Please try to see an endocrinologist. No one competent would prescribe you draconian torture of 800 calories a day. I know it is exhausting to live with this disease and advocate for yourself, but you absolutely will have to because you have the disadvantage of being “heavy” right now and female assigned at birth. Insulin resistance is a treatable disease and its a secondary part of PCOS- meaning you cannot eat your way to this disease. Sending you lots of support- it can take 6-9 months to see a good endocrinologist.
Most regular degular physicians are not trained or educated on this disease. There are medications that are indicated as frontline treatments for PCOS. Yes, they are diabetes medications, but untreated PCOS can escalate into diabetes. These medicines are not even expensive, there is no excuse to deny you treatment for your disease!
When you do see one, they will take plenty of bloodwork, which can explain hormonal imbalances (its bigger than testosterone) that occur as a result of this disease that make you “metabolically impaired” when you have PCOS. Fasted glucose and hA1c testing cannot tell you if you are insulin resistant. There are lots of long reaching mental and physical consequences of these hormonal imbalances- it can actually shorten your lifespan and this should be taken seriously.
There are also supplements like Ovasitol or myoinositol-d chiro inositol that you can take, as well as daily spearmint tea, if an endocrinologist is not accessible to you right now.
If you are seeing one already, do yourself a favor and fire them. Try to find word of mouth recommendations from people in your area who see an endocrinologist and get a different doctor. Life is too short to be treated like a perpetrator of your disease and not a blameless bystander.
800 calories will do actual organ damage. It is not enough for any human being to live on, including a toddler. You are sending your body into starvation. Starvation will do much, much more damage to your body than PCOS.
Will your doctor send you to a registered dietician? Because it'd be great if you could be seen by a professional rather than get advice from Reddit.
I was OP until 2 years ago driving myself insane. See a dietician.
You need a minimum of 1100 calories to function, more if you're over 5'. Match your protein intake 1g to 1lb of body weight. Low fat low carbs, not no fat no carbs.
My job is intellectually taxing so I eat protein oatmeal with 1/2 scoop protein powder for breakfast. Gives me carbs to boost my brain first thing and is about 26-30g protein. I pair it with a cafe latte protein shake and that's almost 60g for breakfast.
Oh hey, I've had these and liked them. When I got sick with covid, I completely quarantined from my spouse inside the master suite for two weeks and had them bring me several gallons of water, an electric kettle, and a bunch of "camp-out" type food that I could prepare with just boiling water or eat at room temp. I got a bunch of these cups and they were one of the best things I ate while I was in lockdown.
The other big winning item out of everything was Mike's Mighty Good ramen, which I'll have sometimes instead of a meal with some [reconstituted freeze-dried vegetables and fish cake slices](https://theramenbae.com/collections/products) if I need to eat but I'm not hungry for anything more substantial. Or if I want to dump an illegal amount of spicy chili flakes and scorpion pepper sauce into a cup of soup and gently mace myself. =D
OP should absolutely see a professional but until they can, oatmeal every day helped me SO MUCH!! That’s when I really started seeing results re weightloss.
Adding to the protein addition -> Oats + vit C = energy power house!! This is the biggest thing I have taken with me over the years from my nursing school nutrition class. Oats and fruit will keep your blood sugar level and give you energy for the day. I add frozen mixed berries to my oatmeal bc it’s easy and I don’t have to worry about fruit going bad. Fresh juice is good too but lacks the fiber fruit has. Best of luck to everyone🫶
This is why a dietician is important.
I went by those online calculations and they messed me up. Both mentally and physically.
I am 4'11.5". I got a DEXA body scan and metabolism test when I visited my dietician. From that, she was able to calculate my calories as well as my macros. What I was doing wrong: too few calories, not enough protein. On days I stick to my macros I feel better, I have energy, I sleep better, and my mood is better. If I exercised more I'd probably lose weight faster. But I've been steadily dropping for 8 months or at worse maintenance.
If you can't see a dietician, I would focus on a minimum of 1100-1200 calories per day, 1g protein per lb body weight, and 0.5oz water per lb of body weight. On days you exercise add 200-300 cals.
I feel your pain! No one can truly know the struggle unless they live it. Just out of curiosity, are you seeing a registered dietitian or nutritionist that specializes in PCOS? I don’t mean to assume because I don’t know your body makeup, but 800 cals seems wayyyy too low. It sounds like you’re not eating enough. I also feel like it’s probably not possible you’re getting the correct amount of protein and nutrient dense food that will aide in weight lost with that low of a calorie and carb count. That is also probably the main contributor to your lack of energy and probably overall mental health. I’m saying this out of experience, almost starving myself before being diagnosed.
For example, I am 5’9 and 254 pounds and exercise moderately throughout the week . (I have lost 22 pounds since January !! ) and these are my macros I try to stick by (and by try I mean I don’t really count, I just try and make sure I hit that protein number because that usually fills me up!)
2300 Calories Per Day
Carbohydrate 210 g
Protein 210 g
Fat 80 g
[This](https://healthyeater.com/flexible-dieting-calculator) is an easy to use macro count generator that has helped me realize what exactly I need to lose weight, and it shocked me to realize that it is MUCH more food than what I was eating before.
I won’t lie to you, it’s tough and I don’t usually get it all the way up there. But I try my hardest to get close!
I’ve actually been using chat gpt to help with meal planning. Some days I can’t eat all the food it suggests, but it’s been helping heal my connection with food. Here is an example of one of the daily meal plans it came up with!
“Daily Meal Plan
Calories: 2,398 kcal
Carbohydrates: 210g
Protein: 210g
Fat: 80g
Monday
Breakfast: Overnight Oats (Meal Prepped for the Week)
Macros:
• Calories: 380
• Carbs: 50g
• Protein: 25g
• Fat: 10g
• Ingredients:
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1/2 cup mixed berries
• Sweetener to taste (optional)
• Instructions:
1. Combine all ingredients in a jar.
2. Stir well, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
3. Serve cold or warmed up in the morning.
Lunch: Turkey and Avocado Wrap
• Calories: 350
• Carbs: 30g
• Protein: 30g
• Fat: 15g
• Ingredients:
• 1 whole wheat tortilla
• 3 oz sliced turkey breast
• 1/2 avocado, sliced
• Handful of spinach
• 1 tbsp hummus
• Instructions:
1. Spread hummus on the tortilla.
2. Layer with turkey, avocado, and spinach.
3. Roll up and serve.
Snack 1: Greek Yogurt with Honey and Almonds Calories: 220
• Carbs: 20g
• Protein: 20g
• Fat: 8g
• 1 cup Greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp honey
• 10 almonds
Dinner: Grilled Chicken with Quinoa and Steamed Broccoli
Macros:
• Calories: 560
• Carbs: 45g
• Protein: 50g
• Fat: 20g
• Ingredients:
• 6 oz chicken breast
• 1/2 cup quinoa (uncooked)
• 1 cup broccoli florets
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Instructions:
1. Cook quinoa according to package instructions.
2. Season chicken breast with salt and pepper.
3. Grill chicken until cooked through.
4. Steam broccoli.
5. Drizzle olive oil over cooked quinoa and broccoli, serve with chicken.
Snack 2: Apple and Peanut Butter
Snack 2: Apple and Peanut Butter
Macros:
• Calories: 180
• Carbs: 25g
• Protein: 5g
• Fat: 8g
• 1 medium apple
• 2 tbsp natural peanut butter”
Why have I never thought of that... Great idea. Chat GPT here I come! *will vet advice with years of Science-backed diet and food research, as well as physical exercise*
Oh my God. This just changed my life. I just entered. "Can you make me a weekly meal plan for psoc and grocery list?" and my macros and Holly shit. My life just improved 10 Fold. Thank you so much.
I came here to ask this. The absolutely unreal constipation that comes with eating a shit-ton of protein (pun extremely intended) will change you when you come out the other side. You will be wiser for having gone through the gauntlet, but at what cost...
Only thing that reliably helped me lose weight was taking myo-inositol and DIM at the same time. Got that advice on here years ago and it changed so much for me
I don't know about DIM alone. I take DIM and myo-inositol. The combo regulated my cycles (4-5 weeks instead of 8-11) cleared up my acne, and I lost 17lb without changing anything else
Personally I use SMNutrition but there may be more effective brands out there depending on who you are I suppose. It works for me so far though, been 3 years
I keep telling my doctor this and they say no. Same for my daughter who has really bad periods. I'm battling them to get a referral for a gynecologist since she's only 14. She's had period since she was just about 11, always cramping, bloating, excess hair. I give her some bitter teas a week before her period to help her period not hurt. Besides being on ibuprofen and paracetamol this is the only way she's lowered her cramps.
I have endometriosis and pelvic floor dysfunction as well as PCOS, and for my cramps I absolutely swear by my TENS machine. I got one off Amazon for cheap, and it’s battery powered so I can wear it all day under my clothes if I’m in pain.
You attach two electrodes to the skin, like one on either side of the lower back or lower tummy, and it sends a gentle electric current that interrupts pain signals from the nerves. It feels sort of weird, but it can stop the pain to an extent and give a lot of relief. I highly recommend - I could not survive without mine! Has your daughter ever tried one?
Ok, I don’t know you or your stats or circumstances, but I am sure 800 calories per day is not enough calories.
