PCOS and Losing weight

Another one! I have struggled with the weight loss in the past but this time around I have been successful! I have lost 14.5 lbs since I started on MFP Jan 19. There has been 1 week that I have gained but the other weeks have all been losses. I have taken myself off all of the medications as there were too many other side effects that were affecting me too. I am doing only supplements now (just started Cinnamin and hoping that will help me not to go back on Metformin). Feel free to add me if you want

I also have PCOS - there seems to be a lot of us here! I'm currently on Metformin and the weight is slowly going down. I've noticed a reduction in some of my PCOS symptoms and hoping to see more as I carry on losing. Feel free to add me

I also have PCOS and had difficulty trying to get pregnant, I finally lost 50lbs and fell pregnant and didn't even know it, that was 4 years ago, my little girl is now 3 but I now weigh 212lbs so its the upward struggle again of trying to lose weight, its hard but gonna keep trying !

PCOS support group on MFP:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/3070-p-c-o-sis

PCOS too!

I had been to the doctors over and over and was finally diagnosed at 17 after not having a period since I was around 14. I got weight gain, facial hair and bad skin. The facial hair was the worst bit- and when I asked for help they told me to lost weight but didn't help me to do that at all- despite having a very healthy BMI a doctor told me I was fat and my problems were my own fault and a result of my laziness.
The docs offered no advise, no medication and now dont understand why I bring it up at appts. like its already been dealt with. Its so frustrating.

So happy to have found this post. I will also check out the group mentioned earlier in this thread!

Forgive me but this will be long-winded.

I have had PCOS probably since my first cycle at 13 (32 now). I've NEVER been "regular" and the hormonal imbalance has caused some serious emotional, physical and weight related issues. As a teen and young 20-something, the weight wasn’t ever an issue. I ate what I wanted and never gained a pound. I was very active, rode my bike a lot, played softball, handball, was always outside and even walked 2 miles a day for my first job to and from work with my dog. As years went by, I became much less active and drove, trained, ferried my way everywhere. Then came love, then came marriage, then came a mortgage and a baby carriage (Ha! I made a funny..lol)

I already knew that conceiving would be an issue with PCOS. My mother had it (though it was undiagnosed) and we knew because everything I went through, she had gone through. I had rare, unpredictable cycles (sometimes every 3-4 months, sometimes gone for 2 years!), the extra hair, the weight, the acne, etc. My obgyn recommended that we try for 6 months then come back to see her for a consult with an infertility specialist. 6 months later I went to the magical IVF Dr.s and with metformin and a low carb diet I lost 10 lbs in a month while they gave me Chlomid and checked and poked and bled and hormoned me for a few months till we were ready for an egg to be ripe enough to drop (which was also assisted by a shot of Ovidrell) and on the first try we were preggo! WOOHOO!!! My 2.5 yr old daughter is the light of my life!

After 3 months of breast feeding and the miraculous weight loss that comes along with that, I was on top of the world! Then I had to go back to work and stop pumping so I saw all those lbs slowly creep back up my thighs, waist, arms and face...always the face!!!!!!

This past fall we were shocked to discover I was pregnant again, without any assistance (from Drs that is..lol) and I was again, on top of the world with joy! I didn't think it was possible. It was improbable! We told our families and closest friends because it was just so unbelievable we HAD to share!! My sister-in-law was 3 or 4 months pregnant at the time as well so we were so excited that we'd both be able to have our 2nd children so close together. Unfortunately, it was not meant to be and I lost her/him a few weeks later. We agreed that the timing wasn't right and it just wasn’t meant to be but that we now knew that it WAS POSSIBLE, damnit! I can have another child without all the Dr.s, the pills, the shots the co-pays, the early morning pre-work visits to see the vampire nurses who bled me every 2-3 days to check my hormone levels!!

I told myself that I would get pregnant again and my body would be a strong, safe, healthy vessel for this child. Also hoping that by the time I was physically ready, my husband and I would be a little more financially ready for another mouth to feed. And here I am. I tried throughout the fall and winter holidays to be more health conscious and portion control, yada yada yada. Have I mentioned that along with my regular 9-5 secretarial job I’m also a baker and cake decorating instructor? That translates to “I’m a carb-*kitten*”. I love cake, sugar, sweets of any kind. Can’t help it. I can control how much I put in my mouth but I can’t stop! It’s my only vice. I stopped smoking a month after my mom passed (almost 8 years ago) and I was never a drinker so sugar is my only vice. It is what it is.

This January I turned 32 and the weekend of my birthday, my present was a stomach virus (from HELL) that caused me to lose 5 lbs..I’ll spare you all the gruesome details but it kick started my renewed weight loss goals. It’s been 9 weeks since my birthday and I’ve lost 12.5 lbs. The first 5 were free, but I’ll take it! I started MFP in early Feb as well as finally joining a gym and haven’t regretted any of it. I know that losing is more challenging with PCOS but I’m determined to be healthier for myself, for my daughter, for my husband and again for me! The only supplements I want to take are the natural fruit gummy vitamins that my daughter takes. I’m eating smaller portions, choosing healthier options, reading labels, drinking more water (with a shot of RealLemon juice) and walking everyday at lunch. I go to the gym twice a week and I take the stairs, not the escalator.
We can do this ladies, KEEP GOING!

PS – I warned you this would be long-winded..LOL

I have recently been diagnosed with PCOS too. Having a terrible time with it.

Feel free to add me (this applies to all PCOS sufferers)

PCOS here too! Except I have the extremely painful kind. My ovaries trigger insulin to release and then it triggers peripheral neuropathy...which it totally excruciating! I don't have diabetes but I eat like I do. Meaning a whole foods, zero processed, low card, NO sugar diet. I've lost 21 lbs and the pain is majorly lessening. Feel free to add me too!

My little sister has PCOS and started a low carb lifestyle two weeks ago. She has already lost 15 lbs. I just thought I'd share this, good luck ladies!

Here's another PCOS group on MFP. Please join us!
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/153-pcos-cysters-losing-together


(edited to correct the link)

I have just been diagnosed with PCOS so I am new to it lol I have always wondered why it is hard for me to lose weight, and now I know why... Feel free to add me! I do delete for not logging in though... it would be great to have people to go through this with though

Losing weight with PCOS is hard, not impossible. I am not losing much weight, but have lost inches. My condition is pretty much same like jhann16, I suffer from IR and neuropathy, that's the biggest struggle for me. The day my carbs are high, I can't sleep because of the uneasy feeling in my muscles. Being a vegetarian makes it hard for me to stay away from carbs. So, small portions and moderation is the way to go. Feel free to add me!

I was diagnosed at 16 with PCOS and find it difficult to lose weight, but like others have said not impossible. The Zone Diet style of eating has worked really well for me. I eat about 1500-1600 calories a day, exercise at least 20 minutes a day 6 days a week, and eat a 40% carb, 30% fat, 30% protein ratio. You can manually set it on here. The processed carbs are killer for people with PCOS since it spikes insulin levels, so stay away from white bread, white rice, soda (even diet), cake, cookies, etc. I find this very helpful. It is doable, it just sucks to have to so on point to lose even a pound or two with PCOS, but it can be done it just takes extra effort :-/. You can do it though, forge on!

Here's another PCOS group on MFP. Please join us!
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/170-pcos-cysters-losing-together

it won't let me 'jump' there... keeps taking me to the main page I did a PCOS search, but there are pages and pages of actual posts, not just Forum names.

I have PCOS. I joined MFP in May of 2011 and have lost 124 pounds. I have a lot more weight to lose. Please feel free to add me.