Can you lose weight with fibroids? Yes. Losing weight when you have fibroids is possible, but it is often more challenging. Hormone imbalances, fatigue, and uncomfortable symptoms can keep you from getting the exercise you need to create a calorie deficit.
Trying to maintain a healthy weight when you have fibroids can be very frustrating. You may be eating a healthy diet and staying active, but it does not seem to make a difference, and you are not seeing the changes you expected.
You may actually be losing body fat, but your fibroids may be causing bloating, abdominal pressure, and swelling that can make your weight loss progress harder to notice. Sometimes fibroids can grow large enough that they can affect the way your abdomen looks and feels. Many women with fibroids have been mistaken for women who are several months pregnant.
This article will explain how uterine fibroids, non-cancerous growths that grow in and on the uterus, may affect your weight and what options you have to overcome the weight-related challenges they can cause.
Do Fibroids Cause Weight Gain Or Belly Fat?
Many women wonder, “Do fibroids cause belly fat?”
Fibroids may cause changes to your weight or make your abdominal area look bloated or bigger, but they do not directly cause body fat in the same way that your diet and lifestyle can.
Fibroids may affect your weight and appearance in a few ways:
- Fibroids can become large and increase the size of your abdomen, making it look bloated.
- Large or numerous fibroids can add pounds to the scale and affect the way your clothing fits.
- Pressure can build up in the pelvic area and can make your stomach feel firm or swollen.
- Chronic heavy bleeding can result in anemia and fatigue, which can inhibit your desire to exercise.
- Symptoms of pain and cramping can also reduce your level of physical activity.
- Fibroids are linked to hormonal changes, which can affect your appetite or cause you to retain water.
Fibroid symptoms and weight changes can affect women differently. Some women might have very small fibroids and experience no symptoms, and others may have noticeable abdominal enlargement and more severe symptoms like heavy bleeding and pelvic pain.
Can You Lose Weight With Fibroids?
Yes. You can lose body fat if you have fibroids, but sometimes the size of the fibroids and chronic bloating can hide any progress you have made.
Rather than track your progress using the scale alone, monitor other things, like:
- How well you are feeling.
- How your clothing fits.
- Changes in your waist measurements.
- Your energy levels during the day.
- Improvements in your strength or endurance.
- A reduction in bloating or abdominal pressure.
- How you look in photos over a period of time.
- How well you are sleeping.
Following a realistic weight loss plan that includes eating a healthy, balanced diet, getting enough exercise, an adequate amount of sleep, and managing your stress may help improve your health and reduce fibroid symptoms.
How To Lose Weight With Fibroids Without Making Symptoms Worse
Before starting a plan to lose weight, pay attention to any symptoms you are experiencing, like dizziness, shortness of breath, or extreme fatigue. These can be signs of anemia caused by blood loss from fibroids and should be treated to prevent more serious complications.
Your goal should not be to use an extreme diet or intense workouts to lose weight. These can exacerbate your symptoms and leave you feeling worse.
Making small changes to your lifestyle can help improve your health, ease your symptoms, and help with weight loss.
Exercise
Engaging in physical activity is important when you are trying to lose or maintain a healthy weight, but it does not have to be strenuous. If you are dealing with fibroid symptoms, like pelvic pain or pressure, it might be easier and more comfortable to stick to activities that are lower impact. The best exercises are:
- Walking is easier on your body than other types of exercise. It does not require any special equipment, and you can adjust the duration and speed as you are able to do more.
- Strength training can help prevent muscle loss and may slightly boost your metabolism.
- Cycling and swimming may be good options if you have pelvic pressure.
- A short workout is often easier to accomplish when you are dealing with fibroid symptoms.
Diet
The foods you choose to eat can also make a difference in your health and your ability to lose weight. Also, exposure to excess estrogen triggers fibroids to grow larger, so avoiding certain foods and personal care products may help prevent significant growth.
- Eating an adequate amount of protein and fiber can help you to stay full longer and helps burn more calories.
- Foods high in protein include eggs, chicken, Greek yogurt, fish, tofu, beans, etc.
- Foods high in fiber include whole grains, vegetables, berries, oats, lentils, etc.
- Drinking enough water to stay well hydrated may help with bloating and digestion.
- Avoid very restrictive diets that are impossible to sustain.
- Be cautious with products that claim to reset your hormones or perform a detox, as many are not backed by any scientific evidence.
Lifestyle Habits
Some women notice that certain habits can make their bloating and discomfort worse.
- Eating large meals or late at night can increase abdominal discomfort.
- Foods high in sodium can increase water retention.
- Carbonated drinks can exacerbate bloating in some people.
- A lack of sleep and chronic unmanaged stress can shift your hormones and increase cravings, lower your energy, and make healthy habits harder to maintain.
Fibroids May Be Making Weight Loss More Challenging
When attempting to lose weight, sometimes women feel like they are doing everything right but are not seeing any weight loss progress.
