- Start initially with regular light exercise once your body adapts to this routine then accordingly begin with moderate exercises like brisk walking, jogging, cycling, or swimming - all are great activities that can help with PCOS.
- Doing 30 minutes or more a day can help with weight management, symptoms of depression & anxiety, as well as improving the regulation of menstrual cycles and ovulation.
- This type of exercise helps to increase your body’s sensitivity to insulin, which also helps in lowering the risk of cardiovascular disease & type 2 diabetes.
- Exercises like squats, push-ups, or tricep dips improve the insulin function in your body. It also helps to boost your metabolism by building more muscle mass. Don’t worry though, you won’t bulk up unless you’re taking steroids!
- More muscle simply means burning more calories while exercising. Combining resistance moves with cardio exercise is the best way to ensure you’re building a lean body and achieving a healthy BMI (Body Mass Index).
- High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) like Burpees, Sprints, Jump Lunges, High Kness, etc. is a time-efficient way of boosting your cardiovascular fitness with extra benefits for PCOS. It helps to burn bucket-loads of calories & lessens the abdominal fat more effectively.
- This can help you with weight management that can help to decrease PCOS symptoms by mitigating excess testosterone & improving insulin resistance.
- Overweight or Obesity can cause lower back pain & poor posture that makes core training essential for your body. These muscles support the spine & learning how to switch them on. If you’re trying to conceive, you can start training your pelvic floor muscles!
- Healthy pelvic muscles can help to boost sexual health and improve pelvic stability to help support a healthy pregnancy.
- The most effective exercise is the one you keep up with, so choose something you enjoy!
- 1. Cardio
- 2. Strength Training
- 3. HIGH-INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING (HIIT)
- 4. CORE STRENGTH
- 1. Suryanamaskar
- 2. Balasana (Child Pose)
- 3. Bhadrakonasana (Butterfly Pose)
- 4. Naukasana (Boat Pose)
- 5. Dhanurasana (Bow Pose)
- 6. Paschimottaasana
- 7. Viparitta Shalabhasana
- 8. Bharadvajasana
- 9. Bhujangasana
- 10. Marjaryasana and Bitilasana
- 11. Prasarita Padottanasana
- 12. Chakki
- 13. Shavasana (Corpse Pose)
- 14. Pranayama
- 15. Yoni Mudra
- In the Indian Society specifically, the subject of Fertility is approached with great caution.
- When the two subjects of fertility and PCOS collide, it often leads to confusion and chaos.
- According to the source, ‘womenshealth.gov’ - PCOS roughly affects 1 in 10 women with cycles of reproductive age, but this likely varies across the population. PCOS leads to hormonal imbalance. In the case of a healthy menstrual cycle, the ovaries produce eggs that are released every month in the uterus.
- Whereas in PCOS, the eggs do not mature completely and thus aren’t released into the uterus during ovulation. But this isn’t the case with everyone. Clean plant based diet, daily exercise, healthy lifestyle choices, and lastly medication (in case needed) can help regulate your menstrual cycle & support ovulation that can increase your chances of getting pregnant. Research shows that over lifetime, women with or without PCOS have a similar number of pregnancies and children.
- To the ladies out there, we request you to speak to a doctor about your fertility issues. There is a high chance that you can get pregnant, both naturally (by adopting healthy lifestyle changes) or by medication.
- According to a health source ‘Fertility Centers of New England’ suggests that women with PCOS might have regular periods, but high levels of androgens (also known as ‘male hormones’) & increased levels of insulin in their bodies can disrupt the monthly cycle of ovulation and menstruation.
- Having PCOS can make periods irregular, or stop altogether. As menstrual cycles lengthen, ovulation can stop entirely (called anovulation) or occur occasionally. Some women with PCOS also experience heavier or lighter bleeding during their menstrual cycle.
- So, should we actually believe that most women with irregular menses will somewhere turn out to be diagnosed with PCOS?
- The answer is No, it’s not true in all cases. Causes of an irregular cycle can be plenty, and PCOS is only one of them. A regular period is anywhere from 21 to 35 days. Apart from that, breastfeeding, extreme dieting, unhealthy eating habits, or overexercising, pelvic inflammatory disease, uterine fibroids, and thyroid disorders are potential causes for a disturbed cycle. Stress, too, plays a critical role in menstruation.
- In case you have menstrual periods less frequently than every 35 days or more than 5 weeks between periods, we would suggest you to get yourself checked for PCOS.
- Quite a lot of women who have PCOS, also have insulin resistance, which happens when the body has difficulty using glucose from the bloodstream and converting it to energy.
