11 PCOS Weight Loss Tips Every Cyster Should Know

Have a look at this amazing article about PCOS and Weight Loss

Reaching and maintaining your healthiest weight is very important for everyone, but particularly for women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS).

But PCOS can lead to years of struggle with weight issues. Often short-term success is followed by weight gain, and a cycle of yo-yo dieting that can adversely affect your thyroid and your metabolism, making it even more difficult to lose weight again.

What do I want for you? Long term, holistic strategies to help you reach your ideal weight – and stay there! The advice in this special PCOS weight loss report WORKS. It is based on cutting edge research. And below, I wanted to share with you my personal transformation so you truly know this is possible for you!

What foods have been proven to help with PCOS weight loss?

Food can be just like a double-edged sword (and sometimes we will all fall on our blade!) On one hand, poor food habits can cause or exacerbate your PCOS. On the other hand, correct food choices can heal your body, mind, soul… and your PCOS. Food is absolutely among the best medicine.

Modifying your eating habits helps to empower your thyroid, normalize your gut, detoxify your liver, and balance your mood and energy levels. Each of these is critical for you to lose weight, and keep it off! The right food choices set the foundations for success in optimal health, not just in PCOS weight loss.

Strengthening your body is THE best way to help yourself. Far more powerful than the toxic hormonal treatments traditionally given to women with PCOS, which not only treat one symptom and may leave behind a legion of side effects, but also increase insulin resistance and inflammation – the drivers of PCOS.

The ‘RIGHT’ food for your PCOS

Low Glycaemic Load (GL)

You need to look to food to overcome the metabolic mess that is PCOS. Diets may make tall claims about their miraculous successes, however, few will optimize your health or fix your PCOS. Do not consider yourself to be on ‘a diet’. All the word diet really means is ‘the usual food and drink a person consumes’. Think of your new food habits as your life giving, optimal, healing, food-plan.

What food plan will help you lose weight?

Look to nature!

Nature provides the right mix of nutrients. It also provides low Glycaemic Load (GL). The food plan proven to deal with PCOS and obesity is the ‘Low Glycaemic Load (Low GL) food plan’.

Why Low GL?

Low Glycaemic load is the best way to combat insulin resistance and obesity; two formidable opponents in PCOS. Low glycaemic index (GI) foods are now quite well known. However, as helpful as this tool is, it does not take into account the amount of carbohydrates eaten. Fantastic foods such as watermelon are high GI, but low GL and perfectly healthy. If we just look to GI, we would avoid this great food. GL gives you a better measure of the affect a food or drink will have on your insulin levels.

Tip: Do not be misled into believing low carb food plans in the guise of meat, egg and cheese diets are healthy for PCOS weight loss. You need nutrients to successfully and healthily lose weight, and keep it off.

A food plan that includes foods consisting of complex carbohydrates is important. Complex carbohydrates are those that break down slowly during digestion and release a steady supply of sugar in our body rather than causing sudden spikes. Due to the insulin resistance of PCOS, it is important for you to control your blood sugar levels. Including foods like fresh fruit and vegetables, gluten free grains nuts, seeds, beans and legumes, are very helpful.

Tip: Do not starve yourself to lose weight. This is not sustainable, and not healthy. Very low carbohydrate food plans are successful in PCOS weight loss, but very low calorie means stress on your arteries.

A word of caution:

Choose your low GL foods very carefully. As close to nature is best. Many of the low carb foods on the supermarket shelf are loaded with harmful fats, artificial sweeteners and additives. Trying to avoid one harmful item may just land you with another. Make sure your low GL foods are high in healthy proteins or fibre, while free from additives and man altered
fats.”

Tip: Although we do not yet know why, milk has been shown to spike your insulin levels as much as wholemeal bread. This really is best avoided.

Protein Power

Good lean proteins are a must when you are trying to lose weight. Proteins have a low GL. They maintain the balance of your blood sugar levels, and lend a helping hand with lowering insulin fluctuations at mealtime. Research studies have proven that including good lean proteins along with low GL foods boosts your body’s metabolism, helping in PCOS weight loss and insulin resistance in women with PCOS. Proteins provide your body with a steady supply of amino acids that help in building and repairing all our body tissues. Also, they are one of the important ingredients in the manufacturing our hormones and enzymes. Protein helps maintain your muscle mass, which is
important for your metabolism. Plus, they keep you full longer.

