaging 170, some days more and some days less. At this time though I'm not trying to lose just maintain a healthy lifestyle. I think you're going to get carbs, they are a part of our life it's just what kind you take in that define your end result. Eat a potato or eat a snack cake, both have carbs one is complex one is refined so it's then up to the person to choose which they'd rather have. Again, if it'll fit into your nutrition for the day a bite of the snack cake isn't going to be too bad it's just having one or two each day and that can turn nasty quick :( Of course, I'm rattling off same old info that everyone else is...lol!!!!
  • omma_to_3
    omma_to_3 Posts: 3,265 Member
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    Yup, that's me. I struggle with limiting carbs and currently am not even trying. I'm probably averaging around 200 g a day over the last year. Blood sugar control really isn't the issue with PCOS (unless you've developed diabetes of course). The bigger issue is insulin production. I have been taking Metformin for years to lower my insulin levels and it has worked. Lower insulin levels makes it easier to lose the weight. It still took me eons to actually get motivated to do it. I think years and years of trying hard and losing nothing, or having to go down to 600 calories to lose weight, just made me say forget it. But I finally got motivated last year and have lost about 38 pounds since last May. Yes, still very slow going. And I'm really struggling right now on a plateau, despite a huge exercise effort over the past month. I've only been losing 1/2 a pound a week. I'm suspecting I shouldn't allow myself to eat back my exercise calories :-( Which just makes me sad since that's a HUGE motivator for me to actually work out.

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