photo by thornypup

Ask anyone and they will probably tell you that stress is not good….and then they go on telling you how stressed out they are all the time. In today’s world we have to take action to stop stress from taking over our lives (and taking it in the wrong direction). First let’s look at what is really going on inside of us.

Your autonomic nervous system (ANS) is an involuntary response system built into your body that controls many of your organs and muscles (heart, lungs, glands, stomach, blood vessels). We don’t even know it is working most of the time except when maybe we feel it in extreme situations (increased HR). What it does, is very important. You may also recognize it as the system that controls your “Fight or Flight” response (what keeps you alive when you need to fight off your attacker or run away from a dangerous situation). The 2 main parts of the ANS are comprised of the:

• Sympathetic Nervous System - Fight or Flight
  
• Parasympathetic Nervous System - Rest and Digest

The Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS) is responsible for getting us ready for action from an oncoming “stressor” (whatever that may be). It is our innate primal protective system that was meant to be used in times of stress that would cause harm to us. When it kicks in, it does the following:

• Releases Adrenaline/Noradrenaline
• Accelerates Heartbeat/Increases Blood Pressure
• Dilates Trachea and Bronchi (lungs)
• Stimulates conversion of Liver Glycogen into Glucose
• Takes blood away from the skin and other internal organs and increases it to the muscles, heart and brain
• Inhibits digestion (food movement through the gut and limited blood flow to the stomach)
• Inhibits saliva (enzymes needed for digestion start here)
• Contracts rectum

The Parasympathetic Nervous System is when there is no perceived threat (or stressor) and the body can relax and get back to normal function. The PNS does the following:

• Slows down the Heartbeat/Lowers the Blood Pressure
• Stimulates saliva. Simulates release of bile from the liver/gallbladder (needed to break down and digest fats)
• Relaxes the Rectum
• Stimulates Digestion
• Increases Blood Flow to Skin and other Internal Organs (stomach, liver, gallbladder

Looking at everything above, you can see why we want to have the PNS on most of the time (as that is what helps us digest food, detox the body, increase organ function, boosts the immune system, reduces inflammation, builds muscles, etc..etc). The SNS is meant for shorts bursts only, as once the fight or flight is over…then the body can slow down, shift over to the PNS response and heal and repair itself as needed. The problem is not with the short bursts of stress, but the chronic stress (ongoing for extended periods of time) in our lives…the ones that keep the SNS activated all day and do not allow the PNS to take over. Chronic SNS can lead to reduced digestion, improper organ function, malabsorption of essential vitamins and minerals (as part of the digestive process), lowered immune function, muscle breakdown and loss, sickness, increased inflammation, etc..etc. Not a road we want to go down I would assume for all of us.

Everyone has heard of the hormone called Cortisol, it’s a stress hormone and goes up when the SNS is activated (in response to adrenaline/noradrenaline). It’s a natural hormone that is actually needed to even wake up! As we wake up at 8am, our cortisol level is at it’s highest converting liver glycogen into glucose and increasing blood glucose levels to give us energy. (Hence if you ever see anyone suffering from Chronic fatigue or can’t wake up in the morning, chances are their cortisol output is very small….as sign of burnout from too much SNS activation and chronic cortisol production). What we want to do for optimal health and weight loss is to manage sources of chronic or excessive cortisol as it can lead to increased insulin resistance, obesity, inflammation, muscle loss, and a host of other bad things listed above (a distinct sign of cortisol and it’s related insulin resistance role on fat gain, is seeing it more in our “problem” areas). Cortisol has a half life of about 1hour, so it can go down if we give it a chance. Our natural rhythms should be higher cortisol in the morning, and then shifting into lower and lower amounts until we hit bedtime around 10pm where our cortisol is so low (along with blood glucose) that we are tired and need to go to sleep. Then the cycle starts over again. Unfortunately, this cycle is messed up with alot of people and unless it is corrected and controlled, some may never see the weight loss they want because of all the other hormonal things going wrong in the body.

So, to sum up what we have gone over so far:

• Fight or Flight Response is made for quick situations (will turn on the SNS response and increase levels of cortisol)
• Chronic Stress is the Main Issue. It is keeping the SNS turned on (and levels of cortisol higher) and can lead to muscle loss, cortisol burnout (chronic fatigue), high blood pressure, obesity (through insulin resistance), compromised digestion, depressed immune function and a host of other bad things.
• We have to learn to control stress, and find periods that allow the PNS to turn on and do it’s job. (our bodies were not designed to have the SNS on all the time and still operate effectively, aka have a healthy body).

