I always knew that if I got pregnant or was trying to become pregnant, I would need to kick the soda out of my life.
But first a little background on how PCOS works to explain why this first step is so crucial!
PCOS often begins, as in my case, with an insulin resistance. Your body makes plenty of insulin but your body doesn't use it properly. So when you eat more sugar and simple carbs, your body produces more and more insulin trying to process it. Normally, insulin breaks down sugars and carbs so that it can enter your cells and be used for energy. But for us PCOS gals, we end up with high levels of blood sugar, high levels of insulin, AND low levels of energy. And on top of it, because the sugars and carbs aren't being used for energy, it get's stored on our bodies as FAT. This is why us PCOS gals are so plump (to put it kindly). Because we aren't getting any energy from these foods, our bodies will crave more and more seeking energy ... and the cycle continues as we get larger.
To add insult to injury, insulin is a hormone (not many people know that) and when one hormone in your body is out of whack, it makes all of the other hormones in your body go crazy too. ... so we get moody!
When testosterone goes high and estrogen goes low, cycles become irregular causing cysts to form on our ovaries (not everyone with PCOS, including myself have this side effect) and hair grows in a falls out in places it shouldn't. Fertility ends up being a strong issue because of this. In addition, the hormones responsible for our moods go crazy ... and frankly, so do we. Our spouses and boyfriends can attest to this.
HOWEVER, there IS HOPE!!! If we can eliminate the foods that trigger the insulin production and eat things that actually provide us with energy (protein), then the insulin levels will regulate. When that happens, all of the other hormones will follow suit.
So the types of food to avoid are foods high in sugar and simple carbohydrates. Sugar is the easy one ... simply cut it out. Simply set yourself a goal of 40g of carbohydrates or less a day, and then a separate goal for "cheat" days such as 60g-70g. With that range you can have most things but not completely blow your diet. I personally try and keep my intake to 30g or less and cheat days are limited to 60g.
We'll talk about simple and complex carbs in a later blog ... it takes a whole segment to explain.
The single highest culprit of sugar is SODA! It is the best first thing to cut out ... yet because of the caffeine, it is also the hardest thing to cut out.
Because us PCOS gals are naturally low in energy, as a whole we seek caffeine to battle this problem. But there are better ways ... there will be a future blog on Protein, the PCOS gal's energy friend.
Tip: Keep Ibuprofen with you at all times!! You will need it, trust me. I haven't had a real soda since the day I was fully diagnosed with PCOS six months ago. And I don't regret the decision at all.
The days will be difficult. At the time I had wished that I had chosen some days off for the first three days, but in the end, it was better to be somewhere I couldn't just break down and drink a soda.
Day one was okay ... I was tired and irritable and needed a sip of soda to get through the day ... a move I regretted.
The second day my head was pounding, I don't think I ever had a worse headache. I couldn't open my eyes and had to take my glasses off because the handles and nose-pieces pinched too hard. I didn't have any headache medicine on me and I thought I was going to give in and buy a soda. When I tried to kick soda before, this day is always when I failed. Since I work at an airport, I broke down and purchased Ibuprofen at a kiosk for $4 a dose .... best $4 I ever spent!
The third day I was smart, I started the day with a dose of Ibuprofen and had an un-sweet tea at lunch. It had just enough caffeine to make me happy and with no sugar or calories, it's a fantastic PCOS drink. .... for those of us used to sweet tea, the bitter taste is hard to get used to and please refrain from the artificial sweeteners as much as possible, but if you must, use stevia. I barely made it through, but I got through the third day.
The fourth day I drug myself out of bed and ate lunch, but by the end of the day, I felt better.
On the fifth day, I was free of soda and feeling better than ever.
Nothing worth having is ever easy, and being soda free is so worth it.
Not only that, the first week after my PCOS diagnosis and kicking soda ... I lost 5 lbs.!
Every now and then when I need a boost, I have a Pepsi Max or Coke Zero. But these should be kept to an absolute minimum ... but if you must, they are a good alternative .... but beware, those artificial sweeteners will slow or halt your weight loss. I'm not sure why it does, but from experience, it does. Some things are what they are.
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