Stress = 3 lbs. Weight Gain
I am not a huge fan of weighing yourself often. However, there are times when it’s helpful to increase awareness.
One of my clients had a consistent issue of becoming stressed at work. This stress caused him to drink a coke, which led him to crave sugar, which led him to not wanting to work out, which led to him sleeping poorly, which led to stress weight gain of exactly 3 additional pounds the next day.
We did an experiment. On the days he had stress he would weigh the day after, then on the days when he was feeling great he would also weigh and chart these outcomes. Consistently it was a 3 pound difference within the same few days. He didn’t quit his job, however he became very aware the second the stress came pouring in on what to do immediately:
- Breathe – Stop & take 5-10 deep breaths
- Move – Take a 10 minute walk, do 10 jumping jacks, stretch, walk barefoot in the grass (my personal fav), laugh, high kicks (for you Jean), anything!
- Eat! Try having a snack balanced with protein, carbohydrates, & fat: Examples; apple with almond butter, broccoli & hummus, protein shake, nut-based food bars, or avocado smeared on brown rice bread if you are really ready to eat a whole cake.
- Hydrate – Stop & have quality water, try to drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces per day, have a veggie juice, herbal tea, lemon water, or a coconut water.
- Get Support – Revisit your life goals and decide how you can take the next step. Find a buddy to be accountable with, join a meet up group that focuses on lifestyle & nutrition education, find a program that will help you focus on your health and nutrition so you can be empowered and not exhausted by your daily life choices.
Our body goes through changes every 7 years. If we are not aware of these changes, we fall behind. I recommend you do a liver cleansing focused program once to twice a year at a minimum. Even every week you can do a mini version of this. For example, on Sundays I tend to have an awesome brunch with friends and the rest of my day my nutrition can be less optimal. On Mondays, I eat lighter, hydrate, and let me body catch up.
Please share with us any other ideas you have for de-stressing in the comments down below.
You are supported,
Heather Fleming
P.S. The RESET program starts January 13 at 6 p.m. PT, sign up today.
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