So let’s wrap this up with a list of what the most common chronic stress factors are and things you can do to control it. Remember that it’s up to you to identify and control what comes in and out of your life. You may think you are getting away with it now, but if you keep the SNS on and limit the PNS activity, then you are most certainly heading down a road of illness and disease.

• Do not starve yourself or stay on a low calorie diet too long. Remember when we talk about IF, we always say “get your calories in”. Fasting is one thing with proper nutrition, starving yourself is another. Long term starvation (which does not happen in a few days) will only lead to elevated cortisol, muscle loss, immune system depression, etc. Eat smart, eat healthy and like mentioned before add in a higher calorie day once in a while if you think you are not eating enough daily. IF done right will actually lower blood pressure, total cholesterol, insulin resistance and yes….even total daily cortisol (why people on IF can gain muscle and not lose it like seen in general CR diets)
• Don’t do excessive exercise. This again will only start to increase your cortisol levels. More is not better in many cases. Usually anything under 45min of pretty intense exercise is the limit, after that your muscle saving hormones (test, GH) start to decline and cortisol starts to rise. Keep your weight training short and intense and any other aerobic activity (that is a higher HR) to under 45-60min. There are some other tricks you can use: Vit C taken in divided doses through out the day (or even pre/post exercise) can lower overall cortisol levels. Try taking 500mg-1000mg 3x a day (divided as it is water soluble and passes through your system), first thing AM, last thing PM, 30min pre-workout, post workout or just during very stressful times.
• Get your SLEEP. This can not be “stressed” enough (pardon the pun). If you are not going to bed early, staying up late, sleeping very little….you are just setting yourself up for disaster with lower GH levels, messed up melatonin, and higher cortisol peaks too soon (may cause restless sleep or waking up during the night, preventing that healing deep sleep). Not good. So the whole get your sleep saying should always be a top priority! Turn off the TV early, relax, do some deep breathing, turn down the lights (light is a stimulus!) let your cortisol levels drop like it should and you will feel and look better.
• Limit your use of stimulants. Yes, coffee and other caffeine stimulate the adrenaline/noradrenaline hormones. You are turning on the SNS response, which as we know…is meant for short bursts. Limit your use and certainly don’t have any later in the day, as that will not help your cortisol to lower and you get good sleep.
• Reduce stress and stop the weight gain. Ever notice when people say they eat more sugar when they are stressed out? (and lead to more insulin resistance, spiking insulin, taking in excess calories and more weight gain) This is your body’s response to the threat, it’s yelling “give me sugar for action”….so hence higher chronic stress (especially after liver glycogen is tapped out) means more cravings! Get rid of the stress, get rid of the cravings.
• Simplify your life, your possessions you are worrying about, don’t over commit to people, clear your schedule and keep tasks simple. Life is meant to be taken slowly and at an enjoyable pace. Slow and steady wins the race. Fast and chaotic makes you fat and sick.
• Stop stressing out over things you can not control or don’t matter. Whether at work, home, in the car. Practice stress reduction techniques like smiling more, ask yourself “will this even matter in a month…or year”, deep breathing exercises, go for a walk in nature, go exercise, simplify your life and it’s demands on you, learn to say “No” to people and take control of your time and life, turn off the TV, read something inspiring, don’t eat in front of the TV or while distracted, turn off the computer, turn off the cell phone, sit in traffic without the radio on and just focus on relaxing…..we are constantly being bombarded with stimulus and stressors every second of the day. Time to take notice and take control. You may not feel the SNS kicking in, but with every motorist that cuts you off, or every explosion/tense moment on a TV show, or every time the cell phone rings….your body responds in some way for possible future action (aka SNS response). Little chronic stressors can lead to bigger issues. Got some fat you are not losing? Well them….time to look at your whole lifestyle and see there may be something bigger in the works.

So get a notebook and start writing down everything you are doing all day, what stresses you out, what you worry about. Most stress is based on future events. You can’t control the future, you can only influence it’s outcome by what you are doing right NOW. So stop wasting your time stressing, and just take action. If you take the right actions now, there is nothing to worry about in the future. Enjoy your life and take control….and if you must, take time out to visualize something that relaxes you while at work….here, let’s all just drop all our worries for a few minutes and head out to the beach…..

photo by jorgemiente

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