Okay, let's bring in some science about keto and stress.
Cortisol is a stress hormone that is produced when the body perceives a stressful situation. It doesn't matter if that stress is a physical threat (somebody chasing you with a sharp knife) or a perceived threat (you’ve left your Christmas shopping to the last minute and cannot find a parking spot).
Cortisol is an important hormone and we cannot live without it.
However, sometimes it is produced in excess for a variety of reasons.
When it is produced in excess, it triggers a cascade of events.
Instead of the body using protein for repair and growth, in a state of excessive cortisol the body converts dietary protein to carbohydrate, which then provides an insulin response (we're trying to avoid too many of these on a ketogenic diet).
The insulin response stops the body from being able to access its own body fat for energy. This can all happen without much of a change in your blood glucose and is how so many people can be getting great blood glucose and ketone readings on a ketogenic diet but not get any traction with losing body fat.
Now most of you probably have the yawns about now and would like me to hurry up and get to the dang coaching tip! And here it is - change your response to stress. The way to do that is to improve the condition of the nervous system by employing stress reduction strategies.
I fully realise I just lost half of you who are thinking, ugh, I take time for myself, I pray, I get a regular massage, etcetera. When I say that we need to employ stress reduction techniques I’m not referring to ANY of those things. I’m referring to a scientifically researched strategy called Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction. It’s a form of meditation that is just one of the many powerful tools we can use to reduce our cortisol production. There's nothing woo-woo or religious about it. It's very much about learning how to spend some time in the present moment without judgment and without resentment.
There are a LOAD of great resources to help you get the gist of mindfulness (and i'll pop a link to one of them below - no affiliation at all, it's just good). But one important thing i want to point out is that this strategy will only cost you 10 minutes a day.
10 minutes.
We can all manage that no matter how busy we are.
Whether part of a limited time group or continuing month-to-month coaching, our coaching clients have great things to say about their coaching experiences!
After a year of committed keto, I needed a personalized plan to improve progress and healing. I hired a coach to help fine-tune my methods and immediately regretted waiting so long to hire one. Thanks to the coaching expertise of Elaina Wang, I am no longer stalled and have the confidence to properly fast which has improved healing for a couple of health issues.
For a person who has struggled all her life with yo-yo diets for the first time since finding keto and Ketogenic Lifestyle Coaching I can say I have officially committed to a lifestyle of eating. After 1.5 years of being strict keto I am still learning from the coaches. I stick with Ketovangelist because of the knowledge, support, and guidance they provide.
Getting 1:1 coaching with Jessyca has been a godsend! After years of not being able to loose weight through Keto and her support was able to drop over 60lbs last year! Her knowledge of Keto and fasting has really helped both those things become part of my lifestyle and I’m healing from years of metabolic damage, dieting, and compulsive overeating! She is always there when I need her, encourages and challenges me beyond my comfort zone. If you are thinking about coaching, honestly - it’ll be the best investment you ever make in yourself and will improve your chances of success! Who doesn’t want that!
I love the coaching program! It’s really helped me refine my macros and get that extra “umph” of motivation that I was needing. Cost? Well, for pretty much unlimited support via email and the weekly one on one that I’ve purchased, the value CAN’T be beat!!! I encourage everyone to invest in themselves if you’ve been thinking about coaching at all...don’t wait a year like I did!!!
Group coaching helps you not feel alone in your keto journey. I started out with one on one coaching and it was extremely beneficial, but I feel like I am learning even more from group coaching. It's great to hear the things others are going through and help provide support while learning how to navigate a situation like that in the future, and of course to have others there to celebrate in your successes! I plan to utilize the coaching services until I reach my goals. I don't think I would be moving in such a positive direction without coaching.