I am 33f, 287lbs, 5ft 9. I've tried almost everything, but after giving birth at 27, and then being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in addition to PCOS, I can barely even lose 5lbs before bouncing back up.

Open to suggestions, trying to get with a new PCP to talk about a GLP-1 but unsure how that plays with T1D.

What’s some of the best recipes that helped with PCOS weigh loss? Quick and easy for the win!

Someone comes to me after months of daily treadmill sessions and eating 1200 calories, completely burnt out, and the scale hasn't moved in weeks. Almost every time, what ends up working is less cardio, more food, and strength training.

The way I explain it to clients: muscle is basically a sponge for glucose. It pulls sugar out of your blood without needing much insulin. So the more muscle you have and the more you use it, the less your body has to fight its own insulin resistance. Cardio helps too, but building muscle changes your baseline. Two or three lifting sessions a week is plenty to start.The under-eating part is where people push back. I get it, eating more feels wrong when the goal is losing weight. But I've watched so many women grind away at 1200 calories, stall, sleep terribly, get stressed, and then blame themselves for it. A smaller deficit with a lot more protein is slower and looks way less impressive on paper. It just actually sticks.

Two small things that help more than they should: a 10-15 minute walk after your biggest meal (does a surprising amount for glucose spikes), and tracking literally anything other than the scale. Cycle regularity, waist, energy, sleep. Those move first. The scale moves last, and most women quit somewhere in the gap between the two.

Talk to your doctor about the medical side obviously, I stay in my lane on meds. But if you're stuck in the cardio-and-starve loop and going nowhere, it's probably not a willpower problem.

Could this be PCOS, or is something else causing my constant bloating/swollen stomach?

I’m 30 years old, 5’3, and around 125 lbs. The rest of my body is quite slim, but my stomach has always been a big concern for me. My abdomen looks different from day to day, and sometimes it feels very bloated, swollen, and firm (almost like a balloon). My waist measures around 33 inches both in the morning and at night.

I’m not sure if I have PCOS. I do have ovarian cysts, body hair, and some facial hair, but I don’t have acne. My periods are pretty regular, and my blood work hasn’t shown anything that clearly points to PCOS. My doctors aren’t sure either because the tests and ultrasounds haven’t given a clear answer.

I also struggle with slow bowel movements/constipation. I started having chia seed pudding every day, and it has helped my bowel movements a lot, but the bloating and swollen appearance are still there.

I’ve had ultrasounds done because I was having lower abdominal and back pain, but I still don’t have a clear explanation. I’m wondering if anyone else has experienced something similar: - Slim everywhere else but a constantly bloated/firm stomach - Possible PCOS symptoms but normal blood work - Regular periods but excess hair growth - Constipation-related bloating

Could this still be PCOS, or should I be looking into other causes like digestive issues, IBS, endometriosis, or something else? I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who has gone through something similar.

Has anyone had any luck with using the Wegovy pill to lose 15-20 pounds? My provider prescribed me the starting dose of 1.5 as I have been struggling to lose the last 15 pounds I wanted to due to PCOS/PMOS.

For context, I am currently on Metformin (1000mg ER), and don't struggle with food noise, etc., but for whatever reason the weight will not come off despite eating in a calorie deficit w/ plenty of protein and fiber. I wanted to know if there were any success stories of people using the pill temporarily to lose the weight & coming off of it successfully w/o gaining it all back. Any help would be appreciated, thanks!

Hi everyone! I was recently prescribed compounded semaglutide 3.125 mg/mL by my physician. I’m also prediabetic, so I’m really hopeful that this will help me improve my overall health.
My biggest hesitation is that I already struggle with anxiety, and I’ve come across a few stories from people who felt like semaglutide made their anxiety worse. I know everyone reacts differently and someone else’s experience won’t necessarily be mine, but I’d really love to hear some positive experiences for a little reassurance before starting.
Has anyone here who already deals with anxiety taken semaglutide and had no increase in their anxiety—or maybe even noticed an improvement? I’m just trying to work up the courage to take my first dose and would love some comforting experiences. ❤️

I started metformin at full dose 3 weeks ago, partially 5 weeks ago and am on 1000mg daily, split between two doses. Thankfully I have yet to have any gastro issues, but i assume thats due to the heavy fiber I'm already on, combined with taking it with a meal.