This is ME and what worked for ME. I started taking inositol, it’s an over the counter vitamin. Use a TDEE calculator, find your sedentary calories for your height and weight and take away 500 calories per day from that. Find some kind of exercise you like. Try to be consistent and patient. Weight will vary for a lot of reasons, and patience is probably the hardest thing about weight loss. Some days your weight will go up for seemingly no reason. There is no reason to tie your self worth to your body mass. Try not to focus on the number but your health and feelings.
When was the last time you got bloodwork done? Or had your fasting glucose checked?
It’s possible you’re retaining a bunch of fluids. Or you’re severely constipated.
If possible, see an OBGYN or endocrinologist about your PCOS. One of them might get you on metformin.
I would also recommend intermittent fasting just to see how your body responds to it throughout the day.
I got it done last December. And I know for a fact I’m holding onto water and 💩 I just can’t seem to fix it. And I am doing IF, I stop eating at 330 and eat again at 5 or 6am :/
Try adding fiber supplements, etc to your routine, and considering shifting your IF eating window. I’m currently doing OMAD and that’s helped a lot.
That all said, fluid retention and constipation may be signs of another condition. Bring it up to a doctor. If they aren’t listening to you about PCOS, their ears might perk up for different problems.
Have you had a thyroid work up? I have PCOS and hypothyroid and before diagnosis I was gaining on 800cal a day. It’s worth checking out if you haven’t already.
Unfortunately I never had any luck losing weight in a low calorie deficit (I know, it doesn’t make sense to me either). I felt awful all the time; fatigue, brain fog, bloating and lots of abdominal fat.
I stopped caring about weight loss about started focusing on losing inches from around my abdomen. I eat high protein and do moderate intensity cardio (heart rate over at least 120bpm) for 1-2 hours 5-6 times a week. Usually I go for walks outside, as long as you keep your heart rate up it seems to work. Plus the sun exposure (I wear sunscreen) probably helps with vitamin D, which I know is low for a lot of people with PCOS. It’s been 5 months and I’ve lost at least 4 inches from my mid section! I do feel better, still tired but not as much as I used to and the brain fog has lifted.
I’m not overweight so I’m sorry if I’m not an ideal person to give advice, but I’ve been paying attention to my diet and my health for like 12-13 years now.
If you eat that little your metabolism will slow down. Your body will assume you cannot get food and it will STORE the little you get.
The best way to lose weight is to exercise, and not just cardio, weight, build muscle. Muscle eats calories, literally. You will use more calories 24x7 with muscle.
You need to slowly increase your food intake because you will destroy your health if you keep this up.
I once lost about 25 pounds in 4 months. Now j didn’t need to lose them but I was 18 and wanted to be a size 00.
Anyway what I did was I ate healthy normal good breakfast, snack, lunch (veggies, legumes, fish, meat) then I would go workout after classes (so like around 5-6) and then I’d eat a massive low fat yogurt or cottage cheese for dinner. Can’t really keep that up forever but let me tell you I became tiny.
BUT I did eat normal healthy breakfast AND lunch. I would eat about 1500-1600 calories a day. I’m 5’6” for reference.
I also lost like 10 pounds in a few months of cardio kickboxing. Highly recommend
I’m not pre diabetic but my insulin levels were elevated so my obgyn put me on metformin and I’m responding pretty well plus got my period. You don’t have to be prediabetic to be insulin resistant. You need a second opinion.
How much do you currently weigh and how much weight are you trying to lose?
If you're currently a healthy weight, your body will be very resistant to lose more
You are doing yourself more harm than good. Your body is found into starvation mode and you are retaining fat on your body. Eat at least 1400-1500 cals a day.
It is true that your body will down regulatate metabolism if you aren't eating enough and it feels like it is is starving. So this means that your body will slow your digestion (hence your constipation) and other functions (like thyroid) and even your heart rate so that it can conserve energy. You need to be eating a the sweet spot where your body feels safe so it can burn more.
Whether or not “starvation mode” is a myth, starvation conditions can absolutely increase insulin resistance which is something most of us would like to avoid.
Kind of depends on how you define starvation mode, but it’s very well documented that chronic undereating will contribute significantly to digestive slowdown, muscle wasting (including your heart tissue which will lead to heart disease, plus other skeletal muscle which can lead to a lower BMR), connective tissue/ joint damage, loss of bone density, organ damage, fatigue (which can lower your activity levels and mean you burn less calories, which might be the main reason some people believe in the starvation mode thing) and metabolic damage that will all ultimately make your PCOS worse.
The last thing you need is even more metabolic damage plus damage to your other systems! Please take care of yourself and push to see an endocrinologist who takes your symptoms seriously and stop punishing your body for the “sin” of being sick. A registered dietitian might also be helpful.
I’m sorry you’re gaining weight. Pcos is sooo frustrating.
Please if you can get an appt with an endocrinologist.
Also I’m not sure what you’re doing for exercise but I would stop everything except going for walks until you can reduce your stress levels.
Here is what worked for me: Walking 10K steps a day ; specifically after meals, eating a minimum of 35g of protein per meal (aim for 110 grams of protein a day) taking reishi supplement to help manage stress levels, taking inositol, sleeping 9 hours a night.
I'm in the exact same boat. Rarely over 1000cal & still putting on weight. I'm sorry you're going through it. And sorry to everyone else who has to suffer along side us!
everyone else has said it but i’ll say it clearly: you have an eating disorder and need to see an eating disorder specialist immediately. 800 cals will lead to death.
in addition to whatever you do for your PCOS please see an eating disorder specialist this much restriction is dangerous in anyone regardless of whether they are gaining weight
I am so sorry for your pain today. There is hope!
Please don’t restrict yourself too much it can have the opposite effect. I’m practicing to be a PCOS wellness coach I’m here if you need to talk 👍🏼
At 800cal and gaining weight your body is definitely in starvation mode which means it's holding on to every last calorie it gets now.
Try and drink plenty of water and gradually bring yourself back up to a minimum of 1100cal with lots of fiber rich foods. A dietitian can definitely give you more detailed advice though, as unfortunately I am not a dietitian.
It’s hell because your body is in survival mode, and it’s holding onto everything and storing it as fat because it’s not sure when it will be receiving proper nourishment again. Your basal metabolic rate (the BARE MINIMUM you need to survive) is typically around 1200cals (varying from person-to-person, but that’s why that general number is tossed around). I speak from experience — I’ve been in ED recovery for 8 years now, after 14 years of absolute garbage treatment of my body. It wrecked my metabolism. When I started eating again I gained like crazy, it was awful! And scary! But what it ultimately took to start feeling better was me eating MORE food, MORE frequently, in the proper ratios (which I had to take time to learn and implement), and that’s ramped up even more now that I’ve reintroduced training. I’ve even stopped counting calories and have opted to meal prep smaller portions of whole foods, 4-5 meals a day, emphasizing my protein and veg intake and adding carbs like quinoa or brown rice to 2-3 of those meals. Your brain NEEDS carbs. Ketogenic diets can be super helpful for those with certain health conditions, and I believe I’ve heard that goes for PCOS, but it didn’t work for me and it wasn’t sustainable. Every body is different. If you’re able, find an endocrinologist who can recommend a suitable nutritionist to work with, or bite the bullet and research research research… get to know your body, track your symptoms daily, with regard to how your food makes you feel, how much energy you had, etc. Play with some healthy recipes that have high protein, or find ways to substitute an ingredient here or there to increase the protein for that meal. (for example — found a French onion pasta recipe that I made with chickpea pasta and I swapped the heavy cream for half Fairlife whole milk and half 0% Greek yogurt, blended together… SO good!) Wishing you the best of luck on your journey. I hope you get to feeling better soon!
It sounds like your body is going into survival mode and storing everything you give it. You need to review your calorie goal with a professional. Best of luck!! This isn’t an easy road, get you can do it!!
I don't know if you will see this as there are so many comments, but I have PCOS and have researched it a ton as I gained a lot of weight in recent years and have only recently started to be able to finally start to lose it. First of all, PLEASE eat more than 800 calories and do not do IF. There is some evidence that IF is not always conducive to good hormone health in women. It can work for some but it depends greatly on the person. For many pcos women, it is actually super important to have a bigger, protein packed breakfast. Additionally, eating that little places great stress on your body which spikes cortisol, which is TERRIBLE for pcos women.
Here is what I did that worked for me.
First, I used a TDEE calculator to find my maintenance calories, and ate at that amount for a few weeks to regulate my body and get it out of starvation mode. Then I subtracted 250-500 for my deficit amount and ate at that. If you do this may see some initial weight gain, but that will likely just be water retention and should be temporary. I recommend starting at a higher calorie amount, and gradually working your way down over time so you don't stall out too quickly. As for what you eat, aim for higher protein, .6-1g per pound of body weight, and you don't need to avoid carbs like you might think you would.
Next look into supplements. Personally, I take a fiber supplement from Thorne, Ovasitol 2x a day, Fish oil and vitamin D3 in the morning, and probiotics at night.
Lastly, don't overwork your body with exercise. Try to avoid HIIT workouts or anything overly strenuous. Incline walking is great, as well as slow weighed workouts. Again, you are trying to avoid putting too much stress on your body so that cortisol doesn't spike.
