Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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So I am wondering if what i am thinking is backwards or not...

So i was on the Pill for about 10 years..went off...went through a hormonal storm..started seeing my naturopath and shes giving me Bio-identical Progesterone to try and get balanced.

Things have been feeling better with regards to energy-not many sign of depression-overall feeling a little better..

BUT!---of course my weight and body comp has changed. Now, when i was on the pill through exercise and careful diet I could get very lean on my upper body..have definition in my arms etc, but couldn't get my lower body to do ANYTHING (most likely the estrogens in the pill)

Now that I am off and lowering estrogens through herbs and Bio-iden. Progest. my body fat % has increased and mostly in my upper body..my arms are very flabby (i've been lifting weights to try and tone them) to no success, and i just have a very round, soft look, and can't get leaner no matter how much i try..

Wondering if it is possible that because i am off of the pill, and now trying to ovulate and cycle on my own, my body is thinking "ok we might have a baby coming" so it is holding on to body fat for prep/protection? Is this possible?

Bottom lined question is : Is it possible that while on the pill I could get leaner because my body already was tricked into being pregnant synthetically, where as now off the pill my body is holding onto/storing fat in prep for potential pregnancy?

Anyone know anything about this? I have heard SOOO many women who say they get leaner when they go off the pill...is it possible I am the opposite?

INfo: Been off the pill for a couple months, 27, female, 5'9, 10lbs from ideal weight...workout 5-6 times per week, balance of cardio, weights, HIIT and Yoga. Strict 90% Paleo..

Thanks in advance!

flag	asked Jun 25 at 21:17 1andonly 31●1

Crowlover · Answer 1 · 2012-06-25 22:58:14Z UTC

I agree that your body likely needs more time to re-calibrate.

That said there are a couple of common misconceptions that I often see, here and elsewhere that may be playing into what you are experiencing. Not sure what pill you were on but this info. may still apply. If you have pre-menstrual anxiety or depression than it may really apply and you may want to get a comprehensive hormone assessment (saliva is considered better than blood by most docs in this area).

The first myth is that Estrogen causes weight gain in women. Im not sure how and why this myth got started but it is, in fact the opposite. Declining levels of estrogen, as is seen in women during peri-menopause and menopause, is what in fact contributes to increased weight gain particularly in the abdomen.

The second is that estrogen dominance means you have too much estrogen. I doesn't.

While that may be true sometimes, I bet its rare. What it means is that you have too low Progesterone. HOWEVER both can be less than optimal. At age 30 I started getting severe PMS/PMDD. The first functional medicine MD and ND I went to gave me bioID progesterone but didn't address the fact that I had both low progesterone AND less than an optimal level of Estrogen (very very low in the reference range). Progesterone hrt alone only helped me a little bit. I got 100% relief with the addition of a small amount of Bio-ID Estrogen in addition to the progesterone. Im not saying you need this at all. I just want to point out that estrogen dominance and the role of estrogen in weight are often misunderstood.

I am unclear why, at age 27 you would need to LOWER your estrogen level. That makes no sense and if it has corresponded with an increase in weight gain, your estrogen may be less than optimal. I personally would want to consult with an ND or MD who does bio-identical hormone balancing. It concerns me that they are trying to lower your estrogen. Yikes.

Dragonfly · Answer 2 · 2012-06-25 21:44:40Z UTC

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I think it's just going to take a few more months to let your hormones get back into balance.

I've taken bio-identical Progesterone for peri-menopausal symptoms for the last year and have not noticed any increase in body fat, except when I decrease my walking.

Suggest dropping the cardio and doing more gentle walking. 1.5-2 hours a day (including all daily moving) seems to help me lean out the most.)

answered Jun 25 at 21:44

Dragonfly
31.2k●1●8●41

Dragonfly do you ever recommend woman use pregnenolone at first, to increase progesterone rather than progesterone hrt directly. Thats' what our ND recommended for two friends, in there late 20s who had bad menstrual cramps and less than optimal (low end of reference range) progesterone levels. The ND likes to try that first in young women before going straight to progesterone cream and it did work! Thanks – Crowlover Jun 26 at 2:23

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If you are working with an ND who can prescribe it, great! I work as a pregnancy & nutrition coach and Progesterone cream is available OTC, so that is my easy recommendation. I have worked with a client in her 20s who successfuly used Pro-gest for some estrogen-dominance symptoms. Ultimately, D3 supplementation (along with Zinc. Magnesium & a whole-animal Paelo/Primal diet will sort things out--it can just take a bit longer. – Dragonfly Jun 26 at 4:21

OK thanks. Just Fyi the pregnenolone used by my two friends per our ND (we have the same ND) is a supplement in pill form by Allergy research group. I know it can be compounded into a cream as well but these women took the caps and it did in fact raise their progesterone and help their symptoms. Thanks – Crowlover Jun 26 at 5:59

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Good to know, Crowlover. – Dragonfly Jun 26 at 13:06

Does this make sense..? Re: Hormones/Weight/Fat Distr.

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