Is a Stress Free Life Good or Bad?
It seems that the word “stress” is becoming more
common in the venue of everyday discussions. We hear about stress on the
radio, tension induced by the economy, the anxiety of losing a job and
the stress that comes with very challenging work. It is easy to conclude
that all stress is bad if the news and magazines were your only
resources for information. But is all stress bad for you? Does stress
have any positive qualities?
You may be surprised to learn that some stress is actually “good” for you in many ways. The trick to benefiting from stress is to moderate the level of stress in your life. Just as a healthy body requires water, a healthy body requires an amount of stress to maintain its health. Likewise, if a healthy body is exposed to too much water (or stress) there can be negative consequences like drowning (or heart attacks).
So you are probably curious about how stress could possibly be good
for you. Let me begin by pointing out that there are different forms of
stress. Physical and emotional stresses are among the many forms to
which we are exposed on a daily basis. Emotional stress can include
being worried about paying the bills or about that lump you recently
found on your back. The good part of such anxiety is that it will often
drive you to action to avoid the discomfort of the worry. In this case
it would motivate you to sit down and figure out a budget or to finally
pick up the phone to make an appointment with your physician. (Since we
are already very familiar with the negative aspects of too much stress I
am refraining from addressing them here.)
Physical stress can be similarly beneficial. Think about it a moment… If you lift weights or engage in a cardiovascular exercise you are stressing your body. You are exposing your body to the physical stress of a greater number of muscle contractions which leads to greater use of oxygen and production of waste products that require removal. This places pressure on your circulatory system by increasing the requirements for oxygenated blood. This causes the heart to pump faster and the lungs to process a greater volume of air. Simply put, you breathe hard when you run.
This physical exertion forces the body to adapt to the stressor by improving its cardiovascular health. This leads to a lower pulse rate and blood pressure which eases the burden on the continuously contracting muscle called the “heart.” This exercise induced stress also improves the functional capacity of your lungs which makes them more efficient. Just as with the heart, this improved efficiency lowers the lungs’ stress load as well. It seems to be counter-intuitive to realize that more stress leads to less stress!
These examples of exercise induced physical stress are also restricted by the “too much” boundary. If you run too far or for too long then your body can respond with an injury (e.g. shin splints) or with an excessive level pain. Both of these examples are quite effective methods for your body to tell you “don’t do that again.” The physical stress of weight lifting leads to a stronger musculoskeletal system by forcing the body to adapt as well. As with running, this level of exertion must be balanced with a period of rest and recuperation or else the athlete will suffer from overtraining. This is another very effective way for your body to tell you to “slow down” or “stop that”- depending on how far you have gone beyond the boundaries.
Soon you will hear another story on the radio or read another article in a magazine addressing the harmful effects of stress and how it is such a terrible threat to your well being. I hope that you will remember that these stories are addressing the presence of “too much” stress and not “all” stress. Coincidentally, adopting a “some is good” attitude towards stress may actually reduce the amount of emotional anxiety you may experience because you are able to understand the positive sides of it. Remember, if kept in balance, some stress can actually provide a healthy and positive impact on your life.
You may be surprised to learn that some stress is actually “good” for you in many ways. The trick to benefiting from stress is to moderate the level of stress in your life. Just as a healthy body requires water, a healthy body requires an amount of stress to maintain its health. Likewise, if a healthy body is exposed to too much water (or stress) there can be negative consequences like drowning (or heart attacks).
So you are probably curious about how stress could possibly be good
for you. Let me begin by pointing out that there are different forms of
stress. Physical and emotional stresses are among the many forms to
which we are exposed on a daily basis. Emotional stress can include
being worried about paying the bills or about that lump you recently
found on your back. The good part of such anxiety is that it will often
drive you to action to avoid the discomfort of the worry. In this case
it would motivate you to sit down and figure out a budget or to finally
pick up the phone to make an appointment with your physician. (Since we
are already very familiar with the negative aspects of too much stress I
am refraining from addressing them here.)Physical stress can be similarly beneficial. Think about it a moment… If you lift weights or engage in a cardiovascular exercise you are stressing your body. You are exposing your body to the physical stress of a greater number of muscle contractions which leads to greater use of oxygen and production of waste products that require removal. This places pressure on your circulatory system by increasing the requirements for oxygenated blood. This causes the heart to pump faster and the lungs to process a greater volume of air. Simply put, you breathe hard when you run.
This physical exertion forces the body to adapt to the stressor by improving its cardiovascular health. This leads to a lower pulse rate and blood pressure which eases the burden on the continuously contracting muscle called the “heart.” This exercise induced stress also improves the functional capacity of your lungs which makes them more efficient. Just as with the heart, this improved efficiency lowers the lungs’ stress load as well. It seems to be counter-intuitive to realize that more stress leads to less stress!