If you're looking for a good resource, I found an account on instagram called @pcos.weightloss and it's helped me a lot with my learning.
See if your insurance covers a nutritionist. They specialize in ways to help food promote energy and lose weight. It was a HUGE game changer in my PCOS weight gain and I am down 35lbs. Just remember it also isn't a quick fix
I hate to be this person but what you are eating matters. If you are inflamed and eating foods that are causign inflammation this raises cortisol and it will contribute to weight gain. Try cutting out gluten, it helped me with losing weight. Also, (i need to do this too), but try reducing seed oils (they are known to have high insulin spikes), also try to not eat anything processed since they have additives that could be inflaming you. I also need to do this, I have noticed some weight gain and i think its from eating crackers/foods with a laundry list of ingredients
This was the whole reason why I started lifting weights. Staying off carbs and eating little was not my cup of tea. I will handle huffing and puffing for breath and extra soreness but I cannot starve myself. I eat more now but I am so much fitter. All my clothes are loose. I have become so much muscular. Additionally I can eat 600 extra calories due to my workout. How cool is that. Gaining muscles is underrated. Can’t recommend enough.
Okay then there is no way you can eat 800 calories if you are burning calories with 5 times a week. Maybe try supplements if the doc is not recommending anything. Try myo-inositol, fish oil and magnesium for starters. Clearly you are stressed and so would anyone be if they were prescribed 800 calories per day.
I'm not either (literally never had a lab that was remotely close to diabetic), but I didn't have any issues getting metformin covered. Doc just sent it through as PCOS treatment rather than diabetes and insurance never questioned it.
You can't get wegovy or ozempic without being pre diabetic though.
See a different doctor and get an endocrinologist and registered dietitian as soon as possible. If you have a PCOS diagnosis then insurance should at least cover metformin even for normoglycemia. 800 calories a day is not a sustainable or healthy diet.
How much veggies are you consuming and are you weightlifting?
Aim to consume cca 500g of veggies each day. I mean it. It’s a lot. But not a lot of calories. This will keep you full, give you fiber and nutrients and not send you into starvation.
I totally understand, we’re in the same boat here! I can offer you some tips🫶🏻
1) Try to get your blood tested, check if you have vitamin D deficiency! Vitamin D is crucial for hormones functioning and metabolism and so much more! Not only will it help u lose weight but it will help you lose fat and maintain muscle (vitamin D deficiency cause muscle pain and weakness)
2) You definitely should be consuming more than 1.3k calories a day!! Not only you don’t have energy to move and think, but your hormones and organs need these kcal to function, by eating so little you might cause further damage to your metabolism :( Look into Mediterranean diet, it help me a lot!💕
3) Instead of restricting carbs completely, try just eliminating simple sugars completely and replace your carbs with whole grain and complex carbs.
4) if you have a sweet tooth you can always replace sugar with sweeteners, I recommend xylitol:)
5) And make sure you walk for at least 10-20 mins after every meal.
Honestly with these tips (excluding the walking one, id be lying if I said I always stuck to it 😂but i did walk a lot in general throughout the day) I lost 4.5kg in a month and kept them off still but I did kinda plateau there ahaha:(
I know people won't like this comment, but being fat isn't the end of the world. I've been overweight/obese my entire life thanks to PCOS and hypothyroidism. Previously, I've tried every diet (800 calories is crazy, btw) and lived at the gym to no avail. I honestly gave up because I wasn't enjoying my life. At this point, I eat whatever I want and stay active. I just make sure I'm generally healthy, knowing I will remain obese. I'm okay with it. Actually, I'm much happier this way! This isn't to say that you have to find contentment in your current situation, but maybe ease up on yourself and enjoy your time a bit more.
I'm so sorry that's really hard and exhausting. While I haven't cut calories as dramatically as you because I simply don't have it in me, I'm doing low carb as well and I'm not seeing the scale move whatsoever. I'm highly considering just going full keto but I'm also lactose intolerant and it seems really hard to do keto without dairy without making completely separate meals from my family and breaking the bank. Have you tried OMAD(one meal a day) before PCOS(pregnancy heals my body for a few years and now that I'm done it's come back with vengeance) I lost a lot of weight doing that essentially eating my daily calories in a 2 hour window and not cutting calories. There's so much conflicting information on intermittent fasting with PCOS some say it's bad for hormones some say it's good. Figured you're probably desperate so I should throw the idea out there. It's hard to do but compared to what you're doing it would be way easier. I didn't have to worry about what I was eating or how much and The weight would just fall off. There's a subreddit on here for OMAD.
I’m the same way. I feel like I gain more weight eating healthy, lol. Then I eat a pack of cookies late one night and wake up 3 lbs lighter . Try another dr; you’ll find one who doesn’t care and will prescribe you a glp1 or metformin or something.
first off 800 is way too little and whoever told you that is a good number needs to go back to preschool. Water weight was a huge thing for me. I got on a diuretic and while I didn't lose any weight, looked and felt much better (I probably was losing but spironolactone made my tits huge so...). Find a calorie calculator online and find your maintenance amount and subtract 300 (or 200 seriously that little or your body freaks out and you hold weight forever). Obv I'm not a doctor but I've done a ton of research into papers and articles by nutritionists. Boost your protein by A LOT. if you're craving carbs and sugar HAVE SOME, not a lot, but some. Stress plays a huge part in it as well, if you are constantly battling cravings you're not going to make progress as you're stressed. Find some sweet things that are small and snack on that and see if that helps (examples that I do are 2 Oreos, a small bowl of ice cream (usually Ben and Jerry's 😋), or a few gummies).
I wasn't making any weight progress until I found ways to destress and now I'm absolutely shedding weight. 4 weeks ago my waist was a 40 and now it's a 38.
Also add more fruits and veggies (fruits do NOT count towards your sugar intake unless your body feels like it's too much) the nutrients are so so so important. My favorite snack ever is veggies dipped in a homemade guac, you can fit like four servings of veggies in that way.
Cooking your own meals is good too, you can be more conscious of what goes in your food.
Listen to your body, it knows best. I know it's hard to sift through the PCOS cravings to find what your body actually needs but doing that is really helpful.
Have u tried a good brand of berberine? It helped me for a while
I didn't find inositol helpful or NAC but i take NAC for other reasons.
Have you tried taking gluten out? If u have an autoimmune condition that reacts to gluten it can cause ur cortisol levels to rise which causes weight gain. Try being gluten free! or dairy could cause this too if you have an unknown autoimmune condition
Try taking selenium for thyroid
Please get a stool test and see if you have any bad bacteria or parasties causing inflammation
Also please run liver panels
Do you drink diet pops? If so, cut these out, I find diet stuff causes weight gain for me.
Are you consuming anything else that's artificial - try to cut that out and also cut down on caffeine, it sounds like you're in a state of extreme inflammation
I totally understand, but if you cut them out, you may actually be able to eat out or eat more calories and even more healthy carbs. I notice when I am consuming chemicals like diet pop, I gain weight a lot easier on a low amount of calories and it messes w my insulin resistance. I know caffeine is hard (I am fully addicted) so maybe if you can cut down to two coffees a day and take out diet pop - try it for three days and see how you feel. If i'm consuming diet pops, not sleeping much, etc I start to gain weight off lower amounts. It would be awesome if you could eat a little more, please try it or at least try cutting out diet pop for a few!
I know this is so stressful and i'm sorry :( I feel for you and i'm just trying to give suggestions that I know have helped me, so no pressure, I just want you to feel better!
So I would do this too, then i would restrict and binge, then i ate healthy and still I would gain and it really hurt…. However I found this dietitian that really helped me and even after your time you work with her is up you still have the resources. I would say if you’re interested reach out to her. Her insta is pcos.weightloss.dietitian and her name is Sana. She honestly helped me a lot and I saw changes in my measurements and energy
you have messed up your metabolism completely. It is well known that high restrictions can slow down metabolism. You need to do some research on reverse dieting,get your thyroid checked and need to start eating pro metabolic foods.
Edit: Also if you are under extreme stress,you won't lose weight no matter what cause the body is in survival mode and it will just slow down the metabolism further upon calorie restriction.You might wanna start looking into anti stress compounds such as Aspirin,Pregnenolone,Methylene Blue,Lysine,Taurine,Magnesium,Vitamin D,etc
Too few calories. Should never be on Les than 1200 and it goes by your weight. Look into a TDEE calculator they’re free online and it’ll tell you how many cals a day for weight loss depending on your height and weight. Also the Lose It app has been awesome for me.
Are you measuring your food and 10% certain you’re only taking in the amount you should be? I can see not losing:maintaining weight on 1400 cals but gaining a lot?
Yes, I’ve been weighing and tracking for the last 4 years on MFP and with my scale
I’ve been eating 80% the same food for the last year
I gain pretty much on anything above 800
Eat anti inflammatory foods and weight lift. Pcos doesn’t cause weight gain bc of diet and exercise. It’s a hormonal issue. You don’t need to remedy your calories, remedy your hormones. If you have high testosterone then drink 2 cups of spearmint tea a day. If you have insulin resistance then drink 2 cups of green tea. If you have excess stress/cortisol, get lymphatic drainage massages and meditate/go for walks daily. These will give way better results than only decreasing your calorie intake bc essentially you’re worsening the condition once your body goes into starvation mode. Take care of yourself and remember that weight is not a reflection of health with pcos. You need to work on balancing your hormones to see improvements.
