Stress is a highly unwelcome scenario in our lives. But there really is no running away from it. There is not one individual on earth who is not burdened with stress. Often it is so much that a person forgets what a good night’s sleep is all about. This can be harmful and very detrimental to our daily routine and mental health. Often the scenarios lead to over eating as a response to avoid thinking about the issues that cause the stress. It can also be the opposite and make you lose your appetite all together. So what is the relation between these two things? To know more lets delve deeper.
Can stress Cause Weight Loss?
Stress is one of the primary reasons for weight gain in lot of people. However, there is another end of spectrum to it. A lot of people suffer from lack of appetite due to stress and anxiety. When your brain sends signal of stress and anxiety, the body increases its fuel consumption, resulting in faster depletion of energy. This attempt to produce more energy results in faster burning of fat cells. More output with less intake of food can result in rapid weight loss.
What Causes Stress-Related Weight Loss?
There are many factors behind weight loss due to stress. Check out the top reasons as to why people tend to lose weight faster when stressed out.
1. Anxiety causes Weight Loss:
While losing weight in any way is great, it should not be at the cost of your health. It is seen that some people who live with anxiety symptoms tend to lose weight faster that those without it. This is because the anxiety levels never let them remain inactive. Anxiety and stress go hand in hand and co exists everywhere.
2. Lack of appetite:
You will be disinterested in food all together. You’ll start feeling fuller than usual and eat lesser and lesser. So while you are unconsciously starving yourself towards weight loss it also eats away your muscle and slows down your metabolism greatly over time.
3. Constant Movement:
High anxiety levels are one of the main side effects of stress on weight loss. People who are stressed out can never sit in a place quietly at any time. They have a tendency of moving and pacing everywhere. Sometimes they have constant leg shakes or nervous ticks. While this is not common for all but if you walk around your house more than usual you know you’re under anxiety.
See More:How To Stay Motivated For Weight Loss
4. Lifestyle Changes:
In rare and genuine cases anxiety and stress makes you cut out your old life style and change into a healthier and fitter lifestyle. Sometimes people over compensate a lack in one area of life with the inclusion of another. So while someone may quit drinking they can suddenly become obsessive health and fitness freaks. It is how you channelize your energy during stress that makes you overcome the adversities associated with it.
How Much Weight Loss Happens Under Stress?
Stress can lead to quick weight loss due to increased energy consumption and decreased intake of food. An individual under stress can easily lose upto 10 to 15 percent of overall body weight. The percentage of weight loss is higher in people who are heavier. Also, stress related weight loss can happen all of a sudden and one can notice shrunken face and dangling shirts within a short span of time.
How Hormones Work Under Stress?
Stress makes your body release an excess of cortisol hormone which gets in the way of your metabolism. These are often linked to a slower metabolism. This can also mean that you lose your appetite all together.
Stress may alternatively over stimulate the secretion of the thyroid glands. This will lead to not only a gregarious appetite but also a speedier calorie burning scenario in your body. While it all sounds good too much of everything can never be good for a long time.
See More:Night Diet For Weight Loss
How To Lose Weight Even Under Stress?
While an extreme of anything has its harmful effects, this stress induced weight loss also suffers in the long run. This is because when the phase of anxiety and stress is over and the person returns to normal conditions mentally he will start eating normally and then there will be a reverse impact leading to weight gain. So what do we do under stress to ensure we lose weight naturally and not cause harm to our bodies? A few solutions are as follows:
1. Exercise:
Lot of exercise will also increase your cortisol levels so learn moderation. Do enough but don’t overdo.
2. Balanced Diet and Timely Meals:
Eat a balanced diet and include some comfort foods with diet foods to balance out any cravings. Also never skip meals as this is detrimental to weight management. While snacking try to choose something with high fibre and less processed the better.
3. Meditation:
Meditation can calm down a worrying mind. When the mind is filled with chaotic thoughts, it can induce the hunger hormone. This results in overeating. By practising the art of meditation, one can easily overcome hunger pangs and naturally lose weight.
4. Good Sleep:
Not sleeping well can also lead to weight gain. By ensuring you get at least 6 to 8 hours of good sleep per day, can help you lose weight naturally. It can promote good metabolism to aid faster digestion.
5. Reducing Caffeine:
A lot of people increase their caffeine intake to help them deal with stress. Higher caffeine levels can increase weight and also cause health complications like diabetes. Limiting the number of coffee and tea intake can help you manage weight.
6. Relax and Unwind:
The most important thing to deal with is stress itself so learn to relax. Do whatever makes you happy. Go out with friends or play team sports. It helps you focus better. Avoid every activity which makes you return to stress as far as possible.
While stress can certainly help you deal with weight problems, one should understand that chronic stress can lead to serious health issues in the body. Stress is one of the main reasons why people fall prey to deadly diseases like Diabetes, heart attacks, hypertension etc., While this article tells you how to manage your weight during stress, by reducing overeating and exercising, we strongly recommend you to take up stress management techniques to promote healthy and better living.
