Stress and weightloss

laurenk08

Can stress really hinder weight loss greatly?
I have been on a plateau for like a month now, and I have tried everything to get off of it.
My boyfriend thinks it might be stress, since I am a college student and this past month has been many projects, papers, tests, graduation, and work all piled high. I do not think stress has much to do with it though because the first 20 pounds came off just fine, even though I was still under stress sometimes.

karylee44

that is what i am told over and over, and over..
i have no idea weather it is true or not.. i know i focus less on my weight when im happier.. and it does seem to do better.

dg09

I always thought stress caused water retention. At least it seemed that way for me.

bunny1006

bump for later

BlisterLamb

Oh goodness, yes! I haven't been able to lose anything for months. As soon as the stressor was removed, I dropped 4 pounds in the first week. I eat right and work my butt off. But I can't get the water, sleep, and stress under control and it hinders big time.

Bevkus

Absolutely!

The stress hormone, cortisol, directly affects the bodys efficiency of metabolizing glucose (sugar) in your blood. google it,

Moxie42

Idk, I've heard stress can have either effect- hindering weight loss or sometimes promoting it. Maybe it depends on the person and how their body handles stress but my personal opinion is that it might have more to do with how the stress is coped with. A lot of people are emotional eaters and will eat more unhealthy stuff when stressed. Personally, being majorly stressed kills my appetite so sometimes I lose more weight- but at the same time, if I'm stressed partially because I have no time for anything and I'm overwhelmed, I will be more likely to eat quick-and-easy meals like Lean Cuisines or packaged soups, which have more sodium, leading to water retention. I'm also more likely to relax with a glass of wine, or a couple beers, when I'm really stressed, and those are just empty carb-filled cals

Also, not sure how much you're trying to lose but weight loss tends to happen the quickest in the beginning because your body is so eager to shed the weight and then it slows down, especially when you start getting out of the "overweight" range. A lot of people suggest upping your cals (haven't tried this yet but most people seem to swear by it and there are tons of forum posts about it if you're interested in the reasoning and math behind it). Also, switching up your workouts can help- maybe swimming instead of running, or strength training instead of cardio-only (and if you do this, track your measurements since you might lose inches even if the lbs are coming off slowly).

Feel free to add me if you want. I have a really busy, stressful schedule too and am always willing to give and get advice!

laurenk08

Idk, I've heard stress can have either effect- hindering weight loss or sometimes promoting it. Maybe it depends on the person and how their body handles stress but my personal opinion is that it might have more to do with how the stress is coped with. A lot of people are emotional eaters and will eat more unhealthy stuff when stressed. Personally, being majorly stressed kills my appetite so sometimes I lose more weight- but at the same time, if I'm stressed partially because I have no time for anything and I'm overwhelmed, I will be more likely to eat quick-and-easy meals like Lean Cuisines or packaged soups, which have more sodium, leading to water retention. I'm also more likely to relax with a glass of wine, or a couple beers, when I'm really stressed, and those are just empty carb-filled cals

Also, not sure how much you're trying to lose but weight loss tends to happen the quickest in the beginning because your body is so eager to shed the weight and then it slows down, especially when you start getting out of the "overweight" range. A lot of people suggest upping your cals (haven't tried this yet but most people seem to swear by it and there are tons of forum posts about it if you're interested in the reasoning and math behind it). Also, switching up your workouts can help- maybe swimming instead of running, or strength training instead of cardio-only (and if you do this, track your measurements since you might lose inches even if the lbs are coming off slowly).

Feel free to add me if you want. I have a really busy, stressful schedule too and am always willing to give and get advice!

thanks for the help! I have already tried upping the calories to 1400 instead of 1200 for a little while, and it made me gain two pounds and it was hard for me to eat that much, I always felt too full. And I also am in the process of still changing up the workouts! I have started running more and doing zumba instead of so much biking and elliptical.

I for sure do not eat more when I am stressed, I usually dont even notice I am stressed actually cause I am so used to it! But, I am also less hungry during super stressful situations. Working out is a good stress reliever for me for sure :] I swear by it, especially running.