Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Rest and self care are so important.
[00:00:03] When you take time to replenish your spirit, it allows you to serve others from the overflow you cannot serve from an empty vessel.
[00:00:14] Eleanor Brown Chapter 7 Cortisol, Sleep and Stress the Hidden Fat Traps have you ever felt like you were doing everything right, eating well, exercising consistently? But the scale wouldn't budge? The culprit may not be your diet at all. It may be your stress.
[00:00:38] Stress and poor sleep are silent saboteurs of weight loss, especially for women in midlife.
[00:00:44] They elevate cortisol, disrupt glucose control, and trigger cravings for quick energy foods.
[00:00:52] The body, already adapting to lower estrogen and progesterone, becomes even more vulnerable to these hidden traps.
[00:01:02] Cortisol the stress hormone that loves your belly.
[00:01:07] Cortisol isn't bad.
[00:01:09] It's the hormone that helps you wake up, respond to challenges, and survive emergencies.
[00:01:15] But when cortisol is chronically elevated from stress, lack of sleep or over exercising, it pushes glucose levels higher, encourages insulin resistance and signals the body to store fat, especially around the midsection. Research shows that women under chronic stress often experience stubborn belly fat even without overeating.
[00:01:39] That's not a failure of willpower it's biology.
[00:01:44] Cortisol Check in signs your cortisol may be running high Afternoon crashes even with good meals Cravings for sugar or salty snacks Trouble falling or staying asleep Belly fat that won't budge Feeling tired but wired at night?
[00:02:04] If this sounds familiar, focus on stress management before adding more workouts.
[00:02:10] Sleep the overnight reset button Think of sleep as the overnight glucose reset. Poor sleep increases cortisol, raises fasting glucose and reduces insulin sensitivity the next day.
[00:02:25] It also disrupts hunger hormones. Ghrelin Hunger goes up, while leptin satiety goes down.
[00:02:34] The result?
[00:02:35] Stronger cravings, more snacking, and a sluggish metabolism.
[00:02:40] Studies show that even one night of poor sleep can impair glucose regulation the next day.
[00:02:46] String together weeks or months of bad sleep and fat loss feels nearly impossible.
[00:02:53] On the flip side, improving sleep quality is one of the fastest ways to see better glucose stability and easier fat loss.
[00:03:02] Sleep HYGIENE Quick wins Improve sleep and glucose with these habits.
[00:03:10] Set a consistent bedtime and wake time limit. Screens one hour before bed blue light delays melatonin Keep your room cool, dark and quiet.
[00:03:22] Create a wind down Ritual stretching, reading, journaling Avoid alcohol and heavy meals late at night.
[00:03:31] The stress glucose cycle the challenge is circular.
[00:03:36] Stress raises glucose Glucose crashes drive cravings Cravings lead to overeating Overeating worsens glucose Poor sleep makes it worse. More stress breaking this cycle requires more than willpower. It requires strategy.
[00:03:55] Myth Stress eating is just lack of willpower Stress eating isn't weakness, it's biology Cortisol raises glucose, insulin responds and your brain craves quick fuel sugar carbs Learning to manage stress Breathwork walks Sleep lowers cravings naturally Practical tools to break the trap Stress management Try breathwork or breathing techniques like 478 inhale for 4, hold for 7 exhale 8 short walks journaling or meditation even 5 minutes can lower cortisol.
[00:04:39] Exercise smarter Strength training and HIIT are powerful, but too much cardio or too little recovery can spike cortisol. Balance intensity with rest Sleep Keep consistent bed and wake times Limit blue light before bed Create a cool, dark sleeping environment Add a wind down routine Reading, stretching, journaling Evening nutrition Avoid high sugar foods late at night, which can spike glucose and disturb sleep cycles.
[00:05:15] Stress reset mini tools 5 minute fixes you can do anywhere box inhale 4 hold 4 exhale 4 hold 4478 breath inhale 4 hold 7 exhale 8 microwalk step outside for 10 minutes mind dump write down tomorrow's to do list to clear your head.
[00:05:46] THE SLEEP GLUCOSE LOOP Poor sleep leads to higher cortisol, which leads to higher glucose cravings, overeating and worse sleep.
[00:05:56] Break the loop by fixing one piece sleep or stress and the others begin to fall in place.
[00:06:06] Hannah, 53 Stress was my missing link.
[00:06:12] Hannah was disciplined. She tracked her meals, worked out regularly and limited treats. Yet her belly fat wouldn't budge and she felt exhausted.
[00:06:23] A closer look revealed she was sleeping only five to six hours a night and working in a high stress job.
[00:06:30] When she began prioritizing stress reduction daily breathing exercises, a 10 minute walk after work and setting a strict bedtime.