How to meet your daily protein goal?

There are many different ways of including healthy proteins in your daily food intake. Starting with breakfast, try an omelette with organic free-range eggs, mix in some broccoli and cauliflower. Snack on delicious (unsalted) nuts and seeds as you zigzag through your daily routine. Check out some healthy dips like hummus – a savoury middle-eastern dip. Steamed fish seasoned with fresh herbs, lemon with a dash of extra virgin olive oil is packed with lean protein for dinner. Toss in some cooked black beans, sprouts, grilled organic chicken or turkey breast or chopped hard-boiled eggs in your salad, and voila, you have met your daily protein goal.

Friendly Fats

I cannot overstate how important it is for you to include good fats in your food plan – daily. This is pivotal in PCOS weight loss. The right type and right amounts of fats like the Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids are a must. Good fats help improve insulin sensitivity. You cannot healthily lose weight without eating enough good fats.

Where can you get the ‘good’ fats

Oily fish like salmon, mahi mahi, tuna, mackerel and sardines are rich in healthy fats. Organic free-range eggs are very beneficial. You can also choose a variety of vegan sources for your healthy fats like olives, avocados, nuts like almonds, pistachios, chestnut, cashews, pecans, and seeds like sesame seeds, flaw seeds, sunflowers etc. However, stay away from unhealthy fats like those that have been heated, exposed to oxygen or damaged in processing.

Going nuts

Nuts like almonds and walnuts are great sources of protein, omega 3 fatty acids, B vitamins, Vitamin E and minerals like copper, manganese, magnesium and potassium. The abundance of antioxidants in the nuts puts them in the category of ‘super-foods’.

Veggie Indulgence

Indulge in plenty of yellow, red, orange, green, blue and purple fruits and vegetables. Bringing variety to your food-plan by including various organic fruits and veggies from different colour spectrums also increases many other nutrients.

Organic is the word

Conventional farming may tarnish your food with insecticides, pesticides, hormones, antibiotics and more. Persistent Organic
Pesticides (POPs) were shown to increase the risk of Diabetes – an insulin resistant dis-ease, like PCOS. Insulin resistance increases weight gain, especially around the dangerous tummy area. Choose nutritious and safe organic fruits, vegetables, eggs, and poultry and meat products wherever possible.

What not to eat

Refined flour, white rice, sugar, processed foods, and fruit juices containing simple carbohydrates are best avoided. As simple sugars get stored as fat and cause a spike in insulin levels, these simple carbohydrates are a poor health choice, particularly for women with PCOS looking to lose weight.

What supplements can help you lose weight? *

 

 Fish Oil, Chromium and Magnesium

4 Tips To Lose Weight With PCOS – Without Dieting

If you’re anything like I was, going to the doctors for help with weight loss while suffering from PCOS was a pointless exercise. ‘Just eat less and move more’ was the normal response. I had tried this, and it didn’t really work. In fact, I was so desperate at one stage that I tried a PCOS weight loss prescription medication. The only thing I almost lost was my husband! The mood swings and sadness it caused was unbearable. I stopped taking it within 3 weeks. I was still fat, but at least I didn’t feel unbalanced any more.

So, other than altering your food plan – which is an important aspect to PCOS weight loss – what else do you need to do? What other secrets lurk out there? And what other benefits do these tips have?

Increase Your Physical Activity

I know that dirty word exercise can be scary, but it is very important. Physical activity burns calories, but it does much more than that. Cardio helps your heart and your fitness, but also helps you lose weight. Resistance training – i.e. weight training – builds your muscle, which improves your metabolic rate, and so improves your ability to burn off calories. Interval training helps to improve insulin sensitivity, and burn off fat. A walk has been shown to decrease your cravings. You feel better about yourself and within yourself with those endorphins running around your body. This is great for motivation, self-confidence and decreasing stress levels.

