Stress Makes you FAT!
"Stress is when you wake up screaming
and you realise you haven't fallen asleep yet"
-- Author Unknown
Until recently, I believed that one of the benefits of stress was that it helped maintain a steady weight and at times could even help reduce excess weight.... However, this is only true if we experience ‘limited’ - very limited periods of stress. Prolonged stress, over long periods of time actually results in the exact opposite, increased weight, especially around the midsection
Until just over two years ago, I was fortunate to work at home, choosing the hours I worked that best suited my young family at the time. Even though I often had deadlines to meet to fulfil the requirements of my customers, working through the night at times, and really burning the midnight oil.... these periods of ‘stress’ were limited to a week at a time - ten days at the most, and I always ensured that I took the time I needed between these stressful working periods to recovery and relax. Even though I sometimes worked weekends and public holidays, we would enjoy family weekends away, and day trips to make up for the time spent working.
In the ten years that I worked at home, despite the stress I experienced at times and the frequent deadlines - the only time my weight fluctuated was when I was pregnant and then breast-feeding my daughter. Otherwise, I maintained my weight at a steady level, and my body size and shape was slim and trim!
Until two years ago..... then I started a new job that required me to work every Saturday and Sunday, all the public holidays, and two or three days during the week. For the first 12 months, despite my hectic schedule and limited time off, I coped with the extra stress by enjoying frequent time off and indulging in pamper and self-care.
However, in the later 12 months, as my hectic schedule did a loop-de-loop because my boss took five months to enjoy the overseas summer... My sons always previously respectful, considerate and basically decent kids.... woke up one morning teenage testosterone monsters, giving rebellion a new meaning in my understanding of the word... the school fees tripling in cost, etc. etc. etc. My stress levels escalated, and my already limited time off became non-existent, my body weight, size and shape roller-coastering up and down until I feel nauseous thinking about.... Did I stop to consider what all this was doing to my poor, neglected Body? Oh No!
I just wondered WHY? - my previously well maintained weight level and cared for Body, suddenly decided to coagulate around my middle, my bum sliding down the slopes of my thighs resulting in a bumpy.... Well you get the idea!
The reason Why?
STRESS can make you FAT.... it’s as simple as that!
According to Pascale Barrow, “When you are stressed, adrenaline pours through your body, warning it that it is under attack. This adrenaline causes fat cells to pump fatty acids into your bloodstream to give you extra emergency stores of energy.
This is from the days when we had to run from predators. Stress was a kind of survival tool for our ancestors. These days, stress is triggered by hectic schedules, heavy workloads, money worries, illness and family crises. But in these cases, adrenaline still produces the same fatty acids...
And because of our modern lifestyles, it's hard to burn this stuff off. We don't run or fight when we're stressed. No. Instead, we're stuck at our desks or trapped in our car, or we run to the nearest bar, coffee or snack shop to eat and drink our way to relaxation.
And it gets worse...
Because while all that stress-induced fat hangs around in your bloodstream, ready for a non-existent fight-or-flight... a hormone comes along and dumps all that fat into your belly!
The hormone is called cortisol. It's produced to help your body process the fat released by adrenaline. It mops up the unused fatty deposits and
then packs them in your abdomen.
Not only is cortisol linked with fat, but also diabetes, heart disease and depression. This means that there's a chance that your health could be under threat if you're particularly stress-prone.”
In retrospect, I can certainly relate to ALL of the above, even though the predators I face may wear the disguise of human beings, I can surely imagine what’s lurking behind the mask... (just kidding really ;o) - which means I can blame my ‘stress related weight-gain’ on my ancestors. Great, that certainly helps!
However, there is respite.....
There are some easy ways to control the effects of cortisol.
Basically, Stress causes the body to produce fat in the bloodstream to give you a burst of energy. Then cortisol comes along and processes this stuff in your stomach.
Result: over time, you will gradually gain more weight because of stress.
Essentially, we have to Fight Back the effects of Stress!
There are some ways you can control cortisol and eliminate the effects
of your stressful life.
- Exercise!
While I would love to blame my ancestors for any ‘stress related weight gain’ I experience, they had the right idea, by either taking off and running away, or by standing to fight any foe they faced.... You get the idea! (Even though some of us would like to have a fist fight with certain frustrating contemporaries, it would be better to do battle with a punch bag at the gym, or enjoy a run a few times around the block ;o).
Doing some regular exercise during the week, will help to work of the stress and win the battle of the bulge.
- Sleep!
Don't skimp on your sleep. A University of Chicago study published in the journal 'Sleep' showed that men who slept only four hours had 37% more cortisol in their blood than men who got a full eight hours sleep.
Which means that for every night that you burn the midnight oil, you need to make up for it to ensure your body recovers. If you are prone to short nights sleep like I am, having gone without sleep when I was part of the ‘Midnight Baby Hours Club’ - and then just continuing with this habit of lack of adequate sleep when I was working extra long hours, it’s important to remember that it is just a ‘bad’ habit that can be overcome and replaced over time with the ‘good’ habit of enough hours of sleep.
- Good Quality Sleep!
Make sure you get 'good quality' sleep. Human growth hormone is
essential to help prevent the loss of muscle mass, caused by cortisol. Another University of Chicago study showed that men who got plenty of deep sleep released almost 65% more human growth hormone (HGH) than men who slept lightly.
- Laugh Our Loud!
Watch some comedy! In one study, a group who watched comedy for 60 minutes had less cortisol in their blood compared with a group that tried to relax without any special stimulus. So if you're feeling stressed and wound up after a day's work, try watching a funny film or go and have a laugh with your friends.
Having a good five minute belly laugh ensures that those stomach muscles get some exercise, and could even save you a few minutes in the gym *Grin* try it I know it works!