[00:06:39] Her transformation accelerated, her fasting glucose dropped, her cravings diminished and she lost the stubborn belly fat that years of dieting hadn't touched.
[00:06:52] Her story illustrates the truth. Sometimes the most powerful workout is turning off the lights and going to bed.
[00:07:01] More cardio burns off stress.
[00:07:06] Long, intense cardio can actually raise cortisol if overdone.
[00:07:11] Moderate exercise plus strength training plus recovery help regulate stress hormones.
[00:07:18] Balance is key.
[00:07:22] Sleep is optional.
[00:07:24] I'll sleep when I'm dead is a fast track to metabolic chaos.
[00:07:29] One bad night equals impaired glucose regulation the next day.
[00:07:34] Chronic poor sleep equals stubborn fat and high cortisol.
[00:07:39] Sleep is not optional.
[00:07:41] It's your nightly reset.
[00:07:44] THE SCIENCE OF REST We've been taught that progress is made in motion, that doing more, being more, achieving more is the mark of success.
[00:07:55] But the truth is your Body does its deepest healing in stillness.
[00:08:00] Every system you've worked so hard to optimize glucose regulation, hormone balance, muscle repair depends on recovery.
[00:08:10] Sleep isn't a pause, it's a performance enhancer.
[00:08:14] It's where growth hormone rises, insulin sensitivity resets, and memories and emotions organize themselves into calm clarity.
[00:08:24] During deep sleep, your muscles rebuild from training, cortisol levels drop and your nervous system finally exhales.
[00:08:33] Without rest, you can eat perfectly, train precisely, and still stall your results because your body hasn't been given permission to adapt.
[00:08:43] Rest is not a reward for hard work. It is the work.
[00:08:48] When you honor recovery through seven to nine hours of restorative sleep, mindful breathing and simply stepping away from urgency, you activate the parasympathetic nervous system, the rest and digest state that signals safety to your biology. And when your body feels safe, it burns fat more efficiently, balances hormones more gracefully, and heals more completely.
[00:09:15] Science calls it recovery, your body calls it peace.
[00:09:20] Rest is not laziness.
[00:09:22] It's where transformation takes root.
[00:09:27] Chapter 7 Summary Chapter Reflection Cortisol, Sleep and Stress the Hidden Fat Traps if earlier chapters taught you how to fuel and move your body, this one reminded you that true transformation begins when you rest.
[00:09:48] You learned that glucose isn't just shaped by what's on your plate, it's shaped by what's on your mind.
[00:09:56] Stress, deadlines, worries and even overtraining can send cortisol soaring, signaling your body to hold onto fat, especially around the midsection.
[00:10:07] This isn't failure, it's biology. When the body feels under threat, it protects.
[00:10:15] But protection isn't the same as peace.
[00:10:18] This chapter revealed that cortisol balance is the quiet key to unlocking the fat loss, energy and mental clarity that women so often chase through effort alone.
[00:10:29] When cortisol stays elevated, glucose follows, and so do cravings, restless nights, and that sense of doing everything right with no results.
[00:10:41] You discovered that rest is not laziness, it's leverage.
[00:10:45] Tools like evening wind down rituals, strategic naps and slow resistance training are not indulgences, they're interventions.
[00:10:55] Even something as simple as deep, steady breathing or gentle movement can shift your body from stress to safety, allowing fat metabolism and hormone repair to resume naturally.
[00:11:09] Hannah's story brought this to life.
[00:11:12] She had spent years dieting harder and pushing longer, yet nothing worked until she focused on her stress.
[00:11:20] When she finally prioritized sleep, recovery and breathing as part of her training, her body responded with the fat loss and energy she'd been fighting for.
[00:11:32] The lesson here is both simple and profound.
[00:11:36] Healing doesn't happen in hustle, it happens in balance.
[00:11:40] Cortisol, sleep and stress form the foundation of every physical transformation.
[00:11:47] When you manage them wisely, you create space for your body to do what it already knows how to do.
[00:11:54] Restore itself.
[00:11:56] So the next time you find yourself pushing harder, pause. Breathe.
[00:12:02] Remember.
[00:12:03] Sometimes the most powerful action is stillness.
[00:12:09] The cortisol equation.
[00:12:12] Stress is inevitable. Burnout is optional. Stress doesn't just live in your mind, it echoes in your body.
[00:12:21] Learning to regulate it begins with awareness.
[00:12:24] These reflections are a gentle check in to notice where tension hides, how it speaks and what it might be trying to protect you from. Because peace is not found, it's practiced. Reflect and reinvent.
[00:12:40] How does stress feel in your body, physically and emotionally? What situations tend to raise your cortisol most?
[00:12:48] How do you typically cope with pressure? And does it serve or drain you?
[00:12:53] What would it look like to practice? Calm before chaos, not after.
[00:12:58] Where can you trade urgency for ease? This week.