Learn To Relax

Stress and the hormonal commotion that comes with it, have strong ties with PCOS. In simple words, we can say that these two have a ‘hormonal bonding’. The hormonal changes that our body undergoes while adapting to prolonged stress and the ones that are found in women suffering from PCOS are strikingly similar.

Stress can affect your ability to effectively lose weight. It may interfere with adopting the right food choices and exercise routines vital for losing weight. It also causes Insulin Resistance, decreased energy levels, and can interfere with your sleep. Choosing the right ways for you to manage stress is an important step toward in losing weight when suffering from PCOS. Unless you deal with your stress, your attempts at reaching your optimal weight may be unsuccessful.

Have Your Thyroid Correctly Checked

If your thyroid is sluggish, so are you. Your metabolism will slow down, and this can lead to weight gain and an inability to lose weight. You may also have other signs and symptoms such as depression, losing scalp hair and the hair from the outside portion of you eyebrows, slowed reflexes, cold hands and feet, a foggy brain, the feeling of a ‘lump’ in your throat, constipation, a puffy face and/or fatigue. If you have had your thyroid tested, and have been told that you are ‘normal’, do not take this as gospel. Most often you will have only been tested for Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH). The true healthy range for TSH is between 1 – 2/2.5iU/ml. It is also invaluable to have your T4, T3, reverse T3, and thyroid autoantibody levels checked.

Women with PCOS are more likely to suffer from hypothyroidism and thyroid autoimmune dis-ease.

Get Enough Sleep

That’s right! People who sleep less are more likely to weigh more. Getting eight hours per night sleep may help you lose
weight.

Do You Have A Thyroid Problem Aggravating Your PCOS?

I’m often asked questions about thyroid function. It’s not surprising really, given that hypothyroidism and thyroid autoimmune dis-ease are more commonly found in women with PCOS.

And according to Evanthia Diamanti-Kandarakis − co-author of Insulin Resistance and PolyCystic Ovarian Syndrome: Pathogenesis, Evaluation, and Treatment, p325, “decreased SHBG (Sex Hormone Binding Globule) and increased free testosterone levels and altered estradiol (an estrogen) metabolism have been described in hypothyroid patients, whereas PCO (Polycystic Ovaries) has been detected in 36.5% of hypothyroid patients”.

The authors of this study believe that when you have poor thyroid function, this changes how your genes are expressed. That the genes that get expressed bring about the changes seen in a woman with PCOS.

How Do You Know If You Have A Thyroid Problem?

Some Signs & Symptoms of Hypothyroidism (an under-active thyroid) include:

• Fatigue, lethargy
• Muscle weakness, pain & cramps
• Cold intolerance, cold hands/feet
• Goiter (swelling over the thyroid)
• Weight gain
• Frequent infections
• Depression
• Puffiness around the eyes
• Menstrual irregularities and infertility
• High cholesterol
• ‘Brain fog’ and indecisiveness
• Dry skin and hair
• Hair loss from scalp and eyebrows
• Slowed heartbeat / pulse
• Hoarse voice
• Dizziness or vertigo
• Poor memory, poor concentration
• Chronic constipation
• Irritability
• Throat pain, or a tender feeling
• Slow reflexes
• Fluid retention

What Can You Do To Help Your Thyroid Function Better?

The leading cause of hypothyroidism worldwide is insufficient iodine intake. How can you increase your intake of this important nutrient? Iodine: sushi, oysters, scallops, kelp, fish paste, and if you’re feeling adventurous sea vegetables, along with foods such as radishes, onions, cocoa powder and watercress.

You also need sufficient levels of other nutrients like Zinc, Selenium, and Omega 3 fatty acids.

Natural PCOS treatments, and natural thyroid treatments are very effective.

You Can Do It!

I know, regardless of your current weight and your current health challenges, you can make positive progress toward reaching your ideal weight. It is possible, and it is worth it!