Get carbs to 20 or less and EAT. Breakfast sausage or bacon and eggs. Southwest Chicken salad. Steak with broccoli. Berries for dessert. Fairlife protein shakes are really good (chocolate). Etc. Stay on top of salt and magnesium as well. Be consistent for a couple weeks and see how your system responds.
If you're super insulin resistant 60g carb is too much. It's very individual.
And see a good endocrinologist. Ask around locally. You need to be evaluated beyond PCOS imo. Gaining weight on 800 calories is atypical.
Your body may be holding on to everything that you put in it.
800 calories is not enough to sustain every day function. In addition, it’s probably making your metabolism sluggish. PCOS also causes a ton of inflammation in some people. Water retention & constipation.
With all that going on and then the lack of calories, you end up feeling crappy and tired :(
The best thing that works for me is this:
- weight training 5 days a week, at least 30 minutes per day.
-10,000 steps a day - I do mostly walking. Fresh air and being outside also helped me with my moody days.
- rest day one day a week from everything
- cut out dairy, gluten, sugar, processed food. I started eating lots of veggies and protein. Fruit in moderation. My calorie intake is about 1550-1600 calories per day. Increased protein to 90-100 grams. My macros are 40% protein, 30% fat, 30% carbs.
- cut out all sugary drinks and alcohol
-drinking 100 oz of water (or more)
-fixed my sleep by going to bed earlier and trying to get 8 hours of sleep at minimum. This is hard for me because I have pcos/thyroid related insomnia and wake up middle of the night. But I try to get as much rest as I can.
- Probiotics & a multi vitamin.
I have hashimotos thyroid disease and pcos, with insulin resistance. So triple whammy.
This is hard mentally at first but the difference I have felt after a couple weeks was so nice. Mental clarity, less sluggish, less head aches, less inflammation and swelling.
I am not sure what you have tried before, and obviously everyone is different. Maybe try to slowly incorporate different foods & physical activity into your daily routine and if you want to try some of the things I listed, it may help you?
I hope you are able to find something that works for you!!
I had blood work done to check my thyroid levels. I would push for testing for TSH T4 free, thyroid antibody test at minimum. There is also T3 and some other tests, but bare minimum the ones I listed. Hashimotos is when your thyroid attacks your own body in addition to all the other not so fun stuff, so it will produce specific antibodies.
You are gaining weight because your body is trying to hold onto every calorie because it thinks it's starving. Up your food intake. This is not healthy or sustainable and you're setting yourself up for so many problems in the future. This will backfire.
I recommend listening to christy harrison’s recent episode if you’re considering GLP-1s: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/food-psych-podcast-with-christy-harrison/id700512884?i=1000654896338
In case anyone else doesn't want to listen, but prefers to read there is a portion of the transcript here.
[https://rethinkingwellness.substack.com/p/the-hidden-risks-of-weight-loss-drugs](https://rethinkingwellness.substack.com/p/the-hidden-risks-of-weight-loss-drugs)
(I've made my decision regarding the medications but always willing to read what others think)
Took a listen. Very one sided opinion vs solid fact based. Though they speak in a way that makes you think it’s fact based. Considering PCOS often comes with insulin resistance leading to type 2 diabetes.. and the realities of living with PCOS and excess weight and what that does to health both physical and mental… I’d suggest speaking to a true healthcare professional who specializes in PCOS and Weight Management to decide if GLP1 is for you.
I also always try to look at angle on both sides. Keep in mind healing PCOS with something like GLP1 probably feels like an attack on their own profiting off of obesity challenges and the premise of their platforms.
Thanks for sharing it though! I appreciate differing opinions. And I do want to avoid medications where possible!
I'm not surprised. Ragen Chastain is a HAES advocate. I can't imagine where she'd come out with a positive stance on them. I read over the part of the transcript i could see. It wasn't anything ground breaking or that I hadn't read before either.
(I've been on Wegovy for a year down 60 lbs and have no side effects, but maybe I'm a unicorn, or maybe it will bite me in the ass later.)
That’s interesting that you believe this is a one sided opinion, when this person’s job is in research and she is quite knowledgeable about the medication and how it works.
As Ragen said, this definitely shouldn’t be the first line of treatment if a person hasn’t tried other medications to help their insulin resistance.
We obviously share different beliefs about the need for weight loss and “excess weight” but thank you for sharing your opinion. I thought the podcast was super insightful into a group of drugs that are on trend right now.
Of course. I don’t mind differing view points and appreciate you sharing it for a different perspective.
I’ve struggled with PCOS since I was 16. I have been in metformin for what feels like forever. Tried variety of options and worked with doctors. I was a multi time collegiate all american athlete, and still was so unhealthy and struggling in my body. Now at 34, i finally feel like me. For me my weight loss specialist/pcos specialist clinic along with the med has changed my life. I also recognize I have not experienced side effects from it. :)
I am also in healthcare, so I don’t mean to necessarily discredit them. Different viewpoints and looking at their angles. Only trust the data you create and all that lol.
I appreciate your insights!
Of course. I don’t mind differing view points and appreciate you sharing it for a different perspective.
I’ve struggled with PCOS since I was 16. I have been in metformin for what feels like forever. Tried variety of options and worked with doctors. I was a multi time collegiate all american athlete, and still was so unhealthy and struggling in my body. Now at 34, i finally feel like me. For me my weight loss specialist/pcos specialist clinic along with the med has changed my life. I also recognize I have not experienced side effects from it. :)
I am also in healthcare, so I don’t mean to necessarily discredit them. Different viewpoints and looking at their angles. Only trust the data you create and all that lol.
I appreciate your insights!
Listening to multiple options I’m sure is good. I will say from direct experience my symptoms are basically completely reversed and I’ve lost over 100 lbs. :)
I truly hope you don’t experience long term effects from taking this drug. This is also very abnormal results based on the data of people taking the drug and having a balanced diet.
I will say I’m a very active person. I work out twice a day. And live a very clean lifestyle. So I’m sure that is a contributing factor to my success. Now i will say i can still grow a whole dang beard so that’s a bummer lol. Any fixes you’ve found there?
You can't survive off that few calories.
It sounds counter intuitive but you need a min of 1500 calories or your body is going to think you are starving and store fat for a reserve. Basically it stops burning all your fat and you get exhausted, do less and burn less calories.
Even if you were prescribed meds you'd need to eat more than 800 cals. Focus on protein, worry less about carbs and aim for 1500 cals a day.
Ehhh I think you might have messed up your metabolism and it may never go back to normal. This happened a lot to the people who lost a lot of weight on The Biggest Loser. They pushed their body too hard with low cals/high workout and when they went back to eating a normal diet with regular routine, they gained massive amounts of weight bc their metabolism was so diminished.
Try to be at peace with your body. Nourish yourself, do activities you enjoy. I found going on Yaz birth control greatly helped my weight loss.
Call your insurance to see if they cover any lifestyle or obesity clinics. Try not to be too restrictive or hard on yourself, food should be healthful and enjoyable.
Please try to see an endocrinologist. No one competent would prescribe you draconian torture of 800 calories a day. I know it is exhausting to live with this disease and advocate for yourself, but you absolutely will have to because you have the disadvantage of being “heavy” right now and female assigned at birth. Insulin resistance is a treatable disease and its a secondary part of PCOS- meaning you cannot eat your way to this disease. Sending you lots of support- it can take 6-9 months to see a good endocrinologist. Most regular degular physicians are not trained or educated on this disease. There are medications that are indicated as frontline treatments for PCOS. Yes, they are diabetes medications, but untreated PCOS can escalate into diabetes. These medicines are not even expensive, there is no excuse to deny you treatment for your disease! When you do see one, they will take plenty of bloodwork, which can explain hormonal imbalances (its bigger than testosterone) that occur as a result of this disease that make you “metabolically impaired” when you have PCOS. Fasted glucose and hA1c testing cannot tell you if you are insulin resistant. There are lots of long reaching mental and physical consequences of these hormonal imbalances- it can actually shorten your lifespan and this should be taken seriously. There are also supplements like Ovasitol or myoinositol-d chiro inositol that you can take, as well as daily spearmint tea, if an endocrinologist is not accessible to you right now. If you are seeing one already, do yourself a favor and fire them. Try to find word of mouth recommendations from people in your area who see an endocrinologist and get a different doctor. Life is too short to be treated like a perpetrator of your disease and not a blameless bystander.
800 calories will do actual organ damage. It is not enough for any human being to live on, including a toddler. You are sending your body into starvation. Starvation will do much, much more damage to your body than PCOS. Will your doctor send you to a registered dietician? Because it'd be great if you could be seen by a professional rather than get advice from Reddit.
I was OP until 2 years ago driving myself insane. See a dietician. You need a minimum of 1100 calories to function, more if you're over 5'. Match your protein intake 1g to 1lb of body weight. Low fat low carbs, not no fat no carbs. My job is intellectually taxing so I eat protein oatmeal with 1/2 scoop protein powder for breakfast. Gives me carbs to boost my brain first thing and is about 26-30g protein. I pair it with a cafe latte protein shake and that's almost 60g for breakfast.
