Struggling to lose those few extra pounds

Are you finding it hard to lose those stubborn kilos no matter what you do? You exercise, eat healthy and still nothing changes in fact you seem to be gaining kilos not reducing them. You feel that you're losing the battle and have given up hope. Well maybe you have been looking in the wrong direction. Weight loss resistance can be caused by hormonal imbalance. This alone can make the challenge all the more difficult if you don’t find out the cause. Booking into see your health practitioner to discuss and get tested for hormonal imbalance is recommended to rule out any other causes.

There are three main hormones that can be the offenders when unable to shift those kilos.

Cortisol:

Cortisol is your stress hormone and let’s face it in this day and age there seems to be so many causes of stress. Physical, emotional and environmental are three main reasons that our bodies become 'stressed'. Belly fat is stored and often linked to an over stressed system. Depression, anxiety and food cravings (salt and sugar especially) contribute to this issue also.

Naturopaths can use Herbs and Nutritional Medicine to support an overstressed system but in the meantime there are a few ways you can start to reset this hormone.

Try reducing stimulating substances like caffeine and alcohol. Wean coffee over a few days to reduce the withdrawal effect as much as possible. Try drinking herbal teas like chamomile or passionflower to gently reduce your stress. Practice mindfulness like meditation just start with 15 minutes a day. Breathing is a great way to do this. Take a gentle yoga class, or go for an easy walk taking in the views all the time checking in with your breath making it slow and steady.

Insulin:

Blood sugar control is becoming an ever increasing problem in the modern world. Unfortunately, a lot of the "foods" that are eaten have very little nutrition and fibre but both are important in the process of blood sugar stabilization. Try to find foods that are fresh and leave those cardboard boxes on the supermarket shelves. A good guide is when shopping at the supermarket shop from the perimeter of the store. This where you find fruit and vegetables, meats and fresher foods. Again your Naturopath will use herbs and Nutritional Medicine as well give you some lifestyle changes to help you stabilize your blood sugars.

Oestrogen:

Both women and men have oestrogen although men have much lower levels. When oestrogen becomes overloaded in the body it can make stabilizing your weight levels difficult. The liver becomes burdened with the excess oestrogen and can become sluggish. Fat cells also hold on to the excess oestrogen. One way you can help yourself is to include high fibre foods such as vegetables and fruit which help to eliminate the excess hormone from your system. When increasing fibre in your diet it is advisable to slowly increase to reduce the risk of irritating the GIT, bloating and gas.

If you believe your hormones are 'out of whack' why not book in and get tested so we can start to shift those stubborn kilos that "love you more than you love them"! My mission is to support you through a gentle and compassionate treatment to encourage you to get back on the track to vitality and health.

fiona@yournat.com.au

www.theholisticapothecary.com.au

Photo credit: wix.com

The information included in this blog is not intended to diagnose or treat. Always seek advice from your healthcare practitioner