Source: Fertility Chef

*

Food sources of magnesium include:

• Beans and nuts.
• Whole grains such as brown rice and whole wheat bread.
• Green leafy vegetables

Food sources of Chromium include:

• Whole grains and Brown rice
• Broccoli
• Green beans
• Chicken breast, Chicken legs
• Eggs, 
• Fish, Sea food
• Fresh vegetables

Food sources of Fish Oil include:

• cold-water and oily fish, such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies, and sardines. 

PCOS and Weight Loss Are Not an Impossible Combination

googleimages.com

PCOS is an imbalance in the female sex hormones, which can cause many issues for women. It usually causes infertility, fatigue, cysts on ovaries, male hair growth, and obesity. Many women begin to have the symptoms before they realize what they have and what is causing the problems. The biggest issue women face with PCOS is weight gain. There have been many women who have PCOS and weight loss success. Many doctors have solutions of keeping weight even while dealing with PCOS.

One solution is a diet that will help PCOS and weight loss success. Many women have certain things they need to change in order to lose weight and keep it off even with having PCOS. You have to eat more often to keep up your metabolism. Your metabolism will burn the fat that is in your foods and will keep your weight off. You also have to stay away from artificial sweeteners.

Many women think they can drink diet drinks and that it will make a difference when actually many diet drinks can slow fat loss and make you gain weight. In fact, women with PCOS should stick to a low carb diet.

Another thing you need to do in order to lose weight with PCOS is to take vitamins. Most women with PCOS need magnesium to help with their weight loss. You also need a diet high in B vitamins as well as vitamin C. The best solution is take a multi-vitamin tailored to women's health needs. Your doctor can suggest the best vitamin for you.

Another solution to for women who want to lose weight with PCOS is to get enough exercise. It cannot just be any exercise but the right exercise. Many women think they have to workout 5 days a week for an hour. Exercising 3 times a week for 45 minutes does exactly what working out 5 days will do. Women with PCOS and weight loss success do a lot of strength training and building muscles. This is very important for women with PCOS. Their muscles need extra strength because PCOS can cause fatigue.

There are so many women with PCOS that have had amazing results with weight loss and feeling better. These are some solutions that may work for women that are struggling through this imbalance and just need some extra help. PCOS and weight loss success can work at the same time as long as you are doing all the things necessary to see it happen. Weight loss is hard for a healthy woman and even harder for a woman with PCOS.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6924549

Juice diet cured my polycystic ovaries AND helped me lose NINE stone

22-stone city girl turns 'toxic' life around with raw food plan

• Stressful job meant Stephanie often worked late and drank with colleagues
• Was overweight and felt 'toxic' before friend gave her a book on raw food
• She also suffered with polycystic ovary syndrome
• In first week of raw juicing lost 10lbs, and now has shed total of 9 stone
• Says she feels fabulous and is cured of her polycystic ovary syndrome

Adopting a raw food diet has helped one woman shed nine stone and cured her of a crippling medical condition.

Stephanie Jeffs, 43, from Hertford, used a raw juice diet to cure her polycystic ovaries, and help her lose 126lbs in weight.

The former city worker adopted the diet as a way to cleanse out her overworked body after a lifestyle of drinks parties, late nights and high stress left her overweight and run down. But she never expected her change in eating to have such a transformative effect on her life.

A recent trip to the doctors informed her she has dropped from 22 stone 7lbs to 13 stone 7lbs, slim for her 5ft 9in height. In fact Stephanie was so inspired she quit her high flying job and set up her own company Explore Raw, which advocates the advantages of the no-meat, no-dairy and no foods heated over 38-43°C diet. 

While her diet today may sound extreme, Stephanie was once a very normal, career-driven young woman, who, while she made attempts to keep healthy, was ultimately worn out.

‘I was not always raw – and far from it! In my late twenties career success became my prime focus and hand in hand with that came the absence of looking after myself. 

‘I piled on the weight. I did no exercise. I had never been an exerciser! I had PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) which is a chronic disease. I was overworked, undernourished and toxic.
‘I had been a vegetarian (well a pescatarian really) since the age of 20 so considered myself pretty healthy as I wasn’t eating meat but the truth be told I was eating anything that wasn’t meat. ‘I had a rich dairy-filled diet that included lots of boozy nights out with friends and late nights working or socialising. 