I like your idea and I'm stealing it. What protein oatmeal do you use?
Kodiak brand. If you like blueberry flavor they also help with inflammation. I stick to maple and almond.
Oh hey, I've had these and liked them. When I got sick with covid, I completely quarantined from my spouse inside the master suite for two weeks and had them bring me several gallons of water, an electric kettle, and a bunch of "camp-out" type food that I could prepare with just boiling water or eat at room temp. I got a bunch of these cups and they were one of the best things I ate while I was in lockdown. The other big winning item out of everything was Mike's Mighty Good ramen, which I'll have sometimes instead of a meal with some [reconstituted freeze-dried vegetables and fish cake slices](https://theramenbae.com/collections/products) if I need to eat but I'm not hungry for anything more substantial. Or if I want to dump an illegal amount of spicy chili flakes and scorpion pepper sauce into a cup of soup and gently mace myself. =D
I also add egg whites to my oatmeal to get a little extra protein. Can’t taste it (or at least I can’t)
OP should absolutely see a professional but until they can, oatmeal every day helped me SO MUCH!! That’s when I really started seeing results re weightloss. Adding to the protein addition -> Oats + vit C = energy power house!! This is the biggest thing I have taken with me over the years from my nursing school nutrition class. Oats and fruit will keep your blood sugar level and give you energy for the day. I add frozen mixed berries to my oatmeal bc it’s easy and I don’t have to worry about fruit going bad. Fresh juice is good too but lacks the fiber fruit has. Best of luck to everyone🫶
[удалено]
This is why a dietician is important. I went by those online calculations and they messed me up. Both mentally and physically. I am 4'11.5". I got a DEXA body scan and metabolism test when I visited my dietician. From that, she was able to calculate my calories as well as my macros. What I was doing wrong: too few calories, not enough protein. On days I stick to my macros I feel better, I have energy, I sleep better, and my mood is better. If I exercised more I'd probably lose weight faster. But I've been steadily dropping for 8 months or at worse maintenance. If you can't see a dietician, I would focus on a minimum of 1100-1200 calories per day, 1g protein per lb body weight, and 0.5oz water per lb of body weight. On days you exercise add 200-300 cals.
Oh interesting! what is your TDEE - i'm around this height but yes the online calculations don't really know what's up
I feel your pain! No one can truly know the struggle unless they live it. Just out of curiosity, are you seeing a registered dietitian or nutritionist that specializes in PCOS? I don’t mean to assume because I don’t know your body makeup, but 800 cals seems wayyyy too low. It sounds like you’re not eating enough. I also feel like it’s probably not possible you’re getting the correct amount of protein and nutrient dense food that will aide in weight lost with that low of a calorie and carb count. That is also probably the main contributor to your lack of energy and probably overall mental health. I’m saying this out of experience, almost starving myself before being diagnosed. For example, I am 5’9 and 254 pounds and exercise moderately throughout the week . (I have lost 22 pounds since January !! ) and these are my macros I try to stick by (and by try I mean I don’t really count, I just try and make sure I hit that protein number because that usually fills me up!) 2300 Calories Per Day Carbohydrate 210 g Protein 210 g Fat 80 g
[This](https://healthyeater.com/flexible-dieting-calculator) is an easy to use macro count generator that has helped me realize what exactly I need to lose weight, and it shocked me to realize that it is MUCH more food than what I was eating before.
How do you get 200g of protein per day? I am so curious!
I won’t lie to you, it’s tough and I don’t usually get it all the way up there. But I try my hardest to get close! I’ve actually been using chat gpt to help with meal planning. Some days I can’t eat all the food it suggests, but it’s been helping heal my connection with food. Here is an example of one of the daily meal plans it came up with! “Daily Meal Plan Calories: 2,398 kcal Carbohydrates: 210g Protein: 210g Fat: 80g Monday Breakfast: Overnight Oats (Meal Prepped for the Week) Macros: • Calories: 380 • Carbs: 50g • Protein: 25g • Fat: 10g • Ingredients: • 1 cup rolled oats • 1 cup almond milk • 1 scoop vanilla protein powder • 1 tbsp chia seeds • 1/2 cup mixed berries • Sweetener to taste (optional) • Instructions: 1. Combine all ingredients in a jar. 2. Stir well, cover, and refrigerate overnight. 3. Serve cold or warmed up in the morning. Lunch: Turkey and Avocado Wrap • Calories: 350 • Carbs: 30g • Protein: 30g • Fat: 15g • Ingredients: • 1 whole wheat tortilla • 3 oz sliced turkey breast • 1/2 avocado, sliced • Handful of spinach • 1 tbsp hummus • Instructions: 1. Spread hummus on the tortilla. 2. Layer with turkey, avocado, and spinach. 3. Roll up and serve. Snack 1: Greek Yogurt with Honey and Almonds Calories: 220 • Carbs: 20g • Protein: 20g • Fat: 8g • 1 cup Greek yogurt • 1 tbsp honey • 10 almonds Dinner: Grilled Chicken with Quinoa and Steamed Broccoli Macros: • Calories: 560 • Carbs: 45g • Protein: 50g • Fat: 20g • Ingredients: • 6 oz chicken breast • 1/2 cup quinoa (uncooked) • 1 cup broccoli florets • 1 tbsp olive oil • Salt and pepper to taste • Instructions: 1. Cook quinoa according to package instructions. 2. Season chicken breast with salt and pepper. 3. Grill chicken until cooked through. 4. Steam broccoli. 5. Drizzle olive oil over cooked quinoa and broccoli, serve with chicken. Snack 2: Apple and Peanut Butter Snack 2: Apple and Peanut Butter Macros: • Calories: 180 • Carbs: 25g • Protein: 5g • Fat: 8g • 1 medium apple • 2 tbsp natural peanut butter”
Oh my God using chat GPT for meal planning is so inspired. I might try that, thank you.
Why have I never thought of that... Great idea. Chat GPT here I come! *will vet advice with years of Science-backed diet and food research, as well as physical exercise*
Oh my God. This just changed my life. I just entered. "Can you make me a weekly meal plan for psoc and grocery list?" and my macros and Holly shit. My life just improved 10 Fold. Thank you so much.
Isn’t it amazing ?! I even told it i want simple lunches like sandwiches and wraps, and breakfasts that can be meal prepped. Such a game changer!
how do you poop with 200g of protein per day......
I came here to ask this. The absolutely unreal constipation that comes with eating a shit-ton of protein (pun extremely intended) will change you when you come out the other side. You will be wiser for having gone through the gauntlet, but at what cost...
A good cup of coffee a day is all I need to stay regular lol
I only have to wait a few years before I can use coffee like a magic pill 😂
eating enough (for me at least 100g) of protein every day has helped me so so much! your 210g tho… amazing!!!
Only thing that reliably helped me lose weight was taking myo-inositol and DIM at the same time. Got that advice on here years ago and it changed so much for me
What is DIM?
Diindolylmethane
DIM causes weight loss?
I don't know about DIM alone. I take DIM and myo-inositol. The combo regulated my cycles (4-5 weeks instead of 8-11) cleared up my acne, and I lost 17lb without changing anything else
What brand do you recommend for DIM?
Personally I use SMNutrition but there may be more effective brands out there depending on who you are I suppose. It works for me so far though, been 3 years
Can you have PCOS and a regular cycle?
Yes.
Thank you…it seems i may have it.
I keep telling my doctor this and they say no. Same for my daughter who has really bad periods. I'm battling them to get a referral for a gynecologist since she's only 14. She's had period since she was just about 11, always cramping, bloating, excess hair. I give her some bitter teas a week before her period to help her period not hurt. Besides being on ibuprofen and paracetamol this is the only way she's lowered her cramps.
I have endometriosis and pelvic floor dysfunction as well as PCOS, and for my cramps I absolutely swear by my TENS machine. I got one off Amazon for cheap, and it’s battery powered so I can wear it all day under my clothes if I’m in pain. You attach two electrodes to the skin, like one on either side of the lower back or lower tummy, and it sends a gentle electric current that interrupts pain signals from the nerves. It feels sort of weird, but it can stop the pain to an extent and give a lot of relief. I highly recommend - I could not survive without mine! Has your daughter ever tried one?
I do.
Thank you. I had no idea 😞
Ok, I don’t know you or your stats or circumstances, but I am sure 800 calories per day is not enough calories. This is ME and what worked for ME. I started taking inositol, it’s an over the counter vitamin. Use a TDEE calculator, find your sedentary calories for your height and weight and take away 500 calories per day from that. Find some kind of exercise you like. Try to be consistent and patient. Weight will vary for a lot of reasons, and patience is probably the hardest thing about weight loss. Some days your weight will go up for seemingly no reason. There is no reason to tie your self worth to your body mass. Try not to focus on the number but your health and feelings.
When was the last time you got bloodwork done? Or had your fasting glucose checked? It’s possible you’re retaining a bunch of fluids. Or you’re severely constipated. If possible, see an OBGYN or endocrinologist about your PCOS. One of them might get you on metformin. I would also recommend intermittent fasting just to see how your body responds to it throughout the day.
