Current research has shown that hormones have a direct impact on your appetite and the storing of fat around the midsection. We present to you 4 methods to control specific hormones and achieve a faster weight loss.

Lots of people get frustrated when they steer off their diet thinking that they failed it completely. But a lot of times, that’s not the case. Sometimes, it could be that the diet that failed you, or the hormones that are involved in the dieting process. They are eager to start a new diet without having the slightest idea that maybe their hormonal levels are messed up. Body weight is mostly regulated by your hormones. Studies have shown that they can influence appetite and the amount of fat that you store in your body. Without further ado, here are the 4 ways to fix your weight-controlling hormones.

1. Leptin

Leptin is without a doubt the most important hormone in the body in charge of burning fat and it is an essential hormone which controls or impact practically all other fat-loss hormones in the body, not to mention your body’s ability to expend fat overall. Leptin basically tells your brain that you have enough fat deposits at the moment and you don’t need more, which prevents you from overeating. Those that have higher than normal body fat levels or are extremely overweight, usually have pretty high leptin levels in their bloodstream.

One study concluded that leptin levels in overweight people were approximately four times higher in comparison to people who had a normal BMI. This might sound counterintuitive at first since you’d think that if someone who’s overweight had high leptin levels they’d eat much less. However, in obese people, the leptin regulating system doesn’t function the way it’s supposed to. This is a condition known as leptin resistance. The processes in which leptin is involved get disrupted in people who are overweight which disables the signal to the brain from getting through, and the brain not getting the information that there’s enough energy in storage. Simply put, the brain thinks you’re starving when actually you’re not.

On the opposite side, people who have lost weight and have been on a diet for far too long might experience leptin suppression which leads to excessive eating. As you continue to lose fat, leptin levels can fall even more, which makes further fat loss extremely difficult. You might wonder why that is. As we previously mentioned, when you restrict your caloric intake, the body considers the fat deposits as a vital survival tool. And the more fat you lose, the greater threat the body sees, which makes it extremely hard to lose any extra pounds.

The ways to maintain normal leptin levels:

– Your diet should be comprised of foods that don’t cause inflammation.

– Regular exercising and physical activities.

– Elimination of trans fats and beverages containing sugar.

– Sleeping for at least 8 hours.

2.Cortisol

Cortisol is most popularly known as the “stress hormone”. That’s because it is released when the body is under stress. The same as other hormones, it is essential to our survival as a species. However, having chronically high cortisol levels may lead to excessive eating and fat gain.

The ways to maintain low cortisol levels:

– Avoid high-carb foods and eat a meal that is high in protein and fat like eggs and bacon. This is because when you get out of bed in the morning you have elevated cortisol levels. When you eat foods that are high in carbs you get a spike in your insulin levels. This combo of insulin and cortisol release makes your body store more fat.

– Sleep more

– Strive to have a diet with a balanced macronutrient ratio and not restricting your caloric intake too much. You can still make delicious meals using healthy ingredients.

– Listen to relaxing music. Research has shown that when relaxing music is playing during medical procedures, cortisol levels don’t rise as much.

3. Insulin

Every time you eat, the body releases insulin to keep blood sugar levels in the normal range. Insulin takes away any surplus glucose your body creates out of your bloodstream and takes it to the liver, the muscles or deposits it in the form of fat tissue. Insulin is kind of a double-edged sword in that it not only takes the sugar out of your bloodstream, it also has the potential to increase fat deposits. Eating a diet that is low in carbs, knowing when exactly to eat carbs or trying the intermittent fasting diet will accentuate the fat loss properties of insulin and eliminate the negative ones. When you apply these methods you will be able to control insulin release.

The ways in which you can get the most benefits out of insulin:

– Time your carb intake at specific points in the day.

– Eat fewer carbs.

– Exercise regularly.

– Eat more fat, especially in the morning.

Avoid foods that have a high sugar content.

Here’s a basic layout of what macronutrients your meals should consist of during the day to achieve faster fat loss and maintain healthy insulin levels:

1. Protein and fat in the morning.
2. Protein and fat for your 2nd meal.
3. Protein and fat for your pre-workout meal.
4. Protein and simple carbs with low glycemic index within an hour of working out.
5. Protein and fat before going to bed.

6. Ghrelin

Ghrelin, more popularly known as the “hunger hormone” signals to the hypothalamus that you’re ready to eat. Ghrelin levels are at their peak before a meal and are at their lowest around an hour to an hour and a half after you’ve finished eating. Research has shown that obese people experience only a minimal reduce in ghrelin levels. And since your hypothalamus won’t receive a strong signal to stop eating, you will tend to overeat.

How to maintain healthy ghrelin levels:

– Eliminate high-fructose corn syrup and beverages filled with sugar like energy drinks, which have the potential to disrupt the ghrelin response after eating.

– Eat more protein in the morning.

– Drink lots of water.

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