Medical doctors today are talking about stress being the next black plague. Yes, it’s that serious. Stress is your body’s natural response to any sort of change. Anything negative in your life like getting sick or losing a family member, to even positive changes like job promotions and getting married! Our body interprets any sort of change from your regular routine as stress, even things that keep you healthy, like exercising! But let’s not get too serious here, the main thing to remember is that getting stressed is not bad for you, but staying stressed is toxic. Stress and overeating is one of the leading causes in type 2 diabetes. Here are some ways to treat your type 2 diabetes with exercise. We are always changing and evolving, which means we are always moving in and out of stressful situations, that’s life; but when we are under stress for long periods of time and are never finding ways to manage it…that is when it starts to take a toll on our bodies.
The body only has one response to stress. When a threat is perceived by the body your central nervous system kicks into flight or flight. This means it is preparing to either attack the bear, or run away from the bear. So stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol are released which is going to kickstart a sequence of events. Your heart rate rises, your blood pressure rises and your temperature starts to increase. This is what happens no matter what kind of stress your body is placed under. The problem is not the initial response, because that is natural, the problem lies with stress hormones being too high for too long. That is what leads to us being fat, sick and stupid.
Our body only creates so much energy everyday, so if we are in a stressful state (with high stress hormones) your bodies energy is going to go to calming itself down or ramping itself up, instead of doing the normal daily activities like digest your food or tell you your full. This is where the problems lie with people craving nutrient deficient foods (like pizza, and cookies), not getting enough sleep, and therefore all end up leading to unwanted weight gain. If you are struggling with weightloss, it may be a good idea to hire a personal trainer.
So you can see where chronic stress can be an issue. Being in that constant fight or flight mode is going to take a serious toll on hormones, sleep, and overall quality of life. So it is important to always find ways to manage your stress and relax. A lot of people are talking more and more about self care self love these days,and for a very good reason. We are getting more and more stressed, which leads to more and more sickness. So the next time you say you’re stressed or busy, and wear it as a badge of honor..rethink it, and take a load off!