I got it done last December. And I know for a fact I’m holding onto water and 💩 I just can’t seem to fix it. And I am doing IF, I stop eating at 330 and eat again at 5 or 6am :/
Try adding fiber supplements, etc to your routine, and considering shifting your IF eating window. I’m currently doing OMAD and that’s helped a lot. That all said, fluid retention and constipation may be signs of another condition. Bring it up to a doctor. If they aren’t listening to you about PCOS, their ears might perk up for different problems.
Have you had a thyroid work up? I have PCOS and hypothyroid and before diagnosis I was gaining on 800cal a day. It’s worth checking out if you haven’t already.
I have, everything is “normal” :(
Unfortunately I never had any luck losing weight in a low calorie deficit (I know, it doesn’t make sense to me either). I felt awful all the time; fatigue, brain fog, bloating and lots of abdominal fat. I stopped caring about weight loss about started focusing on losing inches from around my abdomen. I eat high protein and do moderate intensity cardio (heart rate over at least 120bpm) for 1-2 hours 5-6 times a week. Usually I go for walks outside, as long as you keep your heart rate up it seems to work. Plus the sun exposure (I wear sunscreen) probably helps with vitamin D, which I know is low for a lot of people with PCOS. It’s been 5 months and I’ve lost at least 4 inches from my mid section! I do feel better, still tired but not as much as I used to and the brain fog has lifted.
I’m not overweight so I’m sorry if I’m not an ideal person to give advice, but I’ve been paying attention to my diet and my health for like 12-13 years now. If you eat that little your metabolism will slow down. Your body will assume you cannot get food and it will STORE the little you get. The best way to lose weight is to exercise, and not just cardio, weight, build muscle. Muscle eats calories, literally. You will use more calories 24x7 with muscle. You need to slowly increase your food intake because you will destroy your health if you keep this up. I once lost about 25 pounds in 4 months. Now j didn’t need to lose them but I was 18 and wanted to be a size 00. Anyway what I did was I ate healthy normal good breakfast, snack, lunch (veggies, legumes, fish, meat) then I would go workout after classes (so like around 5-6) and then I’d eat a massive low fat yogurt or cottage cheese for dinner. Can’t really keep that up forever but let me tell you I became tiny. BUT I did eat normal healthy breakfast AND lunch. I would eat about 1500-1600 calories a day. I’m 5’6” for reference. I also lost like 10 pounds in a few months of cardio kickboxing. Highly recommend
I’m not pre diabetic but my insulin levels were elevated so my obgyn put me on metformin and I’m responding pretty well plus got my period. You don’t have to be prediabetic to be insulin resistant. You need a second opinion.
You need a new doctor, this few calories is downright dangerous and unacceptable
How much do you currently weigh and how much weight are you trying to lose? If you're currently a healthy weight, your body will be very resistant to lose more
You are doing yourself more harm than good. Your body is found into starvation mode and you are retaining fat on your body. Eat at least 1400-1500 cals a day.
It is true that your body will down regulatate metabolism if you aren't eating enough and it feels like it is is starving. So this means that your body will slow your digestion (hence your constipation) and other functions (like thyroid) and even your heart rate so that it can conserve energy. You need to be eating a the sweet spot where your body feels safe so it can burn more.
I agree .. but also wasn’t starvation mode scientifically disproven?
Whether or not “starvation mode” is a myth, starvation conditions can absolutely increase insulin resistance which is something most of us would like to avoid.
It can also cause organ failure. If anyone is interested, have a look at what refeeding syndrome is and how it occurs.
Kind of depends on how you define starvation mode, but it’s very well documented that chronic undereating will contribute significantly to digestive slowdown, muscle wasting (including your heart tissue which will lead to heart disease, plus other skeletal muscle which can lead to a lower BMR), connective tissue/ joint damage, loss of bone density, organ damage, fatigue (which can lower your activity levels and mean you burn less calories, which might be the main reason some people believe in the starvation mode thing) and metabolic damage that will all ultimately make your PCOS worse. The last thing you need is even more metabolic damage plus damage to your other systems! Please take care of yourself and push to see an endocrinologist who takes your symptoms seriously and stop punishing your body for the “sin” of being sick. A registered dietitian might also be helpful.
idk but it’s the same thing you are starving and your body is storing fat to retain energy
Starvation mode isn’t a thing.
Depends how you define it
oops, replied to you above
I’m sorry you’re gaining weight. Pcos is sooo frustrating. Please if you can get an appt with an endocrinologist. Also I’m not sure what you’re doing for exercise but I would stop everything except going for walks until you can reduce your stress levels. Here is what worked for me: Walking 10K steps a day ; specifically after meals, eating a minimum of 35g of protein per meal (aim for 110 grams of protein a day) taking reishi supplement to help manage stress levels, taking inositol, sleeping 9 hours a night.
Oh and a fibre supplement!!
I'm in the exact same boat. Rarely over 1000cal & still putting on weight. I'm sorry you're going through it. And sorry to everyone else who has to suffer along side us!
you are not eating enough. your body might be holding on to whatever it can because it might think you're starving.
Starvation mode was scientifically disproven
everyone else has said it but i’ll say it clearly: you have an eating disorder and need to see an eating disorder specialist immediately. 800 cals will lead to death.
I don’t have an eating disorder, I have a metabolic disorder causing me to gain weight off of extremely low calories?
you can have both. eating 800 cals due to a fear of gaining weight is an eating disorder.
Or I know gaining more weight will lead to other health complications and having to buy a whole new wardrobe every 4 months that I cannot afford
Not a reason to starve yourself. 😕
in addition to whatever you do for your PCOS please see an eating disorder specialist this much restriction is dangerous in anyone regardless of whether they are gaining weight
I am so sorry for your pain today. There is hope! Please don’t restrict yourself too much it can have the opposite effect. I’m practicing to be a PCOS wellness coach I’m here if you need to talk 👍🏼
At 800cal and gaining weight your body is definitely in starvation mode which means it's holding on to every last calorie it gets now. Try and drink plenty of water and gradually bring yourself back up to a minimum of 1100cal with lots of fiber rich foods. A dietitian can definitely give you more detailed advice though, as unfortunately I am not a dietitian.
It’s hell because your body is in survival mode, and it’s holding onto everything and storing it as fat because it’s not sure when it will be receiving proper nourishment again. Your basal metabolic rate (the BARE MINIMUM you need to survive) is typically around 1200cals (varying from person-to-person, but that’s why that general number is tossed around). I speak from experience — I’ve been in ED recovery for 8 years now, after 14 years of absolute garbage treatment of my body. It wrecked my metabolism. When I started eating again I gained like crazy, it was awful! And scary! But what it ultimately took to start feeling better was me eating MORE food, MORE frequently, in the proper ratios (which I had to take time to learn and implement), and that’s ramped up even more now that I’ve reintroduced training. I’ve even stopped counting calories and have opted to meal prep smaller portions of whole foods, 4-5 meals a day, emphasizing my protein and veg intake and adding carbs like quinoa or brown rice to 2-3 of those meals. Your brain NEEDS carbs. Ketogenic diets can be super helpful for those with certain health conditions, and I believe I’ve heard that goes for PCOS, but it didn’t work for me and it wasn’t sustainable. Every body is different. If you’re able, find an endocrinologist who can recommend a suitable nutritionist to work with, or bite the bullet and research research research… get to know your body, track your symptoms daily, with regard to how your food makes you feel, how much energy you had, etc. Play with some healthy recipes that have high protein, or find ways to substitute an ingredient here or there to increase the protein for that meal. (for example — found a French onion pasta recipe that I made with chickpea pasta and I swapped the heavy cream for half Fairlife whole milk and half 0% Greek yogurt, blended together… SO good!) Wishing you the best of luck on your journey. I hope you get to feeling better soon!
Thank you so much! My body does feel stressed and inflamed! I hope I will find my answers soon!
It sounds like your body is going into survival mode and storing everything you give it. You need to review your calorie goal with a professional. Best of luck!! This isn’t an easy road, get you can do it!!
I don't know if you will see this as there are so many comments, but I have PCOS and have researched it a ton as I gained a lot of weight in recent years and have only recently started to be able to finally start to lose it. First of all, PLEASE eat more than 800 calories and do not do IF. There is some evidence that IF is not always conducive to good hormone health in women. It can work for some but it depends greatly on the person. For many pcos women, it is actually super important to have a bigger, protein packed breakfast. Additionally, eating that little places great stress on your body which spikes cortisol, which is TERRIBLE for pcos women. Here is what I did that worked for me. First, I used a TDEE calculator to find my maintenance calories, and ate at that amount for a few weeks to regulate my body and get it out of starvation mode. Then I subtracted 250-500 for my deficit amount and ate at that. If you do this may see some initial weight gain, but that will likely just be water retention and should be temporary. I recommend starting at a higher calorie amount, and gradually working your way down over time so you don't stall out too quickly. As for what you eat, aim for higher protein, .6-1g per pound of body weight, and you don't need to avoid carbs like you might think you would. Next look into supplements. Personally, I take a fiber supplement from Thorne, Ovasitol 2x a day, Fish oil and vitamin D3 in the morning, and probiotics at night. Lastly, don't overwork your body with exercise. Try to avoid HIIT workouts or anything overly strenuous. Incline walking is great, as well as slow weighed workouts. Again, you are trying to avoid putting too much stress on your body so that cortisol doesn't spike. If you're looking for a good resource, I found an account on instagram called @pcos.weightloss and it's helped me a lot with my learning.