‘By my early 30s my weight was out of control – I was still focusing so much on my career I didn’t really focus on anything else. I had lost sight of me.’
Like many women, Stephanie had an ongoing nagging sense she should be taking care of herself more.

‘Towards my mid 30s I realised that I had to take action and began experimenting with going to the gym. I had no idea what I was doing. ‘I was instinctively focusing on cleansing my body - again, I had no guidance really and was feeling a bit lost - so began to have colonics and rein the booze in a little.

Over the years a few meaty dishes had crept into my diet and so I focused again on my vegetarian roots. It was working and slowly I began to lose a few pounds.’

Stephanie's daily essentials - Each day I try to consume:

• At least two litres of water
• At least a pint of green water (water mixed with a green power containing  spirulina, wheatgrass, chlorella and barley grass, and aloe vera)
• At least one green juice 
• At least one massive fruity juice or smoothie 
• At least one raw main meal using superfoods, some soaked nuts, seeds and sprouts as well as oodles of vegtables and greens
• At least two pieces of fruit (on top of any juices)
•  At least one portion of sea vegetables (whether in powder or solid form in salads)

However it was another few years before Stephanie began to discover the concept of ‘eating raw’ which essentially involves eating a diet of fresh fruits and vegetables which are never cooked above about 40 degrees C in order to preserve their enzymes.

Stephanie says: ‘It was on my 38th birthday that things took a turn. A friend of mine gave me a book as a gift.  It was Jason Vales 7lbs in 7days and I was immediately insulted! ‘Are you trying to say that I am fat..!?’ I thought.  

'Once I had gotten over it I worked my way through that book and dabbled in a few juices. Eventually I made it to a raw retreat in Turkey and suddenly I was hooked. ‘I lost more than 10lbs in a week! It was an unbelievable wake up call for me that even though I had PCOS I could lose weight, even though I had previously been told there is ‘no cure’ and that it would be incredibly difficult to lose weight without medication.’

 

‘As the weight falls off the more capacity the body has to heal. It’s a wonderful cycle.’ Stephanie now eats what she describes as a high plant-based high raw diet. ‘I carry my juicer everywhere. I lug it across London in a cool bag if I’m on the move. Wherever I go my juicer goes.’

‘I have so much to be thankful for. I have cured myself from polycystic ovaries and a wonderful side effect has also been that I have lost lots of my weight. Which is blissful! ‘My skin is glowing and I look and feel much younger than I have for years. Looking back at old photos I hardly recognise myself.’

 

Typical daily menu for Stephanie (when not on a full detox)

Around 7am/on rising – ginger tea: hot water with lemon, raw fresh ginger and sometimes some raw honey I drink as much ginger tea as I fancy throughout the day.

Around 8am - Breakfast – green juice -  2 golden delicious apples 1 cucumber 1 peeled lemon 1 peeled lime  blended with two or three large fistfuls of greens (spinach or kale etc.). If I am not in the mood for a juice (which is rare!) I might have some chia pudding – which is chia seeds soaked in home made almond milk and served with honey and fruit.

Throughout the morning – green waters – water with a teaspoon of ‘green powder blend’ such as wheatgrass, spirulina, chlorella and barleygrass.

Around 11am/Mid morning snack – if needed – stuffed dates: organic medjool dates stuffed with wet activated almonds (soaked in water overnight so they are softer, more easily digestible, enzyme rich and tastier).

Around 1pm/ Lunch- Salad for example: 10oz or large bag of kale, Juice 1 lime 1 tsp. Himalayan pink salt, 1 tbsp. virgin olive oil, 1 tsp. linseeds, 1 tsp. sesame seeds, 1 pinch pine nuts.  ‘Make love to the Kale! – using a large bowl massage the kale with the lime juice, salt and olive oil until the kale is soft and wilted but not too limp. Remove any final stalks or tough bits as you feel them.

Mix in the linseed, sesame seeds and a big pinch of pine nuts. The portion for this dish is one cup per person. But I tend to eat as much as I feel I need. Served with blueberries and perhaps a toasted pitta bread (not raw!).

