Could you be chronically stressed? Is your high cortisol ruining your ability to lose fat as your nervous system is spending too long in a sympathetic state?

😲The Sympathetic autonomic nervous system or state is our “Fight or Flight” or “Stressed Out” state.
💣It of one of the two autonomic nervous systems which control specific body processes, such as circulation of blood, digestion, breathing, urination, heartbeat, etc.

🧠If in this state for an extended period of time, you could experience:

❌ poor digestion/indigestion

❌constipation

❌diarrhea

❌anxiety

❌ shallow breathing

❌increased heart rate

❌poor quality sleep

❌restlessness

❌ night sweats

❌ decreased libido

❌fatigue

❌nervousness

❌ increased agitation/irritability

❌increased muscle tension

❌increased inflammation and

❌increased susceptibility to infections (i.e., frequent illness).

♨️This will all then derail your fitness goals of weight loss and muscle gain, if not controlled. So we need to manage our stress hormone “Cortisol”.

✅Studies have shown that there is an inverse relationship between Cortisol and Testosterone. Yes, ladies, we need testosterone too. If due to chronic stress, our Cortisol is consistently elevated then our average testosterone levels will then decline. 💯👉This in turn would see you struggling to build muscle and lose fat. 👎 😲

Cortisol draws glucose into the blood, and it just sits there. This triggers the pancreas to release insulin. Usually, this insulin would cause our muscles to draw up the glucose, but in our modern world of non-physical stressors, our muscles don’t need the glucose.

This excessive exposure to unneeded insulin makes chronically stressed people increasingly insulin resistant, and the more insulin resistant someone is, the harder it is for them to burn fat (1,2). Finally, cortisol inhibits the process that creates essential neurotransmitters such as serotonin (3,4). Serotonin is the “feel good” molecule most commonly associated with that feeling of euphoria you get after a good workout. The challenge is that with consistently elevated cortisol levels, the body loses its ability to regulate this and other neurotransmitters properly.

This is why people suffering from depression often show both low serotonin and high cortisol (3,4). This is a dangerous place to be when they need to lose fat because when someone feels stressed out and unhappy, a common solution they look to is to eat.

It doesn’t end there. Serotonin not only helps us feel happy, but it’s also a necessary precursor to melatonin, an important signaling molecule in the sleep cycle. When your body loses its ability to regulate serotonin, it also impacts its ability to make melatonin, and then not only is your stressed-out client unhappy, they can’t sleep either.

THERE IS HOPE – our goal is to get you out of a chronically stressed sympathetic state where cortisol is high all the time and into more of a stress rhythm where cortisol is limited to the mornings and around training sessions. The rest of the time you should be in a parasympathetic state to give your body the opportunity to build and recover.

✅ You need to engage in more parasympathetic (resting) activities. Try yoga, pilates, a massage, meditation, walk in nature. Try Dr Joe Dispenza, Mooji, or John Vincent on YouTube, they have excellent guided meditations.

✅ Aim to get 8 hours of deep, uninterrupted sleep. Start a wind-down routine, turn off sources of blue light (phones, tablets, computers) or put on a filter.

✅ Eat a good anti-inflammatory diet. Some foods that may help to keep cortisol levels stable include dark chocolate, bananas and pears, black or green tea, probiotics in food such as yogurt, and probiotics in foods containing soluble fiber. Don’t forget to stay hydrated.

✅ Exercise -Being physically active is beneficial to health and can improve a person’s mood. The appropriate amount of exercise depends on various factors, including a person’s physical fitness, and these factors play a part in how much cortisol the body will release during exercise. Not intense exercise.

✅ Supplements – Both fish oil and an Asian herbal supplement called ashwagandha have shown the ability to reduce cortisol levels, so taking these supplements alongside a healthful diet could be beneficial.

1. Geer EB, Islam J, Buettner C. Mechanisms of glucocorticoid-induced insulin resistance: focus on adipose tissue function and lipid metabolism. Endocrinol Metab Clin North Am. 2014;43(1):75-doi:10.1016/j.ecl.2013.10.005
2. Kersten S. Mechanisms of nutritional and hormonal regulation of lipogenesis. EMBO Rep. 2001Apr;2(4):282-6. doi: 10.1093/embo-reports/kve071. PMID: 11306547; PMCID: PMC1083868.
3. Tafet GE, Toister-Achituv M, Shinitzky M. Enhancement of serotonin uptake by cortisol: a possible link between stress and depression. Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci. 2001 Mar;1(1):96-104. doi:10.3758/cabn.1.1.96. PMID: 12467107.
4. Tafet GE, Idoyaga-Vargas VP, Abulafia DP, Calandria JM, Roffman SS, Chiovetta A, Shinitzky M.Correlation between cortisol level and serotonin uptake in patients with chronic stress and depression.Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci. 2001 Dec;1(4):388-93. doi: 10.3758/cabn.1.4.388. PMID:
   12467090.