Episode #145: The Ideal PCOS Weight: Finding Your Balance

Welcome back to the PCOS Repair Podcast, where today we’re diving into PCOS and weight management. We’re going to explore some of the myths you may have heard about PCOS and weight loss or weight gain, and ultimately how to find your ideal weight to help balance your hormones. So let’s dive in.

You may have been told by your doctor that losing weight could improve your PCOS symptoms and possibly your fertility. While there’s some truth to that, it’s really important to understand that weight is a symptom of PCOS—it’s not the cause or the cure. That said, having excess weight can make your root causes worse. It increases inflammation and worsens metabolic issues like insulin resistance and elevated cortisol.

In fact, insulin resistance tends to worsen as weight increases. This may not always show up on labs, but your day-to-day response to food—how you feel, your cravings, energy, mood—can be very telling. So no, extra weight doesn’t cause PCOS, but it absolutely plays a role in making symptoms worse, and the relationship is circular.

Also, let’s be clear: there is no one-size-fits-all approach to weight and PCOS. And that’s exactly what we’re going to unpack today.

The Myth of “Just Lose Weight”

One of the most common misconceptions I see is the idea that if you could just lose weight, your PCOS would go away or significantly improve. But here’s the thing: the way you lose weight matters. If you jump on a fad diet, slash calories dramatically, or follow outdated diet advice, you’re more likely to stress your body and worsen your root causes. That can lead to a shut down of your reproductive hormones, disrupted cycles, and increased fatigue.

How to Lose Weight with PCOS

Yes, a calorie deficit is necessary to lose weight—but the right deficit varies person to person. It depends on your starting point, how much weight you want to lose, and it can shift as your body changes.

What matters more than the number on the scale is your body composition—your ratio of body fat to lean mass. Many fad diets are overly restrictive. Sure, cutting out sugar is fine, but eliminating entire food groups can do more harm than good. For example, going ultra-low fat can leave you without enough cholesterol to support healthy hormone production. On the flip side, high-fat diets like keto might not give you the balance of nutrients your body needs either.

Insulin Resistance & Body Fat

Here’s why this matters: muscle is insulin-sensitive. Fat is not. The more lean muscle you have—and the more active that muscle is—the better your body can manage blood sugar. But excess fat tissue contributes to insulin resistance and inflammation, which leads to a cascade of hormone imbalances.

When insulin levels are high, your body is told to store fat and not burn it. This is why it can feel like your metabolism is working against you.

The solution? Build and maintain lean muscle, reduce inflammation, eat balanced meals, and stay in a gentle calorie deficit over time.

Mindset & Self-Acceptance Matter

This is so important. If your mindset around weight loss is focused on speed or punishment, you’re setting yourself up for the dreaded yo-yo cycle. Rapid weight loss often leads to loss of water and muscle, which eventually gets replaced with more fat.

True, sustainable fat loss is slow—about 0.5 to 2 pounds per week, with most women averaging on the lower end of that range. And the scale will fluctuate! You might gain two pounds one week, lose three the next, and stay the same for two more weeks. Over time, the trend matters more than the week-to-week.

Self-acceptance isn’t about giving up on goals. It’s about creating a positive foundation to take care of your health from a place of love, not shame. You can want to lose weight and still appreciate your body as it is today. That shift in mindset will actually help you stay consistent and get better results.

Your Ideal PCOS Weight

Now, let’s get into the core of this episode: finding your ideal PCOS weight.

There’s no universal number here. It’s different for everyone based on genetics, body composition, root causes, and lifestyle. But through years of working with women with PCOS (and my own experience), I’ve seen that most women have a weight range—a place where their body feels good, their symptoms improve, and their lifestyle feels sustainable.

In this zone:

• Your body handles carbs better
• You’re less bloated and inflamed
• Your energy is more stable
• You can go on vacation, indulge a little, and bounce back without spiraling
• You’re more resilient—less reactive to changes in sleep, stress, or food

So how do you find it?

You start by improving your habits—eating to balance insulin, increasing movement, building muscle, managing stress. As you lose weight and improve body composition, there’s usually a turning point where everything starts to click. You feel better. You can maintain your weight without being overly restrictive. That’s your sweet spot.

For me, that’s about a 5-pound range. If I dip below that, I feel fatigued and it’s hard to maintain. If I go above it, I start feeling symptoms again. Everyone’s range will be different, but once you find yours, it becomes much easier to maintain without constantly thinking about it.

Maintenance Isn’t Restrictive

Once you reach that sweet spot, you’re not in strict diet mode forever. You reverse diet slowly, increase your calories to maintenance, and focus on sustaining your lifestyle. The key is not to flip back to old habits, but to stabilize your new set point.

And yes, this can take time—several months or more. But once you’re there, your body begins to work with you. Energy improves, cravings decrease, hormones regulate, and you have more flexibility to enjoy life without constant worry.

Final Thoughts

This isn’t about chasing a specific dress size or being “skinny.” It’s about feeling good in your body—energetic, strong, and hormonally balanced. Your PCOS ideal weight is a place where your body thrives and you feel like yourself again.

So if you’ve been stuck in cycles of dieting and frustration, I hope this gives you a new vision. Yes, healing takes time. Yes, it requires effort. But it doesn’t have to be miserable, and there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

If you found this episode helpful, be sure to hit subscribe so you get notified each week when a new episode drops. And until next time, bye for now.