- Tallene Hacatoryan, 31, from California, has nearly 900,000 followers on TikTok
- She specializes in losing weight with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)
- Hacatoryan advises against overexercising and eating inflammatory foods
A dietitian who shed 30 pounds after being diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) has revealed how to lose weight with the hormonal disorder.
Tallene Hacatoryan, 31, from California, has nearly 900,000 followers on TikTok, where she opens up about how she reversed her PCOS symptoms, which included weight gain and acne.
The content creator, who uses the handle @pcos.weight.loss, recently shared her three tips for ‘losing weight with PCOS without messing up your hormones.’
‘I am so sick of doctors, endocrinologists, personal trainers, and men telling us to work out more [and] cut out carbs,’ she said at the start of the nearly two-minute video. ‘These things are actually breaking your metabolism.’
Hacatoryan then pulled up a photo of herself when she was 30 pounds heavier and struggling with hormonal acne.
‘This is a picture of me from when I was running five miles every single day, kickboxing on top of that every single night, [and] not eating any carbs,’ she explained.
‘My hormones were like, “What are you doing?” This is when my hormonal acne got worse and worse, which I couldn’t understand why because I was eating so clean. Make it make sense.’
The health guru said she later learned that her weight gain and acne were the result of her pumping her body with cortisol — the stress hormone — by overexercising and eating inflammatory foods.
‘My story is very similar to other sisters in the community who also struggle with what we call moon face,’ she added.
After becoming a registered dietician, she began to reverse her clients’ symptoms by following the same habits that reversed her own.
Hacatoryan said the first thing you should do if you are trying to lose weight with PCOS is to eat gluten- and dairy-free for 30 days to see if you are sensitive to these foods.
‘PCOS is an inflammatory condition, and they are foods that are inflammatory that can be fueling inflammation,’ she explained.
The second thing she recommended is eating 30 grams or more of protein for breakfast such as a protein shake.
She said this will ‘help keep your blood sugar stable for the rest of the day and kick those afternoon cravings to the curb.’
Hacatoryan’s final tip was to gain muscle by lifting weights.
‘That muscle is going to pick up the sugar in your bloodstream and burn it for energy,’ she concluded.
‘That’s what you want to do when you’re insulin resistant so that you can lose weight, especially in the midsection.’
Hacatoryan’s video has been viewed more than 46,000 times and has received dozens of comments since it was posted on November 30.
‘The protein thing is so true though. I don’t have PCOS but I still apply [your] advice to my life and I feel so much better!’ one fan responded.
‘For real!! When I was eating the cleanest I ever had and doing INTENSE weightlifting I struggled so badly with acne, weight gain, and inflammation!’ another shared.
Sarah Carter is a health and wellness expert residing in the UK. With a background in healthcare, she offers evidence-based advice on fitness, nutrition, and mental well-being, promoting healthier living for readers.
