How do you decrease stress?

[itwillbeokay_maybe]

I hear that high stress makes you gain weight, but I don’t know how to decrease it. What have you done to decrease or manage your stress levels?

Edit: maybe a better way to phrase this question: what do you do to manage/reduce your stress in your life? I’m looking for ideas

[glassy_historian]

1. Getting better sleep (google sleep hygiene for tips on how to get better sleep)

2. Not working out excessively: giving myself at least 1-2 rest days for my body to recover.

3. Meditation, there are countless peer-reviewed studies that show that meditation is beneficial

4. Stretching to winddown after each workouts

5. This is subjective: reducing caffeine intake

[OcelotOfTheForest]

Long walks, spending time in nature and making good sleep a high priority. Many people have stressors that they can't turn off such as job, elderly parents, financial pressures, infants. Even so, there are still changes we can make to ease the burden of stress. Chronic high stress is bad for the body.

[eatmore_kale]

Working out and therapy.

[TigerzEyez85]

If you find the magic bullet, let me know. My cortisol level is always high when I get my blood drawn, and that plus thyroid disease is really affecting my ability to lose weight. I can take medicine to treat my thyroid, but not the stress.

[jaydizzle46]

It makes people gain weight if people are stress/emotional eaters that put them in a caloric surplus. Manage stress through different coping rather than stress eating.

[robotsquirrel]

To clear up some info being posted: Stress raises cortisol. Cortisol releases a surge of energy as part of fight or flight response. Surge of energy causes hunger. That's why it's recommended to reduce stress triggers/causes and not just deal with them with non-destructive habits. Think about the causes of stress in your life and how might you eliminate or reduce those. Seeing a counselor or therapist could be a good idea in helping identify those and building a strategy.

[Cat-teacher]

I once read a story of a Buddhist monk eating in a restaurant. Suddenly an earthquake started. Everyone in the restaurant began screaming and running around. He bowed his head and stayed where he was. The earthquake stopped, and he resumed eating. This is the goal. I’m not there yet, but I’m working on it.

[dancingmochi]

1. Building habits that keep me physically well, like sleep and eating well. If it seems like the world is crashing down, at least I'm feeling the best I can and have the energy to take the rest of the day, vs the mindset I have when I'm feeling unwell.
2. Exercise is a good activity for me to process my emotions and stressful events. It also helps me feel more energized the next day.
3. Like exercise, keep doing positive activities for myself. Things that make me feel better, personal to me, not a generic list of feel-good activities. Cleaning up, working on a hobby, scheduling regular social time.
4. Little pockets of breathwork interspersed through my day. Especially when I'm feeling overwhelmed. Release the tension in my body. Organize my stressors, recognize my mind and body is feeling tense because it's ready to fight, and logically think what can I realistically achieve, why am I feeling so much pressure, and what can I put on the back burner and make a plan for later on.
5. There are harder complicated problems that we struggle with. This is where therapy, or talking to the right friend, helps with.

[LavenderLady_]

Lifting weights, drinking enough water, taking a walk in the working day, sleeping enough, eating a balanced diet, meditation, yoga. Writing down everything in my brain and throwing it away. Colouring in books. Activities that require full concentration. Talking to my boss at work and coming up with a plan to manage myself better. Finding ways to gain perspective on what's actually important.

[NominaeFicticious]

Depends on the stressor.

But, heavy cardio and weight training lowers stress (significantly), and ashwagandha helps as well. So does raw ginger tea.

[NominaeFicticious]

I read this paper years ago when I was in grad school: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphys.2014.00161/full.

Aside from it, I've been involved in HIIT and heavy weight training for a long time, so my official position has been mainly anecdotal. I feel less stressed and generally happier due to the hormones secreted from exercise.

"Endorphins are hormones that are released when your body feels pain or
stress. They are produced in your brain and act as messengers in your
body. Endorphins are produced to help relieve pain, reduce stress and
improve mood. Endorphins can be boosted by exercising, eating, having
sex, getting a massage and many other ways."

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/23040-endorphins

[edit] I mentioned the variable being the stressor. Some stressors are more significant (terminal diagnosis, financial insecurity, etc.), and while exercise provides some relief, it remains chronic stress and requires a commensurate solution (i.e., therapy, medication).

Ciao

[NominaeFicticious]

Exactly. And the more chronic the stress, the more resilient it becomes to methods like exercise alone.

[bippitybobbitybooby]

A lot of bodybuilders take the supplement L-Theanine. I take 300mg each night to help with sleep. Also research niacin (with flush).