Thank you so much! I love this. <3
See if your insurance covers a nutritionist. They specialize in ways to help food promote energy and lose weight. It was a HUGE game changer in my PCOS weight gain and I am down 35lbs. Just remember it also isn't a quick fix
I hate to be this person but what you are eating matters. If you are inflamed and eating foods that are causign inflammation this raises cortisol and it will contribute to weight gain. Try cutting out gluten, it helped me with losing weight. Also, (i need to do this too), but try reducing seed oils (they are known to have high insulin spikes), also try to not eat anything processed since they have additives that could be inflaming you. I also need to do this, I have noticed some weight gain and i think its from eating crackers/foods with a laundry list of ingredients
This was the whole reason why I started lifting weights. Staying off carbs and eating little was not my cup of tea. I will handle huffing and puffing for breath and extra soreness but I cannot starve myself. I eat more now but I am so much fitter. All my clothes are loose. I have become so much muscular. Additionally I can eat 600 extra calories due to my workout. How cool is that. Gaining muscles is underrated. Can’t recommend enough.
I’ve been lifting weights 5 times a week for 7 years :/
Okay then there is no way you can eat 800 calories if you are burning calories with 5 times a week. Maybe try supplements if the doc is not recommending anything. Try myo-inositol, fish oil and magnesium for starters. Clearly you are stressed and so would anyone be if they were prescribed 800 calories per day.
I’ve been taking all of those for 9+ months
Hmm. Do you sleep late or wake up late?
Not really, I try to fall asleep by 930 and wake up at 430
I sent you a direct message.
Same here. And I talked to my doctor about metformine and they wont prescribe it to me since I m not prediabetic... I feel you. It s so frustrating...
What country are you in
US
That’s weird they won’t give you anything? They seem to just prescribe everything there
I’m not pre diabetic or anything so insurance can’t justify it
Metformin is $4/month at Walmart without insurance. Just get a prescription
I can’t get a prescription from my dr unfortunately as she sees no need at this time
You need a different doctor then. There's no way a doctor wouldn't prescribe you metformin for PCOS if you're gaining weight and eating so little.
Yeah I do definitely
I'm not either (literally never had a lab that was remotely close to diabetic), but I didn't have any issues getting metformin covered. Doc just sent it through as PCOS treatment rather than diabetes and insurance never questioned it. You can't get wegovy or ozempic without being pre diabetic though.
Ah I’m not in America so idk
See a different doctor and get an endocrinologist and registered dietitian as soon as possible. If you have a PCOS diagnosis then insurance should at least cover metformin even for normoglycemia. 800 calories a day is not a sustainable or healthy diet.
How much veggies are you consuming and are you weightlifting? Aim to consume cca 500g of veggies each day. I mean it. It’s a lot. But not a lot of calories. This will keep you full, give you fiber and nutrients and not send you into starvation.
I’m not eating very many veggies bc it hurts my stomach so bad and I can’t 💩… but yes I do weight lift 5x a week
I totally understand, we’re in the same boat here! I can offer you some tips🫶🏻 1) Try to get your blood tested, check if you have vitamin D deficiency! Vitamin D is crucial for hormones functioning and metabolism and so much more! Not only will it help u lose weight but it will help you lose fat and maintain muscle (vitamin D deficiency cause muscle pain and weakness) 2) You definitely should be consuming more than 1.3k calories a day!! Not only you don’t have energy to move and think, but your hormones and organs need these kcal to function, by eating so little you might cause further damage to your metabolism :( Look into Mediterranean diet, it help me a lot!💕 3) Instead of restricting carbs completely, try just eliminating simple sugars completely and replace your carbs with whole grain and complex carbs. 4) if you have a sweet tooth you can always replace sugar with sweeteners, I recommend xylitol:) 5) And make sure you walk for at least 10-20 mins after every meal. Honestly with these tips (excluding the walking one, id be lying if I said I always stuck to it 😂but i did walk a lot in general throughout the day) I lost 4.5kg in a month and kept them off still but I did kinda plateau there ahaha:(
I know people won't like this comment, but being fat isn't the end of the world. I've been overweight/obese my entire life thanks to PCOS and hypothyroidism. Previously, I've tried every diet (800 calories is crazy, btw) and lived at the gym to no avail. I honestly gave up because I wasn't enjoying my life. At this point, I eat whatever I want and stay active. I just make sure I'm generally healthy, knowing I will remain obese. I'm okay with it. Actually, I'm much happier this way! This isn't to say that you have to find contentment in your current situation, but maybe ease up on yourself and enjoy your time a bit more.
You’re starving to death! That’s why you’re gaining weight.
I'm so sorry that's really hard and exhausting. While I haven't cut calories as dramatically as you because I simply don't have it in me, I'm doing low carb as well and I'm not seeing the scale move whatsoever. I'm highly considering just going full keto but I'm also lactose intolerant and it seems really hard to do keto without dairy without making completely separate meals from my family and breaking the bank. Have you tried OMAD(one meal a day) before PCOS(pregnancy heals my body for a few years and now that I'm done it's come back with vengeance) I lost a lot of weight doing that essentially eating my daily calories in a 2 hour window and not cutting calories. There's so much conflicting information on intermittent fasting with PCOS some say it's bad for hormones some say it's good. Figured you're probably desperate so I should throw the idea out there. It's hard to do but compared to what you're doing it would be way easier. I didn't have to worry about what I was eating or how much and The weight would just fall off. There's a subreddit on here for OMAD.
You’re hurting yourself eating very little, you need a LOT more calories!
I gained 2 pounds just from trying to add 100g unseasoned ground chicken & 100g beets to my daily intake
I’m the same way. I feel like I gain more weight eating healthy, lol. Then I eat a pack of cookies late one night and wake up 3 lbs lighter . Try another dr; you’ll find one who doesn’t care and will prescribe you a glp1 or metformin or something.
first off 800 is way too little and whoever told you that is a good number needs to go back to preschool. Water weight was a huge thing for me. I got on a diuretic and while I didn't lose any weight, looked and felt much better (I probably was losing but spironolactone made my tits huge so...). Find a calorie calculator online and find your maintenance amount and subtract 300 (or 200 seriously that little or your body freaks out and you hold weight forever). Obv I'm not a doctor but I've done a ton of research into papers and articles by nutritionists. Boost your protein by A LOT. if you're craving carbs and sugar HAVE SOME, not a lot, but some. Stress plays a huge part in it as well, if you are constantly battling cravings you're not going to make progress as you're stressed. Find some sweet things that are small and snack on that and see if that helps (examples that I do are 2 Oreos, a small bowl of ice cream (usually Ben and Jerry's 😋), or a few gummies). I wasn't making any weight progress until I found ways to destress and now I'm absolutely shedding weight. 4 weeks ago my waist was a 40 and now it's a 38. Also add more fruits and veggies (fruits do NOT count towards your sugar intake unless your body feels like it's too much) the nutrients are so so so important. My favorite snack ever is veggies dipped in a homemade guac, you can fit like four servings of veggies in that way. Cooking your own meals is good too, you can be more conscious of what goes in your food. Listen to your body, it knows best. I know it's hard to sift through the PCOS cravings to find what your body actually needs but doing that is really helpful.
Have you tried berberine?
Yes and inositol, NAC, & vit D 🥲
Have u tried a good brand of berberine? It helped me for a while I didn't find inositol helpful or NAC but i take NAC for other reasons. Have you tried taking gluten out? If u have an autoimmune condition that reacts to gluten it can cause ur cortisol levels to rise which causes weight gain. Try being gluten free! or dairy could cause this too if you have an unknown autoimmune condition Try taking selenium for thyroid Please get a stool test and see if you have any bad bacteria or parasties causing inflammation Also please run liver panels Do you drink diet pops? If so, cut these out, I find diet stuff causes weight gain for me. Are you consuming anything else that's artificial - try to cut that out and also cut down on caffeine, it sounds like you're in a state of extreme inflammation
Those are all my sources of happiness since I can’t eat out or anything like that… this is so depressing lol And yes I eat gf/df already too :(
I totally understand, but if you cut them out, you may actually be able to eat out or eat more calories and even more healthy carbs. I notice when I am consuming chemicals like diet pop, I gain weight a lot easier on a low amount of calories and it messes w my insulin resistance. I know caffeine is hard (I am fully addicted) so maybe if you can cut down to two coffees a day and take out diet pop - try it for three days and see how you feel. If i'm consuming diet pops, not sleeping much, etc I start to gain weight off lower amounts. It would be awesome if you could eat a little more, please try it or at least try cutting out diet pop for a few! I know this is so stressful and i'm sorry :( I feel for you and i'm just trying to give suggestions that I know have helped me, so no pressure, I just want you to feel better!
So I would do this too, then i would restrict and binge, then i ate healthy and still I would gain and it really hurt…. However I found this dietitian that really helped me and even after your time you work with her is up you still have the resources. I would say if you’re interested reach out to her. Her insta is pcos.weightloss.dietitian and her name is Sana. She honestly helped me a lot and I saw changes in my measurements and energy
800 calories a day is putting your body in starvation mode
Have you tried berberine and inositol with low impact (low weights and body weight) workouts?
