Ever wonder why you’ve stopped losing weight or maybe you’re doing everything ‘right’
but the fat is still hanging on??
Take a close look at your daily stress and learn how to jump start your body for success.

WHEN CORTISOL LEVELS RISE,
INSULIN LEVELS RISE TOO AND INSULIN IS A FAT STORING HORMONE.
(Did you just have a light bulb moment?)

Let me explain more >>>

The hormone “Cortisol” is linked with emotions and the body releases Cortisol in times of stress & emotional situations.
** Humans are naturally wired for emotional pleasure & drive. The part of our brain that relates to this is the Amygdala which is our “sensor’ for emotions.  This blog gets better, I promise.  Stress & emotions cause us to take actions that are not healthy for us… such as: eat the wrong foods at the wrong time and make big purchases. Do you eat or shop when stressed? Not only are we making impulse unhealthy decisions for our bodies and bank accounts, but cortisol is being released in the body.
Cortisol = inflammation.
When cortisol elevates, so does insulin, and the body starts to store fat.
Inflammation and fat storage…. sounds like a disaster, right? It is!!!

Do you want inflammation in your brain and body for long periods of time? I don’t!

** STRESS IS A KEY FACTOR IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ADDICTION.
Another thing to think about….. Serotonin is a chemical created by the human body and is manufactured in the brain and the intestines. Too much or too little of this chemical can cause many symptoms. The majority of the body’s serotonin, between 80-90%, can be found in the gastrointestinal tract. It is commonly regarded as a chemical that is responsible for maintaining mood balance.
Having obscene amounts of sugar and carbohydrate over long periods of time can max out our serotonin machinery, leaving us unhappy, carb-craving, and depressed. What happens when you are unhappy, carb-craving, and depressed??
You reach for more junk food and sugar.
See the cycle??
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How do we solve this?
Telling someone to “decrease your stress” is irritating. If it were that easy, we would!!!!
There is no ‘perfect’ answer for each human body. But, we must FOCUS and be MINDFUL. Those 2 words go together so well!! When you find yourself reaching for the Red Velvet Oreos or ready to buy that new TV, stop ‘justifying’ it and realize that your human brain is wired for that action when it’s stressed…but you can change that!

Here are techniques to try. 
Find 1-3 that work for you and practice them often.

• Breathe deeply and FOCUS on the breath.
  Be MINDFUL and honest with yourself about what is going on in your life that could be causing stress, irritation, annoyance, and the feeling of being overwhelmed.
• Consider starting a food journal and not only document when you are eating, but HOW YOU FEEL during that part of the day. Example: 3:00pm – 3 Oreo Red Velvet cookies (just left a business meeting and feeling overwhelmed)
• Sunlight.  Get more sunlight during the winter months when it’s very easy for depression to set in. Serotonin is our mood balance chemical. Light therapy and serotonin-increasing medications are both effective treatments for depression that occurs with low levels of sunlight. Light exposure increases serotonin in humans, and serotonin levels are lowest in midwinter, and higher on bright days no matter what time of year.  You can purchase light therapy products at many stores.  10,000 lux light therapy decreases suicidal ideation in some folks. (www.psychologytoday.com/blog/evolutionary-psychiatry/201105/sunlight-sugar-and-serotonin)
• Eat more foods in their natural state and avoid the over processed foods that contain hidden sugar and sodium. As I taught you…. sugar can max out our seratonin making us MORE sad and depressed.
• Exercise. Get the mood boosting chemical endorphin release from a natural high. Exercise is natural brain power producer to fight against depression and mood….which also will help you fight the food addictions.
• Stop all the distractions. Multi-tasking is ruining us. Our brains are not focusing on one task, leaving room for mistakes. Society is telling us to do more, more, more……accomplish more in the same 24 hours. Once again creating stress. Do one thing at a time and do it well. That will encourage a greater sense of pride and accomplishment while keeping the stress low. FOCUS. Don’t fall victim to people telling you to ‘do more!’  Learn to say “No” and stay focused.
• Meditate. This doesn’t mean you have to sit in a dark room and hum. Meditate in the shower! You have 5-10 minutes to focus on the warm water running over your body, the clean invigorating smell of shampoo and soap, the calm steam in the air, the sounds of water, and the feeling of washing stress and anxiety down the drain. (Don’t you feel more relaxed just visualizing the scene I put into your brain?) The problem is….we allow our brains to think about dinner, the project that is due, the car that needs fixed, and the fight with our Mom the day before…….that we don’t allow the brain to clear. Be MINDFUL of what’s happening around you and pay attention to your senses. The sense of smell and hearing are powerful. Just think how much money the candle and music companies make from those 2 senses!!!
• Laugh. Did you know that when we laugh, we are able to tolerate more pain? It’s true! Laughter releases endorphins which also raise our ability to ignore pain. Think about how we treat children when we know they are going to get an injection, our instinct is to make them smile or laugh before and after. You were PROGRAMMED to naturally want to make others laugh at times of discomfort.
• Massage: I learned in college the power of human ‘touch’ and all that it can do for us mentally, emotionally, and physically. It’s safe to say we all crave human touch….. when we are sad, a hug feels good. Simply holding someone’s hand can bring calmness and inner peace. You’ve heard of ‘angry sex’ after an argument or intimacy when feeling vulnerable.  It’s another example of an endorphin release! Endorphin release is usually caused by physical activity, like exercise, or touch, like massage.

Develop the part of your brain that controls emotions and pleasure. Retrain your brain for success!!!! Continuing to allow yourself to seek comfort in food is in no way, shape, or form healthy and we all know it. And, I’ve just educated you on why it’s unhealthy (creates disease) and how you can fight against it with many options. It’s going to happen….. I will grab a handful of Peanut Butter M&M’s at some point in the future when stressed……… but the point is to recognize what is happening to your body and retrain it to find that ‘feel good chemical release’ from another source than processed foods. Telling yourself you’ll just munch on carrots vs. a donut won’t do the trick. Your brain is needing the sugar and fat from the donut, and honestly, a carrot isn’t going to fulfill your brain. Recognize this and be ready with more options to quiet the brain.

** Recap: reaching for a sleeve of Red Velvet Oreos during the afternoon work session may seem to be a ‘craving’…..but really it’s your brain trying to seek pleasure because it doesn’t know how to handle the stress and chemical release. Not only is it trying to seek pleasure, but it’s also releasing Cortisol (creating inflammation in the body) and Insulin (fat storage) and over a long period of time, constant cortisol released will cause weight gain, disease, and unhappiness.  Instead… close your eyes and focus on your breathing. Take a walk around the office.  Listen to music.  Sit next to the window and get some sun on your face.  Make your co-worker tell you a funny joke. (Tip:  Not all co-workers are funny, so seek out the ones that honestly make you smile.)

With practice and mindfulness…. you’ll break those food addictions soon because you’ll be breaking what is CAUSING them.  The brain!!!

If you would like more information or to ‘pick my brain’ on this topic or others, please contact me at Bashford.Lisa@yahoo.com.
I would love to set up a time to meet with you, your company, your sports team, or any group of people to teach them more about a healthy lifestyle, food addictions, food for sports performance, and changing the body’s shape in a healthy manner.
Visit my website to see what’s on sale this month regarding home workouts & to learn more about me! (Lisa Bashford)
www.YourFitness-411.com