In this episode, Brooke Davis discusses the powerful connection between stress and fat loss. She explains the different types of stress and how they can impact the body. Chronic stress can lead to weight gain, slow down metabolism, disrupt hormone production, and increase the risk of health issues. Brooke provides actionable tips for managing stress, including nourishing the body, using breathwork and mindfulness techniques, prioritizing physical activity, and improving sleep hygiene. She also emphasizes the importance of identifying and eliminating stressors in one’s life.

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Transcript:

Hello and welcome to today’s episode of the Fitness Simplified podcast where we dive deep into the fascinating world of wellness, fitness, and holistic living. I’m Brooke Davis, functional diagnostic nutrition practitioner, owner of Elysian Women’s Wellness, and I am so glad you’re here with us today. What most people don’t realize is that losing fat and getting in shape isn’t just about what you eat or how much you exercise. Okay, the whole calories in, calories out thing.

There is a powerful connection between our minds and our bodies that often gets overlooked, especially when it comes to stress and fat loss. And that’s what we’re focusing on in this episode. Specifically, how stress can impact your ability to lose fat. Stress is something we all deal with, whether it’s work, family, finances, or just the daily grind of life. But did you know that chronic stress can actually hinder your fat loss efforts?

How Stress Impacts Fat Loss and Metabolism

Today, we’re going to talk about how stress affects your body, why it can lead to weight gain, and most importantly, how you can manage it to help you achieve your fat loss goals. In this episode, we’ll cover everything from the science behind stress and fat storage to practical, easy-to-implement strategies for reducing stress in your everyday life.

Whether you are just getting started on your fitness journey or you’re looking to break through a plateau, this episode is packed with valuable insights and actionable tips to help you unlock your full potential.

So grab a cup of tea, find a comfortable spot, and let’s get started on this journey to a healthier, happier, and more balanced, less stressed you.

The Two Types of Stress: Eustress vs. Distress

There are two types of stress: eustress and distress. Eustress is good stress—it’s stress that our body can adapt to. Distress is bad stress—it’s stress that we can’t handle or adapt to. Sometimes the hardest part is determining what’s eustress and what is distress because when it comes down to it, the only thing that determines which is which is our vital reserve, or how much capacity our body and mind currently have to manage that input. Stress is responsible for 100% of doctor visits. Okay, so the real statistic is 75 to 90%, but ultimately, you wouldn’t go to the doctor if you weren’t in distress about something outside of regular checkups, right? So I like to just say 100% because stress comes in many different forms.

As a functional diagnostic practitioner, we recognize that there’s only one real root cause to all health problems, and that is stress. Organs in the body start to malfunction because they’re deficient of nutrients, which is stressful. And now that’s physiological stress on your body. You might think, ‘My hormones are off. That’s the root cause.’ But your hormones are really just a signal. You might think, ‘My digestion is off.’ But that doesn’t necessarily mean that it started in the gut. Your hormones impact your gut health.

How Stress Leads to Fat Storage and Weight Gain

So what threw off your hormones? Stress. From the food you eat, your relationships, the life you live, your job, your exercise, the chemicals in our world—who knows, maybe all of it. It really doesn’t matter ultimately. Stress comes to us in a lot of different forms. It comes in mental, emotional, spiritual forms. Emotional trauma can absolutely lead to physical symptoms.

It could also be physical and biomechanical. You’re injured, maybe a back injury, which is stress on the body’s literal tissues. But then there’s also the emotional toll it can take, maybe stressing about work or not being able to do things with your kid. Then we go into chemical stressors with things like pesticides, herbicides, alcohol, medications, heavy metals, parasites, bacterias. The list is long.

So the breakdown of your vital reserve from mental, emotional, and or physical stress could allow for the vulnerability of these things to build up, right? The parasites, heavy metals, toxic, etc. Or the buildup of these stressors has reduced your capacity to manage mental, emotional, physical stress. It’s all one big vicious cycle. And that is ultimately what as an FDN we call metabolic chaos. Okay? And it is just at the point that you are getting symptoms, you are getting diagnosed with something…

The Science Behind Stress and Metabolism

What came first, the chicken or the egg? We don’t know, and ultimately, we don’t really care. What we need to do is learn how to manage stress in every capacity. So let’s talk about your body’s immediate chemical physical reaction response to stress. We have a chemical stress response controlled by our sympathetic nervous system called fight or flight, which is immediate and automatic. We do not have to think about it.

