HORMONES AND EXERCISE
By JJ Virgin, CNS, CHFI
Your body is a chemistry lab, not a bank account and that weight loss is much more than a calories-in, calories-out game. The type of food you choose, when you eat them and the amounts you consume have a powerful effect on your metabolism. Similarly, exercise is much more than just a way to burn calories. By understanding the hormonal effects of exercise you can ensure that your program is set up to give you the results you are looking for.
Most people make the mistake of thinking that cardiovascular training is the number one way to lose weight. This is a misconception. Cardiovascular training can burn calories and definitely benefits the heart and lungs. Done correctly it can be a beneficial part of a complete exercise program. Done incorrectly due to excess intensity or excess duration, it can raise stress hormones and cause the body to break down. This causes the body to lose muscle-the very thing you want to maintain or better yet increase when you are trying to drop body fat since MUSCLE is where you burn fat and MUSCLE is what keeps your metabolism up. Also, when stress hormones break you down they do so by breaking down muscle to release sugar into the bloodstream, this in turn can raise insulin. Over time this process can lead to insulin resistance even if you aren’t overeating or eating sugar. To help avoid this vicious cycle in cardiovascular training first get assessed by a qualified lifestyle coach to make sure that your adrenal system can handle cardiovascular training at this time. You may need to do some things to heal your adrenals before embarking on a cardiovascular program. If you are approved to start, then wear a heart rate monitor to ensure that you are training in your appropriate heart rate zone, vary your intensity throughout the workout allowing for short recovery periods of lower intensity and take phosphatidyl serine powder and carnitine tartrate prior to your workout to lower your stress hormone response and raise your lactic acid threshold.
Strength training is the true champion in the fat loss game. This is because strength training elevates growth hormone which helps the body build up. More muscle mass means a better metabolism, better insulin sensitivity, better use of blood sugar and better fat burning. For long term weight management, strength training is essential. The right program will maximize growth hormone release and minimize stress hormone release. This is done with the right amounts of sets and repetitions and the appropriate rest period. You want to stimulate as many muscle groups and as many muscle fibers within those muscles as possible for maximum benefit.
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