Hard To Lose Weight On My Period

During your menstrual cycle, you may notice your weight fluctuate. It’s actually quite normal to feel like you’re retaining water and have cravings during this time of the month.

These changes may cause you gain up to two kilos, but generally it will go away after you’ve finished bleeding. Exercising is usually the last thing on your mind when you’re on your period.

In fact, for the majority of us, we tend to feel bloated and reach for the chocolate, chips and all those other unhealthy foods.

I've Hit A Weight Loss Plateau!

We share how mums on following The Healthy Mummy’s 28 Day Weight Loss Challenge cope on their period without derailing all of their hard work…

Insulin regulates your blood glucose levels, and the high level of insulin in your body may result in low blood sugar. And this is why most women crave something sweet, with chocolate usually being the go-to snack.

The best way to stop yourself from overeating during your period, is to log everything you are eating on your Healthy Mummy app. This will help you keep track of your calories.

Influencers Showing Reality Of How Female Bodies Bloat During Periods

Also, if you are craving sugary foods, stick to fruit – which is a natural sweetener – and eat regularly to help keep your blood sugar levels up.

If you can, try to sleep more during your period and eat food to help keep you energised. How our Healthy Mummies stay in control during that time of the month Shelley Moore has lost 6.5kg

“If I don’t want to undo all my hard work with eating well and exercising, I need to be prepared for the inevitable belly aches and chocolate cravings, ” she says.

Unknown Reasons For Weight Gain During Your Period

“To manage this,  I like to keep exercising right up until the day my period starts, then have a rest day on day one and a gentle walk on day two.

“I find walking also helps relieve the cramps. I try to prepare a chocolate based Healthy Mummy snack in the days leading up to my period so that I’m not tempted to buy a block of chocolate or demolish a tub of ice cream when those cravings hit!”

“To manage the drop in energy, I swear by the Super Greens. It picks me up like coffee, but with all the extra iron and vitamins my body really needs at that time of the month.”

How To Lose Weight During Menopause: A 5 Day Diet Plan

“I like to try and have two Healthy Mummy Tummy smoothies a day during this time to try and relieve some of the bloating feeling, ” she says.

“I try not to listen to much to the scales over this time because I know it’s the hormones playing tricks on me.

“When my period arrives, I get very intense cramps in my lower tummy and lower back pain also for those two days, I tend to find if I can push through some sort of exercise I usually feel a bit better after, and if my body doesn’t at least my mindset is in the right place.”

Gaining Muscle But Not Losing Fat? Here's Why!

“Before and during my period I always crave sweet treats, I like to be prepared with some Healthy Mummy snacks and sometimes even a few pieces of dark chocolate can curb my cravings.

“I’m a lot more hungry when I’m on my period so I opt for snacks that are of a bigger volume for example rice cakes with ham and cheese.”

What’s more, Nicole admits she gets quite moody when she’s on her period so a boxing session or a fast walk will help alleviate some tension. Gemma Corey has lost 25kg

How Long Does It Take To Lose Weight?

Gemma admits her period used to derail her as she’d eat more takeaways, as she was too tired to cook and would eat blocks of chocolate.

“All of that caffeine and chocolate before bed meant I didn’t sleep well so the sugar cravings and exhaustion would continue, ” she says.

“Not to mention the wild mood swings!!! These unhealthy habits would  be so hard to break when my period ended  too! As a Healthy Mummy I am way better prepared to cope. I suffer from fibromyalgia- so the start of my period usually triggers a pain flare and I always crave comfort foods during this time. 

Why Is My Period So Light? 7 Normal Reasons (and When To Worry)

“To appease my cravings for comfort foods I like to prep easy dinners like Beef Burgers, One Pot Spaghetti Bolognese, Healthier Hot Dogs and Creamy Bacon and Mushroom Ravioli. These are all carb heavy meals so I make sure to have my Carb X beforehand.

