Is Too Much Stress Making Me Fat

Ensuring we have the correct nutrition and regular exercise should be the only factors that influence our weight loss goals Is too much stress making me FATright?

In an ideal world, it would be that simple, therefore we could religiously follow the common energy in+ energy out equation.

Unfortunately, however, there are more pieces to make up the puzzle.

Our brain- (sleep, stress, and our mood) and hormone levels (Cortisol and Testosterone) these are the factors to also consider and what creates a more conclusive approach to effective health and weight loss.

When a diet is too high in sugar or refined carbohydrates- this results in the body’s inability to maintain a stable blood sugar level.

As we already know, when blood sugar is shot up after intake in sugar or consuming a stimulant (such as caffeine) the body must then produce more insulin to remove sugar from the blood into cells. Stress too can also influence the poor stability and blood sugar management this then fires up the adrenal hormone cortisol (stress hormone). Also playing havoc if bloody sugar levels drop too low.

Some important facts to highlight here:

  1. Stress increases Cortisol; which is also known to increase appetite and inflammation and /or abdominal weight gain.
  2. With the increased cortisol this creates a knock-on effect on testosterone levels, which can also lead to a decrease in muscle mass and sex drive.
  3. What will increase however is fatigue and as mentioned in point 1 an increase in body fat.
  4. This disruption to our hormones can also have connections to many other female health problems (PMS, POS) creating much more stress on the body.

A combination of correct food intake and our lifestyle play a huge role in impacting our hormonal health.

By trying to minimise stress and eating right is beneficial in forming and balancing our hormones, however, another factor that determines our health and to lead on from this is how well we are able to digest food.

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