Table of contents:
Video: How Stress Affects Weight Loss
2023 Author: Lucy Dunce | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-24 11:49
How stress affects weight loss
Stress is an integral part of life. These are the various types of resistance that we face at work, in personal relationships, in circumstances. People perceive events in life differently and deal with stress in different ways. This perception is closely related to weight loss. The risk of overeating increases during moments of nervous tension. Stress provokes increased synthesis of the hormone cortisol, which causes fluid retention and triggers the accumulation of visceral fat. Therefore, nutritionists are advised to learn how to reduce stress levels while losing weight.
Stress and excess weight
We have already found out that overeating is often associated with nervous tension. Stress can hide various feelings and emotions, such as boredom or anxiety. The first step to solving the problem of overeating is mindfulness. Ask yourself questions before, during and after: “What makes me eat?”, “Maybe I’ve had enough?”, “Am I hungry or craving for food?”, “What emotions am I experiencing now?”. As you ask these questions, you will learn to understand yourself and correctly interpret the signals of the body. All that remains is to work out the habits.
Cortisol is more complicated. Its level is increased by stressors such as financial difficulties, overtime work, conflicts or endless traffic jams, as well as chronic lack of sleep, strict low-calorie diets, excessive preoccupation with something, for example, nutrition. It is important to start a stress-free diet and reduce irritation.
Ways to reduce stress
A fundamental factor in reducing dietary stress is predictability. Plan your diet and write down your weight loss diary in advance, not in hot pursuit. Prepare food several days in advance too. Plan your workouts for the week and stick to the schedule. If you are prone to episodic overeating, then plan your actions in detail for such situations, write them down, and then repeat if necessary. The plan is your support and protection from stress.
If you already have a source of chronic stress in your life, you can mitigate its effects on the body in the following ways:
nutrition,
- physical exercises,
- meditation,
- keeping a diary.
- If you are unable to change the situation, do not take it personally. There are things that are beyond your control, and that's okay.
- Hope for the best, but consider all possible scenarios. Don't cheat yourself in vain.
- Find something that lets you discharge. Exercise regularly. It can be a walk, creativity, communication. The main thing is not to use food and other addictive things as a release.
- Seek support. Connecting with friends, family, and like-minded people can help you cope with any stressors.
Nutrition
A balanced diet supports physical and psychological health. Make sure you are consuming enough calcium-rich foods. These are, first of all, dairy products. During nervous tension, calcium is excreted from the body. Also, during a nervous tension, the consumption of vitamin C and B vitamins increases. Eat more vegetables, grains and meat products. Magnesium helps the body deal with the negative effects of stress. They are rich in nuts, buckwheat, bran, unpolished rice, cocoa. There is also scientific evidence that omega-3 fatty acids increase the body's resistance to stress and depression. You can find them in fish and flaxseed oil.
Physical exercises
During sports, the hormone endorphin is produced, which improves mood and helps the body to better resist stress. No wonder that in many clinics for the treatment of neuroses, running is included in the rehabilitation program. In order for the exercises to give the expected effect, they must be performed regularly for a long time.
Meditation
Meditation can lower stress hormones, lower blood pressure and restore strength. Just 5-10 minutes of daily solitude is enough to feel a surge of energy, but this also needs to be done regularly. There are many different meditation techniques. The simplest: set a timer for 5 minutes, sit in a comfortable position, distract yourself from extraneous thoughts and breathe calmly, focusing on breathing. In order not to be distracted by extraneous noises and thoughts, repeat “inhale” / “exhale” to yourself with each inhalation and exhalation.
Keeping a diary
A diary helps to reduce stress, to understand its causes and consequences. It can be a special “stress diary” for analyzing events in life and your reaction to them. Or it could be an "emotion diary" for tracking an emotional state or expressing emotions using drawings. If your stress is accompanied by discouragement, then you can keep a "diary of joy", where you need to write down five joyful events that happened to you during the day every evening.
These are great techniques to help you regain vitality and relieve stress.
Stress prevention
The best treatment is prevention. What you need to know to prevent the effects of stress:
Stress helps keep the nervous system toned, but we need it in reasonable amounts. Most modern people experience chronic stress that leads to obesity and other diseases, which is why it is so important to maintain a clear mind and inner peace.
Author: Ekaterina G., nutritionist, fitness blogger (specially for Calorizator.ru)
Copying of this article in whole or in part is prohibited.
