When I hear stories of people in Alexandria, VA, who are ready to give up because they can’t lose weight. I’m also happy we can help them. Hormones can sabotage weight loss efforts. Luckily, you can do things to change your hormonal balance. Hormones are messengers. They tell your brain when your stomach is full, so you stop eating. They also tell your cells to open to uptake glucose. Sex hormones affect where you store fat, but other hormones can also affect it. Some hormones, like cortisol, can contribute to belly fat.
Hormonal imbalances don’t make it impossible to lose weight, but they do make it more difficult.
There are a number of hormonal problems that can cause weight gain. One of the plagues of menopause is weight gain caused by a hormone imbalance. Stress hormones also add to weight gain. Some hormones provide a secondary cause of weight gain. There’s a balance between ghrelin, the hunger hormone, and leptin that makes you feel full. If you have too much ghrelin, you’re always hungry so it’s harder to regulate your diet. Too much insulin can cause insulin resistance which also affects weight loss.
Change your diet to help balance hormones.
A healthy diet can help improve hormonal balance. If you’re eating too many foods with added sugar, you’re putting your body under stress and increasing insulin production. Both things can make weight loss more difficult. Eating food high in fiber, a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, and cutting out food with added sugar can improve thyroid functioning. A Mediterranean-style diet can help prevent weight gain during menopause and cutting back on sugar helps prevent both menopausal weight gain and weight gain from stress.
You can improve your hormonal balance by working out regularly.
Exercise burns off the hormones of stress. It also helps improve insulin sensitivity. Exercise burns the stored energy in your muscles and makes the cells more sensitive to the insulin, so they uptake the glucose from your blood. Exercise builds muscles to boost your metabolism. Exercise helps build muscle tissue to improve weight loss during menopause. As you age, you lose muscle tissue, and the more you have, the higher your metabolism and the easier it is to lose weight.
- While you may never be able to eat whatever you want without gaining weight like a friend can, you can control your weight gain with regular exercise and a healthy diet.
- Getting more sleep can help control your appetite. When you lack sleep, your body makes more ghrelin, the hunger hormone, and less leptin, the hormone that makes you feel full.
- Always check with your healthcare professional first. Sudden weight gain may be a sign of a serious condition. If you have a condition like hypothyroidism, it requires medication to lose weight, even though diet and exercise help.
- Dehydration can increase your risk of a hormonal imbalance and increase your cortisol levels. Drinking more water helps. Green tea can also hydrate you and the L-theanine can help relax you and reduce stress hormones.
For more information, contact us today at Team Worx Fitness
