Muscle Building Program
The first thing to consider is that the finest fitness program for you should be one that helps you to control stress. The most important consideration is that cortisol is released by the pituitary gland in the brain. It helps regulate your blood pressure, so when things such as a fight with your significant other or a hard day at work have got you steamed, cortisol is released in high levels to help keep you blood pressure down.

Unfortunately, cortisol also breaks down muscle proteins and converts it into fat. Theoretically, if you are stressed out, the body is trying to help you. Breaking down muscle releases amino acids into the blood stream, which are in turn broken down to give you energy. However, if you are stressed over nothing, you don’t really use this extra energy-you just lose muscle.

You can control cortisol simply by thinking happy thoughts or incorporating things into your routine that put you into a good mood. So running outside on a sunny day may be a better way to do your cardio than staying inside. Or if you are someone that responds well to music you may want to work out to music to keep your mood elevated.

Remember that stress is not only mental, but physical as well. Therefore, if you overtrain, you are putting extra stress on your muscles and your body releases more cortisol, which is counterproductive to the exercise you are doing. Know your body’s limits so you can prevent this from happening. It is rare that you body is producing too much cortisol for you to control, but medications have become a popular choice for people who blame cortisol on their weight gain and muscle loss. Before you resort to these supplements, try to control cortisol on your own. You body will be healthier if you don’t have to pop pills.

Of course, sometimes stress cannot be avoided. In these situations, do not avoid eating. By snacking during the day, even if you are not hungry, you will provide your body with the extra energy it needs to be in a stressful situation. Cortisol will not excessively be released, since you already have a supply of energy. Practicing good eating and sleeping habits will also reduce your stress level in general, so stick to a healthy diet and get a good night’s rest. If you are still worried about cortisol, have you doctor check out your cortisol levels to make sure you are healthy.

To keep your spirits up you want to find a diet that allows you to eat the foods you want to eat, but in the appropriate portions and at the appropriate time. Something like fat loss for idiots does this masterfully. Training is not the main component of the program, but exercise is of course recommended in conjunction with the diet.

A diet and exercise program that works out well in terms of controlling stress and keeping your spirits up is the body for life workout program. The Body-for-Life program by Bill Phillips has been around for over a decade now, and for good reason. It is a highly motivating diet and exercise program that incorporates short intense workouts so you can fit them into your stressful life. These kinds of workouts increase endorphin production in your body which of course elevates your mood tremendously.

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 18th, 2008 at 3:46 am and is filed under Fitness And Healthy Living. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.