I’ve heard one too many times from friends and family who complain that they lose weight when they are stressed. I’ve thought long and hard about it and I just can’t understand how they can say that, when it’s clear that the popular belief is that people that are constantly stressed usually gain weight and that I also gain weight during periods of high stress, professional or emotional. Since this is a factor that everyone takes into consideration when evaluating their weight, I’d thought I’d dig more into it and maybe discover a hidden secret…

It seems that the weight gain and stress issue actually depends on the way each one can handle stress. For some, stress is a true motivation that helps them be more active and more efficient…those are my friends that constantly tell me how they lose weight when they are stressed, because they seem to work and function well under pressure. Others, like me, feel so overwhelmed by all those extra tasks and responsibilities that they feel unable to do anything at all…and they all probably do as I do: try to forget all about it while eating home cookies or barbecuing with friends. This means that the weight gain and stress are not always two related actions. The connection between stress and alimentation is more complex and it differs from individual to individual. The most important things I tried to find answers to are:” Is stress reducing my will to lose weight?”, “Is stress increasing my appetite?”, “Do stress periods trigger a favorable environments of developing diseases related to weight gain?”, “What actually happens when I’m stressed?”

After reading lots of medical publications that debated this problem in detail and not understanding a lot related to weight gain and stress, I turned to a friend’s nutritionist. Fortunately, he was willing to give me a few minutes of his time and he had such an easy way of putting things that I now feel like I’m an expert in the matter. So, the main idea is that the hypothalamus( which is a region of the brain) sends signal to the upper renal glands to release cortisol, which is a substance released by the body in either type of stress: emotional, mental or physical. The most important role this enzyme has is to help the body deal with stress, by realizing glucoses and fat acids which are meant to assure the needed energy until the stress period is over. If the cortisol quantity is too low it can lead to hypoglycemic diseases, and if it’s too high it will surely cause weigh gain and if this happens a lot will cause serious health problems, like diabetes.

The trick is that cortisol can actually trigger appetite therefore this is why I eat more when I’m stress and this is why weight gain and stress are closely related in my case. You may have seen the commercials on tv for cortisol blockers. Furthermore, the nutritionist explained that there’s stress and chronic stress. By this, hear meant long periods of pressure that we have to deal with, and in my case I’d have to say the pressure is felt almost everyday, because I’m always on the run and always feel like there’s no way I will be able to finish all my tasks that day. He said that in case of chronic stress the renal glands are over-solicited and we can encounter a hormonal unbalance that will trigger serious dysfunctions on the long run, including obesity. If the hormones are not in natural amounts, then the metabolism gets slower and slower, and even if we eat less, we will still gain weight.
The stress hormone is in fact meant to regulate the proteins’ metabolizing, it can affect the microcirculation in blood vessels and will modify the muscular tonus. It will also raise the arterial tension and will assure a good functioning of the immune system, will stimulate gastric secretion and produce enlarged stomachs and will cause weight gain and stress related tiredness. This means that stress will not only make us eat more by stimulating the appetite, but will also make us want to eat only foods that are rich in calories and poor in nutrients, because in stress periods the body is only trying to keep energy levels at the highest count.

So, in the end, it’s true that weight gain and stress are related. It’s a relief to find out that there’s a logical explanation for my sudden weight gains during busy periods, at least it not really my fault. As for those who lose their appetite when stressed, it can happened to anyone, at first. But if the stress continues and finally become an everyday emotion, at 6 weeks tops since it first appeared, those persons will also start eating a lot, and quite frequently. The end result will be the same uncontrollable weight gain.

Please be sure to come back and leave your thoughts and ideas in a comment.

So for those of you who watched me come out and tell Oprah that I had been in hiding about putting back half the 214 lbs I lost while on the Biggest loser, you know that was back in January 2009 and everyone keeps asking where I am at today, here we are already six months later. I had the excuse of working tax season that kept me busy and the cold winter weather to keep me from getting outside to move around and here I am six months later, the weather is still awful in New York, not anything that makes you want to go outside and go for a run or walk and although tax season is over I am still not back on track totally.
I dont know what it is. I do know its not one thing in particular that keeps me from staying on the track. Usually its hard to start something, for me, its harder to stay at something. Im signed up to run the NYC Marathon in November. I have a lot of work ahead of me. I need to get focused and stop putting this one off more day. Its so hard when you have a family and a job to put yourself on the “list” sort of speak, but waiting for it to happen is clearly not working.
I am going to blog my challenges and my triumphs! Maybe I can get some insight on what the story is with me - being depressed about my weight gain sure isn’t helping lose it. Thanks for reading.

It’s hard to express in a blog the amount of hard work and determination it takes to want to lose such an insurmountable amount of weight as I did. I lost 214 lbs. more weight than most people weigh.  But then again, I was 407 lbs.  I didnt get there over night. I didnt lose it over night, but in just 8 short but pain staking months I did it.  Keeping it off was just as hard, and I did keep a majority of it off until 2008.  I started working as a salesperson and traveling in my car for 10 hrs a day, its hard to find a restroom in the territory I was in, let alone a sensible meal.  Fast food was cheap and accessible and it also made me feel better for the moment at least.  I saw it happening but we will get to that at another time.

Being on TV, bearing it all, might leave some squeamish, but I was so desperate to finally do something about my weight, the thought of letting it all hang out sort of speak didn’d discourage me.  I was scheduled for Lap Band surgery, postponned it twice, waiting for the Biggest Loser call.

I met friends and had the support I never could have imagined.  I began to belive in myself that anything was possible, even though I was the heaviest contestant to date.

The time away was sometimes unbearable, but I was reassured by my wife that the children and family business would still be there when I got back.  It’s hard to imagine at the time that I would ever finish my time at the Ranch.

Please leave your thoughts and questions in a comment below.

As many of you know, maintaining a healthy lifestyle is very important to me. But that doesn’t mean it comes easy. Lately, I’ve been stressed out, busy and not paying enough attention to my health. I started to gain the weight back, and as a result, have been extremely depressed, causing me to lose motivation to work out entirely. In my last blog post, I mentioned my recent appearance on Oprah, which was a big wake up call for me. Being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes while competing on The Biggest Loser a few years back has solidified the need to maintain a healthy attitude and lifestyle. That’s why I’m excited to announce that I am the national spokesperson for Health Across America: Pharmacists Partnering in Diabetes Care.

Health Across America is a tour bus that will stop in nearly 60 communities across the U.S. raising awareness about diabetes, providing advice on staying healthy and offering free screenings, including cholesterol, blood pressure, glucose and Hemoglobin A1c tests. The campaign is supported by more than 2,000 Health Mart community pharmacies across the country, and it is co-sponsored two leading companies in diabetes care, Bayer Diabetes Care and Novo Nordisk.

Last Saturday we launched the campaign in San Diego. It was an amazing event. Lisa Gordon, protocol director of the San Diego Mayor’s office was there, along with David Sedrak, Health Mart pharmacist and Tim Canning, president of Health Mart. You can check out some of the photos from the event on the Health Across America Facebook Fan page. At the event, I spoke about the importance of working with your community pharmacists to help manage diabetes. Locally-owned community pharmacists are trusted, affordable and accessible resources and are committed to supporting their community’s health..

I’m heading to the Los Angeles area next - check out the details on tour stops and find out when the tour bus will be in your community. Come by, say hi and get tested. Take it from me, it’s better to face your health apprehensions today so you can live healthy and happy for the rest of your life.

I’ll keep you posted on this very important tour and the great things that will come from Health Across America. Be in touch soon!

Please be sure to come back and leave your thoughts and ideas in a comment.