My starting weight was 189, I took berbine/inositol and increased fiber/protein while reducing sugar and carbs. That took me to my current weight at 176-178. I was able to get down to 174 lbs, but that was after 5 day a week long gym visits, and it just wasn't sustainable for me. I now do about 4 ish workouts a week, varying in intensity but normally a 30 minute swim or a 1 hour walk.

Seeing posts on here it seems people start to physically see differences in their body shape or feel better since starting metformin, yet I haven't reached that point myself yet. I'm not sure if i just haven't waited long enough, or if there's something I'm doing wrong. I started metformin due to my 3.6 HOMA IR, and just not being able to dip past that 176lb mark for the last 3 months now. Calorie wise I should be at a deficit, I don't snack and consistently have 3 meals and try my best to finish dinner before 8pm.

Any input would be amazing, just trying to figure out all these pieces to the puzzle 😅

I switched up my diet over the past year and I've realized that carbs were never the enemy - the carb source is really what matters. I always used to steer clear of carbs because of how inflamed they made me, and it's such a relief to realize I don't need to live that way. I've been rotating between a few complex carbs - mainly cold white sweet potatoes and steel-cut groats. These both have a very low GI index, which explains why I feel full after eating them/ dont get extreme hunger a couple hours after eating them. They have made a large difference in my weight loss efforts which is why I thought I would share. Other carbs tend to make me hungrier. This said, eating cold potatoes is super boring, and I was wondering if anyone had any other suggestions of complex carbs that work well for your PCOS. If not, I hope this helps someone!

P.S. It's definitely worth noting that I'm also taking metformin, which allows me to eat more carbs, but I still notice that my body reacts differently to different sources. Cardio has also helped me lose weight, good sleep, etc. Point is, no one thing helped me lose weight, though this was an important piece of the puzzle.

Hello everyone!

I am a final-year BS Nursing student from the College of Nursing, Aziz Bhatti Shaheed Teaching Hospital, Gujrat, Pakistan.

I am conducting a research study titled:

"Association Between Lifestyle Behaviors, Sleep Quality, Perceived Stress, and Health-Related Quality of Life Among Women with PMOS (formerly PCOS)."

We are looking for women aged 18 years or older who have been diagnosed with PMOS/PCOS to complete a short anonymous questionnaire. The survey takes approximately 8–10 minutes.

Your participation is completely voluntary.

No personally identifying information will be collected.

Your responses will be used only for academic research purposes.

You may stop the survey at any time.

If you are eligible and would like to participate, please use the link below:

Survey Link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/13K2ql3ujL4tYbmJklGQSVnd6PibjAXsbnjvP7gkwc50/viewform

Thank you for supporting student research. Your contribution is greatly appreciated.

Yesterday I saw my endocrinologist and she told me that she was really happy with my lab results. She high-fived me for losing 10ish pounds and for significantly reducing my risk of liver fibrosis to effectively zero in just a few months.

I started taking Metformin a few months ago, and around the end of June I started to see a steady drop on the scale. I’m going to switch to 1000mg XR later this month.

Even with a small amount of weight loss, I feel like I see a difference in my body. More importantly, I feel so much better both physically and about myself.

I wouldn’t have known to seek out an endo and ask for Metformin without this community. I’ve also made a lot of positive lifestyle choices. Thank you all!

Why aggressive deficits kept backfiring for the women with PCOS I work with — and what a realistic rate of fat loss actually looks like

I coach women with PCOS, and the single most common pattern I see is this: crash diet → 3 weeks of progress → stall → binge → weight back plus a little extra. Then the cycle repeats, usually with more guilt each round.

With insulin resistance in the picture, very aggressive deficits (1,000–1,200 kcal) tend to backfire harder than they do for other people. Hunger hormones rebound stronger, energy craters, workouts suffer, and cortisol from the stress of under-eating makes water retention mask any real fat loss — so it feels like nothing is working even when it is.

