Motivational Monday's (3/11/19) STRESS

Today we are going to get into a topic that is near and dear to my heart. A subject matter that I personally face constantly, and am very sure that all of you are facing, either now or at some points in your life and that is STRESS. As we all know there are two major sides to stress, the physical (which is what we put our bodies through in the gym to build muscle and get stronger) and the mental (which is what our minds put US through outside of the gym). Today we are going to dive into the mental side of stress and specifically, how it affects our bodies when it comes to desired muscle gain, weight loss and over-all physique goals, whether that be purely aesthetic, athletic or BOTH!

What if you’re following your program perfectly, and it feels like you’re not making any progress? Or worse, you’re losing ground on the gains you’ve worked so hard to achieve. Number one. I know, it is incredibly frustrating. Nobody wants to put in days, weeks, or even months of hard work in the gym, follow the meal plan and end up getting nowhere. But more importantly, if diet and exercise aren’t the problem, how can you tell what’s getting in the way? You have to look beyond those two variables, and zero in on other lifestyle factors that may be getting in the way. And for a lot of people, that roadblock to making gains is chronic stress AND more importantly, not knowing how to handle it or what to do about it. 

• Cortisol levels spike and stay elevated. Higher levels of this stress hormone negatively impact blood sugar levels, digestion, metabolism, fat storage, and the immune system.
• Energy levels drop as insulin production is interrupted and blood sugar levels change rapidly. So you start skipping workouts, or don’t give your best effort when you hit the gym.
• Hunger and cravings increase, especially for simple carbohydrates because of hormonal changes in the body. The result: You give in to the chocolate cake craving, and instead of having a slice, you gobble the whole thing. 
• Catabolism may begin to occur, breaking down muscle to use as energy, while the body increases fat stores. And you slowly see your muscle gains slipping away.
• Gastrointestinal problems develop that can negatively impact absorption of nutrients and digestion. And it gets harder to eat clean and bounce back after a workout, if your body isn’t getting the fuel it needs.
• Thyroid gland slows production of two key hormones needed for metabolism. It’s one reason you might hustle in the gym, stick to your diet, and still not tip the scale in the right direction.
• Inflammation throughout the body increases, limiting muscle repair and growth and increasing the risk for other health problems. 
• Sleep patterns are compromised, adding to feelings of tiredness and fatigue. And pretty soon, you’re too tired to workout.

Lastly, and this could be highly controversial but I do not care. I PERSONALLY feel that stress does not NEED to be a crippling death sentence. If we learn how to get a handle on it, instead of letting it handle us (chocking us out and stealing all of our hard earned gains) it can actually be empowering. Yes EMPOWERING! We all have stress, now lets learn how to successfully cope and manage it in a beneficial manner. So that during particularly stressful times in our lives, we have all necessary tools on our tool belt we can use to weather any storm that comes our way! As always, I love a good conversation, or comment, let me know, I am here!