Fortunately, our bodies have built in systems to help regulate the damage stress may cause. When we are stressed, our adrenal glands and hormones kick in to help minimize damage stress can create. However, the hormonal and adrenal systems can become overworked and have a negative impact our health. According to The American Institute of Stress, stress is the basic cause of up to 60% of human illness and 40% of stressed people tend to overeat unhealthy foods to cope.
It's easy in today's fast paced society for stress levels to raise up and manifest itself through deteriorated health.
The Body's Response to Stress
Stress causes the body to release the hormone adrenaline. This causes a "fight, flight or freeze" response. Your body's blood pressure and heart rate will rapidly increase and sugars and fats shot into your blood system to provide immediate energy to perform the "fight or flight" response. Another hormone called cortisol is released into the blood stream as well. As I have blogged in the past, cortisol is a catabolic steroid... in other words will destroy muscle and organ tissue! This will cause you to gain body fat over the long term because losing lean muscle tissue will cause a decrease in resting metabolism among other things. Stress can also affect hormonal levels which will cause many people to reach for comfort foods. I have personally been know to polish of an entire chocolate sheet cake... on more than one occasion when stressed/depressed...True story!
I could write about ways to eliminate or minimize stress... unfortunately, I haven't mastered that yet and like most of you are struggling day by day... but, what I can do is offer some nutritional advice to help minimize the damage to your body. It's important to maintain balanced blood glucose levels. Avoiding insulin spikes can be done by eating quality proteins with slow release, complex carbs throughout the day. Avoiding carbs with a high glycemic index such as white breads, sugars, potatoes etc. will help maintain blood glucose levels. Opt for nutrient dense proteins such as chicken breast, fish, eggs or low carb Greek yogurt. Pair them with veggies and good fats such as avocados, chia seeds, quinoa etc. Most comfort foods (in my case, chocolate cake) contain high levels of sugars, fats, preservatives and additives which can lead to a host of medical conditions such as heart issues, high blood pressure and of course, increase stored body fat!
Giving your body the raw nutrients it needs to fight and reverse damage and to build more of the hormones used for fighting stress is key. Consuming foods such as egg whites, seaweed, cottage cheese and spirulina will help build muscle and burn body fat. More importantly though, they contain the amino acid Tyrosine which is a building block for adrenaline and noradrenaline - two major stress hormones. Increasing these hormones will help minimize fat gain and damage to the body. Consuming foods such as turkey breast and cottage cheese will increase the hormone serotonin which helps you to sleep more productively and is the "feel good" hormone. Serotonin is built from tryptophan, another amino acid found in foods such as turkey. Serotonin has also been shown to help curb cravings which may also help with your weight loss quest.
When stressed, it is important to avoid stimulants. They will further put your body into a "fight or flight" mode. This is not necessarily a bad thing right before a workout but may have adverse effects on the body throughout the day.
Too much stress will not only potentially lead to some major health issues but will release hormones that will work against you as you try to lose body fat. Try to increase your lean proteins, complex carbs while avoiding simple carbs. Avoid stress or learn stress management techniques.