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If you feel like your hormones are off and you don’t know what to do, keep reading for 6 tips to balancing hormones for weight loss.
Over the last 10 years I’ve had to roll with the changes my hormones have been throwing me, and now at 45 I’m getting closer and closer to keeping things in check by implementing some daily strategies I’m sharing today.
In the last month alone I made changes that have actually stopped my night sweats and hot flashes! I am seriously a nerd and read about this stuff on a daily basis to try and keep up on research and the latest ways to help.
My mission is to educate as many women as I can on what I learn. Incase you missed my last article explaining the symptoms of hormone imbalance, check it out here.
Ok, let’s dive into the tips:
#1 MASTER YOUR STRESS
Repetitive daily stress causes your brain to go into crisis mode. It’s no longer focused on digestion, immunity, fat burning or overall health and your Insulin and Cortisol levels are increased.
Bookend your day with good vibes. Start by turning off news radio on your ride to work and listen to a motivational or educational podcast or YouTube instead. A study at Michigan Ross found that building positive resources by learning something new could be more useful than relaxing
End your day with 3 things you are grateful for while lying in bed.
#2 WALK OUTSIDE DAILY
Stop putting your body under more stress with long runs and instead walk outdoors in the fresh air. It’s great for your mind and body helps lower cortisol levels.
If you are on the phone, go talk while walking outside.
If you need to watch or listen to a presentation or video, do so while walking.
If you have a dog, he/she will love you to go for a walk.
If you need to have a meeting with someone, see if they’re up for a walking meeting.
Like to read books? Listen to an audible book while walking.
Aim for 30 minutes daily and this can be divided into 10 minute walks throughout the day.
#3 LIMIT SUGAR AND REFINED CARBS
Beyond helping our waistline, limiting sugar and refined carbs is most important because they can cause an insulin and estrogen imbalance.
So the first thing I want you to do is start reading labels on everything you eat that is not a whole food.
Look at the sugar. My rule is if it has 10 or more grams of sugar, it’s a no-go! You should aim for a max of 25 grams of added sugar per day.
Look at the ingredients. If it has a paragraph vs. a handful or any words that you can’t pronounce or know what they are, it’s a no-go! Avoid ingredients that are syrups, end in the suffix “ose”, concentrates or “enriched”.
Bonus tip: Limit bread to a once in a blue moon case.
#4 REDUCE TOXINS
Our liver is our detox system of the body, but if it is constantly bombarded with toxins it can’t keep up and do its job of flushing them out of our body. This leaves us with imbalanced hormones.
Toxic build-up occurs from things like daily beauty products we use on our body, cleaning products, processed foods we eat, pesticides, plastics, alcohol, and heavy metals.
These environmental toxins are called xenoestrogens. They are close enough in structure to estrogen that they bind the same receptors in our cells, causing a negative response in our tissues.
Without overhauling everything. Any easy thing to do to start limiting them is to swap your plastic water bottles for a stainless steel version and make sure all plastic containers in your kitchen are BPA free or better yet, switch to glass.
Download an app like “Think Dirty” or the Environmental Working Group’s app: "Healthy Living" to help rate and find non-toxic products.
#5 SWAP INFLAMMATORY FATS FOR HEALTHY FATS
Hormones are formed from fat and cholesterol. Our body is not able to efficiently produce our sex hormones like Estrogen, Progesterone and Testosterone without cholesterol.
Healthy fats support healthy cholesterol (HDL) levels, vs. inflammatory fats that increase the bad type of cholesterol (LDL).
So swap your fats. Common inflammatory fats include: Soybean oil, Canola oil, Corn oil, and Cottonseed oil. So if you see these on your labels, avoid!
Instead add a healthy fat to each meal like: Avocado oil, Olive oil, coconut oil, grass-fed butter, ghee, avocados, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, olives, almonds, cashews, pistachios, walnuts, and natural nut butters.
#6 CHANGE IT UP
Hormones are like anything else in that they will get used to how we treat them day in and day out and get into a state of homeostasis without much change if we don’t change.
So if you are feeling stuck or in a plateau, it is definitely time to change things up!
I like to give some variance to when and what I eat, how I move and how I rest. I go through periods of time cycling the ways I do things so this keep my hormones staying on top of things and keeping things fresh.
One way you could try this is when you’re eating carbs. Try to eat a serving of smart carbs only at dinner or only include them 1-2 days/week.
I am going more in depth in how to keep your hormones functioning as best as they can in an upcoming new online coaching program I have called the Mom Bod Tune-Upp, so be on the lookout for that!
In the meantime, to help you remember these tips, I created a free BALANCED HORMONES CHEAT SHEET that you can download now.
To watch my YouTube on this topic, click below.
Let's get FIRED UPP,
Nat