When the body faces a stressful situation, it automatically goes into this fight or flight mode. It is the built-in response to help us deal with danger. It starts in the brain, which sends a signal to the body to get ready. Then the adrenal glands release hormones like adrenaline and cortisol.

Adrenaline makes your heartbeat faster, gives you a quick burst of energy, while cortisol raises your blood sugar to give your body that fast fuel. This response is really helpful in short-term emergencies, like a Sabre-tooth Tiger coming at you, or maybe even during exercise, but if it happens too often or for too long, it can be really hard on the body.

Telling The Difference Between Stress Types

The problem is that our bodies cannot differentiate between true life-threatening stress and stress induced by job deadlines or fights with our partner or financial struggles. It’s all the same. So what happens when we have chronically elevated cortisol?

To start, when I say metabolism, I’m referring to energy conversion and hormone production by the body. This refers to technically hundreds of different processes, but most people think of it simply as burning energy, and that’s not the case. So just keep this in mind as we go forward. Stress can significantly influence appetite and eating behaviors. For some, stress can suppress the appetite. Usually, it’s temporary.

Chronic Stress and Fat Loss

However, chronic stress most often leads to increased hunger and cravings, especially for sugary and high-fat foods. This is because cortisol stimulates insulin to maintain blood sugar levels, which is great when we need it, but that can then trigger cravings for those quick energy-dense foods that provide that quick source of energy.

Chronically high cortisol levels can slow down your metabolism, meaning that your body burns fewer calories even when you are at rest. This happens because cortisol tells the body to save energy, preparing for what it sees as a long period of stress. Research shows that people with high cortisol levels may have a lower basal metabolic rate, which is the number of calories the body needs to just function—like breathe, circulation, keep your heart beating, all that good stuff.

The thyroid gland is also important for controlling metabolism because it produces the hormones that regulate how your body uses energy. Chronic stress can interfere with that thyroid function in several ways. So one of the ways is that it reduces the production of TSH or thyroid-stimulating hormones, which leads to lower levels of thyroid hormones, T3 and T4. It can also disrupt how T4, the inactive version of the thyroid hormone, is converted into T3, the active form, and this is the one that directly influences metabolic rate. So when, if this conversion is disrupted, even if T4 levels are normal, the body might still act like it has low thyroid function, leading to slower metabolism and weight gain.

Elevated Cortisol With Stress and Fat Loss

Chronically elevated cortisol also signals the body to store fat specifically around the belly. This type of fat is called visceral fat versus subcutaneous, which is seen elsewhere in the body. Not only does it slow the metabolism, but it also increases your risk of health issues like insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, heart disease. And as this fat builds up, it disrupts your metabolism even more, creating a cycle where stress causes weight gain and weight gain leads to more metabolic problems, hence metabolic chaos. All of this as you know, you may know going through perimenopause and menopause is all just compounded, right?

By the amount of stress that your body is going under through these hormonal changes. So your body is far more sensitive and also far more impacted by these things. And then cortisol raises your blood sugar by signaling the liver to release glucose into the bloodstream. This is making sure that you have enough fast energy to handle that stress, but when stress becomes that constant part of your life, blood sugar levels stay elevated, which then increase your risk of developing insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, making it easier to gain weight and of course, increasing your risk of that diabetic diabetes.

High cortisol levels can cause the body to break down muscle tissue to use as energy. And this is concerning because muscle is very important for keeping a high metabolic rate. Losing muscle mass leads to a lower BMR, making it easier to gain weight and harder to lose it. Again, vicious cycle, a brutal vicious cycle.

The Vicious Cycle of Stress and Fat Loss

Then we have, of course, the fact that stress also just completely saps your motivation, your energy leading to less physical activity. And then without regular exercise, muscle maintenance and growth slowdown, which further slows down your metabolism and leads to more fat storage.

It is a vicious cycle, which like I said, is where the term metabolic chaos comes in. And if that wasn’t enough, chronically elevated cortisol can also interfere with the production of sex hormones like estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone. Cortisol is produced from the same precursor hormones as sex hormones, so when the body is under chronic stress, it will prioritize cortisol production, that pathway, over sex hormone production because…

Who cares? Our body certainly doesn’t care if we can procreate if we’re not alive. So this ultimately leads to lower levels of estrogen and progesterone in women, reduced testosterone in men. And then this becomes even more of an issue in perimenopause and menopause because the body is already struggling to produce these hormones, but any extra energy is then being diverted to cortisol, which can cause some of your symptoms to become more severe.

