TUTORIAL #3 STOP STRESSING

STRESS [THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY] We all have stress in our lives, some more than others but not many people actually take the time to combat it. If you really work at improving your stress levels, and controlling them instead of them controlling you then you will see and feel a whole new improvement in your life. The thing is… If you don’t begin to control your stress levels then they will control you, it will spiral out of control and you will eventually burn out and hit a [metaphorical] brick wall. Today is the day we begin to improve this.

WHAT CAUSES STRESS? There is a number of different things which cause stress, here is just a few of them: Work Relationships Families Trauma Poor Health Poor Sleep/ lack of Rest, Recovery or Relaxation Low nutrition in diet Our personal traits/ habits [i.e. Little patience, road rage, always rushing, lack or preparation etc] No Exercise

CORTISOL You may have heard of this word before “oh my cortisol levels are high today”, but what on earth does it mean? Well Cortisol is apart of the stress hormone group alongside adrenaline, these hormones are realised in times of stress. As soon as we experience some stress our Adrenal Glands [located above our kidneys] release these stress hormones above. If you are constantly causing stress then you will burn out these glands which will create low mood and a slow metabolism. This is called Adrenal Fatigue, the causes of AF are; Lack of sleep, Poor food choices, using food/ drink as stimulants when tired, staying up late even when tired, high stress levels, over training, under recovering. We live in a world which is 100mph all day everyday, we are constantly looking for ways to go faster, make shortcuts and get things done as fast as possible. This is what makes us so tired, fatigued, and stressed.

DIFFERENT KINDS OF STRESS ACUTE STRESS: Acute stress is the most common form of stress. It comes from demands and pressures of the recent past and anticipated demands and pressures of the near future. Acute stress is thrilling and exciting in small doses, but too much is exhausting and will lead to chronic fatigue. CHRONIC STRESS: This is the grinding stress that wears people away day after day, year after year. Chronic stress destroys bodies, minds and lives. It wreaks havoc in the long term. It's the stress of poverty, of dysfunctional families, of being trapped in an unhappy marriage or in a job/ career which you don’t enjoy. We also have the stress that our diet puts on us everyday by eating foods which are high in; sugar, caffeine, multiple chemicals, MSG, HFCS, gluten, and wheat etc.

STRESS [THE GOOD] Stress is important to us, without it we may not be alive as a human race today without stress. The benefits of stress: Stress creates growth and makes us stronger Stress could save our lives in a fatal situation Stress makes us determined, focused and with positive aggression

STRESS [THE GOOD] Stress during a workout will create growth in our mental attitude and in our physique. When we train we create a stimulus which is stress in our body which in turns makes us stronger and improves on what we have just done. This is called adaptation; we are a species of adaptation, for example with the constant changing climate, a new job, a new relationship etc. We were born to change and constantly improve in all that we do. Also we can use stress in times of emergency [Fight or Flight] such as if someone is about to attack us, or pulling an object off the ground when in danger. It has been said of people being able to lift cars out the way when someone has been trapped under them. This is when stress is positive.

STRESS [THE BAD & UGLY] Stress [in controlled] will literally drive you insane and can lead to all kinds of issues, not just physical but also mental. When we get stressed our blood pressure rises, veins dilate, hear rate increases, stress hormones are released, our focus is sharper and we release more energy. Now this is fine if you are about to use that energy to move a bus, but you aren’t you are probably sat in traffic or raging because your boss has just given you another deadline. All of these things are constantly happening to people all day everyday, now this is when stress really becomes dangerous. Stress has been proven to lead to anxiety, depression, obesity, heart attacks chronic fatigue, adrenal fatigue and has reportedly lead to fatal or near death cases. This is when it is so vital to get control of your stress levels and not let them control you.

STRESS & SLEEP [THE LINK] As I mentioned in the Sleep Tutorial stress and sleep go hand in hand. If you are not controlling your stress then you will not be able to sleep. If you are not able to sleep then you will increase your stress levels. You will literally get to the point when you can only sleep by using over the counter or prescription drugs which in the long run don’t solve anything. You will also get to the point when you are just too tired and worn out to function properly. You have no appetite or will power to make real food which means you aren’t getting out of this viscous cycle. Sleep & Stress Link Poor Sleep Increase in stress Poor Sleep Increase in Stress

CONTROL YOUR STRESS LEVELS Hopefully now you know how important it is to control your stress levels, now the aim is to improve them and make them work for us. 1.The best way you could begin to improve your stress levels would be to simply improve your sleep, that right there will help you to the 3 R’s.. Recover, Rest and Relax. When you have the 3 R’s in your daily regime your body and brain will be able to function a lot more efficiently. 2.Exercising or Training will reduce stress as this is a stress relief which also increases the feel good endorphins. 3.Stop doing the things that you don’t like doing – unless the improve you in the long run. 4.Take time for yourself and spend time with the people you love and spend time doing the things you love. 5.Meditate for 20 minutes everyday, I call this a ‘20 minute holiday’. Simply switch off all distractions and focus on deep breathing for 20 minutes, you may fall asleep so I suggest setting a soft alarm.

YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE This sound so simple but the best way to improve your stress levels is by reducing all the stuff that causes stress. I am not saying go quit your job or break up with your partner etc but just look at the things which cause you the most stress… You personally are the only one that can reduce your stress, you need to figure out the precursors and find a way around it so that those few things are no longer stressing you.

YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE A good tool for this which I have learn is every time you feel like a stressful situation is occurring you take in 10 really deep breaths and think of something or someone that makes you happy. You are then instantly changing your mind-set and turning it into something positive. A great analogy is the stress bath. If we have a bath (our life) and we add water (stress: work) a little more water (stress: relationships) and then we top it up with more water (stress: lack of resources) we will overflow and lose balance in our bath (life). What we need to do is take out these stressors and address them

SUMMARY I am not hear to tell you that this will take a few days, it’ll take weeks, months maybe years but the important thing is to address it now so you can benefit in the long run. Focus this week on controlling your stress levels, once again use the Habit Development Chart to help with the management of this. Good luck and go chill out.