- Vitamin C!
Take Vitamin C for stress at least 1,000 milligrams of vitamin C in small doses throughout the day.
I have been taking a Vitamin C supplement for two months now, every since I had a terrible bout of flu in early June that put me flat in bed for more than a week.... it does make a difference to renewing your Mental Energy, and has even helped to reduce the extra weight and centimetres on my Body, despite my lack of exercise during my illness and recovery.
- Take a break from Alcohol and Stimulants!
Stop drinking alcohol or coffee and tea three hours before you go to bed. This dehydrates you until your body thinks there's a water shortage. This will trigger a rush of cortisol to protect your body.
- Dump Your Deadlines!
G. Gaynor McTigue, author of the best-selling 'Why Make Yourself Crazy?' claims we should "eliminate unnecessary deadlines".
"Our life is full of them," he writes. "Arbitrary and unrealistic time constraints imposed by ourselves and others that serve only to make us more pressured, anxious, stressed out... for no worthwhile reason. "Avoid the trap of assigning time frames to everything you do, especially if you have little idea how long it will take. Instead, make your goal one of completing a project in a careful, professional, satisfying manner. In other words, as long as it takes to do it right."
I have been prone in the past to make deadlines for everything I do, ensuring that I get things done by a certain date... which helped to actually just ‘get things done’. However, when my schedule gets particularly hectic, having an unnecessary ‘deadline’ just sets me up to fail, leaving me feeling depressed and unable to accomplish anything. Changing my perspective by making an aim to complete a project by doing the best job I can, no matter how long it takes, has proven a worthwhile endeavour, as being released from these made up time constraints has given me much more freedom to explore my creativity and I know I have produced much better results.
- Write your problems down or purge!
You should also try to write all your problems down on a piece of paper or white-board. This works on two levels. Firstly, you vent your frustrations in private, which lets off a lot of pent-up steam. Secondly, by working through a problem on paper, you may
discover an insight or solution to whatever is frustrating or bothering you.
One of our WhyWeight subscribers is a great believer in purging, and shared her recent purge session in an email!
“Hi There, This note has been mulling around in my head for the last week now, so thought that I just absolutely HAVE to share it with you all.
Last week, I was feeling a bit down….. nothing incredible or life shattering just…. eugh! Anyway, I took my shower and asked for the golden light to shower me with positive energy. Of course as always – I felt a bit better. I reached for my Angel cards for some inspiration….. Be patient your miracle is coming true….. they said – me smiling and thanking my beautiful Angels for always being there for me. But my Oracle Guide cards were laying just there, so I just had to grab one of those too…. This time the card said – stop hiding away and be truthful to yourself! (I have always thought that the Guide cards were always a lot harsher than the loving Angel ones – any comments?)
Anyway, this niggled a bit. And I was actually a bit upset with the card deck for being so harsh on me! Then I decided what the heck – lets just do it, lets be honest and see what’s up (its worked before….). So on my way to work in the traffic (Some of you may know this to be my favourite time to do this….) I purged. I let rip about everything and anything that was going on in life at this moment. I was harsh and unforgiving about myself and those around me. (When usually I try to be very understanding and loving) I’ll try and give you a little glimpse of my tirade (not all of it though that would be way to embarrassing! *Grin*
I’m fat and being such a slob, I know exactly what I should be doing to loose weight but I don’t have the courage to do it! I have no friends that really understand me.... I’m sick and tired of living in Jo’burg and always hearing about people killing each other!.....
And on and on and on and on and on I went!
I know, I know! Even I had to laugh at myself that I was being so pathetic! My hubby has been so great and I have tons of friends that totally understand me PLUS I still look great after my recent weight loss! But what a relief! I gave myself permission to just moan and moan and feel all the pain and irritations that have been gnawing at me for the last few months and I promise you I felt tons lighter! After my entire purge and telling the universe how terrible everything is – I sighed a sigh of relief and told the Angels to make compost of everything and that I’ll leave it all in their hands!
I think, especially when we enter our spiritual journey, we sometimes try too hard to be positive and loving – and as a dear friend once said to me….. we are on this earth to experience human emotions, don’t rob yourself from the experience by denying your most primal human emotions! Love to you all, Madeleine”
- Breathe Deeply!
American health writer, Chet Day, has this final tip for when you feel your stress levels rise: "Breathe deeply. Pay attention to your breathing. When you get stressed, your breathing becomes short and shallow. By consciously slowing down your breath, your thoughts and actions will follow suit. Visualise something
soothing as you breathe fully and deeply."
Like myself, you may discover that after your weight increases due to stress related effects, it will take a while to reduce your weight and fat levels especially around the midsection area. Although, I have been actively reducing the ‘stress levels’ in my life for the past 18 months, I have really only been proactive against the ‘stress related weight’ gain in the last two months, with amazing results. My weight is only a few kilograms above my normal weight, and my increased size has reduced by two sizes, (which means I am only one size above what I am normally ;o).
However, it did take 18 months to change my perspective with regard to my changed circumstances, environment, working conditions and my more than usual hectic schedule.... Change, even positive change can cause the highest levels of stress, leaving school, moving, engagements, weddings, marriage, a new job, birth of a baby.... these are all usually exciting, happy events although before, during and after the events, stress can be an almost invisible interloper. So ensure, no matter what levels of stress you experience that you are proactive in dealing with stress all the time.... take a break, leave your problems alone for a while and laugh out loud!
Wishing you health in Body, peace in Mind, happiness in Heart and miracles in your Life!
Love and Laughter to You and Yours!
Mands
Please [ Email ] and share your ideas and stories, thanks!
August 2006