Struggling to lose weight despite eating well and excercising :( PCOS

[shellmc]

I am 26 years old, i currently weigh 12st 6lb!
I am 5ft 6ins.
Going back to when i was 18 at my biggest i was 14st. I joined a local slimming world group and managed to shift from 14st down to 10st 12lb...was so proud of myself :)
Over these past few years, and after becoming pregnant with my DS the weight has started creeping back up.
My DS is 2 and half now, and i just cant get the weight back off!!

I will mention i have been referred by my GP these past 6 months as i had abnormal hormone results. I also have underactive thyroid and am currently on 75mcg. I have just been diagnosed it oct last year with PCOS. I was told PCOS can cause problems with weight loss, so at least all my effort going to slimming groups and gym wernt a waste ov time...there is a reason.

I have been taking Metformin since Oct to help with PCOS and doc did say i should start losing weight with them. Past few weeks i am eating nothing but protein, salads, fruit jacket potatoes, salmon low fat yoghurts and attending fitness class on a monday and workout at home when i can.....not a single lb off!! really getting me down now. Past few months iv tried slimming world again...rosemary connelly, 123 diet plan (cutting out carbs) ...whih i did lose 4lbs on. Now im at stand still, would love to get to 11st or even 11st 7.

Please help :) xx

Your thyroid problem may also be playing a role here re difficulty in losing weight.
Has your level of thyroxine been recently checked to ensure you are taking the correct dosage?.

Re PCOS there are some cookbooks on Amazon available for those with PCOS. Following a low GI/GL eating plan can help with weight loss and it is sustainable.
Look too at verity's website re PCOS which is www.verity-pcos.org.uk

I agree with attila, low gi is the way to go for us pcos patients, baked potatoes for instance are not low gi, but boiled new potatoes are.

From what patients have told me their gp's keep them slightly underactive on thyroxine and I have know some who up the dose by taking extra and running out sooner on their prescriptions, however this is just anecdotal evidence and due to risk of heart attacks you cant mess around with your thyroid.

The problem with cows milk is that it makes us over produce insulin, my dh was drinking 3 pints a day when his diabetes was diagnosed. I switched him to lacto free milk as it has half the sugar in it than normal milk has.

Wrt to weight loss how do your clothes feel? because when I started at the gym I gained weight but went down a clothes size. Muscle is heavier than fat. I also did a class every other night, it killed me but it got the weight off and I had so much more energy.

Thankyou for your replys :)
AttiaTheMeerkat Re my thyroid i had it checked 1st week in Jan and it was actually Low i had to decrease my Thyroxine from 100mcg to 75mcg. But despite it being low i still havent really lost, which weight loss is a common sign of overactive thyroid is it not??
I am having it checked again at end of march along with my other hormone tests.
I will have a look on amazon for the cookbooks, i will try anything, thankyou.

FluffyCloudland77 yes i agree with messing around with dosage of thyroxine can be dangerous, i remember getting palpatations over xmas just before i found my levels had gone too low. Ohhh i didnt realise that cows milk makes us over produce insulin!!
I have 3/4 pint with my porridge or cereal and have it in my cups of tea throughout the day. Thanks Lacto free for me now :)
RE my clothes. They do feel a bit looser but not enough that iv gone down a dress size :( i wouldnt mind to be honest if i dropped a dress size and still weighed same. I go to MOKY on a monday and Wednesday then do wokouts once or twice when i can at home, i am fairly active at work also and walk lots in my job.

Thankyou soo much for your help and views xx

So you must be losing fat and building muscle! .

Keep it up then. It doesnt happen overnight.

Remember you have to lose it slowly. I lost 9lbs when I gave up vegetable spreads and butter.

I went to a lecture re PCOS with a very good consultant gynaecological endocrinologist (? I think - dual trained). She said bluntly that most women with PCOS have to eat 10% less than the average person to maintain the same weight.