- Therefore, the body needs to produce more insulin in an attempt to maintain a normal blood sugar level. Over time, the body begins to overproduce insulin to keep blood sugar level normal. This further leads to more androgen production, slower metabolism and weight gain. Insulin resistance is often cited as a large contributing factor to obesity.
- The health source ‘Fertility Centers of New England’ suggests that obesity can make PCOS symptoms worse. Obesity in PCOS women is reported to be in the range of 30–75%. About 2/3rd of women with PCOS struggle with obesity, Although the remaining 1/3rd of them have normal weight. The women with normal weight are often surprised to find out they have PCOS, as most of them used to believe the myth of only overweight women having PCOS. The relationship between weight and PCOS has to do with the body’s inability to use insulin.
- That’s why getting into the habit of eating a clean, plant based healthy diet along with regular exercise or Yoga is widely recommended.
- 55:35:10 Diet
- 7 Ayurvedic Herbs & Condiments
- 20 Min Exercise Rule
-
ASHWAGANDHAIt helps treat PCOD by correcting the PCOD problems – Irregular menstrual cycle, obesity, infertility, maintaining hormonal balance. It works by reducing the cortisol – a stress hormone and testosterone. Ashwagandha also helps the body use insulin for glucose uptake.
-
TULSITulsi which is referred to as “Queen of Herbs” helps resolving PCOD problems by reducing cortisol levels, blood sugar and preventing weight gain.
-
SHATAVARIShatavari being a phytoestrogen helps women with PCOD to reduce testosterone levels and therefore with insulin resistance. It also contains properties that help restore female reproductive functions with regulating menstrual cycle.
-
GREEN TEAGreen tea has high amounts of antioxidants and is anti-inflammatory in nature. It contains epigallocatechins that helps prevent or slows the conversion of testosterone to Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) thus is a good solution to manage the PCOD problems.
-
FLAXSEEDFlax Seeds are considered very effective in treating PCOD naturally. It contains lignan which binds to testosterone in blood and helps excreting it. Thus having a positive effect on all the testosterone related PCOD problems.
-
CINNAMONCinnamon helps with regulating the menstrual cycle and reducing insulin resistance for women with PCOS.
-
CURCUMINCurcumin in turmeric has an anti-inflammatory effect and helps decreasing insulin resistance.
-
HIITExercising for atleast 20 minutes daily helps improve insulin resistance, reduces excess weight and increases the metabolism. If you don’t have much time on your plate, opt for functional fitness exercises – a combination of strength and cardio in just 20 mins. One of the best workout style in this is HIIT ( High Intensity Interval Training). You can find many HIIT videos on YouTube.
-
YOGAIf you aren’t able to do 20 min HIIT, go for 35-40 mins of Yoga daily. This reduces the stress and strengthens the organs affected in PCOD which helps prevent aggravating the PCOD symptoms. Details about various asana are given above under Exercises and Yoga for PCOS.
PCOS
Fitness
Exercises and Yoga for PCOS
An active healthy lifestyle includes a Healthy Diet & Regular Exercise and/or Yoga routine that needs to be done effectively. It can be extremely helpful in treating the PCOS symptoms so you can live a healthy, happy & fertile life.
Here are the best types of exercise and yoga asana’s that you start with:
EXERCISE/WORKOUT
-
1. CardioHelps in:
Reducing Insulin Resistance
Boosting Fertility
Stabalizing Mood
- Start initially with regular light exercise once your body adapts to this routine then accordingly begin with moderate exercises like brisk walking, jogging, cycling, or swimming - all are great activities that can help with PCOS.
- Doing 30 minutes or more a day can help with weight management, symptoms of depression & anxiety, as well as improving the regulation of menstrual cycles and ovulation.
- This type of exercise helps to increase your body’s sensitivity to insulin, which also helps in lowering the risk of cardiovascular disease & type 2 diabetes.
-
2. Strength TrainingHelps in:
Reducing Insulin Resistance
Boosting Metabolism
Improving Body Composition(Building Muscle & Burn Fat)
- Exercises like squats, push-ups, or tricep dips improve the insulin function in your body. It also helps to boost your metabolism by building more muscle mass. Don’t worry though, you won’t bulk up unless you’re taking steroids!
- More muscle simply means burning more calories while exercising. Combining resistance moves with cardio exercise is the best way to ensure you’re building a lean body and achieving a healthy BMI (Body Mass Index).