Around 3pm /Afternoon snack – if needed some organic fruit or vegetables, bananas, apples, oranges, carrots, cucumbers...

Around 6pm/ Supper - for example: Raw Curry – recipe serves 4: 1 cup soaked cashews (soak in filtered or pure water for at least two hours) 2 cups or more of filtered water, ½ chopped red onion, 6 organic cherry tomatoes, 10 sundried tomatoes (soaked or if from a jar then washed) juice of half a lime, ½ cup desiccated coconut, 1 ripe avocado, 1 inch ginger peeled and grated 1½ tsp. cumin, 1 or 2 tsp. cayenne pepper, 1 tsp. paprika, 1 tsp. turmeric, 1 tsp. garam masala 2 clove organic garlic.

Basically blend until a smooth paste is formed and serve! Sometimes I might let it sit in a bowl in the oven with the door open on low if I don’t fancy eating it at room temperature. Served with salad or rice. (you can serve with cooked rice or make ‘raw rice’ by putting half a cauliflower in the food processor – chop finely so it resembles rice and add a handful or pine or other nuts).

Source: Daily Mail

PCOS Weight Loss and Exercise

Fool Proof Ways to Lose Weight With PCOS

Picture courtesy of http://www.overcomepcos.com

One of the most frustrating things about PCOS is the tendency to be… well, fat. Let's just get real! When you have polycystic ovarian syndrome, your body fights against you and it seems almost impossible to have any lasting weight loss. Even worse, the hormone imbalances cause you to pack on the excess pounds and soon you have a spare tire hanging over your jeans and you would rather walk over hot coals than climb on the scale. It sucks, doesn't it?

The good news is that you can lose weight with PCOS, but you will have to make some really intentional changes. It takes more than half hearted attempts at exercise and nutrition to make it work, but with total commitment, you can drop the pounds… I did!

If you are struggling to drop some weight and you need some practical advice to make the whole journey easier, I want to help. After dropping 85 pounds with raging PCOS, here are my favorite tips to push your PCOS body to lose weight.

1. Cut Out the "Fat Five"
My PCOS diet turning point was when a doctor told me to eliminate five foods completely. These nutritional enemies soon earned the nickname "Fat Five" in my house! By simply getting rid of these five foods, you will have the framework for a low carb PCOS friendly diet. Without further ado, meet the "Fat Five" and then promptly kiss them good-bye: Potatoes, Pasta, Bread, Rice, and Corn. They all have to go! Even wheat bread, brown rice, and whole wheat pasta are your enemies if you are trying to lose weight with PCOS. Your body is so sensitive to carbs and prone to insulin resistance that you can't afford to take a half hearted approach. It's going to be difficult, but you can do it! Kick the "Fat Five" to the curb.

2. Get Off the Couch and Move!
Even if you are tired (and PCOS will make you tired!), you have to get up and move. Take a 10 minute walk in the morning and another walk after dinner. Squeeze in 30 minutes to ride your bike after work or go up and down the stairs a few extra times. Try to gradually increase your activity level each week and you will undoubtedly have more energy. Plus, you will notice a change in your body with less joint pain and fatigue to keep your down.

3. Get a Handle on Medications and Supplements
There are a lot of medical interventions that can help with PCOS symptoms. Metformin, Spironolactone, birth control pills… the list goes on and on. Before you take any medication, research it. Find out how it will impact your body and your ability to reach your weight loss goals. Explore supplements and natural remedies! I talk about this topic in more depth in the Overcome PCOS Guidebook, so make sure you check it out and then build up a regimen of medication and supplements that will work for you!

These tips might sound simple, but they will offer you a frame work for successful weight loss. Trust me… if I can ditch my size 20/22 fat pants and drop 85 pounds, you can do it too! I'm cheering you on.

