Growth
hormone
is extremely important because a lack of it will mean faster ageing.
Your skin will sag faster, your joint health will deteriorate and
your workout recovery will suck. Optimal levels of GH will mean you
body will be primed to burn body fat, you will recover quickly, your
joints won't ache and you'll sleep like a baby. Ways to ramp up your
GH is to include high-intensity in your exercise, adequate levels of
protein in your diet and at least 7 hours of regular, uninterrupted
quality sleep every night.
Leptin
is the hormone that tells your brain that you have eaten enough and
are now full. If you eat too much junk, your body still produces
leptin, but your brain becomes resistant to it and doesn't recognise
it any-more, so you keep eating. Avoid junk food and typical
problematic foods like dairy, wheat and soya, plus load up on greens
like cucumber, celery and spinach for their alkalising effects.
Insulin
goes up every time you eat (to lower blood sugar) and glucagon goes
down (which counters insulin by raising blood sugar). Leaving longer
periods between meals will help stabilise your blood sugar levels. If
you're constantly producing too much insulin your body is primed to
store body fat. The more often you eat the more reliant you become on
those meals and skipping them means a drop in blood sugar, which
means you get tired, lack concentration, blurred vision, etc. Unless
you truly train like a beast, let genuine hunger dictate your meals
and leave at least 4 hours between feeding.
Adrenaline
receptors reside in our stubborn fat areas like the waist and hips.
The more stress you place on your body, from poor diet and lack of
quality sleep (which the body treats as 'famine' type stress), the
more fat you will store in these areas, because it's easier for these
receptors to pull energy from these areas. It is extremely important
to eliminate or avoid stress in your lives, and if you cannot do
that, find a way to counter the effects of stress – like
meditation, going for massages, using a steam room, working with a
foam roller, getting adequate sleep, etc. That way you keep your
adrenaline sensitivity high so you're not overloaded with it and your
stubborn areas won't be so fat.
The
bottom line is simply doing a combination of the right things. Avoid
eating and drinking junk, eat a nutritionally dense diet, avoid
stress, get good quality sleep, exercise frequently with a good level
of intensity. The
combination is important! Do not think you can just exercise harder
and it will make up for your short-comings elsewhere. If you are not
eating right and not sleeping well, trust me, what you perceive to be
intensity in your exercise is nowhere near intense. You will fatigue
way before you get anywhere close to real intensity.
So
do yourself a favour – eating a diet rich in good quality
nutrients, decent levels of quality protein and plenty of greens,
drink plenty of water, avoid the junk food and junk drinks
(especially alcohol), go to bed at a decent hour, get rid of as much
stress as you can and find ways to effectively deal with what
remains. If you are doing those things, you are now in a good
position to exercise and discover what your body is truly capable of!
If
you have questions on how to make adjustments to your diet, creating
an optimal sleep environment, counteracting stress on the body, and
corrective exercise, contact me to arrange a consultation to get you
back on track!
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Challenge everything, especially yourself.
Alex Kay Grimmer
Contact me for Kettlebell classes and Personal Training in Southend-on-sea.
Please visit my website: ALEXKAY
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