We won’t get into it too much here, but of course, hormone imbalances will lead to a variety of miserable symptoms, weight gain and difficulty losing weight being some of them. So now that we know what stress does to our body, how can we actually identify it? So like I said earlier, the problem is that there are a lot of different kinds of stress. There is physiological stress, which could be exercise, could be illness or disease.

Identifying and Managing Stressors

And there’s a whole host of what we call hidden stressors, which can include hormones, immune system, digestion, detoxification, and energy production systems that are not only invisible in the sense that they’re inside our bodies, but they often go overlooked in the process of reducing stress. Then we have our psychological stressors, which includes the N from our “hidden,” so our nervous system. And that would be things like relationships, work, financial stress, trauma, internal expectations, fears, and dialogue.

And then we have biochemical, which are things like environmental toxins, xenoestrogen, pesticides, herbicides, et cetera. Of course, we can’t control all of that, right? Some things are completely beyond our control. But what I like to emphasize is to control the things that we can control and let go of the things or people that we can’t and aren’t serving us. So…

Identifying these things in your life potentially causing you stress can be the first step to really helping support your mind and your body through it and eventually eliminating what you can, whether that is working past, working through past traumas, current anxieties, recognizing unhealthy patterns, or moving on from relationships or friendships that don’t support these goals.

Nourishing Your Body During Stress and Fat Loss

But if you know anything about me and this podcast, it’s that I like actionable steps, things you can do today or tomorrow to help move the needle forward. So let’s dive into that. Number one is going to be nourishing the body. So often, especially women struggling with belly fat, which is a lot of which is likely induced by cortisol, are trying to restrict and diet their way out of it. Your body recognizes dieting and a reduction of calories as a form of stress.

So you’re really only digging yourself deeper. You’re going to need to prioritize nutrient-dense foods, adequate calories, and adequate fats. This is a really common carbs and fats are just so demonized and women are cutting them out left and right. They’re focusing on protein, which is amazing. However, especially for hormonal balance, we have to have those quality fats.

Don’t Forget Nutrient Dense Food During Stress and Fat Loss

So you, in terms of prioritizing, like I said, adequate calories, nutrient-dense foods. For most people, calorie intake should be somewhere around 11 to 13 times your body weight, but that can vary. The moral of the story is you can’t live off coffee and almonds. Okay, you want adequate protein, complex carbohydrates, and like I said, quality fats. They are absolutely necessary to support your body and reduce the stress response.

Carbohydrates, a little more on that, right? I talked about cortisol being in response to low blood sugar. If you are carbohydrates will help raise your blood sugar, which will blunt the cortisol response. So you’ll be amazed at what your body does eating more of quality foods versus less of anything in general.

But specifically, I’m thinking about diets like Optavia or even Weight Watchers where you’re based on points, right? But quality matters. So if you need support, some more support on this, go check out episode three on macros. And with that, there’s a link in the show notes where we can help set you up with a personalized plan. Number two is going to be using the breath. I will have so much more coming on this.

The Power of Breathwork

But the breath is insanely powerful, and it can not only activate your sympathetic nervous system, but it can also do the opposite and help bring you back to that parasympathetic rest and digest state. It’s a tool that you have with you at all times. You just have to use it. So the first thing really and most important is that nasal breathing is going to help support that down regulation.

There are studies that show that simply nasal breathing and breathing in through the mouth can put you in those nervous system states. So nasal breathing can put you into the parasympathetic, that rest and digest. Breathing in through your mouth, especially fast, deep breaths, can put you into that sympathetic state, that fight or flight. When you’re breathing for down regulation, one, it’s nasal, but two, we want to prioritize the exhale. So one of my favorites, is a four to six breath. So you breathe in for four.

Mindfulness and Meditation Techniques

Hold for two seconds, and then exhale for six seconds. There is also box breathing, which can be simply doing a four second inhale, four second hold, four second exhale, four second hold, or you could do five second box, you could do six second box for all the breaths. That one can be a little bit easier to remember, and despite it not being longer on the exhale, it is a down regulation because of the holds and the longer periods.

So the best thing is that when you’re focused on your breath, how it feels, counting it, you’re not thinking about anything else. You literally can’t. So this helps whatever else is going on just to dissipate to the back of your brain. This can help bring you back to the present when you’re feeling anxious about the past or the future. In alignment with this is mindfulness and meditation.

I’ve talked about this on my gratitude podcast and a lot of people think meditation is sitting there with an empty mind, with your fingers touching, humming maybe, and that’s not necessarily the case. The point is to bring you into the now. Feel what your body is feeling, experiencing the earth or the life around you. You can do this with nature or food by using all of your senses and just checking in. As you go for a walk, ideally in nature, but even if you’re in the city, what colors do you see? What do you smell?