Source: Overcome PCOS

PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) Weight Loss Diet

Common symptoms of PCOS include male-pattern hair growth over the entire body, balding of the scalp, irregular menstruation, and fertility problems. Can a PCOS diet be used to minimize the symptoms of PCOS and the same time, cut unwanted body fat? The answer is yes, the PCOS diet can be used as an effective weight loss diet, and here's are the reasons why:

1. Fruits and vegetables rule. The PCOS diet eliminates processed foods and other unhealthy food items from a person's daily meals. Cheat meals are generally not encouraged and, instead, PCOS patients are advised to find healthier alternatives to satisfy their cravings. Fruits and vegetables are important for PCOS patients because these natural, whole foods help restore hormonal balance in the body. Balancing the hormones is a tough task, but with the right diet and continuous treatment, PCOS patients experience great improvements in their symptoms in a matter of weeks.

2. Cutting out the sugar culprit. Refined sugars are also not allowed in a PCOS diet. PCOS patients tend to develop insulin resistance and this condition may lead to full blown type 2 diabetes or adult onset diabetes. As you can see, PCOS affects a person's metabolism and, if it is not treated correctly, it can also affect a person's cardiovascular health.

3. Sensible eating is coupled with regular exercise. A PCOS diet will not be as effective if the patient does not exert effort in getting a sufficient amount of physical activity every day. In order to stay healthy, a PCOS patient is also advised to play sports or go to the gym. The minimum required time for rigorous physical activity is twenty to thirty minutes a day. A person engaged cycling will get the same heart-healthy benefits as someone who is engaged in wall climbing. It doesn't matter what type of physical activity you choose, as long as you do it regularly, and you are consistent with your efforts.

4. Carbohydrates are reduced. Too many carbohydrates in a person's diet can lead to the increased deposition of fat in the body. More body fat means your weight will be in danger of increasing an uncontrollable manner. What's interesting is that, when the body begins recovering from being overweight, the effort of losing weight becomes much easier, and will feel more natural as time goes by. This is the body's way of rewarding a person's efforts to be healthier and fitter.

5. Going organic. As much as possible, PCOS patients are also advised to reach for certified organic produce whenever possible. This is done to reduce the patient's exposure to preservatives and other unnatural ingredients that are commonly present in food products that are not organically produced. Food preservatives can negatively impact a person's natural hormonal balance, so PCOS patients have to invest in better food if they want to manage their condition well.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8484777

Why Aren't You Losing Weight?

You're following a weight-loss eating plan. You're exercising almost every day. You're proud of the new healthy habits you've learned. Yet week after week, the scale barely seems to budge. What gives?

Chances are your food portion sizes have crept up (time to get out the scales and measuring cups again). Or your workouts may not be quite as intense as you think (start checking that heart rate).

But if you know you've followed your reducing plan religiously, there's another possibility: A medical condition -- or medication -- may be to blame.

"If you haven't been able to lose weight and you can't understand why, you need to determine whether there's a medical condition underlying your weight problem," says Peter LePort, MD, director of the Smart Dimensions Bariatric Program at Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center in California. "You need to cure that problem first before you can address the weight issue."

Medical Reasons for Weight Gain

Several conditions can cause weight gain or hinder weight loss, says Rebecca Kurth, MD, director of PrimeCare at Columbia-Presbyterian Eastside and associate professor of clinical medicine at Columbia University.

Among them, Kurth says, are:

• Chronic stress. When you live with anxiety, stress, or grief, your body can produce chemical substances -- like the hormone cortisol -- that make your body more likely to store fat, especially around the waist. That's the type of weight gain that really increases your risk of serious health problems. (Extra weight around the hips and thighs poses fewer health risks.)
• Cushing's syndrome. This happens when the adrenal glands (located on top of each kidney) produce too much cortisol, which leads to a buildup of fat in the face, upper back, and abdomen.
• Hypothyroidism . If your thyroid is underactive, your body may not produce enough thyroid hormone to help burn stored fat. As a result, your metabolism is slower and you will store more fat than you burn -- especially if you're not physically active.
• Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). This disease, the result of a hormonal imbalance, afflicts more than 5 million women in the US. Common symptoms are irregular menstrual bleeding, acne, excessive facial hair, thinning hair, difficulty getting pregnant, and weight gain that is not caused by excessive eating.
• Syndrome X. Also called insulin resistance or hyperinsulinemia (high insulin levels), syndrome X goes hand-in-hand with weight gain. Syndrome X is a cluster of health conditions thought to be rooted in insulin resistance. When your body is resistant to the hormone insulin, other hormones that help control your metabolism don't work as well.
• Depression. Many people who are depressed turn to eating to ease their emotional distress.
• Hormonal changes in women. Some women may gain weight at times in their lives when there is a shift in their hormones -- at puberty, during pregnancy, and at menopause.

