Some of you may know that I recently found out I have a hormone imbalance. I have probably had it for a significant amount of time (over a few years) but never really thought to look into it.
As you may know, I always talk about how a hormone imbalance can cause weight gain. I have been experiencing weight gain and difficulty losing weight, and it wasn’t until I did a bit of research that I suspected I might actually have a hormone imbalance.
I know there are probably many of you experiencing the same thing and don’t even realize that you have a hormone imbalance. So I wanted to share what I have learned in the hope that it might help some of you too!
WHAT IS A HORMONE IMBALANCE
The most common one (that I have) and that most young women experience is a progesterone deficiency. Your estrogen levels could also be too high in comparison to your progesterone levels. They need to be balanced.
WHAT ARE ESTROGEN AND PROGESTERONE?
These hormones are secreted by the ovaries and contribute to a woman’s menstrual cycle and fertility.
Here are some of the effects of estrogen and progesterone.
| Estrogen | Progesterone |
| Increases body fat | Helps use fat for energy |
| Salt and fluid retention | Natural diuretic |
| Depression and headaches | Natural antidepressant |
| Interferes with thyroid hormone | Facilitates thyroid hormone action |
| Impairs blood sugar control | Normalizes blood sugar levels |
| Decreases sex drive | Restores sex drive |
So you can see that if you don’t have enough progesterone to balance out the estrogen, it could cause these issues.
SYMPTOMS OF A HORMONE IMBALANCE
Some of the most common symptoms of a hormone imbalance (low progesterone) include:
- Heavy or irregular periods
- PMS symptoms (migraines/headaches, cramping, moodiness, tender breasts, cravings, etc)
- Weight gain (especially around the stomach)
- Low libido
- Fatigue and low energy
- Anxiety, irritability, and depression
- Poor sleep and insomnia
- Hair loss
- Hot flashes
- Fibrocystic breasts
- Endometriosis
- Infertility (not permanent – fertility will come back when your hormone balance is restored).
Here are 5 common signs that indicate your hormones might be out of balance and some simple tips on how to naturally reset your hormones.
RELATED POST: 6 UNEXPECTED REASONS YOU CAN’T LOSE WEIGHT
HOW LOW PROGESTERONE / HIGH ESTROGEN CAUSE WEIGHT GAIN
Hormones play a big role in weight gain. While it’s normal for women to have minor weight fluctuations, larger and lasting changes might signal a hormonal imbalance.
SUGAR CRAVING
High estrogen can cause an increase in insulin. Increased insulin leads to sugar cravings, and this is why lots of women crave chocolate during PMS (and at other times too!). Progesterone helps to lower insulin levels.
I want to share with you this post about how insulin resistance can cause fat gain, trouble losing weight, and how to reverse it :)
STORED FAT
High levels of estrogen also cause more fatty tissue growth, and your fat cells, in turn, make more estrogen, so it’s a vicious cycle. This excess fat is usually around the stomach because estrogen also dictates where the body distributes fat. This cycle can be helped by balancing estrogen with progesterone.
FLUID RETENTION
High levels of estrogen also cause fluid retention. Progesterone is a natural diuretic and can reduce fluid retention and bloating.
DECREASE IN THYROID FUNCTION
Low progesterone can affect your thyroid, and thyroid issues can cause weight gain/difficulty losing weight. When you have low progesterone, your liver produces excess TBG (a protein). TBG binds to the thyroid hormones and blocks them so your body can’t use them properly.
APPETITE & SLEEP
Progesterone has a calming effect on the brain, whereas estrogen has an excitatory effect. This means that women with high estrogen experience sleep difficulties.
A lack of sleep disrupts the hormone that is in control of your appetite (leptin). When you are sleep deprived, this contributes to an increased appetite and you eat more.
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CAUSES OF HORMONAL IMBALANCE
For me, the hormone imbalance has probably been caused by a few things but the main contributor has been the long-term use of the contraceptive pill.
