Stress and Belly Fat - Does Stress Make You Obese?

One major culprit to belly fat accumulation is: stress and cortisol. You absolutely must have cortisol management in your life if you want to lose fat around your belly. In an earlier article, discussed the first step you need to take for stress management. In this one, digging even further to learn exactly what stress actually is, what it does specifically to your body and mind, and finally, how it influences your belly fat.

First, let's talk about stress and your stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol is a stress hormone that flows through your blood to all of your organs. It plays multiple roles, including (but not limited to) helping keep you calm, relaxing, and boosting your immune system. Stress itself does not increase cortisol, although a stressed person may unconsciously worry about future stress or think about past stress. However, the real increased belly fat and weight gain is from increased stress hormone cortisol levels.

When you are stressed, you are less alert, have low energy, feel depressed, and have high blood pressure. In other words, when you are stressed, you have a higher than normal "stress tolerance" and your body responds by using the "fight or flight" response. This causes your brain and nervous system to release extra cortisol and your blood sugar to go up. This response is helpful for a moment, as it gets your body ready to "combat" the threat, but then your body winds up storing the extra glucose because it can't use it right away. This means that when you are stressed out, you have low energy and low blood sugar which cause you to be hungry and to consume more food.

One of the ways that I like to help reduce stress and make myself feel better is to do some form of daily meditation, preferably one that I do alone. Meditation calms me and gives me time to reflect, to clear my mind, to get in touch with my inner being, to be able to relax and take it all in. Doing some form of daily meditation is great for reducing stress and I don't even have to do it in the morning - I prefer in the evening, when I have a little more time.

Another way that I like to reduce stress and make myself feel better is to take on one or more stressors every time I feel stressed out. For me, that usually involves some form of organizational work, writing, reading, or studying. I also try to figure out creative solutions to the problem instead of just ignoring it. I write down my frustrations and ideas and store them in a small notepad. Whenever I feel stressed out, I just look at my notes, see what's bothering me, and write down my ideas to do something else instead.

Another great thing that stress makes us do is to skip getting the proper amount of rest. When we are constantly stressed out, we skip our nights sleep or we do not get enough sleep to repair our bodies from the effects of the stress hormones in our bloodstream. Lack of sleep weakens our immune system, makes us more prone to sickness, and causes many other problems.

Sugar also contributes to a stress-related upset in your body. When you have excess sugar in your blood, your body releases the stress hormone cortisol, which triggers an increase in your appetite. The more you eat, the more weight you will gain. Sugar also increases your insulin levels, which means that it increases the storage of fat in your abdominal area. Eating less sugar and reducing your fat intake will not only help you lose weight, but it will also improve your health in other ways.

So if you are experiencing stress and belly fat, you may want to consider trying a stress-fighting system that includes foods that fight stress hormones and unhealthy hormones in your blood stream. In addition to helping you feel better on a daily basis, these systems will make you healthier overall. You'll be healthier, sleep better, and have more energy to enjoy life.