Two other considerations: people tend to gain weight with age for unknown reasons, and though it's not a medical condition, drinking alcohol in moderate to excessive amounts can sabotage your efforts to lose weight. Alcohol (including beer and wine) is a refined carbohydrate, similar to sugar, candy, and white flour. Besides adding calories, alcohol may raise blood sugar and insulin levels, which can contribute to weight gain.

A Prescription for Weight Gain?  

It's not only medical conditions that can add pounds. Some medications can also cause you to gain weight, or keep you from losing it, says Ken Fujioka, MD, medical director of the Scripps Clinic Nutrition and Metabolism Research Center in San Diego.

"It's very common for medications to cause weight gain," says Fujioka, noting that approximately 25% of his patients are on medication or have an illness that is causing them to gain weight.

Among the medications that may cause weight gain in some people are:

• Medications used to treat type 2 diabetes (such as sulfonylureas)
• Antipsychotic or schizophrenia medications, including chlorpromazine (such as Thorazine), thioridazine (Mellaril), and olanzapine (Zyprexa)
• Beta-blockers (prescribed for high blood pressure, and some heart conditions)
• Antidepressants such as amitriptyline (Elavil), imipramine (Norpramin), or trazodone (Desyrel)
• Hormone replacement therapy
• Birth control pills
• Corticosteroids taken for conditions like asthma and lupus
• Antiepileptics taken to control seizures, especially valproic acid (Depakene or Depakote) and carbamazepine (such as Tegretol)

The reasons certain medications cause weight gain can vary and are not always known, says Fujioka.

Antipsychotic drugs, for example, may increase appetite as well as lower the metabolic rate (the rate at which your body burns calories). Beta-blockers are thought to lower a person's metabolic rate by about 80 calories a day. And hormone replacement therapy increases the body's level of estrogen, a fat-storing hormone.

"Weight gain is a very troublesome -- and unpredictable -- side effect of certain medications," says Arthur Frank, MD, director of the George Washington University Weight Management Program. "You can experience a substantial weight gain if you're sensitive to that particular medication."

But if you're gaining weight on one medication, your doctor may be able to help you find a similar drug that won't have the same effect. For example, an older class of antidepressants known as tricyclics may cause weight gain, while a newer class of depression medication called SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) usually doesn't, says Fujioka. SSRIs include Celexa, Lexapro, Prozac, Paxil, and Zoloft.

Medications cause weight gain in both men and women, but because women gain weight more easily than men in general, and have a harder time losing it, they may notice more added pounds than men taking the same medication.

Work With Your Doctor

It seems obvious, but bears repeating: If you suspect you are having trouble with weight loss because you have a medical condition or medication, talk to your doctor right away. And don't give up on getting fit. Although it is difficult to lose weight gained because of a medical condition or medication, it's not impossible, says Frank. 

"Monitor your weight closely," he advises, "and if you see that you're gaining weight, tell your doctor so that he can see about switching your medications." Changing your diet and getting more exercise can also help you lose the weight, although it might take you longer than it otherwise would. But remember, if you have any sort of medical condition, you should be carefully monitored while trying to lose weight. 

If you have diabetes, for example, says Fujioka, eating less and exercising more can cause your blood sugar to fall too quickly. "Diabetics should be under close medical supervision when trying to lose weight," Fujioka says.

No matter what your medical condition is, if it's causing you to gain weight, don't try to manage the problem yourself, says Rebecca Kurth, MD, associate professor for clinical medicine at Columbia University.

"Talk to your physician," Kurth advises. "Don't overburden yourself. You are not to blame."

 Source: WebMD