It was 2013, I was 19 and
diagnosed with a severe case of PCOD. I weighed more than 70kgs, 12 kgs
overweight. Initially, I lost 4-5 kg of weight in 2 months with regular home
exercising and dietary changes as suggested by my gynecologist. For exercise I was
walking for 40 minutes daily. For diet I was allowed roti, bhakri, subzi, and
dal, everything else was out of bounds for me. Same for lunch, dinner,
breakfast, or snack. I did lose weight, but I felt bloated and was feeling very
irritable as the days went by. The diet was driving me crazy and alas I stopped
following it altogether!! I could not
maintain the weight and gained back all of it in less than 15 days. Also, just
walking as an exercise wasn't enough to sustain the weight loss. The diet and
walking did not help a lot with the PCOD issue. I had no zeal to follow any
diet which was restrictive as it made me crave food more. The silver lining, I
did continue exercising and I added weight training coupled with Iyengar yoga
to my exercise routine on my mother's insistence. Walking gradually progressed
to intensive cardio two times a week. I tried switching to healthy and
nutritious food albeit any success. In the meantime my tryst with PCOD
continued. Regular workout although unplanned prevented aggravation of
PCOD.
June 2017, I decided to prepare
for UPSC-CSE fulltime which required substantial hours of my day. Immersing
myself in preparation I stopped exercising completely and was stress eating.
Post my exams I realized I had gained oodles of weight, weighing 96 kg! I was
shocked, devastated, and felt hopeless. The menstruation issues were worse at
this point. Skipping 1-3 months of the menstrual cycle is a very common PCOD
symptom, I experienced the same. At 30 kg overweight my health worsened and aggravated
my already irregular menstrual cycle. PCOD gifted my facial hair, weight, acne, and hair thinning. The constant state of confusion, the anxiety of uncertain
periods, terrible mood swings, lethargy, and all other things associated with
PCOD was very consuming both emotionally and physically. My soul was
frustrated with my body. On some days I felt like scratching off the body I
lived in. Every woman suffering from PCOD will resonate with my mental
condition.
I was extremely desperate to put
an end to this. By this time, I had tried every kind of possible treatment for
PCOD. Allopathy was naturally my first choice, the doctor put me on the usual
contraceptive pill cycles. The side-effects of these pills were a horror. Hair
loss, skin dryness, crazy mood swings, weight gain, and many other. 2 years
later I switched to Ayurvedic treatment it worked reasonably well with no
side-effects and assisted in regulating my periods. The treatments regulated my
menstruation cycle until I was on the prescribed medicines. When I stopped
having the meds barring a couple of regular cycles I was back to square one. I
did not want to keep popping pills all my life. The dependency was
frustrating. I yearned for normal
menstruation that would occur every month without any medication. It wasn't just about losing weight and
getting regular periods it was the distressed state of mind and it was killing
me. I wanted to conquer all the symptoms, I wanted to feel like myself, I
wanted my body to feel aligned with my soul.
The display "96" on the
weighing scale was a wakeup call for me. I made a steel resolve to cure myself.
Lifestyle overhaul is what I needed. My aunt (my angel) suggested me to read
the book by Rujuta Diwekar "The PCOD Thyroid Book." The interventions
were easy, doable, and committable for the long run and suited my palate. I
read all her other books too, saw all her videos on YouTube. I picked up tips
that I felt were useful, charted a simple and sustainable clean diet for myself, and planned a fitness regime. From weighing almost 100kg in June 2018 I was
able to reduce whopping 38 kg by December 2019!! meaning I lost 38 kg in 18
months! I still can't believe I was able to do that (I still sometimes pinch
myself 😊). The
journey of losing 38 kg was eventful. For the initial 8 months, I was losing
3kg/pm post that it was 1 or 2 kg/pm. I did hit a few roadblocks along the
journey. I gained 2 kgs on a weeklong trip where I missed my workouts along
with flouting my diet plan. It was heartache for me, and I decided to never
miss my workout and making a resolution to enjoy food in limits during any
vacation. I always plan my travel workout and arrange my nutrition in a way, I
can comfortably enjoy the local delicacies.
I have read blogs about people knocking off 20-30 kgs in a lesser time
frame, I chose to steer away from that path as I found it risky.
This is what worked for me.
My Exercise plan for a week:
3 days of strength training
2 days cardio
1-day yoga and stretching
1 rest day
Most important- being active
throughout the day. Active meaning, move more sit less. Volunteer at least one
household work every day.
Do not over-exercise!!
My nutrition strategy:
Stick to fresh and home-cooked
desi food.
Avoid junk (restricted to not
more than twice a month). Just eat to please your cravings. Watch the portions.
Completely stop eating packaged
food or drinks. Not just the chips, biscuits and cakes, ketchup are packaged
food too.
Include Local and seasonal fruits
and vegetables.
Re-introduce ghee in meals, 1-2
spoons every day.
Ignore fads like no sugar, no
rice. Eat everything (if its home-cooked) but in moderation.
Most Important- Eat distributed
meals (6-7 meals) and portion control for each meal.
PCOD during my weight loss:
I did not take any kind of
medication for PCOD during this phase. I got my periods in July 2018 after a
gap of 4 months, which was very painful and heavy. August cycle started early,
just 20 days post my July cycle. I bled for 5 months straight i.e. from August
2018 to January 2019. The flow varied; somedays heavy, other days just a drop
or two. These 5 months were difficult. My happiness knew no bounds on the day I
stopped bleeding after the 5-month marathon.
Regular workout and proper
nutrition transformed my life. I no longer needed medication for my PCOD. My
sonography test results showed no signs of cyst on any of my ovaries. I daresay
I cured my PCOD and my body feels so right. The confusion and frustration with
my body are now a thing of the past. I still get a little anxious about getting
my next period. I use that anxiety as a motivation to maintain a healthy
lifestyle. Fitness and health is a lifelong commitment.
I believe more than finding the
right diet for your body and charting the best workout plan it's the
perseverance and consistency what matters. No matter what Don't give up! If you
do, bounce back and quickly. Do not let any vacation, party, or cousin's wedding
deter you from achieving the health and fitness you deserve. I have managed my
workouts on vacations and stopped myself from overeating at parties and
weddings. Most importantly Plan! and Plan well. Don't wait for the Mondays or
new month or new year. Just start today. Start now.
Me at 100kg
Now:
