How To Avoid Feeding Your Stress
Feeling stressed out? Fact is most of us are. We live in such a fast paced society some of us don’t even realize it, it has just become a way of life. If you have done any research on the matter then you already know that exercise and meditation are two things you can do to start combating stress today. However what about your food choices? Is what you put into your body contributing to your stress levels? The answer very well could be yes.
Don’t feed the stress! When our bodies get stressed our cortisol and adrenaline go up and our fight or flight response is ready for action. Except there is no real danger so our bodies are not using the energy to fight or flee so it stores it for later use. Here comes the muffin top.
Do you take comfort in food when you are stressed? What is it you are eating? Convenience, pre packaged, processed foods? Well while these foods are fast and convenient when you don’t feel like making anything they are not good for your health, your stress and are contributing to your muffin top. Thinking one more cup of coffee might help get you through the day? Try sipping green juices or chamomile tea instead of sugary pop, juice or coffee. Although the initial pick me up is tempting you will inevitably crash leaving yourself feeling more stressed and agitated.
Craving something sweet? Skip the cookies and try a couple of dates and handful of nuts or an ounce of dark chocolate. Cookies may be tempting but they come at the cost of raising your insulin resistance and weight gain. Skip the convenience of pre packed processed foods. While it is tempting to just grab something quick at the store, take a moment and think about all the extra sodium and sugar that these foods are typically laden with. Sugar and processed foods are actually contributing to the release of these stress hormones. Instead eat low sugar fruits, plenty of veg and high quality proteins like salmon and fresh rolls. These foods will feed your calm and not your stress or your muffin top.
As much as you may crave them they will just be contributing to the release of more stress hormones. Remember when stress hormones go up, your mood goes down.