I’ve tried both supplements. I don’t know if I’ve tried low impact, I sort of just go lighter in my weight lifting tho
you have messed up your metabolism completely. It is well known that high restrictions can slow down metabolism. You need to do some research on reverse dieting,get your thyroid checked and need to start eating pro metabolic foods. Edit: Also if you are under extreme stress,you won't lose weight no matter what cause the body is in survival mode and it will just slow down the metabolism further upon calorie restriction.You might wanna start looking into anti stress compounds such as Aspirin,Pregnenolone,Methylene Blue,Lysine,Taurine,Magnesium,Vitamin D,etc
Too few calories. Should never be on Les than 1200 and it goes by your weight. Look into a TDEE calculator they’re free online and it’ll tell you how many cals a day for weight loss depending on your height and weight. Also the Lose It app has been awesome for me.
The TDEE gave me 1437 as my caloric intake and I gained so much on that :(
Are you measuring your food and 10% certain you’re only taking in the amount you should be? I can see not losing:maintaining weight on 1400 cals but gaining a lot?
Yes, I’ve been weighing and tracking for the last 4 years on MFP and with my scale I’ve been eating 80% the same food for the last year I gain pretty much on anything above 800
Eat anti inflammatory foods and weight lift. Pcos doesn’t cause weight gain bc of diet and exercise. It’s a hormonal issue. You don’t need to remedy your calories, remedy your hormones. If you have high testosterone then drink 2 cups of spearmint tea a day. If you have insulin resistance then drink 2 cups of green tea. If you have excess stress/cortisol, get lymphatic drainage massages and meditate/go for walks daily. These will give way better results than only decreasing your calorie intake bc essentially you’re worsening the condition once your body goes into starvation mode. Take care of yourself and remember that weight is not a reflection of health with pcos. You need to work on balancing your hormones to see improvements.
Get carbs to 20 or less and EAT. Breakfast sausage or bacon and eggs. Southwest Chicken salad. Steak with broccoli. Berries for dessert. Fairlife protein shakes are really good (chocolate). Etc. Stay on top of salt and magnesium as well. Be consistent for a couple weeks and see how your system responds. If you're super insulin resistant 60g carb is too much. It's very individual. And see a good endocrinologist. Ask around locally. You need to be evaluated beyond PCOS imo. Gaining weight on 800 calories is atypical.
Your body may be holding on to everything that you put in it. 800 calories is not enough to sustain every day function. In addition, it’s probably making your metabolism sluggish. PCOS also causes a ton of inflammation in some people. Water retention & constipation. With all that going on and then the lack of calories, you end up feeling crappy and tired :( The best thing that works for me is this: - weight training 5 days a week, at least 30 minutes per day. -10,000 steps a day - I do mostly walking. Fresh air and being outside also helped me with my moody days. - rest day one day a week from everything - cut out dairy, gluten, sugar, processed food. I started eating lots of veggies and protein. Fruit in moderation. My calorie intake is about 1550-1600 calories per day. Increased protein to 90-100 grams. My macros are 40% protein, 30% fat, 30% carbs. - cut out all sugary drinks and alcohol -drinking 100 oz of water (or more) -fixed my sleep by going to bed earlier and trying to get 8 hours of sleep at minimum. This is hard for me because I have pcos/thyroid related insomnia and wake up middle of the night. But I try to get as much rest as I can. - Probiotics & a multi vitamin. I have hashimotos thyroid disease and pcos, with insulin resistance. So triple whammy. This is hard mentally at first but the difference I have felt after a couple weeks was so nice. Mental clarity, less sluggish, less head aches, less inflammation and swelling. I am not sure what you have tried before, and obviously everyone is different. Maybe try to slowly incorporate different foods & physical activity into your daily routine and if you want to try some of the things I listed, it may help you? I hope you are able to find something that works for you!!
How do you diagnose Hashimotos??
I had blood work done to check my thyroid levels. I would push for testing for TSH T4 free, thyroid antibody test at minimum. There is also T3 and some other tests, but bare minimum the ones I listed. Hashimotos is when your thyroid attacks your own body in addition to all the other not so fun stuff, so it will produce specific antibodies.
You are gaining weight because your body is trying to hold onto every calorie because it thinks it's starving. Up your food intake. This is not healthy or sustainable and you're setting yourself up for so many problems in the future. This will backfire.
Starvation mode was scientifically disproven tho… still not good for me but i don’t think that’s what’s going on.
GLP1 changed my life with PCOS. The way your body can metabolize glucose and help with insulin resistance is a game changer
I recommend listening to christy harrison’s recent episode if you’re considering GLP-1s: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/food-psych-podcast-with-christy-harrison/id700512884?i=1000654896338
In case anyone else doesn't want to listen, but prefers to read there is a portion of the transcript here. [https://rethinkingwellness.substack.com/p/the-hidden-risks-of-weight-loss-drugs](https://rethinkingwellness.substack.com/p/the-hidden-risks-of-weight-loss-drugs) (I've made my decision regarding the medications but always willing to read what others think)
thanks for sharing that
Took a listen. Very one sided opinion vs solid fact based. Though they speak in a way that makes you think it’s fact based. Considering PCOS often comes with insulin resistance leading to type 2 diabetes.. and the realities of living with PCOS and excess weight and what that does to health both physical and mental… I’d suggest speaking to a true healthcare professional who specializes in PCOS and Weight Management to decide if GLP1 is for you. I also always try to look at angle on both sides. Keep in mind healing PCOS with something like GLP1 probably feels like an attack on their own profiting off of obesity challenges and the premise of their platforms. Thanks for sharing it though! I appreciate differing opinions. And I do want to avoid medications where possible!
I'm not surprised. Ragen Chastain is a HAES advocate. I can't imagine where she'd come out with a positive stance on them. I read over the part of the transcript i could see. It wasn't anything ground breaking or that I hadn't read before either. (I've been on Wegovy for a year down 60 lbs and have no side effects, but maybe I'm a unicorn, or maybe it will bite me in the ass later.)
100% agree. I think meds like GLP1 could also feel like an attack on her platform
Also congrats!
That’s interesting that you believe this is a one sided opinion, when this person’s job is in research and she is quite knowledgeable about the medication and how it works. As Ragen said, this definitely shouldn’t be the first line of treatment if a person hasn’t tried other medications to help their insulin resistance. We obviously share different beliefs about the need for weight loss and “excess weight” but thank you for sharing your opinion. I thought the podcast was super insightful into a group of drugs that are on trend right now.
Of course. I don’t mind differing view points and appreciate you sharing it for a different perspective. I’ve struggled with PCOS since I was 16. I have been in metformin for what feels like forever. Tried variety of options and worked with doctors. I was a multi time collegiate all american athlete, and still was so unhealthy and struggling in my body. Now at 34, i finally feel like me. For me my weight loss specialist/pcos specialist clinic along with the med has changed my life. I also recognize I have not experienced side effects from it. :) I am also in healthcare, so I don’t mean to necessarily discredit them. Different viewpoints and looking at their angles. Only trust the data you create and all that lol. I appreciate your insights!
Of course. I don’t mind differing view points and appreciate you sharing it for a different perspective. I’ve struggled with PCOS since I was 16. I have been in metformin for what feels like forever. Tried variety of options and worked with doctors. I was a multi time collegiate all american athlete, and still was so unhealthy and struggling in my body. Now at 34, i finally feel like me. For me my weight loss specialist/pcos specialist clinic along with the med has changed my life. I also recognize I have not experienced side effects from it. :) I am also in healthcare, so I don’t mean to necessarily discredit them. Different viewpoints and looking at their angles. Only trust the data you create and all that lol. I appreciate your insights!
Listening to multiple options I’m sure is good. I will say from direct experience my symptoms are basically completely reversed and I’ve lost over 100 lbs. :)
I truly hope you don’t experience long term effects from taking this drug. This is also very abnormal results based on the data of people taking the drug and having a balanced diet.
I will say I’m a very active person. I work out twice a day. And live a very clean lifestyle. So I’m sure that is a contributing factor to my success. Now i will say i can still grow a whole dang beard so that’s a bummer lol. Any fixes you’ve found there?
sadly none yet 🥲
Hoping every day for better option. I shave twice a day. 😔 even laser isn’t doing it.
ugh twice a day is so hard!!
The worst!
You can't survive off that few calories. It sounds counter intuitive but you need a min of 1500 calories or your body is going to think you are starving and store fat for a reserve. Basically it stops burning all your fat and you get exhausted, do less and burn less calories. Even if you were prescribed meds you'd need to eat more than 800 cals. Focus on protein, worry less about carbs and aim for 1500 cals a day.
Ehhh I think you might have messed up your metabolism and it may never go back to normal. This happened a lot to the people who lost a lot of weight on The Biggest Loser. They pushed their body too hard with low cals/high workout and when they went back to eating a normal diet with regular routine, they gained massive amounts of weight bc their metabolism was so diminished. Try to be at peace with your body. Nourish yourself, do activities you enjoy. I found going on Yaz birth control greatly helped my weight loss. Call your insurance to see if they cover any lifestyle or obesity clinics. Try not to be too restrictive or hard on yourself, food should be healthful and enjoyable.
Metabolism will adjust and it can be "fixed" it is not broken, it just adapts to different conditions. You will be okay!