Today’s article is talking about a sector of the weight loss community who have a weight issue involving cortisol and insulin.

Could it be you?

Read on and check the symptoms below to find out!

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Relax to lose weight

Our central nervous system is responsible for activating our response to stress. We didn’t evolve to be switched ‘on’ all the time. Our body is designed to perform really well under pressure for a period of time, but if down time isn’t given, the system will start to malfunction and show signs of serious wear and tear.

Long-term stress and elevated cortisol has been linked to insomnia, chronic fatigue syndrome, thyroid disorders, dementia, depression, and other conditions.

Our first step is to test your cortisol levels with a 3-point saliva cortisol test. This test is much more accurate than a serum (blood) test, and tells us when and where in the day or night your adrenal glands are under or over producing hormones.

The results of this test will help tell you if your weight loss program needs MORE or LESS exercise!

How cool is that!

Once we know the function of your adrenal glands and the blood sugar system, you might discover that the exercise that you were doing to lose weight was actually what was putting it on!

Of course, I don’t recommend that you stop exercising – the body needs motion. What I am saying is that sometimes too much exercise actually unbalances the hormones for some people.

Signs that your adrenal hormones may be out of balance:

• Feeling shaky
• Rapid heart beat
• Feeling stressed out
• Irritability or impatience
• Digestive issues
• Skin issues such as eczema, psoriasis or allergies
• Waking up with excessive energy
• Feeling tired between 2-4PM
• Find it hard to relax before bed
• Can’t tolerate noise

Often when the adrenals are out, so is our SLEEP.

If your sleep is not wonderful, then you won’t lose weight. One of the first things we address when you see us is sleep – it is the key to healing and cellular rejuvenation.

Weight gain and STRESS

If your cortisol is elevated, the sugar in your blood will be stored as FAT!

Under stressful conditions, cortisol provides the body with glucose by using protein stores via gluconeogenesis in the liver. However, elevated cortisol over the long term consistently produces glucose from the liver stores and muscle tissue, leading to increased blood sugar levels – even if your DIET is low in carbohydrates and sugars.

Why we need to RESPECT our Pancreas

Insulin is the hormone produced by our pancreas – pictured.

It allows our body to use sugar (glucose) from your diet for energy, or to store glucose for future use. Insulin helps keeps your blood sugar level from getting too high (hyperglycemia) or too low (hypoglycemia).

The more sugar we eat, the harder this gland has to work.

And if we are under too much chronic stress, it needs to work harder still to use up the sugars liberated by gluconeogenesis.