Most people these days have very hectic schedules allowing little or no time to deal with stress. Stress can take a toll on your health, attitudes, and nearly all areas of your life. Here are some good tips for dealing with stress. Click on link to learn more about these ways to unwind.
Say Goodbye to Belly Fat by Getting Rid of Stress
If you’re trying to lose belly fat then you may be like most people and think that all belly fat is bad. The truth is that there are two different types of belly fat and only one is bad. There’s subcutaneous fat, which is a pretty harmless layer of fat that lies just under your skin and on top of the organs in your abdominal area.
Visceral Abdominal Fat
The type of belly fat that so many of us battle is visceral abdominal fat, which is often referred to VAT. This is the bad fat. It’s associated with heart disease, cancer and all kinds of other detrimental diseases that often come along with age. VAT is found under the organs and is the reasoning behind that potbelly look. If you have VAT, you’re much more likely to suffer from disease somewhere down the road.
Fat in your abdominal area acts differently than fat found elsewhere. It more easily receives cortisol, which is your fight-or-flight hormone. VAT picks up the cortisol and stores it for emergency use later, so you can kind of call VAT your emergency fat for times of dire need or extreme hunger (we’re talking starving here).
Your cortisol levels normally fluctuate throughout the day. But when you’re a stressed out mess, it stays high. That means more fat drops into your belly area for safe-keeping since your body knows that belly fat has great receptors for cortisol. So essentially, being stressed out all of the time can easily contribute to more belly fat than you would like to have.
Acidic pH Levels
Stress is also directly connected to a higher level of pH in your bloodstream, basically making your blood more acidic. That’s bad news, because it means it sucks the calcium right out of your bones. So being proactive to release stress on a regular basis can probably help to prevent osteoporosis.
NPY
NPY is short for neuropeptide Y. When you’re stressed, your body releases NPY and research shows that it basically activates more receptors in your fat cells. Your fat cells then multiply and grow bigger.
So you can see that losing belly fat has to be accompanied by reducing stress levels, which also helps you live a healthier life. Try to actively partake in yoga, tai chi or daily leisurely walks… whatever it is that relaxes you. Grab some relaxation music from Amazon (there are even a few free MP3 downloads at the time I’m writing this, such as “Breathe & Let Go†by Love Yourself).
Author Bio: Veronica Davis is a mom, freelance writer and internet business columnist. She often writes on the behalf of BehindTheCounter, an online portal to store coupons online.
Relax with a sound machine over at the BHI Store.
Acupuncture Helps Where you Least Expect It
A few years ago I wiped out in a pretty epic fashion (on the wet tiles in the bathroom) and strained my lower back. I found in the months that followed that I was certainly going to be a victim of chronic back pain. I would execute a series of elaborate stretches each night before bed so I would be comfortable enough to fall asleep. I’d always wake in pain the next morning.
Fast forward to a ridiculous scooter crash on vacation two years later. I had a broken foot to show for that performance. I limped around for months after that–A tragically sore and stiff 26 year old. After flights, long rental car road trips and big days out on my feet, I’d be miserable.
Fast forward again. I took a job shuffling papers at what I later found out to be one of the most prestigious acupuncture clinics in the country. They offered their employees free treatments so, though I was skeptical and quite ignorant of the whole process, I made an appointment.
I was very nervous for my first acupuncture treatment. I’m not particularly scared of needles, but does anyone actually look forward to being pricked? Turns out, these hairsbreadth thin needles are so fine you barely feel them. I laid out on a cushy massage table and braced myself. The first insertion point was going to be my outer ankle. I felt the split second prick, and then nothing. Well, not nothing, but certainly not pain. It felt like pressure, in a nice way.
Dr. Herr, my practitioner, worked his way up my body, tapping needles into my calves, the backs of my knees, my lower back, shoulders and even one between my eyes, (for relaxation, he said).
We had discussed my back pain and his focus was to “release the heat†from the area and “get the Qi moving†(pronounced “chee”). To this I replied, “Ah yes, Qi! Sure thing, Bill Nye the Science Guy, go for it…†with more than a small dose of sarcasm. But soothing music was piped in, the room seemed to get nice and warm, the scent of dried herbs and flowers…
I awoke thirty minutes later to Dr. Herr’s wingtip shoes shuffling softly into the room. I could feel him gently twisting the needles out. As each one was removed I felt a little ache, almost as if the spot wanted it back. A brief but thorough back massage followed and then he told me to relax, even fall back asleep again before getting up to dress.
Once I got used to it, I started affectionately calling the after effects of a treatment “acu-stoned.†The somewhat euphoric, well-rested daze was so pleasant I didn’t even mind the dull ache in my back. Dr. Herr said the pain was good, and that it meant the heat, toxins and strain that had been stored there had been released. Sure enough, the next few days were pain free!
After my next treatment I found the wonderful effects lasted even longer. I no longer needed to “crack†my back before bed and I was waking up well rested and limber. With continued treatments for my back pain, my old broken foot even inexplicably strengthened, and I didn’t feel pain after running or hiking.
And overall, I felt better. Maybe getting that “Qi†moving wasn’t such a crock after all! If acupuncture can make a believer out of me, the world’s biggest klutz/skeptic, it will do wonders for you!
TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) works to ease the pain of both muscular and skeletal injuries, arthritis, fertility issues, cancer and even the common cold! There is nothing these ancient techniques can’t aid, from menstrual cramps to migraines, knee surgery rehab to strep throat! Give it a try and see what dramatic results you get with acupuncture!
Noella Schink is a travel, beauty and health writer from Portland, Maine. She encourages you to try acupuncture for whatever’s ailing you, and also to book your next car rental in the UK from Auto Europe.