Why is losing weight so hard? The answer lies in the angry hormone triad. The hormones leptin, insulin and cortisol dictate whether you lose or gain weight. Get the angry hormone triad under control and you can lose weight.
Leptin is a hormone that’s designed to manage metabolism. When leptin is functioning normal your metabolism roars on like a well tuned engine burning up the pizza you had last night. In addition, it curves your appetite making you feel less hungry. However, when leptin is out of balance your subconscious mind takes over because leptin takes over your brain. Even though you are 50 lbs overweight leptin tells your brain you are hungry and need to eat. At the same time your metabolism is grinding to a halt and stalling causing all that food your brain is telling you to eat to be stored as more fat. This leads us to insulin.
Insulin is a master hormone and allows nutrients like sugar to enter and exit muscle and liver cells. It does the same to fat cells. If insulin levels are normal a person can store food in the form of glycogen and fat, but it can also allow you to release glycogen and fat from cells and burn it up as energy. However, if insulin levels rise too much which is the case in many overweight people the body becomes wrecked with inflammation (which make you sick) and fat cells lose the ability to release fat. When insulin levels are too high the body loses the ability to lose fat.
Cortisol is the last hormone in the angry hormone triad. Cortisol is one bad mother. This hormone stores unwanted fat at high rate’s, causes muscle to waste away, increases insulin and glucose levels, and slows metabolism. Cortisol is controlled by a myriad of things. Sleep, stress, exercise and food all play a role. Allow this hormone to get angry and weight loss is a no go.
So how do you fix the angry hormone triad? It’s easier than you think. Number one is diet. You must eliminate food that has no nutrients and is high in fructose. You must add in nutrient dense food (vegetables, fruit, eggs and nuts), anti-inflammatory foods (broccoli, blue berries, and turmeric to name a few) and foods that restore normal gut flora (kim chi, sauerkraut, and greek yogurt). (E-mail me and I will send you a free E-book loaded with this type of food). Number two is exercise. You must get fit. Not walking fit but truly fit. Increase muscle and strength with resistance training. Keep exercise sessions short but intense. Anaerobic exercise is essential to great health and weight loss. Some think due to health and joint problems that there is no hope. You’re wrong! Everything can be modified as you strengthen the body and gain a level of fitness you once thought impossible. Number three is sleep. You must learn to improve the quality of your sleep. Doing things like turning off most the lights two hours prior to bedtime and sleeping in complete darkness. (Visit our Facebook page by searching Expect Results Fitness and look for the post 9 Things You Can Do To Get Better Sleep). Number four is lowering stress. Easier said than done, but you must determine the source of your stress and develop a plan that will allow you to eliminate it. It may be developing a budget with Dave Ramsey or seeking parenting help from a counselor. Stress must be made the servant not the master.
I would love to help you achieve your health and weight loss goals. Contact me at 501-607-4974 and try Fitness Boot Camp for FREE!