Birth Control and Weight Loss - Beechmont,KY

2.2 lbs is a good amount to drop in a month! yeah, it gets progressively harder to lose weight (so good for you for going after it while you're so young) but don't try for or expect super-fast results. you want real fat to be melting away, not just water weight, and that takes time.
some BC pills can make you retain a little weight, but far too many women blame them when it's a metabolism (and will power) issue. your cysts and reproductive health are more important, so don't consider going off the pills and think that will cure the weight issue. don't be disappointed and sad- you're losing weight! if you were gaining that would be another matter, but you're doing everything right.
keep doing it.
khairete
S.

when i went on the pill i gained 10 lbs. when i worked really hard i lost some of it. then iswitched bcp and gained it all back. i know that in the past i lost about 10lbs when i stopped the pill (but got pg right away so i gained with the baby)
so yes in my experience the pill has made me gain, and it makes it much harder to lose while on it.

Weight gain or retention is a common side effect of some hormonal birth control options. A 2.2 pound loss in one month is normal and healthy though, so you're right on track.

Consider switching your goal to be healthy and strong, rather than losing weight. Put your scale away somewhere difficult to access and stop number watching. One year from now, pull it out again if you want.

I would be disappointed with 2.2 lbs in a month too. I averaged 1.5 lbs per week when I lost the 15 lbs I needed to lose. I did it by cutting out all bad carbs. (No bread, crackers, pretzels, chips, candy, cake, ice cream etc). I ate all the fruit I wanted however.

Also, I've had ovarian cyst and was never prescribed BC pills. I just took Motrin for the pain. (I've had a few cyst over the years that have burst and were quite painful).

To successfully reset your metabolism, you shouldn't lose more than 2-3lbs a month. Sounds to me like you're doing great! And remember, if you are building muscle, your body will become more efficient and you will lose more weight and keep it off. How do you feel? Are you noticing changes in your body? Look at your body, not at the scale, and just keep at it.

I say this because I have some post-pregnancy weight to lose, and I've been working on it since January. Depending on water retention, I'm down a little bit, but my body looks totally different. I'm slowly but surely getting rid of my belly. I don't care about the scale, I just want my old belly back, and I'm about half way there. I'm hoping to get there by Christmas.

Sounds like you are doing better than you realize. Write down your eating and mix up your exercise with cardio and weights.

What are you eating? Drinking? What does "exercise regularly" mean? When do you exercise? Are you breastfeeding? What do you do for work? When your doc found the ovarian cysts, did they do bloodwork?

I'm trying to get a better picture of what you are already doing before I offer suggestions.

You need to cut 3500 calories to lose 1 lb of fat. So you can decrease your intake by 500 calories a day and you will lose a lb a week. You can increase your calories expended (exercise) by 500 calories a day and you will lose a lb a week. Losing 2 lbs in a month is not very much and I suspect you are not really aware of what you are eating. Keeping a food diary may be very helpful. Using a fitness tracker/pedometer may also be useful in increasing your energy expenditure. If you look on line there are many sites that will help you calculate your basal metabolic rate which is based upon you size (height and weight) and your age. From there you can have a much better idea about how to achieve your goal.

I have lost 18 lbs in the past 2-1/2 months by adding an hour of brisk walking (300 calories) each day and decreasing my intake by about 700 calories a day (basically no seconds, no processed food, no snacks, smaller portions of real food and LOTS of low cal veggies). I am on birth control and don't see that it plays in at all (other than a little water retention when you start but water retention fluctuates when you cycle without the pill anyway - that is water - not fat).

ETA: While muscle does burn/use more calories than an equivalent amount of fat (muscle is more metabolically active than fat), since you will (if you meet your goal) weigh progressively less, you will burn fewer calories (because this is dependent upon body weight). Therefore when you weigh less, you need to exercise MORE and eat LESS to continue losing. Not fair, but that is the way it is.

Exercise produces muscles and muscles weigh more than fat. SO the more you exercise the more you'll weigh.

You should not be looking at the scales but the shape of your body. If you want a shapelier hiney or smaller waist you need to focus on exercises that shape those areas.

When I lifted weights and worked out every day and did aerobics 3 days per week I weighed nearly 150 lbs and was only 5'2". I was able to wear size 9 juniors or an 11 in jeans. My hiney was very shapely.

No one thought I weighed over 125 lbs. Because my body was shaped tight and strong.

So please just look at your body and see the areas you need to work on. If you want to have less flabby arms you can lean over 3-5 times per day and use canned goods as weights and bend your elbow up and push down then pull back up in several reps but fewer groups of them. Like lean over with the can in your right hand and lift it up and down 8 times then switch hands. Do that arm 8 times then switch back and repeat one time on the other arm. Then stop. When you go to cook lunch do the same thing, then at dinner time. Little exercises like that thrown in your day will help tone those areas without building muscle. Bulking up takes numerous sets of reps and that causes you to gain weight. Even if it's making fat come off it's causing you to gain weight.

I suggest you figure out a plan of what you'll LOOK LIKE when you have reached your ideal shape. Forget looking at the scales, they don't mean anything.