-
3. High-Intensity Interval Training (HiiT)Good for:
Cardiovascular Fitness
- High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) like Burpees, Sprints, Jump Lunges, High Kness, etc. is a time-efficient way of boosting your cardiovascular fitness with extra benefits for PCOS. It helps to burn bucket-loads of calories & lessens the abdominal fat more effectively.
- This can help you with weight management that can help to decrease PCOS symptoms by mitigating excess testosterone & improving insulin resistance.
-
4. Core StrengthGood for:
General Well-Being
Preparing your Body for Pregnency
- Overweight or Obesity can cause lower back pain & poor posture that makes core training essential for your body. These muscles support the spine & learning how to switch them on. If you’re trying to conceive, you can start training your pelvic floor muscles!
- Healthy pelvic muscles can help to boost sexual health and improve pelvic stability to help support a healthy pregnancy.
- The most effective exercise is the one you keep up with, so choose something you enjoy!
YOGA ASANAS
Calm your mind & relax your body. Please ensure to relax while doing asanas by coordinating it with breathing. Try to maintain proper posture & hold it. Try to do it until you are able to hold the correct posture. Take long & deep breaths and let’s start with the asanas.
-
Suryanamaskar
This helps in weight loss & enhances body flexibility while treating hormonal imbalances.
-
Balasana (Child Pose)
Balasana aids to release lower back tensions, menstrual cramps & normalizes blood flow throughout the body.
-
Bhadrakonasana (Butterfly Pose)
This asana is excellent that helps to improve metabolism & strengthen abdominal organs. It works on the spinal column and is known to work wonders to balance blood pressure. It also facilitates in regulating menstrual problems.
-
Naukasana (Boat Pose)
This asana is useful in treating PCOS because it aids in promoting weight loss, tightening the muscles of the abdomen. It also helps in improving ovarian functions by enhancing blood flow.
-
Dhanurasana (Bow Pose)
This posture helps to stimulate the reproductive organs, lessens menstrual pain & normalizes menstrual cycles. It has also proved to relieve stress and anxiety.
-
Paschimottaasana
This asana stretches the lower back, hamstrings, and hips. It aids in improving fertility & mitigating stress.
-
Viparitta Shalabhasana
It supports toning of the abdomen, enhances blood circulation to the reproductive organs & strengthens muscles in the body.
-
Bharadvajasana
This asana is excellent that helps to improve metabolism & strengthen abdominal organs. It works on the spinal column and is known to work wonders to balance blood pressure. It also facilitates in regulating menstrual problems.
-
Bhujangasana
The cobra pose helps the pelvis & the back. It positively affects the ovaries and the uterus. It exerts a soothing pressure on the stomach and stretches the pelvis thus aiding digestion & blood circulation.
-
Marjaryasana and Bitilasana (Cat and Cow Pose)
The cat and cow postures relax the shoulder & the neck while massaging the abdomen and improving the reproductive organs. They are one of the most effective asanas that help in relieving ovarian pain.
-
Prasarita Padottanasana
It helps to increase blood circulation to the ovaries and works the hips & the lower back. It also stretches the legs & the back.
-
Chakki Chalanasana
It is also called “Moving the Grinding Wheel’. This posture helps in improving abdominal functions and exercises the uterus & reproductive organs. It helps to promote endocrine functions and hormonal secretions. It is an excellent asana that helps to strengthen the abdominal muscles.
-
Shavasana (Corpse Pose)
It is very important to practice this asana after every yoga session. It helps to promote relaxation by making you focus on breathing, mitigates stress, and tension in the body & mind.
-
Pranayama
Pranayama is an essential part of yoga. Breathing exercises provide an excellent way that helps to lower stress.
-
Yoni Mudra
It is a hand gesture & symbolizes the womb or the uterus. It is an excellent exercise that assists to de-stress & calm the mind. It is very effective for PCOS when coupled with breathing exercises.
PCOS
Myth Busters
Learn the Facts
It’s time for some myth-busting & exploring the real facts behind it. Let’s discover the journey of truth thus, guiding us to lead a better, healthier lifestyle!
Myth:
If you have PCOS, does it mean you can’t get pregnant?
Fact: Why are women with PCOS given a doomsday scenario when it comes to starting a family?
- In the Indian Society specifically, the subject of Fertility is approached with great caution.
- When the two subjects of fertility and PCOS collide, it often leads to confusion and chaos.
- According to the source, ‘womenshealth.gov’ - PCOS roughly affects 1 in 10 women with cycles of reproductive age, but this likely varies across the population. PCOS leads to hormonal imbalance. In the case of a healthy menstrual cycle, the ovaries produce eggs that are released every month in the uterus.