The Role of Gratitude in Reducing Stress

How do your feet feel on the earth? Is there a breeze through your hair? Do you hear the birds? What do you hear? As you eat a meal, how does the food smell? Does it look appetizing? How does the food taste as you eat it? How do you feel it nourishing your body? Are you giving thanks to that? This can be a really powerful tool for managing overeating, navigating food choices as you bring more awareness to your meal, how your body feels as you eat it, after you eat it.

But it also actually improves digestion and keeps your mind in the present. It’s a triple whammy. There are many mindfulness exercises that you can do throughout the day, like rubbing your thumb and forefinger together, taking just 10 seconds to check in and just feel, breathe and feel. You can do a full body scan. Start at your toes, work your way up to your ankles, calves, legs, hips, belly, back, shoulders, arms, hands, neck, head. Just notice how it all feels. Right now.

All of these are versions of meditation that don’t require humming, although that can actually help to be really effective for reducing your overall stress, especially when used multiple times throughout the day and consistently. Number three, also in line with mindfulness and meditation and your breath work is going to be gratitude. It’s really hard to be stressed out about what you don’t have or what’s coming when you’re so focused on being grateful for the now.

Prioritize Physical Activity

You can create a specific morning gratitude and or journaling practice, which we have a journal now that could help you do that. And I will link that in the show notes. Or you can just tie it all in with your thoughts as you’re scanning your meal and thinking about how grateful you are to have warm, nourishing food on your plate that’s readily available to you. You can tie it into the body scan as you move up your body, thinking about how grateful you are to have 10 fingers or toes or nine, whatever you’ve got, or two legs to get out of bed, no matter how early it may feel.

That your stomach has the ability to digest the food that you ate to break it down and to give you those nutrients to the rest of your body so you can get out of bed. Arms to hug your loved ones, a face to smile and spread joy with. Because the reality of it is that not everyone has all of those things. And while a lot of people might have a lot more than you, you likely still have so much to be grateful for, especially if you’re here listening to this podcast.

Moving on to number four, this is the Fitness Simplified podcast. So we couldn’t leave out physical activity. As I mentioned before, exercise can in fact induce a cortisol response during stress and fat loss. So this is a good time to really listen to your body. What kind of exercise do you need? If you listen to my last episode, you’ll get a little bit better idea of ways to navigate exercise. But if you’re feeling particularly stressed, you might want to avoid long high intensity exercises.

Improve Sleep Hygiene During Stress and Fat Loss

Prioritize things like yoga or stretching, walking, and of course, resistance training. Lastly, with number five, and definitely not least, is going to be sleep hygiene. For women especially, we need seven to nine hours of quality sleep. Research has shown major connections between reduced sleep and reduced insulin sensitivity, increased hunger signals, and reduced stress management. I know good long sleep isn’t always possible, especially nearing perimenopause and menopause.

Also, I get it, I co-sleep with my five and two-year-old, but there are a lot of steps you can take to work toward that. So again, I do have a whole podcast on this if you want to really dive into it, but long story short, number one, have a consistent bedtime, ideally within an hour and as many hours as you can before midnight, it’s going to be the most restful sleep. Number two, no blue light one hour but ideally two hours before bedtime.

Three, do some easy reading, light breath work, gentle stretching before bed. Number four, make sure your room is black or wear a sleep mask. Number five, earplugs if needed. And number six, a cooler room has been associated with better sleep and studies show about 65 degrees Fahrenheit is kind of the ideal temperature for that. All of these are pretty actionable right in this moment or the next day. But what other things can you do long term to adjust your lifestyle to better serve you?

Looking Into Healthy Relationships

There’s a lot. I’m not gonna dive into them all today, but looking at things like time management, setting boundaries, looking at your relationships, right? What does your community and support system look like? Are your relationships serving you or sucking from you? Is your work the cause of your stress? Can you change that? Is it worth it? Thinking of setbacks more as an opportunity for growth instead of roadblocks. How can you do more of the things that bring you joy in this life?

Thank you so much for listening to another episode of the Fitness Simplified podcast. I hope you find that helpful to apply in your own life. We’re stoked to have you join us on your journey to better health and fitness. If you have any questions, suggestions for future topics, or just want to chat, feel free to reach out to us on Instagram at brook underscore Elysian and Facebook linked in the show notes or via our website, ElysianWomen’sWellness.com.

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