Why PCOS and DIETS don't mix well
- Meg Clifford
- Jul 1, 2020
- 3 min read
Updated: Dec 8, 2020
I've been on my fitness journey for a month now. What has been different this time is that I have not been on a diet. Instead, I have been focusing on changing my lifestyle to better manage my PCOS symptoms. This has meant changing the way I approach food and exercise. In this blog post, I focus on why diets don't work and then look at healthy ways to lose weight for women with PCOS.
Why not watch my video on why PCOS and Diets don't mix:
I want to talk about why diets FAIL
There are PLENTY of diets out there, I'm sure you have come into contact with MANY of them: Keto, Raw foodism, Juice cleanses, Atkins, I know I have certainly tried a lot of them. SO what do they all have in common? They allow people to lose weight because they restrict calories (often by a lot) all whilst restricting certain foods (that you will almost certainly want to resume after the diet stage is over)
The problem with these diets is that they don't work in the long run. The stats show that 95% of people gain back all their weight within 3 years and the worst part is that almost 2/3rds of people actually put on more weight than when they started.
People put weight back on for a number of reasons, but one that you might not have considered is this cycle:
If you restrict calories by a lot and cut out heaps of food groups you are likely to lose weight quickly
In the process, you will lose lean body mass as well as fat mass
Your metabolic rate will also fall
Then when you have gone on that holiday that you starved yourself for, what happens next? It's unlikely that you're going to be able to stick to eating a HUGE calorie deficit for the rest of your life.
SO what happens?
You start eating normal amounts (you might eat more as a result of increased hunger due to hormones associated with quick weight loss)
your metabolism is slower (due to metabolic adaptation or self-defence) so it doesn't operate as efficiently as before
You are likely to put on more weight than before because of the above and the worst part is that it's likely to be made up of FAT MASS as opposed to lean body mass.
This is why people get hooked on yoyo diets and this is not a good way to manage your PCOS.
How to lose weight the right way
Throughout my PCOS fitness journey, I've learnt that the most important element of losing weight is energy balance. This means the relationship between energy in (food calories which are taken into the body through food and diet) and energy out (calories being used in the body for our daily energy requirements).
To make clearer what I have been doing to lose weight with PCOS the right way, I have made a bullet point list below:
I've been cutting out processed foods, this is something that I will be able to stick to in the future as it's a way of life that means I don't have to cut out all different food groups and allows me to continue to enjoy what I am eating
I've been getting a lot more low-intensity workouts in (read my article on the top types of low-intensity exercise for women with PCOS)
I've stopped unhealthy snacking and switched to healthy alternatives, such as having an apple or a kiwi instead of a cookie
I'm drinking a lot more water - I am to drink 1.5 litres a day
I am tracking my exercise and activity on my Fitbit and getting into competition with friends to keep motivated
I am recording my progress, through this blog and my social media channels. This has given my journey a sense of commitment because I have put it out there to the world that I am on this PCOS journey for my health and I want to deliver on that promise to myself.
Make sure you are staying healthy, if you are hungry then EAT! Just make sure to go for a healthy alternative.
Thank you to everyone supporting and following my PCOS journey; I'm aiming to raise awareness of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome which has had a big impact on my life. I post all of my daily videos on my TikTok and a weekly summary on my Youtube channel if you would like to follow along!
You can also find me on social media:
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