- Whereas in PCOS, the eggs do not mature completely and thus aren’t released into the uterus during ovulation. But this isn’t the case with everyone. Clean plant based diet, daily exercise, healthy lifestyle choices, and lastly medication (in case needed) can help regulate your menstrual cycle & support ovulation that can increase your chances of getting pregnant. Research shows that over lifetime, women with or without PCOS have a similar number of pregnancies and children.
- To the ladies out there, we request you to speak to a doctor about your fertility issues. There is a high chance that you can get pregnant, both naturally (by adopting healthy lifestyle changes) or by medication.
Myth:
If your menstrual cycle is irregular, does that mean you have PCOS?
Fact: It is common for quite a lot of women to have irregular periods once in a while, the reasons might differ from person to person.
- According to a health source ‘Fertility Centers of New England’ suggests that women with PCOS might have regular periods, but high levels of androgens (also known as ‘male hormones’) & increased levels of insulin in their bodies can disrupt the monthly cycle of ovulation and menstruation.
- Having PCOS can make periods irregular, or stop altogether. As menstrual cycles lengthen, ovulation can stop entirely (called anovulation) or occur occasionally. Some women with PCOS also experience heavier or lighter bleeding during their menstrual cycle.
- So, should we actually believe that most women with irregular menses will somewhere turn out to be diagnosed with PCOS?
- The answer is No, it’s not true in all cases. Causes of an irregular cycle can be plenty, and PCOS is only one of them. A regular period is anywhere from 21 to 35 days. Apart from that, breastfeeding, extreme dieting, unhealthy eating habits, or overexercising, pelvic inflammatory disease, uterine fibroids, and thyroid disorders are potential causes for a disturbed cycle. Stress, too, plays a critical role in menstruation.
- In case you have menstrual periods less frequently than every 35 days or more than 5 weeks between periods, we would suggest you to get yourself checked for PCOS.
Myth:
Is it true that everyone With PCOS Is Obese or Overweight?
Fact: We often hear about a lot of women having weight management issues and PCOS at the same time.
- Quite a lot of women who have PCOS, also have insulin resistance, which happens when the body has difficulty using glucose from the bloodstream and converting it to energy.
- Therefore, the body needs to produce more insulin in an attempt to maintain a normal blood sugar level. Over time, the body begins to overproduce insulin to keep blood sugar level normal. This further leads to more androgen production, slower metabolism and weight gain. Insulin resistance is often cited as a large contributing factor to obesity.
- The health source ‘Fertility Centers of New England’ suggests that obesity can make PCOS symptoms worse. Obesity in PCOS women is reported to be in the range of 30–75%. About 2/3rd of women with PCOS struggle with obesity, Although the remaining 1/3rd of them have normal weight. The women with normal weight are often surprised to find out they have PCOS, as most of them used to believe the myth of only overweight women having PCOS. The relationship between weight and PCOS has to do with the body’s inability to use insulin.
- That’s why getting into the habit of eating a clean, plant based healthy diet along with regular exercise or Yoga is widely recommended.
PCOS
Healthy Diet
AN EFFECTIVE SOLUTION TO THE PCOD PROBLEM - ZIV APPROACH
The things that we underestimate in our life – are the ones that work wonders! These small lifestyle changes can help you improve hormonal balance. You just to need make ZIV a habit, a part of your lifestyle. It is a 3 pronged Daily approach that includes
- 55:35:10 Diet
- 7 Ayurvedic Herbs & Condiments
- 20 Min Exercise Rule
55:35:10 Diet
The exact solution to PCOD problems is not know. But the symptoms of PCOD can be definitely managed by modifying the unhealthy dietary practices. Opt for a daily diet which has Carbohydrates : Protein : Fat ratio of 55:35:10. That means, the calories that you eat on a daily basis are derived from these macronutrients in the ratio that is closer to the one above.
INCREASE YOUR PROTEIN INTAKE ( ON 1200 KCAL DIET, OPT FOR 90-95 G OF PROTEIN DAILY)
Eating a well balanced diet in PCOD is very important. Protein is a very important nutrient for lean muscle and recovery. High protein diet in PCOD can help manage insulin resistance as protein when compared with carbohydrates doesn’t spike up the production of insulin which also helps in losing weight solving the major PCOD problems. It is very important to chose the protein source wisely as eating more of red meat may lead to increased blood cholesterol causing more problem. Include proteins like – lean meat, poultry, fish, tofu, beans, lentils, eggs, yogurt, cheese, seeds, nuts, etc.