“To deal with my chocolate cravings I prep a chocolatey snack like Weet-Bix Slice. That way I can indulge without feeling guilty. I also make sure to have Control X before lunch and dinner to stop me from eating too many extra snacks!”

“If you are too sore and tired don’t force yourself to do a high impact workout. I like to pick a weights or boxing workout which gets me moving but makes me feel strong, ” she says.

Walking But Not Losing Weight: Mistakes And Fixes

“A gentle walk also makes a massive difference! Getting some fresh air always helps! Switch up your meal plan so that you can enjoy the foods you love!

“If you really feel like a chocolate bar, have it, record it using the barcode scanner on the app and move on! Some cravings are tough to get rid of and if you are just going to eat everything in sight until you have it – then it’s better to just enjoy what you really want!”

“Obviously not wanting to undo all the hard work I’ve put into myself the past few weeks, so sticking to a calorie deficit is key, ” she says.

I Feel Fat

“Usually, some sort of Healthy Mummy chocolate for an afternoon snack. Chocolate bliss balls are low in calories so I can usually have 2 a day, and can usually just chuck one in my mouth on the go.

“I also try to do more walks rather than full on exercises. But trying to do whatever I’m comfortable doing. Just listening to my body. If I feel hungry but I just ate. I’ll Have some water and go clean something  it’s a good distraction.”

With more than 6000 delicious (and healthy) recipes, 500 exercises & 24/7 support – the 28 Day Weight Loss Challenge  is designed (and proven) to help busy mums like you lose weight!

Weight Fluctuation: Do You Weigh More On Your Period?

Apple and the Apple logo are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. | Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google LLC.Facebook Icon The letter F. Facebook Email icon An envelope. It indicates the ability to send an email. Email Twitter icon A stylized bird with an open mouth, tweeting. Twitter Snapchat icon A ghost. Snapchat Fliboard icon A stylized letter F. Flipboard Pinterest icon The letter P styled to look like a thumbtack pin. Pinterest Link icon An image of a chain link. It symobilizes a website link url. Copy Link

As a bikini competitor at her leanest in 2015, Hayley Madigan ate just 800 calories and worked out for 2.5 hours a day.

She admits she was in a dark place mentally, but her physical health massively suffered too — despite winning physique competitions and having a body idolized in fitness magazines, Madigan didn't have a period for three years.

Unexplained Weight Loss: 15 Causes, Treatments, Per Experts

And the worst part of it all was that she was told by all the coaches and professionals in the fitness industry that not only was this normal, but it was OK.

Madigan, now a healthy personal trainer who helps women regain their menstrual cycles, had what's known as functional hypothalamic amenorrhea (FHA), which is where you have no period for 90 days or more (or less than three in a year), generally due to stress, over-restrictive dieting, not having enough body fat, or over-exercising.

Not only does FHA mean you can't have children, but it can also lead to osteoporosis and possibly a higher risk of cardiovascular disease.

Best Exercises To Do During Periods

FHA occurs when the pituitary gland in the brain doesn't produce the hormones that signal a follicle (which contains the egg) to grow, meaning you don't ovulate or have a period.

There are three key stressors that lead to FHA, according to Webber: Being too thin for your natural body, over-exercising, and stress. How much each of these is responsible depends on the individual.

Think about it from an evolutionary perspective, she said. When we were all nomadic, if you were very lean, that usually meant it was a time of famine. If you were doing a lot of exercise, that usually meant you were either having to move a lot to find food or you were running away from a predator. And if you were stressed, it was probably because of these things.

Weight Loss: Exercises You Should Do During Periods

In each of these situations, the body shuts down all non-essential processes (such as the menstrual cycle) and knows you're not in a position to reproduce.

Aside from being unable to have children, Webber said when estrogen isn't stimulated, you're at much higher risk of osteoporosis and thus many women with FHA break bones through minor injuries.

I've looked after women who have fractured part of their pelvis just getting out of bed, she said, adding that there's emerging

Negative Side Effects Of Weight Loss That No One Talks About