Meet our Client of the Month! 

Photo: Sarah and Ginger (the studio dog)

 

 

Sarah is a Ph.D. student at CSU and has been one of our clients since October 2010. As a student, she is eligible for our $35/month Unlimited Spinning, Sports Yoga, Boot Camp rate. And, boy, she uses it well!

 

You can find Sarah here many days of each week....week after week after week. To quote her, "Sports Yoga has transformed my body." Sarah is an avid road cyclist and uses our Spin classes to improve pedal stroke technique as well as her cardiovascular conditioning.

 

Sarah received a $100 dollar gift card to El Monte as a Congrats to all her hard work!

People can react to a stressor in different ways. For instance, if an individual perceives the stressor as a challenge to his/her control of a situation, norepinephrine, the "fight " hormone is predominantly released. And, if the stress arousal increases and a possible loss of control is felt by the individual, then epinephrine, another "flight/anxiety" hormone is released. 

When the stress is prolonged and seen as hopeless, the individual becomes more distressed and feels defeated. This activates the hypothalamus in the brain. What follows is a cascade of hormonal pathways resulting in the final release of cortisol from the adrenal cortex (of the kidney).

What is the potential link between stress, cortisol, and appetite? Animal and human studies have demonstrated that cortisol injections are associated with increased appetite, cravings for sugar, and weight gain. It has been thought that cortisol directly influences food consumption by binding to receptors in the brain (specifically, the hypothalamus). This can stimulate an individual to eat food that is high in fat and/or sugar. 

Cortisol is a necessary hormone that is responsible for fuel regulation and is released while exercising, eating, awakening, and psychosocial stress. However, if there is too much cortisol in circulation, abdominal obesity can develop. This type of central obesity is linked to developing cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes mellitus, and cerebrovascular disease. An effective and regular exercise and stress management program may be a key to reducing and or preventing stress-induced obesity.

Bottom Line? 

Remember, stress is normal, unavoidable and in many cases a helpful reaction. Chronic stress that is not managed well is the harmful type of stress. It's best to recognize stress symptoms and then to practice releasing techniques: exercise, talking to someone, meditation are just a few examples. Take time out every day to practice stress prevention.

Click here for more info on the stress-fat connection 

(Leah is a licensed clinical social worker and is available upon appointment for stress management counseling: contact her via e-mail leah@becomefitfc.com or call 970.482.3868).