AVOID SIMPLE CARBS, HAVE MORE COMPLEX CARBS
The intake of whole grains like whole wheat, whole oats, Brown rice, Whole barley, Quinoa, Whole Jowar, bajra, etc has to be increased as they are high in fiber as they undergo minimum processing. Foods high in fiber majorly help with insulin resistance which is a major problem to deal with in PCOD. Always look for low glycemic foods like multigrain or whole grain flours.
GO FOR 1-2 SERVINGS OF WHOLE FRUITS & VEGETABLES
Try making your plate as colorful as possible with different fruits and vegetables. Avoiding the intake of fruits on PCOD is a myth. It is true that they contain a little more carbohydrates which can worsen insulin resistance, taking 1-2 servings of fruits daily will rather help manage insulin resistance and PCOD by reducing inflammation as fruits are known to provide very good amounts of fiber, vitamins & minerals and antioxidants. What is one fruit serving
- 1 medium sized Apple
- 1 Orange
- 1 Pear
- 1 Pomegranate
- 1 cup grapes
- 1-2 slices watermelon
- 1-2 slices papaya
- 1 medium sized banana
LIMIT MILK & MILK PRODUCTS TO 1 SERVING A DAY ( IN CASE YOU CAN’T AVOID)
Dairy consumption may elevate the levels of insulin in the body which can trigger excessive production of testosterone further causing serious acne. Milk products along with protein contain good amount of carbohydrates which can also lead to high insulin levels. Growth stimulating hormones like Insulin Growth Factor 1 (IGF-1) and Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) are present in dairy which triggers excessive sebum production and thus cause acne.
No guidelines are available as to how much dairy consumption is required or to avoid dairy completely in PCOD. It is but advisable to women with PCOD to not have more than 1 servings a day.
LIMIT COFFEE INTAKE TO ONCE A DAY ( IF CAN’T AVOID)
Consuming omega 3 in PCOD may also decrease the inflammation caused by insulin resistance or obesity. Omega 3 sources involve – walnuts, flax seeds, chia seeds, salmon, mackerel, tuna, sardines.Women suffering from PCOD should avoid consuming saturated & trans fats. These unhealthy fats can elevate the blood cholesterol and sugar levels. Sources of saturated and trans fats involve – Ghee, butter, coconut oil, lamb, pork, cream, cheese, margarine, biscuits, crackers, bakery products, etc. Always check for the nutritional label before purchasing the food items. Stick to healthy fats like olive oil, mustard oil, ricebran oil – these are unsaturated fats rich in MUFA, PUFA and Omega 3.
7 Ayurvedic Herbs & Condiments
-
ASHWAGANDHA
It helps treat PCOD by correcting the PCOD problems – Irregular menstrual cycle, obesity, infertility, maintaining hormonal balance. It works by reducing the cortisol – a stress hormone and testosterone. Ashwagandha also helps the body use insulin for glucose uptake.
-
TULSI
Tulsi which is referred to as “Queen of Herbs” helps resolving PCOD problems by reducing cortisol levels, blood sugar and preventing weight gain.
-
SHATAVARI
Shatavari being a phytoestrogen helps women with PCOD to reduce testosterone levels and therefore with insulin resistance. It also contains properties that help restore female reproductive functions with regulating menstrual cycle.
-
GREEN TEA
Green tea has high amounts of antioxidants and is anti-inflammatory in nature. It contains epigallocatechins that helps prevent or slows the conversion of testosterone to Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) thus is a good solution to manage the PCOD problems.
-
FLAXSEED
Flax Seeds are considered very effective in treating PCOD naturally. It contains lignan which binds to testosterone in blood and helps excreting it. Thus having a positive effect on all the testosterone related PCOD problems.
-
CINNAMON
Cinnamon helps with regulating the menstrual cycle and reducing insulin resistance for women with PCOS.
-
CURCUMIN
Curcumin in turmeric has an anti-inflammatory effect and helps decreasing insulin resistance.
20 Min Exercise Rule
-
HIIT
Exercising for atleast 20 minutes daily helps improve insulin resistance, reduces excess weight and increases the metabolism. If you don’t have much time on your plate, opt for functional fitness exercises – a combination of strength and cardio in just 20 mins. One of the best workout style in this is HIIT ( High Intensity Interval Training). You can find many HIIT videos on YouTube.
-
YOGA
If you aren’t able to do 20 min HIIT, go for 35-40 mins of Yoga daily. This reduces the stress and strengthens the organs affected in PCOD which helps prevent aggravating the PCOD symptoms. Details about various asana are given above under Exercises and Yoga for PCOS.
