Do you ever wonder why you can’t lose weight even though you’re eating healthy and exercising? Cortisol, also known as the stress hormone, may be the reason to blame!
Increased levels of cortisol have been proven to disrupt our body’s natural processes. Long-term activation of everyday stressors can lead to a variety of health issues including anxiety, depression, sleep trouble, difficulty concentrating, and weight gain.
It is important to understand the body’s responses to stress and the role of diet, exercise, and sleep in stress reduction.
Our Body on Stress
When we put ourselves into stressful situations, our hypothalamus, a small, hormone-producing part of the brain, is activated through what is known as the body’s “fight or flight” response. The hypothalamus then sends a message to the adrenal glands that release the hormones adrenaline and cortisol.
Adrenaline elevates heart rate and increases blood pressure while cortisol decreases blood sugar levels, alters the immune system and suppresses the digestive system. The activation of these hormones trigger regions of the brain that regulate mood, motivation, and fear. It’s no wonder why we feel anxious and distracted when we encounter stressors!
Cortisol and Diet
Since cortisol suppresses insulin production and causes our blood sugar levels to drop, our body’s response is to send hunger signals to the brain.
With lower blood sugar levels, we are more likely to crave foods high in sugar and fat. This explains our unhealthy cravings during times of stress.
It also doesn’t help that our body releases chemicals in response to food that may have a calming effect on the body.
Over-Exercising and Weight Gain
Too much of one thing is never good! Spending too many hours at the gym has been linked to increased levels of cortisol and impaired function of our adrenal glands.
Since excess cortisol encourages fat gain, we may be reversing the effects of our workout sessions when we workout for extended periods of time.
Cortisol, Sleep, and Weight Control
There is a correlation between cortisol levels and amount of sleep. Increased levels of cortisol may result in too little rest and vice versa, too little rest may result in the production of cortisol.
Sleep aids the body’s ability to metabolize carbohydrates and maintain balanced blood sugar levels. When we are sleep deprived, blood sugar levels are impacted, causing increased insulin production. Since too much insulin can lead the body to store fat, our weight loss efforts may be hindered.
Tips for Managing Cortisol Levels
Find the balance between exercise and recovery. Create a balanced workout routine that involves cardio, strength training, and stretching.
Practice mindfulness. Schedule time to meditate and try other breathing practices such as yoga and tai chi.
Get adequate sleep. Work on getting more and better quality sleep by reducing surrounding noises and allotting yourself enough time to rest.
Reduce caffeine intake. Excess caffeine levels can increase the body’s production of cortisol so try limiting intake to one to two cups per day.
Consider scheduling an acupuncture or massage appointment. Both techniques have been proven to reduce pain, tension, and lower stress hormones.
It’s Monday at 4:30 am. Your alarm rings and you fling out of bed. Déjà vu strikes as you look outside into the darkness. Pressed for time, you quickly brew a coffee and slip into your suit. Before you know it, your car service is calling and you are out the door.
While riding to the airport, you scroll through your jam-packed calendar. You’re scheduled to take the red-eye and rush into the office for a day of back-to-back meetings followed by a same-day return flight.
The day flies by and you’re already headed back to the airport. As soon as you arrive at your gate, the dreaded announcement comes across the loud speaker - a three-hour delay. Your plans to cook dinner and hit the gym are destroyed. So much for starting the week off on a healthy note.
It’s no secret that business travel can be taxing on both physical and mental health. There is a body of research stating that frequent business travel is associated with poor health.
Here are three ways business travel is affecting your physical and mental wellbeing.
1. Increased stress levels
Jet lag is linked to anxiety, low mood, impaired judgment, and poor concentration. Dealing with trip preparation, security, flight delays, and cancellations are additional contributors to stress while traveling.
2. Decreased physical fitness and increased obesity rate
Several studies have demonstrated that business travel is associated with both a poorer self-rated health and increased physician visits. With less time to get in exercise and more time spent sedentary, physical fitness levels are at stake. In addition to decreased activity, fresh, healthy meals are not easy to come by while traveling. Additionally, increased alcohol and caffeinated beverage consumption are also factors when it comes to travel weight gain.
3. Weaker immune system
Being surrounded by dozens of people is just one threat to the immune system. The larger threat is the exhaustion caused by jet lag.
ROAM Fitness is working to put gyms in airports, behind security, so that travel days don't have to compromise our health. Business travelers passing through Baltimore airport (BWI) will soon be able to workout at our airport fitness center and rinse off in our showers. Finally there is a healthy option at the airport to help travelers combat the negative effects of air travel. We're working on expanding our facilities so that travelers across the country can exercise while traveling by fitting in an airport workout.
Photo by Men's Fitness
Finding time for fitness can be difficult as it is, then you add travel to the equation and it gets even trickier. Here is a 30-minute total body high intensity interval training (HIIT) workout to get you moving and help you torch calories throughout the day. The only piece of equipment you’ll need is a treadmill.
Tip: Bookmark this and try it at our first location in the Baltimore Washington International (BWI) Airport this fall! We’ll have treadmills, space for the strength moves, and showers where you can rinse off afterwards.
Treadmill Intervals (15 minutes)
Bodyweight Circuit (15 minutes)
