NEVADA CITY, California
United States
Cornell College Mt. Vernon, IA
University of California, Berkeley
Author, From Fat to Fit--Turn Yourself into a Weapon of Mass Reduction
Author, The Fat to Fit Meltdown Manual
Author, Remembering When I Was Young
Motivational Speaker and Columnist
Rowley, IA
San Francisco, CA
The ancestor to every action is a thought. Ralph Waldo Emerson
This Week's Fitness Tip, Featured Member and Try-AthlonIs Stress Making You Fat?
Is Stress Making You Fat?
When I quit the seven-day-a-week job that I had held for 21 years as manager of a retail operation, I decided to lose weight and get fit. In retrospect, I wonder if the stress of that unrelenting schedule contributed significantly to my obesity.
Perhaps so, because look at this article about a report that Zofia Zukowska of
Besides the chemical reaction of our bodies, we also have to address the remedies we use for stress reduction. For instance, when I was overweight, I thought overeating was my problem and focused on dieting. In fact, overeating was the solution to a hidden problem (trying to do too much and working too hard). To lose weight, I had to address the hidden problem instead of focusing on eating. It took me quite a while to figure this out. What do you think? Carole
I just read in the newspaper a small study, so the results are not truly valid, but the results will lead to more investigation. Anyway, it involved subjects tasting a milkshake while they were in an MRI. The article described how they were able to inject a small amount of fluid into the subject's mouths and then monitor the brain's reaction to the taste. They found that thinner subjects had a stronger reaction to the taste of a milkshake in the pleasure center of their brain. Those who did not react so strongly had higher BMI's. They also mentioned a genetic component that predicted which subjects were most likely to gain weight and the possible correlation with the pleasure center in the brain. There's so many things we still do not know about how our bodies work. Taking in fewer calories and burning more calories results in weight loss. Sustaining that loss takes a great deal of effort and most people do not keep the weight off anyway
Stress is the biggest contributor to fat gain. A stressed person will naturally look to relieve that feeling with what brings them comfort, and unfortunately that for MOST people is eating. So even if you eat healthy, you will probably eat too much, which causes weight gain as well. Since stress is inevitable, find alternatives to reducing it other than eating. Exercise is the PERFECT alternative because not only does it take your mind off whatever is stressing you, it will result in a calorie burn too!
This is interesting but I am not sure I can put a handle on controlling my stress.
Any suggestions?
This is an important piece. Thank you Carole. I recently read something about olive oil and its importance in aging well on http://www.collectivewizdom.com
A friend sent it to me.
Views: 3855
Comments: 6
Bookmarks: 0
