The Facts:
Insulin resistance is the main reason why it’s more challenging for you to lose weight with PCOS and generally.
About 80% of the women with PCOS have insulin resistance but then again if you’re overweight…
Chances are you already have an insulin resistance but without me going into a long complicated explanation of what insulin resistance is…
It’s tougher for you to lose weight with PCOS because the insulin resistance increases your hunger & cravings making you eat too much so…
Here are 8 tips to help you improve your health and decrease body fat with PCOS.
Increase your intake of protein to around 0.5-1 gram per pound of body weight. Limit the amount of processed/refined carbohydrates you consume because refined carbohydrates (ie. sweets, white bread, white rice, etc.) will quickly turn to sugar and cause elevated levels of insulin.
Instead gravitate to more complex carbohydrates and increase your intake of veggies. Do not eat carbohydrates by themselves. Instead, combine them with a protein and / or fat at each meal.
Avoid those foods that will trigger you and cause you to eat, eat, eat! For me that is cake and doughnuts. Know yourself and don’t put yourself in a position to not be successful.
A lot of my clients like to use the glycemic index when preparing their menus. I think this can be a helpful tool but you don’t necessarily need to eliminate the foods that may be listed as moderate or high on the GI. Just remember to combine each macronutrient at every meal and see which foods work for you.
Obviously you will want to exercise. Not only is this great for your mental health but it can improve insulin resistance, lower blood pressure, relieve stress, help prevent osteoporosis and may aid in weight loss. Incorporate resistance training as well as aerobic exercise.
You may want to consider supplementing with minerals like magnesium, chromium, or zinc. Using herbs like gymnema sylvestre or using cinnamon, fish oil and grape seed extract.
Get adequate amounts of sleep. Lack of sleep can dull activity in the frontal lobe; the area responsible for impulse control and decision making. Also, when you’re tired your brains reward center is just looking for something to make it feel good so saying no to those sweet treats just got harder. Not getting enough rest also will affect your hormones and two in particular that are responsible for hunger and feeling full are leptin and ghrelin. Ghrelin signals to your body it’s time to grub; when your sleep deprived your body makes more of this hormone. Leptin signals to your body to “push away” from the table. When you’re not getting enough sleep these leptin signals decrease, causing you to eat more. Put these both together and it really is no surprise as to why you gain weight with lack of sleep.
Look for ways in which you can reduce the stress in your life. What areas are you in control of and what can you do? Begin to start saying “no” more to others and “yes” to yourself and those things that are good for you.
Implement all of these things into an overall lifestyle change. It takes time to lose weight in general and for those with PCOS it may take a little longer but it is possible.
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