Right up until he passed away, Dr John Hinwood was a prolific blogger (an award-winning blogger in fact!). John’s blog’s shared musing from a rich history of experience, learnings, travel and wisdom.
The Hinwood Institute is named in honour of Dr John and to continue his legacy, we’re republishing his blogs to keep his wisdom, wit and wise words alive for the world to enjoy.
You can learn more about the legacy of Dr John Hinwood HERE.
Cortisol, like every other hormone in the body, has a specific purpose. Its main activity is to support us to respond in a positive way to a threat which may harm us. It instantly fires up the fright, fight, flight process along with other hormones to protect us.
Cortisol also regulates the energy levels of the body. It does this by moving energy from fat stores to tissues that need it and, when the body is under stress, by providing protein for conversion into energy.
If you are anxious, cortisol will impede performance, however, if you are excited, new research has found that it boosts performance!
Here are 5 easy ways to keep your cortisol levels under control, which not only makes weight loss efforts easier, but makes life just more enjoyable.
1. Exercise… choose exercise that you love to do.
Research has shown that low-intensity exercise lowers cortisol levels.
2. Sleep… make sure you get enough.
Research tells us that 7 to 8 hours sleep is ideal to allow your brain to complete its cleaning process. Also, you need to get enough sleep.
3. Do things that you enjoy and find relaxing.
Focus on these joyful activities – like reading a book, listening to your favourite music, gardening, going for a walk, matching movies, or whatever these special things are for you.
4. Re-think regular alcohol.
TV and movies constantly show us people engaging in alcohol as a destress tool, where infact, it has an opposite effect of the body. The way to go is to cut back on alcohol.
5. Avoid the late-night news just before bed.
Anticipatory stress is a major problem for many people. Research has identified that bad news can increase your stress levels and interfere in a major way with healthy sleep.
P.S. If you’d like to know how likely your stress will lead to ill health, you may try our Stress Test below.
How well do you roll with the punches?
How it works:
- Answer 25 simple questions
- Generate results instantly
- Receive feedback to enhance your score
Listen to the Podcast here
About the Author
Dr. John Hinwood is a Global Leader in Stress Management. He is a very experienced and respected executive coach, mentor, consultant, sought after international speaker and author. He specialises in facilitation that leads clients out of the stress and into the calm. He has a reputation for innovative and transformational work in stress-life balance and mindset change for front line employees, to managers and business leaders.
Dr John Hinwood has shared the stage with Dr John Demartini, Dr Deepak Chopra, Dr Wayne Dyer, Dr Joe Dispenzia, Mark Victor Hansen and Jack Canfield (Chicken Soup for the Soul fame), Dr Bruce Lipton, Dr Masaru Emoto and others who are at the cutting edge of human behaviour and mindset change.
He has written 14 books with 4 being Amazon international best sellers. He has had papers published in academic journals and was once Captain/Coach of the Danish National Rugby Team. Dr. John’s experience as a health professional by training, successful businessman by effort and an inspiration by inclination has given him an awesome array of practical tools for success.