PCOS/Insulin Resistance SupportSupport for us with any of the following: Insulin Resistance, Syndrome X, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, or other endocrine disorders.
Anyone with PCOS having success with "eating clean"?
I have failed many times trying low carb diets (i.e. South Beach, Atkins, etc). I can lose the first 20-30 pounds, but I then I get terribly bored with the choices.
I'm trying to find a lifestyle that I can live with long term but still lose weight with my PCOS. I think the "eating clean"/"whole foods" lifestyle is something I can manage long term.
The way I found it worked for me was that instead of focussing on low carb I focussed on high protein/high veg. The nutritional guidelines I followed were those of Precision Nutrition. With this you are really only supposed to be having carbs/starches immediately after a workout as this is when your body (pcos or not) best deals with them. For me it helped me not feel deprived - I could eat the pasta, bread, whatever, but I had to workout first. Plus, it was an added incentive to make it to the gym.
I'm not doing as well with it now but as I am in my 6th month of pregnancy I am not as concerned. When the baby comes it's back on track for me.
I love the GI plan. For me, it is very clean eating -- it isn't restrictive to me personally other than the obvious (don't eat half my weight in ice cream LOL) I can have carbs in moderation -- it is not low carb, but low*er* carb than the standard american diet.
I eat whole, organic foods primarily in their natural state -- if I do have bread, it is sprouted whole grain like Ezekiel 4:19 bread -- if I have pasta, it is as a whole grain, very small side dish along with lots of veggies, etc... not as a whole plate. Things like that.
It seems to me pretty easy to maintain -- I have very few cravings and don't feel hungry much of the time... but then I have only been on it about three weeks so time will tell.
Hope that helps
Last edited by allowingslender; 07-13-2008 at 08:42 PM.
I'm being very heavy on the produce, making it about 80% of my diet. It's following closely to Dr. Fuhrman's book Eat to Live, but not as vegan. I'll still have fish a few times per week, I'm limiting dairy (it makes me tired anyway) and limiting healthy grains to 1-2 servings per day. I must say the veggies are like instant energy. No coffee needed.
Breakfast- 'green' smoothie (delicious): 1 cup spinach greens, 1 cup almond milk, 1 tbsp sunflower butter, 1 large banana
Snack- apple (with some protein)
Lunch- 1 cup black beans on 2 cups lettuce, 2 tbsp olive oil, lemon
Snack- apple (with some protein)
Dinner- tofu, veggie burger, fish, or turkey, various cooked and raw veggies
It's very easy to be full on this and eat under 1400 cals per day.
I have been doing clean eating for about a month. I went off of it for about a week, and man did I regret it. I have lost around seven pounds so far and have never felt better.
I would say that I lost a large portion of my weight by just cleaning up my diet. After that, I had to get a bit strict with myself in order to continue losing weight.
Nelie, You're determination is evident. You are inspiring me. How long has it been since you began your weight loss journey? I weigh 280 and cannot seem to drop below it. Everytime I get to like 275, I stack back on the lbs. The heaviest I have been was 294. I was depressed and ready to give up.
I saw my doctor and received approval to get the gastric bypass surgery. After going through all the motions, the surgeon told me I had to loose 25 lbs to get the surgery. At that point I decided I was not getting the surgery. If I can lose 25 lbs, I can lose all the weight I want...
Further, I research gbp and found that the doctors know the immediate effects og the surgery but the long term results are inconclusive.
Today, I have eaten clean. I took my insulite and plan to walk atleast 30 - 45 mins tonight.
I found eating carbs in moderation is best. I have any carbs I want after my morning workout. But, my meals in the evening (I eat 4 to 5 times a day) consist of a lean protein and fibrous veg. I do have a cheat day once a week in which I allow myself to eat whatever I want... which means carbs for dinner. I love this diet.
Sticking to whole foods is a great start... just remember to portion control. I've always been into eating whole foods. However, I managed twice in my life to put on 30lbs by not watching my portions. It's so easy to get into the mind set "but, it's health food... I can eat more of it." NOT SO.
4 years ago, I was 360 lbs and I decided to lose weight. I had bounced between 360-330 for many years prior to that but could never get below 330. When I was given my PCOS diagnosis, I was also giving BCPs to help regulate my hormones. I think they did help some with the weight loss. With lifting weights and eating cleaner, I dropped 75 lbs within a few months. I stalled there for 18 months, trying to eat clean and lift weights but I had to be more careful of my calories to drop down to 260, where I stalled for a while, then dropped down to 220 late last year. I've been struggling since trying to maintain myself in the low 200s and yes it is once again time to get strict with myself to drop below 200.
Anyone with PCOS having success with "eating clean"?
