How To Use Protein To Actually Reach Your Goals With PCOS. A Clinical Nutritionist's Personal Protocol
If you've been in the gym for years but can't see the muscle results — especially with PCOS — this is for you. I'm Wilize Maleombho, clinical nutrition specialist and founder of Zeli Wellness.
My Story
I was diagnosed with PCOS in my late 20s. It showed up as amenorrhea — my periods stopped completely. I remember feeling scared, wondering if I'd ever be able to have children. But the deeper I got into nutrition and herbalism, the more I realized this condition was manageable — as long as I understood it first.
What Is PCOS, Really?
PCOS is a hormonal and metabolic disorder that disrupts ovulation. In my case, it's genetic — Black women with PCOS often face more severe metabolic complications. It involves insulin resistance, disrupted hunger hormones, and elevated androgens, and it shows up as irregular periods, intense carb cravings, and stubborn body composition struggles.
Here's the key: metabolism is how your body turns food into energy. With PCOS, that pathway is disrupted, so instead of burning fuel efficiently, your body stores it as fat. You can't compare yourself to influencers — your body works differently, and you have to work with it, not against it.
Why Muscle Building Feels Impossible
Muscle repair needs fuel. If you're not eating enough protein, your body breaks down the muscle you just built to survive instead. With PCOS, insulin resistance means your muscles struggle to get the nutrients they need to repair — which also means they can't burn off excess blood sugar. Your liver pumps out more insulin to compensate, your cells still don't respond, and your brain reads that as starvation — so it sends you intense cravings for the very foods you're trying to avoid. The result: more fat storage, less muscle.
Why Protein Is the Fix
Protein stabilizes insulin, especially when paired with carbs — this matters because high insulin drives androgen production in PCOS. It also fuels muscle repair and cuts sugar cravings. In short: carb control, high protein, balanced fats (your hormones need fat too).
Calculating Your Protein Needs
- Get your weight in kilograms (pounds ÷ 2.2). I'm 185 lbs → ~84 kg.
- Multiply by your coefficient: 0.8 for maintenance, 1.2–1.8 for women building muscle or recovering (1.6–2.2 for men).
- Build up gradually. I started at 84 × 1.2 = 100g/day, held it for two months before increasing, working toward my long-term goal of 151g (84 × 1.8).
A sample 100g day for me:
- Breakfast: 2 eggs, greens, avocado — 12g
- Lunch: quinoa + 6oz salmon — 54g
- Snack: sardines + cucumber — 23g
- Dinner: beans, rice, greens, plantains — 15g
- Total: 104g
All ancestral foods my body recognizes. Even so, hitting higher protein targets without over-relying on animal protein gets hard — which is why we sometimes recommend a targeted supplement for a defined period, especially for recovery or recomposition goals.
Your Five-Step Game Plan
- Know your foods — learn their protein content (grab my free cheat sheet).
- Decide your meal frequency and spread protein accordingly.
- Plan simple, intentional recipes ahead of time.
- Stock 3–5 high-protein snacks you actually love.
- Treat yourself as an experiment — adjust without judgment. Progress, not perfection.
The Most Important Part
This protocol worked because I'd already done the foundational work — healing my relationship with my body so I wasn't at war with it. No protein protocol works long-term without that peace first.
Share this with a woman who needs it. See you in the next one.