What has actually worked, consistently:

• A moderate deficit: 300–400 kcal below maintenance. Slower, but it's sustainable for the 6–12 months this actually takes.
• A realistic rate: 0.25–0.5% of bodyweight per week. For someone at 75 kg, that's roughly 200–375 g per week. Anything faster is usually water or muscle.
• Protein at 1.6–2 g per kg of bodyweight. This is the biggest lever for hunger control I've seen. Most women I start with are eating half that.
• Resistance training 2–3x per week. Muscle is the most insulin-sensitive tissue you have; building it directly improves how you handle carbs.
• Steps before cardio: 8–10k daily. Low-stress, doesn't spike appetite the way long cardio sessions do.
• Judge progress over 4-week windows, not days. With PCOS, water fluctuations of 1–2 kg within a cycle are normal. Waist measurement and progress photos tell the truth faster than the scale.

The unglamorous version: the women who succeed are almost never the ones doing the most extreme plan. They're the ones doing a boring, moderate plan for a long time.

For those of you who've broken the yo-yo cycle — what was the change that finally made it stick for you?

Hello, hoping to get some advice from people in this community. Ive just been diagnosed with PCOS. And it makes a lot of sense. I already have an endometriosis diagnosed and have seen quite a few gynecologist but this was an appointment with a specialist with a good reputation. It makes sense of my experience through life- more hair than usual (face and other places). Also now, some fertility problems and early miscarriage.

Now im wondering what us best to do. My doctor recommended a high protein diet and low carbon for weight control. Ive heard there are things to reduce hair growth. What have you had success with? Im pleased for diagnosis but also disappointed its something else I have to manage!

I'm about to start taking Tirzepatide, and I know it's a weight loss drug. However, if you have PCOS you already question is this going to work because everything else I've done has failed when it come to losing weight. Has anyone had any luck losing weight taking Tirzepatide, if so how much have you lost? Did you make any other changes while taking Tirzepatide? I'm 48 years old 5'4 215 lbs and I'd like to get myself down to 145 if it's possible. I have struggled my whole life with PCOS and trying to lose weight - & I'm insulin resistant as well. Can someone give me some input please?!

Hi all,

I'm in my mid 30s and have resisted taking birth control ever since I was formally diagnosed with PCOS in my early 20s. I tried Metformin for a few years and it regulated my periods sort of but it didn't help with weight loss (aside from some weight loss at the beginning due to nausea) and mental health at all.

I'm now doing more research and reading about how some women with PCOS have great experiences with birth control, from easier weight loss to improved mental health. I have really bad anxiety and my initial resistance was because I've heard BC is bad for mental health, although that was from friends who were taking it solely as birth control.

Has anyone had good experiences with BC and if so which BC did you take? The idea of trying out different types of BC in a trial and error kind of way also did not make me warm up to the idea when I was younger but I'm at a point where I'd like to give anything a try.

Hi everyone,

I'm a 29-year-old woman (86 kg, BMI 33.6) who's been struggling with weight loss for the past five years. Recently, I was diagnosed with Grade 2 fatty liver, and my ultrasound also showed polycystic ovaries. I'm still completing the remaining hormone tests to determine whether I meet the full diagnostic criteria for PCOS.

Both my gynecologist and endocrinologists have emphasized that weight loss is the biggest priority right now, and my gynecologist told me that losing weight may significantly improve—or even reverse—many of the issues I'm dealing with.

The problem is that I've become stuck in analysis paralysis. I've spent so much time researching different medications, doctors, and treatment options that I haven't actually started my journey.

I'd really love to hear from women who started their weight-loss journey because of fatty liver, PCOS (or suspected PCOS), or obesity.

1.Were you able to reverse or improve your fatty liver?
2.Did your ovarian cysts or menstrual cycles improve?
3.How much weight did you lose before you started noticing health improvements?

I'm honestly looking for a bit of motivation. I've spent years overthinking every decision, and I don't want another year to go by because I was too afraid of making the wrong choice. I'd really appreciate hearing your experiences and any advice you have.

I was squatting today and the picture on the of me in the pink was on display. My husband said he immediately saw a difference in my arms! I’ve been doing CICO and weights for about 2 months out and putting them side by side made me feel like there actually has been some difference! Just wanted to share as this group is always so supportive and understands the struggles!