Go low GL/GI and see if you can build at least 1 hr of real exercise (circuits, running, hard swimming) a day into your life. Running is probably the easiest with kids. The great thing about PCOS is that you tend to build muscle easily and that makes you a natural athlete!

I have tried every diet and never got anywhere. Someone here mentioned the idiot proof diet and it's been amazing. It's no carbs or sugar and you need to buy the book and stick to it, the website is pig2twig.co.uk. Good luck and hope it helps you

I know it wont happen overnight...but after being literally on a diet since oct, when i seen the endocrinologist and starting metformin....iv lost 4lbs. I just feel like im cutting down being really healthy, eating plenty fruits, veg fish, meats ect and adding fitness in each week and getting nowhere.
Cutting out veg spreads and butter would make a big difference...well done :)

joanofarchitrave 10% less than average person just to maintain :O im gonna have to try harder i think and really get my head round low GI foods.
Its weird that you say about building muscle because i do feel quite toned and my friends at work say i dont look big just toned....which is a gud thing i suppose.

wudratherbeonthebeach idiot proof diet, oohh let me in on this. No carbs or suger....what confuses me is veg still carbs?? pig2twig will have a look at that one too. Thankyou all very much x

How much fibre are you getting a day? That would be the first thing to look at, IMO.

If you have cereals for breakfast, try switching to high-fibre eqiuvalents such as all-bran.

Try to eat a small salad/crudities at the start of each meal and end each meal with fresh or dried fruit (raspberries, figs and dried apricots contain a lot of fibre. Oranges are good, too).

Try to replace white carbs with wholegrains (brown rice, wholewheat pasta etc). Jacket potatoes are not too bad if you eat the skins!

Keep on with the exercise and balanced diet, as they will still be doing a lot of good, even if you're not losing much :)

What dose of metformin are you on? Maybe that needs adjusting?

Keep up with the exercise. You'll see results if you stick with it. In the beginning, you're building muscle so it may take a while to see the numbers start to decrease on the scale. Focus on lots of vegetables, pulses, whole grains (oats, brown rice, quinoa) and low GI fruits (apples, pears, berries), nuts are great for making you feel full and all of the above help to balance hormones. Best quality meat, fish and eggs.

Consider cutting out dairy altogether; it can be a hormone disruptor. You could substitute almond, rice or soy milk for the dairy.
Lots of walking is helpful for body and mind and spearmint tea is supposed to be helpful too.

Take Care xx

I do eat cereal every morning. I tend to have special K, porridge or weetabix.

I do like all-bran would this be a better option??

I have been having salads with my meals to bulk my meals out ....so i feel im having more...if you get what i mean. Fruit wise iv been eating pears and bananas.

I dont really eat much bread, but do like jacket potatoes and pasta...although iv only been having jacket potatoes recently.

I do enjoy the excercise and although im not losing weight i do feel more toned, but not dropped a size yet :(

I am currently taking 1500 a day of metformin increasing it to 2000 next month. Iv had to gradually increase it as it can cause stomach cramps diarrheoa...which i have had but after being on it for a while soon settles.

Thankyou vitaminC

Thanks popbiscuit I am going to stick with the excercise beacause if i dont iv a feeling i would end up even bigger!!
Thanks for the advice on veg, whole grains, and fruit options, i really do need to get clued up on what foods are best with PCOS. I do walk alot in my Job, and do try to fit in excercise when i can.
Hormone disruptor-dairy...now didnt know that, gosh ya find out allsorts of gud things on here ;) Someone else mentioned soy milk instead of cows milk will have to give it a try.

Second the idiot proof diet, I dropped over a stone with no exercise on it and I struggle to lose weight

Really brighthair ? Thats fab how long did it take you to lose a stone??

About 3 weeks!!

The paleo diet is another good one. Lots of stuff about it on google, links to books etc
www.aboutpaleodiet.org/

This is the one they use at the bootcamp I am doing, with the diet and 3 sessions bootcamp exercise a week, the majority have lost a stone in 2 weeks