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Something I often hear from the women who I speak with is;
“I have PCOS, therefore I can’t lose weight”
Or
“I have PCOS, therefore it’s so much harder to lose weight”
I would say the second statement is true. It can be harder to lose weight if you have PCOS, especially if you don’t know what you are doing.
BUT, you CAN lose weight, you just need to get the right information and actually implement it with consistency.
For the most part, there is not a lot of good information immeditaely available to women who are in need of natural solution for hormone balance.
BUT
There is actually a lot of good information out there, you just need to know where to find it.
Many women with PCOS struggle with weight loss because they may be more insulin resistant than some other women.
Yet, this doesn’t mean that you can’t lose weight.
It also doesn’t mean that you can’t eat ANY carbohydrates!
It just means you have to be more mindful of how many you eat and what types.
But this is actually quite normal behaviour for anyone who wants to lose weight; you have to be more sensible than you were before.
I’ve recently finished working with a client suffering with both endometriosis and PCOS who is getting married this month.
In the whole time we have been working together she has still eaten carbohydrates, on average around 100g, if not more, per day. This is the carbohydrate equivalent of ½ a kilogram of sweet potato per day!
Everybody has a different body and this is why I am a fan of personalisation.
What works for one person will not necessarily work for you. Or maybe you need it tweaked so it works as best as it possibly can for you.
That said, there are a few commonalities that I have found to be successful in helping women with PCOS and other hormones imbalances on their weight loss journey…
1. Follow a calorie controlled diet with personalised amounts of proteins, fats and carbohydrates
2. Consume a diet which is high in good fats especially oily fish, avocado, olive oil and nuts/oils high in specific nutrients; pumpkin seeds (zinc), brazil nuts (selenium), walnuts (vitamin E).
3. Ensure good digestion by avoiding common irritants such as gluten and dairy and consuming fermented foods
4. Seed Cycle –
Seed cycling is when certain seeds are eaten at certain times of the month. The beneficial fatty acids in each specific seed works with the female body to promote a healthy cycle. Although there is not much research behind it, anecdotally many clients have found it invaluable.
Consume 1tbsp ground flaxseed and 1 tbsp ground pumpkin seeds from day 1 to day 14 of the cycle. For additional benefits, supplement with fish oil during this time (see recommend supplements on bottom pg).
Consumer 1 tsbp ground sunflower seeds and 1 tbsp tahini/sesame seeds from day 15 to day 28 of the cycle. For additional benefits supplement with evening primrose oil during this time.
5. Exercise, but not too much. With Said client, I actually had to put her on a HIT ban as I had a feeling that too much high intensity training was sabotaging her results – I was right!
6. Manage stress and get enough sleep.
7. Take supplements appropriate to personal needs. Some of the ones I commonly recommend for hormonal balance are zinc, b-complex, curcumin, DIM, fish or krill oil, vitex agnus castuc, milk thistle and maca powder
Although personalisation is a factor, these are some basic tools that produce a significant difference in female hormones, whether you are suffering from PCOS or just PMS all of the above would be a good place to start when looking to achieve a lean and healthy body with balanced hormones.
If you want to learn more about balancing hormones naturally, you may be interested in knowing more about my Happy Hormones 12 Week Program. See here for more details…