- Fibroids can trigger hormone imbalances that increase how much fat your body stores.
- They can cause heavy and prolonged bleeding that can cause chronic fatigue, leaving you with no energy to stay physically active.
- Large fibroids can physically add several pounds to your weight.
- Numerous or large fibroids can cause your abdomen to extend outward as if you were several months pregnant.
- The discomfort caused by symptoms like bloating and pressure can lower your motivation to get enough exercise.
This does not mean that losing weight is impossible, but it does mean that you may need to get help from a doctor who has expertise with fibroid management like Dr. John Lipman and Dr. Sima Banerjee at the Atlanta Fibroid Center.
Will Treating Fibroids Lead To Weight Loss?
Yes. Treating your fibroids can help make the weight loss strategies you use more effective. This can reduce the physical bulk of the fibroids and reduce the bloating and other symptoms that keep you from getting the exercise you need.
Treating fibroids may also help:
- Reduce how far your abdomen protrudes.
- Stop heavy monthly bleeding.
- Eliminate abdominal pain and pressure.
- Stop frequent urination.
- Improve your energy levels.
- Improve fertility and odds of conceiving.
Treatment Options
There are different options for treating fibroids, including:
Watchful Waiting
A doctor monitors the existing fibroids to watch for growth or any changes. This is normally used for women who have fibroids but are not experiencing any symptoms.
Ablation Procedures
These treatments are used to destroy the inner lining of the uterus to stop heavy bleeding. They do not treat the fibroids, but they can be effective for relief from bleeding. They are not a good option for those who desire to become pregnant in the future.
Surgical Solutions
Myomectomy
Removes each individual fibroid one at a time through laparoscopic or open surgery. Sometimes, the surgeon is unable to get all the fibroids, and many women require another treatment within 2 to 5 years.
Hysterectomy
The surgeon removes the entire uterus, and fibroids never return. This also prevents you from ever being able to have a baby. It is big surgery with prolonged recovery and complications, not necessary for fibroid disease, regardless of desire for future fertility.
Non-Surgical Uterine Fibroid Embolization
A specially trained interventional radiologist uses a minimally invasive, 45-minute procedure that uses tiny particles to block the blood vessels that are keeping the fibroids alive. This causes the fibroids to shrink, become soft, and die, which eliminates their symptoms. It is 90% effective in treating fibroids and is usually a permanent solution.
When You Should Contact a Doctor
If you are experiencing certain symptoms, they may be related to fibroids. You can make an appointment with your doctor to determine if you have fibroids and to rule out other conditions.
If fibroid symptoms are getting worse or affecting your daily life, you should not ignore them and continue to suffer. Make an appointment with your doctor if you notice symptoms like:
- Very heavy bleeding or you are passing large clots.
- Bleeding between periods.
- You are feeling faint, dizzy, or weak.
- It feels like your chest is pounding or you are short of breath.
- Your abdomen is swollen or you look pregnant.
- You feel severe pelvic pain or pressure.
- You are having trouble urinating, you are experiencing urinary incontinence, or you have chronic constipation.
- You are having unexplained issues with fertility and conceiving.
- Any of your symptoms continue to gradually get worse.
Where Can I Find Help With Uterine Fibroids?
The Atlanta Fibroid Center offers help with eliminating symptoms caused by uterine fibroids. Dr. John Lipman and Dr. Sima Banerjee are board-certified interventional radiologists with over 30 years of experience in treating women with fibroids.
UFE is not a weight loss procedure, but eliminating large fibroids can help make your stomach flatter and give you more energy to follow a weight loss program.
Set up your personal consultation today to learn more.
FAQs
Can Fibroids Make You Look Pregnant?
Yes. Large fibroids or numerous fibroids can fill your uterus and push your abdomen outward, causing you to look pregnant.
In fact, a celebrity from “The Real Housewives” was suffering from fibroids, and a media outlet published a picture of her and hinted at “a baby bump,” but she was not pregnant. Dr. Lipman embolized the fibroids, which relieved her symptoms and her quality of life was greatly improved.
Why Do Fibroids Cause Bloating?
Fibroids can create pressure in your abdomen, which can cause bloating, a feeling of heaviness, and serious discomfort. It can make your abdomen firm and swollen and can look like you have gained weight.
Can Limiting Your Exposure To Estrogen Help With Fibroid Symptoms?
Maybe. Fibroids are sensitive to estrogen and can cause them to gradually grow larger. Some women have had success in avoiding excess exposure to estrogen by staying away from certain foods, supplements, and personal care products. They follow a fibroid diet and check with their doctor before using certain products.
Can Fibroids Cause Fatigue?
Yes. One of the most common symptoms of fibroids is prolonged heavy bleeding. Losing too much blood can cause anemia, which is a serious medical condition that can leave you feeling extremely tired, weak, dizzy, or short of breath.
