Why PCOS is Making You Exhausted
There’s a good reason why you’re so exhausted with PCOS and I shared more about it in the new to PCOS series I’m doing on social media today.
You see, with PCOS we tend to ride a blood sugar rollercoaster through the day and it’s caused by 2 major things- the influence of stress hormones like cortisol which raise our blood sugar and our bodies resistance to insulin which is a hormone that helps bring our blood sugar back down in these situations and after meals.
It’s the confluence of these two hormones- insulin and cortisol fluctuating throughout the day that tend to drive many of the PCOS symptoms we’re familiar with like irregular periods and facial hair because insulin is what stimulated our bodies to make more “male” hormones like testosterone and this is where so many PCOS symptoms originate!
Now what this feels like in your body can look a couple ways- either you feel more energized after meal but you’re crashing a couple hours later, or even getting weak, shaky, or a headache and feeling like you need to eat a snack
OR
You’re super fatigued after your meal like you need to take a nap after lunch and you’re leaning on caffeine to get you through
As a nutritionist I know that I can’t expect you to make any long term lifestyle changes while you’re feeling this tired so the first step to PCOS management is to work on regulating your energy.
We’ll talk about some simple solutions for that in the next video but I wanted to send you a little sneak peak and just as a reminder, last week I released
my new course PCOS foundations which is designed to help you through these first changes and I’d love to share it with you! Click here or scroll down for more information.
Now here are some simple things you can do to start balancing out your energy levels with PCOS and get off that blood sugar rollercoaster!
- Add a large portion (about a palm sized amount) to each of your meals. Protein is the single biggest thing you can do to truly regulate your PCOS blood sugar and so many of us don’t get enough!
2. Work really hard on getting 8 hours of sleep. I know how difficult this is but when you don’t get enough sleep, it actually increases cravings and stress hormone spikes the following day making you more insulin resistant!
3. Switch coffee for matcha (
this is the brand I recommend)- if you’re already a caffeine drinker, this could very much be playing into those stress hormone spikes. Matcha has a steadier energy profile- meaning it releases caffeine slower and can help to prevent crashes.
4. Make all your snacks mini-meals. Also known as- never eat a naked carb! I’ll talk more about this soon but snacks should always have a protein, fat, and fiber component to really meet your PCOS needs. Sometimes this even means adding to a snack!
Now if you’re curious about the course, here are some FAQs
What is PCOS Foundations?
PCOS Foundations is a functional nutrition based course for those who are new to their PCOS healthy lifestyle journey. Whether you were recently diagnosed or just new to nutrition for PCOS- this course will walk you through the basics of all you need to know to start managing your PCOS better NOW.
What will I learn?
In beautiful video presentations you’ll learn where your PCOS symptoms come from, the three root drivers of symptoms and how they affect you.
You’ll learn some labs and supplements that might help you on your path and most importantly:
You’ll learn what to eat, how to eat, when and WHY.
You’ll learn how to alter other parts of your lifestyle- like your activity and stress in ways that make sense and are practical for real people.
You’ll gain a deeper understanding of the many facets and connections that PCOS has to all of your health and learn to integrate these changes in a way that will be real and sustainable.
What will I eat?
A 4 week meal plan with recipes and grocery lists is included to help you start making changes right away.
You’ll be eating real, whole foods from all food groups.
You’ll also learn tricks to eyeballing and intuitively planning PCOS meals for yourself so you can create your own version of a PCOS healthy diet.
For a limited time- enrollees will also receive these BONUSES:
The PCOS Guide to Meal Prepping and Planning– all about how to meal prep and plan for PCOS!
The Mini-Guide to PCOS Gut Healing
How much does it cost?
This is the best part- I am currently pricing PCOS Foundations at just $49.
PCOS Foundations is my gift of love to the PCOS Community. I’ve dreamed of having the ability to create a course that could help get you on the path to success but wouldn’t break the bank. I know that you might be hesitant to spend your hard-earned money on a nutrition course during these times of inflation and I know that your time and attention is even more valuable.
This course is one way I’m hoping to say thank you for the years of support and trust from the PCOS community- I’m confident you’ll find lots of value in these modules and I can’t wait to see all the changes (big and small!) that come out of it.
When I was diagnosed with PCOS back in 2009, I longed for something simple and straightforward like this to help me cement the lifestyle changes I knew I needed to make.
It didn’t exist for me, so I brought it to life for you.
Sending so much love to you!!
