Diet Community

LunaElora.......Beautiful name.... It just rolls off your tongue. Love it...
Anyway, HI ! Welcome!
The added incentive of trying to maintain your health, OR EVEN IMPROVE IT, is a definite poke in the rear to get started, huh? In January of this year I was put on blood pressure meds and wasn't (and am still not) thrilled about it. I weighed in at 251 that day at the doctor's office. That count is improving and I'm hoping at some point to be off of my bp pills for good. So , lets get you started, ok?
Please , either fill out a food and fitness planner here on WebMD or the planner on Fitday.com. That's always a good first step. I use the planner here on wmd because I'm lazy and I'm always already here, lol. Fill it out and put your daily exercise at the lowest option it gives you, like "slug, snail or sloth" I can't remember what it is but you get the point. Even if you do exercise, this will give you a good starting evaluation for how much you want to lose, with exercise and watching your intake and approximately how long it will take.
Please be aware, that this is YOUR journey. These numbers are something to shoot for, ok? But , everybody's body is different and if it takes you a year and a half or two or five to lose the weight, you will still get there. AS LONG AS YOU PERSERVERE.
That means that you know that birthday cakes will happen. You know that special dinners out with the "girls" or your significant other will happen. That's LIFE. And you can experience it and live it , with better choices. By preplanning, prechecking menus online and asking for a "to go " box to be brought right with your meal, by cutting that meal in half BEFORE you take that first bite (box the other half to take home), by taking a smaller piece of that cake.... you can do anything you set your mind to. NOONE can stop you, but you. That's your choice also.
Once you have started your planner, start the next day. Focus on LITTLE changes so that you don't push yourself into quitting. I KNEW in my heart that I couldn't face a commitment to a lighter menu AND up my exercise, I AM a sloth, you see.... so for the first two weeks, I focused only on reading labels at the grocery store, making better choices for the staples that I like (like ff Miracle Whip, and better lighter, healthier bread choices), and by reading up on what "serving sizes" actually are REALLY for the things that have no labels, like fresh meats, veggies and fruits. You will be surprised at this if you do this too. Even veggies have a recommended serving size and EVEYTHING has calories. Gone are the notions that such and such is a "free food" . You have to chart it all, even herbs and cooking oils. so be aware of what you are using.
You said that you are fairly active and exercise daily, good for you, you are starting in a better place than I did! Now, add a 2-3 block walk every evening at a decent pace to get you somewhat but not totally winded. Concentrate on pace and time yourself. In two weeks, lower that time by at least a min. and again in another two weeks. NOW you are exercising! Google the Couch to 5k and maybe this will inspire you.
I am a full blown member of the 50 -100lb diet community that's where I hang, come look us over if you wish, we are a very open and helpful group, some of whom have actually reached their goals of losing over 100 lbs and STILL blog almost daily just to be there, How great is THAT??
hope this helps some. starting is scary, I know. but now your journey has begun....

Welcome LunaElora!

I'm glad you found us - you're in the right place!

TWO, as always, great encouragement and info!

Here's a discussion from a while back about PCOS and weight loss with information and advice from our expert:

Diet Tips for PCOS

The best place to start might be a meeting with a registered dietician who has an emphasis on diabetes and PCOS. I can imagine that you are overwhelmed at this point - please keep posting, we're here for you!

Haylen

"...I'm terrified that I'll start having heart problems..."

Your fears are reasonable and justified but realize that all fear originate from the "unknown". So, "know what you have yet to learn...

I've mentioned a number of times that fasting blood glucose and blood pressure are better health indicators than how much you weigh. No matter, I trust the Japanese (or Koreans) to take care of this lack of knowledge, soon...maybe in the form of a comprehensive computer seat that ports directly to your laptop and uploads all measures, direct, to your physician or possibly a toilet seat equipped with full diagnostics...


What you should know is that the name we designate to indicate dysfunctional blood glucose control is "diabetes" but the symptoms from this lack of control can manifest anywhere in the human body...in the digestive tract (gastroparesis)...or the eyes (retinopathy)...in the skin (acne, bacterial and fungal infections, psoriasis)...constant peeing (diabetic polyuria, kidney disease)...arthritis...yes, and the heart (heart disease, stroke, CVD, hypertension) and reproductive system (PCOS), too...

The human body cannot speak to us, directly, so it manifests "symptoms" to warn us that things are amiss...PCOS is just one elegant and complex form of this "communication"..."I'm not letting you have a baby at this moment because the baby may be in danger of full physiological and cognitive development, so, momentarily, 'I'm pulling the plug...'; please, make the necessary lifestyle adjustments and we may resume normal function, again..."

In other words, you "fear for your heart". I do, too, LunaElora...but, only should you fail to heed your body's voice. It speaks to you, now.



"...I eat fairly well and exercise everyday and still can't lose weight..."

Diabetes is about lifestyle. I thought I ate fairly well and exercise, everyday but I learned. 1. That not an objective observation, 2. There's more to lifestyle than eating and exercise. Three close family members have died from diabetes complications in my family, so, I educated myself and I "fear", no more...

I hope the same for you. Please address your prediabetes, immediately. Good luck.