You’ve probably been hearing about the
connection between stress, the stress
hormone cortisol and belly fat. There is
plenty of well-respected research that
shows that even the stress of daily life
can stimulate the release of cortisol into
your bloodstream and that cortisol’s
main directive is to store belly fat. This
natural response to stress may have been
useful back when you might be running
from a stampede of mastodon, but
now….not so much.
This connection between stress and
belly fat may be part of the reason that
the people of the Mediterranean have
fewer issues with obesity and abdominal
fat. The people of this region not only
eat more healthfully; they live more
healthfully when it comes to stress.
Their lives are generally not as hurried,
their days not as full.
Here are a number of things you can do
to reduce the effects of stress on your
body and reduce the amount of cortisol
released into your bloodstream.
-Get adequate sleep.
Studies have
shown that people who sleep less
than six hours a night have
significantly higher blood cortisol
levels and abdominal fat.
-Spend at least fifteen minutes a day
doing something just for you.
That
could mean a walk in the garden, a
bubble bath or relaxing with a
soothing CD.
-Laugh.
Do it often and do it for
real. If you need help, rent a
comedy video or call your wittiest
friend.
-Take Vitamin C.
Vitamin C is
depleted constantly, especially by
stress. This enormously important
vitamin is essential for cellbuilding
and it also stimulates the
production of carnitine, which is
used to transport stored fat to
where it can be metabolized.
In
other words, once you reduce stress
to reduce cortisol, the carnitine
will take that belly fat you don’t
need any more to where it can be
used for energy. Talk about a winwin.
