Why am I Not Losing Fat?! (Part 3)

We are back again to tackle our next limiting factor in the quest to lose fat. We have already talked about the oxygen delivery system and the blood sugar management system, which, if you have not yet read, you can find in Part 1 and Part 2. Today we look at the third most common issue with losing fat: stress.

Fat Loss Barrier #3: The adrenal system

The adrenal glands are your body’s primary defense for managing stress. When the adrenal glands are activated, they produce a number of hormones that help your body deal with both acute and chronic stressors. One such hormone is cortisol. Cortisol’s primary function is to increase blood sugar levels so your brain, muscles and organs have enough fuel to get you through a stressful situation. This is very important for survival, but it can cause some serious issues when it becomes chronic. Chronically elevated cortisol levels increase blood sugar levels, which then elevate insulin levels. As we talked about last time, this can stop you from burning fat no matter what exercise or diet program you follow.

Chronic stress - it’s everywhere

There are many chronic stressors in today’s society including mental/emotional stress, food sensitivities, blood sugar imbalances, infections, excessive exercise and anything else that the body perceives as a stress. Each of these things can not only cause overactivity of the adrenals (possibly resulting in chronically elevated cortisol levels), but also underactivity. This can result in other problems such as waking up in the middle of the night, feelings of irritability or extreme hunger, or low energy.

All of these stressors have to be managed by the adrenals, so it is not always easy to know what exactly is causing adrenal dysfunction. Any time you are trying to lose weight though, it is best to remove as much stress from your life as possible. Easier said than done, but better to know what could be holding you back than feeling frustrated and discouraged.

I want to highlight a few stressors that are often overlooked: exercise and food sensitivities. Exercise, while beneficial when used appropriately, can be just as stressful as work/life stressors when done in excess. Many times people think that they just need to exercise more and they will lose weight, but this is not always true. Exercise must be done just enough to produce an adaptive response, followed by adequate recovery to avoid overloading the system. If you are not recovering from exercise, it is actually working against you reaching your goals.

Food sensitivities may be one of the most common forms of stress, but are usually not even considered when trying to remove stress or lose weight. If you have ever felt bloated, constipated, or experienced any upset stomach or digestive issues, you probably have a food sensitivity. This is different than a food intolerance, but can cause just as much harm over the long run. Chronic bloating can lead to a host of other issues, including adrenal dysfunction. It is a stress on your digestive system, and your body does not like having its food delivery system messed with (more on this next week!). So while work and life stress is going to be an important thing to deal with, don’t forget about some of these other stressors as well.

Test and Treat

If you think that stress may be a factor in limited fat loss, it would be best to get your adrenals tested. The most effective way of assessing adrenal gland function is the Adrenal Salivary Test. You will have to set up an appointment with your doctor to take care of this, but it can be very revealing. If you want to do a quick at home test, try this: Lie down for 5 minutes, then take your blood pressure. Then stand up and take your blood pressure again.

If your systolic pressure (the first number) remained the same or decreased, you may not have optimal adrenal function. Ideally the number would go up as your body should now be working harder to pump blood. If it goes down, it means that your system is not responding as it should. This is just a quick test, but to find out more about your adrenals, talk to your doctor about the Adrenal Salivary Test.

If you do find that your adrenals are not functioning as well as they could be, start by determining what could be stressing you out. Remember, stress is not always emotional (food sensitivities, infection, over-training) and it does not have to be negative (juggling children, work, family, etc.) You need to first decide how to best manage the stress you have now before trying any other methods.

Once you have adjusted your current stressors, there are a few other things that may help as well. You may want to talk to your doctor or possibly a naturopathic doctor about specific herbs called “adaptogens” because of their ability to assist the body in handling stress. The most common are ginseng (can come in various forms) and licorice root, and they can be beneficial for both overactive and underactive adrenal glands. You may also want to talk with your doctor about phosphatidylserine (PS). This compound is best known for its ability to lower cortisol and can also be used for both overactive adrenal glands and underactive adrenal glands. You can take it in supplement form, or it can be found in mackerel and herring, if you are not one for supplements.

Almost there

We have come to the end of our third segment on why you might not be losing fat. Again, if you haven’t looked at your diet, exercise, social support, and your motivation, start there. If those all seem to be good, this series should help to weed out any last issues in trying to lose fat. These are not necessarily easy things to fix, but it is important to remember, it takes YEARS to put on weight, and it can take years to take off weight (especially when it is fat, not just generic weight). Keep up the good work, and check back next week for the final topic of the series: the digestive system!