We all know that being stressed doesn't feel great. But with an interest in bodybuilding, did you know that it can actually make it harder to lose fat, and tougher to gain muscle too? Find out why.
Cortisol - often called "the stress hormone" - is a hormone excreted in response to stress (real or perceived, physical or emotional). Mental stress, pain, lifestyle stress and even training stress all cause a surge of cortisol. So, why is cortisol bad for our muscle-gain goals (and can it ever actually be a positive)?
Think of stress and you likely think of a specific situation which makes you want to yell. But, according to your body at least, "stress" can come in many forms. The ongoing stress of a challenging relationship. A demanding boss and unrealistic workload. A commute which makes you want to scream. The stress of looking after kids, sick parents, or running yourself ragged on the daily. Too little sleep. Too little down-time. Even dieting, bulking or training for a healthier body can (ironically) be seen as stress.
What is cortisol and what exactly does it do to our bodies?
Cortisol is a hormone, produced by the adrenal glands. It has three main functions, none of them music to anyone who's bodybuilding: to reduce protein synthesis, to stop the growth of muscle tissue and to help protein turn into glucose.
We experience small and short lived bursts of cortisol throughout the day, and some of them are necessary and positive: cortisol gets us going in the morning, and it's cortisol which gives us that fight-or-flight response which is so helpful in acute situations.
Cortisol is not so good when it's ongoing. If you're constantly stressed, living on caffeine, running from one stressful situation to another, you have constantly elevated levels of cortisol. And that will play havoc with your body composition. Cortisol is catabolic, and works in the totally opposite way to testosterone, HGH and the other anabolic hormones. Cortisol actively destroys muscle tissue.
High cortisol levels are closely linked with belly fat, man-boobs, and a soft physique. Try to get shredded when your cortisol's constantly high? Forget it? Want to build muscle mass, and keep it? It's going to be a whole lot harder if you're constantly stressed outside the gym.
Recovery is about more than just letting the DOMS from your last leg session subside. It's about really lowering stress levels, sleeping well, managing all the lifestyle stresses which are within your control (and managing your own responses to the others).
Check out our blog listing 5 great ways to start tackling your own stress levels to reduce cortisol.
