PCOS- What to eat? (Warning Guys TMI)

I'm PCOS with Insulin Resistance, and when I was pregnant with my daughter, I also had gestational diabetes. Last year, when I went back into weight loss mode (after she turned 2) I put myself back on the diet plan they gave me while I was pregnant with her. It was 3 snacks, with 15g net carbs (carbs - minus fiber), breakfast 30 g carbs, lunch 45 g carbs, and dinner was 60 g carbs. I was also to have protein with every meal/snack, and not to have fruit juices ever, and no cold cereal for breakfast.

Of course, everyone is different, but I wouldn't think that you'd have to go Atkins low carb, but just reduced carbs (I have mine set to 40% right now, instead of the 55% MFP sets it at), and pairing them with protein.

I'm not on a very low carb diet, and I do have insulin resistance with my PCOS. Metformin has really helped to regulate my insulin so I don't have to go extremely low carb and I can lose weight like a normal person. I do eat less carbs than I used to simply because bread and pasta is higher in calories but my diet isn't "low carb" like some people do. I just try to eat good carbs rather than bad carbs (whole wheat bread instead of white, ect...)

I've managed to lose quite a bit and am not on low carb. I eat low GI which I find better to regulate.

If you're just starting out my advice is to focus on calories figure out the right amount of calories and eat to that. Exercise 30 min a day. Once you're comfortable you can start changing your macros (carbs/proteins/fats) Only thing I would heavily recommend switch to whole wheat. No need to put the horse before the cart.

Again, everyone's body is different. First of all you need to find out whether you truly are insulin resistant. Because if you are, then this is not good advice. If you're insulin resistant, then your body processes protein calories and fat calories VERY differently than it processes carbohydrate calories. So the number of calories does not matter as much as the type of calorie consumed. I ate a calorie deficit for years, thought I was being really good by eating salads & only 1200 calories a day, exercised every day, and still gained weight steadily. Because for people with non-normal metabolisms, it's the TYPE of calorie that makes the difference.

Here is a video by Dr. Mary Vernon, who was one of the pioneers of treating metabolic disorders with diet instead of drugs. She explains it better than I ever could. She also has a series of lectures on youtube, just google her name and "KU lecture."
http://www.diabetesnewsstand.com/vissue/vernon/titlepage.html

Low carb will only really help if you're insulin resistant (I've got PCOS, and am not insulin resistant). There are some studies that suggest you should watch the phytoestrogens that you eat (there are lists all over the web of foods that are high in phytoestrogens), but some people say that it won't affect it. My GYN told me that limiting them would help, so I trust he knows what he's talking about.

I have PCOS as well. When people say "low carb" how low do they mean? If I stay within the carb limits set forth by MFP, is that "low carb"?

Absolutely not!!

The MFP standards, as far as I can tell, are based on the US RDA standards, which are heavily influenced by lobbyists and are very high in carbs. As an example, the corn lobbyists got corn (which any biologist will tell you is obviously a grain, in fact it's the grain we feed our cattle when we want to fatten them up) reclassified as a vegetable by the FDA so people would think it was more healthy to eat... anyway, I would not trust their numbers.

Also, MFP's standards are designed for the "average" person, and if you have PCOS, then you're obviously not average. Even among "normal" people, metabolisms vary widely. I'm sure you've noticed that some people can eat whatever they want and never gain an ounce, while others have to starve themselves. And some people get really cranky if they don't eat regularly, while others can go all day on a single meal. That's because there's a lot of variety in how efficiently people's bodies metabolize their foods.

If you do have PCOS, it is likely that you also have some amount of insulin resistance. The best way to handle this is to keep your blood sugar on an even keel and avoid spikes and crashes. Carbs burn quickly, while protein burns more slowly and steadily. So you will need to get fewer calories from carbohydrates and more from protein. You will also need to make sure and eat more often during the day, so that your blood sugar never gets a chance to tank and cause carb cravings. As I said, every person is different, but my doctor has me eating every 3 hours (6 times a day). I am not allowed to eat more than 10 carbs in a sitting and no more than 25 carbs in a day. And I am expected to eat my body weight in protein each day (around 40g protein per sitting). That works out to a ratio of about 5% carbs, 35% fats, 60% protein. As I said, everyone's metabolism is different, so you may not have to limit yours so severely, but I would recommend changing your MFP goals so that the carb level is a lower percentage.

Just getting on this low-carb, high-protein diet has done wonders for me. Cholesterol went from 210 to 185, I've stopped needing arthritis pain meds, I've stopped having depression and mood swings, and I've lost over 75 lb.

Good luck to you!