Gaining Weight and Stress – 5 Stress Relieving Activities
(By Kelly Kilpatrick - guest writer)
A quick visit to your doctor or a website dedicated to stress management will tell you that stress has many side effects, among them weight gain. Because of many biological factors, stress can affect our weight levels for several reasons. Our fight or flight mechanism during times of stress causes increased levels of cortisol, which prevents fat from being burned and saves it as a “survival food” for your body. Additionally, stress creates feelings of hunger, even when your body has enough food, which adds calories to your diet and weight to your body.
Managing stress is essential to overall health, and there are some things we can do on a daily basis to help fight off the effects of stress on our bodies. Here are a few tips to help you reduce stress and help out your body and mind simultaneously.
1. Just breathe. Deep breathing exercises are good for body, mind, and soul. When you are beginning to feel overwhelmed, take a deep breath and focus on your breathing. Try to breathe out twice as long as you breathe in. Counting, or simply thinking to yourself, “in, out” as you breathe will help you focus on breathing and helps clear your head.
2. Go for a walk. When your day starts to get to you, take a few minutes to go for a short walk, and do your best to walk everywhere you can throughout the day, even if it adds a few minutes to your schedule. Walking increases your heart rate, helps improve circulation, and releases stress-relieving endorphins. Walk your way to better health a little every day and watch your stress levels and your weight begin to drop.
3. Snack Effectively. If you are beginning to feel like you are eating in response to stress, set up a meal and snacking schedule to keep your metabolism going throughout the day. Eat small, healthy snacks that are rich in protein and nutrients to keep the cravings to a minimum. Fresh fruits, raw vegetables, yogurt, and whole grains are great between meal foods to consume.
4. Rest up. Make opportunities for yourself to get much-needed rest. If you get home early from work, take thirty minutes to an hour for a quick nap. Rather than worrying about the day or getting dinner ready, spend some time resting up for the next few hours. Family life can be just as busy or more so than work, so resting up for the rest of your day is essential. Making a sleep schedule and establishing a bed time for yourself is also very important to ensure that you are getting enough rest.
5. Take some “you” time. Whether it’s watching your favorite TV show or reading a book, do something that makes you happy. If you don’t have an activity that helps you to relax and enjoy yourself, find something and start doing it. Giving yourself some time to focus on your own interests helps you to relax, decompress, and appreciate your time, and helps to keep stress and resentment from building up and bringing you down.
By-line:
This post was contributed by Kelly Kilpatrick, who writes on the subject of top nursing schools. She invites your feedback at kellykilpatrick24 at gmail dot com.
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