These examples of exercise induced physical stress are also restricted by the “too much” boundary. If you run too far or for too long then your body can respond with an injury (e.g. shin splints) or with an excessive level pain. Both of these examples are quite effective methods for your body to tell you “don’t do that again.” The physical stress of weight lifting leads to a stronger musculoskeletal system by forcing the body to adapt as well. As with running, this level of exertion must be balanced with a period of rest and recuperation or else the athlete will suffer from overtraining. This is another very effective way for your body to tell you to “slow down” or “stop that”- depending on how far you have gone beyond the boundaries.
Soon you will hear another story on the radio or read another article in a magazine addressing the harmful effects of stress and how it is such a terrible threat to your well being. I hope that you will remember that these stories are addressing the presence of “too much” stress and not “all” stress. Coincidentally, adopting a “some is good” attitude towards stress may actually reduce the amount of emotional anxiety you may experience because you are able to understand the positive sides of it. Remember, if kept in balance, some stress can actually provide a healthy and positive impact on your life.
4 Steps To Reduce Stress While You Lose Weight:
To many people permanent weight loss seems like an
unattainable goal. They might get very close to achieving their desired
weight only to cave in a moment of weakness and lose all their hard
work. Often they will have actually gained weight after the whole
ordeal. If you are one of these people, read for some insights as to why
this happens over and over.
Stress hormones have been with us from the very beginning. They are produces when we are faced with a threat – perceived or real – which can not be immediately dealt with. As a result, we can experience exhaustion, irritability, increased muscular tension, increased heart rate and a variety of other physiological reactions.
When faced with long term stress, we start craving rich and unhealthy foods. This is actually a coping mechanism of our bodies trying to deal with stress. What’s worse, is that if you are overweight, chances are you’ve gotten into a habit of comfort eating – You eat to feel better.
This means that if you feel insecure about your weight you can get trapped in a negative spiral. You’ll feel bad and stressed for weighing more than your environment tells you to weight, and as a result you comfort yourself by eating more, worsening the situation.
If you feel you are trapped in such a spiral, there are a few things you can do to turn things around:
1 – Be aware of your bad habits
In order to deal with them, you have to know them. Be honest to yourself and write them down. One helpful trick is to keep an elastic band around your arm. Flick it against your arm whenever you catch yourself falling back to a bad habit. Your brain will associate the tiny pain impulse with the bad habit.
2 – Find other ways of comforting yourself
Take up a new hobby or sport that fits in your comfort zone but leads you away from the bad habits you are used to. You might take a dog so you’ll be forced to take walks in the park with him.
3 – Eliminating Other Stress Factors
If there are other stress factors – Trouble at work, for example – you should strive to eliminate them by dealing with them. Do not get into a habit of looking away, running and hiding, but face the situation head on and give it your best.
4 – Stop expecting miracles
Do not make the mistake of hoping to lose all that weight quickly. Losing your excess weight permanently will require you to change your bad habits into good habits, which takes time.
Do not make big changes overnight – You will not be able to cope and fall back into your old habits again.
Make small changes instead: Start taking the stairs instead of the escalator. One lump instead of two lumps. Again: Gradual change is your key to succes!
Stress hormones have been with us from the very beginning. They are produces when we are faced with a threat – perceived or real – which can not be immediately dealt with. As a result, we can experience exhaustion, irritability, increased muscular tension, increased heart rate and a variety of other physiological reactions.
When faced with long term stress, we start craving rich and unhealthy foods. This is actually a coping mechanism of our bodies trying to deal with stress. What’s worse, is that if you are overweight, chances are you’ve gotten into a habit of comfort eating – You eat to feel better.
This means that if you feel insecure about your weight you can get trapped in a negative spiral. You’ll feel bad and stressed for weighing more than your environment tells you to weight, and as a result you comfort yourself by eating more, worsening the situation.
If you feel you are trapped in such a spiral, there are a few things you can do to turn things around:
1 – Be aware of your bad habits
In order to deal with them, you have to know them. Be honest to yourself and write them down. One helpful trick is to keep an elastic band around your arm. Flick it against your arm whenever you catch yourself falling back to a bad habit. Your brain will associate the tiny pain impulse with the bad habit.
2 – Find other ways of comforting yourself
Take up a new hobby or sport that fits in your comfort zone but leads you away from the bad habits you are used to. You might take a dog so you’ll be forced to take walks in the park with him.
3 – Eliminating Other Stress Factors
If there are other stress factors – Trouble at work, for example – you should strive to eliminate them by dealing with them. Do not get into a habit of looking away, running and hiding, but face the situation head on and give it your best.
4 – Stop expecting miracles
Do not make the mistake of hoping to lose all that weight quickly. Losing your excess weight permanently will require you to change your bad habits into good habits, which takes time.
Do not make big changes overnight – You will not be able to cope and fall back into your old habits again.
Make small changes instead: Start taking the stairs instead of the escalator. One lump instead of two lumps. Again: Gradual change is your key to succes!
 |
| Click to download it free |
No comments:
Post a Comment