The pill contains synthetic progestin which lowers progesterone levels. Other causes can include stress, lack of exercise, poor nutrition, menopausal changes, and xenohormones (found in plastics, solvents, adhesives, etc).
HOW TO FIX IT
For me, the first thing I did was stop taking the contraceptive pill. Within 2 weeks I already noticed my stomach looking leaner than it had in about a year. And I didn’t really do much different with my diet or exercise.
This is probably due to both losing fat and a decrease in fluid retention.
There are lots of other ways that you can naturally rebalance your hormone levels, but there are just SO many. I’m not going to list them all.
A few things you can do is to take 1 tsp of maca powder each day – this is supposed to be great at balancing out your hormones. Buying organic meat (with no added hormones) is also a good move. I have also been taking a natural supplement called Fem Rebalance to help my hormones restore themselves naturally.
My best suggestion is to visit a naturopath who specializes in hormones for women and get some testing done.
The testing they do will be different from a GP. The blood tests your GP takes may not accurately represent your hormone levels. It is best tested through a saliva or urine test. Once you have results, your naturopath will be able to recommend treatment.
SOURCES
- Progesterone Deficiency – https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/24613-low-progesterone
- Xenohormones – https://nwcnaturals.com/blog/what-is-xenoestrogens/
- Thyroid Issues – https://www.webmd.com/women/understanding-thyroid-problems-basics
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28 Responses
Wow. It’s comforting to know other people have these same difficulties!
I have recently stopped my contraceptive pill as I was concerned that it was causing my headaches and chubby tummy, looks like your data matches! I know it is supposed to take 3 months or so before everything normalises, but I am still suffering with motivation to exercise around that time of month as I “just don’t feel right”. I follow your program but this throws my routine out. What do you do to pick up your mood and energy levels when you feel like this?
Hey lovely,
Thanks for reaching out! :)
The issue you are having is very relatable and I totally understand why it’s not easy for you.
Here are a couple of blog posts that Rachael wrote on this subject that you may find helpful. :)
HOW TO STAY HEALTHY ON YOUR PERIOD
SHOULD YOU EXERCISE DURING YOUR PERIOD?
Once you realise how beneficial it can be, it could be enough to motivate you to push through hard days and continue working on your figure and health. :)
Hope it helps! xx
Love,
Ana
Hello Rachel,
Do you know anything about autoimmune progesterone dermatitis? I sometimes get rashes on my face and private parts (or at least reddens) when ovulating and around my menstrual cycle, as well as headaches, foggy brain, inability to stay asleep, etc. Do you have any ideas on how to get rid of this? All I see are solutions like doing a liver detox to get rid of the hormone allergy but many of the cleanses sound very aggressive and time-consuming (working retail, school, and a child to raise make this quite difficult)! Any ideas and solutions would be amazingly helpful!
Hi lovely,
I’m sorry to hear about your struggles. :( Unfortunately we aren’t very familiar with this condition, so the best thing to do is seek professional guidance from your doctor or physio. If you’re suffering from hormonal imbalances we also recommend finding a good naturopath or an integrative doctor who will help you with the appropriate treatment.
Wishing you all the best! xx
Love,
Diana
Hello there, I recenlty about 9 months ago noticed weight gain (unexplained) and mood changes and tiredness etc. etc. I just now found out the lining if my uterus is thickened due to low Progesteron. It all makes sense now! Excercising and eating well nothing was working with the weight gain. My doctor put me on Progesteron, Can anyone tell me how long before I notcie a difference in how I’m feeling? Thank you
Hi lovely,
We recommend finding a good naturopath because they’re better at helping with hormonal issues than regular doctors.
It could take anywhere from 2 to 6 months to notice a significant difference.
I wish you best of luck hun! xx
Love,
Diana
It’s great to see an article about this, and to know I’m not the only one! I’ve been struggling with fat loss for ages, despite making every effort with diet and exercise, consistently. I was so frustrated because looking at my figure, nobody could believe how much I was working out or how healthily I was eating. Some suspected I was binging on chocolate every night, or that I must be doing something wrong because I was always just a bit overweight, with cellulite and water retention around my hips, thighs, and in my legs.
I knew something was off, because whether I was working out hard 6 days a week and eating a calorie controlled vegetarian diet, or whether I went 2 weeks without exercising and indulging in pizza and chocolate, my weight and body fat levels always seemed to be about the same. Something else was controlling them. Yet no doctors seemed to take me seriously. One of them even insinuated that I might be anorexic – which fortunately is certainly not the case! I was just keen to slim down and also concerned because something was clearly out of whack in my body.
A functional doctor finally diagnosed me with gut issues, including SIBO and leaky gut, and the same hormone imbalance you describe: very low progesterone. My symptoms were just like yours, and I had stopped ovulating.
I had been on hormonal contraception (the pill, the injection, Mirena) from the age of 17 to 28 with only about 2 months break. During those two months my body magically responded to exercise and diet and I lost so much body fat and retained water without even trying. I’m hoping this happens again as my hormones start to rebalance!
So how did I remedy the situation?
First I tackled my gut issues, as without a healthy gut your body has a really hard time healing itself, getting rid of the bad stuff and absorbing the good stuff.
Then I switched to the copper coil, which is the only contraceptive option out there that doesn’t contain synthetic hormones. I’ve been using natural progesterone cream (one by Smoky Mountain Naturals, entirely organic, not a synthetic hormone like the progestin they use in some contraception), and taking calcium d-glucarate and DIM which are two natural supplements that help your liver and intestine eliminate excess estrogen.
It’s going to take a while but it’s so worth it. I just wish more women were aware of this. Xenoestrogens and phytoestrogens are in so many of the foods we eat, products we put on our skin and chemicals we use to clean our homes and clothes. Once in the body, they act like estrogens and further tip the balance towards estrogen dominance. A lot of us are struggling with this imbalance and we don’t even know! It’s also a good idea to invest in a home water filter, as our tap water these days is increasingly filled with estrogens. Eating out of plastic is also a good one to avoid for the same reason.
I went to so many doctors, including a top endocrinologist and a number of top gastroenterologists, to ask them what was wrong with me – and none of them seemed to take me seriously or were able to identify what the functional doctor spotted. He was the first doctor who’s ever asked me “so how are you?”, referring to all aspects of my life (emotional as well as physical). He took so much time and care to get to the root cause of the problem, not just cover up the symptoms.
And now I’m on the Lean Legs program and hoping to start seeing results, alongside my hormone rebalancing efforts and gut healing protocol!
I hope this info is useful to anyone else out there with similar symptoms. Good luck! And thanks Rachael for sharing!!
Hi lovely,
Thanks a lot for sharing your story, we know how tough it can be!
I’m so glad to hear you’ve been able to start your recovery and take steps towards reaching your fitness goals :)
I wish you all the best and I’m looking forward to seeing your progress! xx
Love,
Diana
I can’t lose weight even thou I eat very little. I must have a low metabolism.
Hi lovely,
We know that reaching your fitness goals can be hard and that you probably have a lot of questions about how to get that lean and toned body.
We’d love to help as much as we can :) that’s why we have created our Lean Legs Program and the Lean Legs Training Club.
The program in the eBook is an 8 week workout and nutrition plan designed to help you get lean and toned without bulking. It will help you slim down your legs, but will also help you slim and tone your upper body and core too (the workouts are full body). It also includes a full meal plan, a separate recipe eBook and demonstration videos.
You can find out more about the Lean Legs program here:
https://www.rachaelattard.com/lean-legs-program/
For more helpful info please have a read of this blog post about how to speed up your metabolism.
Love, Lean Legs Club support xx