Are your hormones holding back your fitness goals? Picture: iStock. Source: Supplied

Welcome to the world of hormones. No matter how many blogs, publications, and articles there are about hormones, most people don’t really make it much easier to understand.

Despite hormones being a bit of a complicated subject, I’m going to do my best to make it as simple as possible for you to understand how they work and implement strategies to manage them, because they can have a big impact on your results.

But before I get started I want to give you the heads up: Hormones are underrated. For years health professionals have been telling us “when it comes to getting results, it’s 75 per cent nutrition and 25 per cent fitness, (give or take a few per cent depending who you speak to). Personally, I think it’s closer to 65 per cent nutrition, 25 per cent fitness … and 10 per cent lifestyle and health factors such as sleep, stress, hormones and toxicity, just to name a few.

So, because they can have a significant effect on your health and fitness outcomes, let’s talk hormones — signs you might be out of sync, ways you can help improve your hormone levels, and what to do if there is a problem.

Blake Worrall-Thompson says sometimes hormones going haywire can stop you achieving your goals. Source: Supplied

First, here are some signs you’re in a bit of trouble with your hormones (these are just a few):

1) You’re wired and tired: You know that feeling where you feel exhausted but at the same time you struggle to get to sleep, and your moods go up and down? Yep, that could be a serious sign that your cortisol levels are out of sync.

2) You lack sex drive: If you’re ‘burning the candle at both ends’ the sex drive is one of the first things that can disappear, and this is not cool. If you don’t have the sex drive you think you should, do yourself (and maybe your partner) a favour and get it checked out.

3) You can’t lose weight: I recently had one of the girls in the 6 Weeks to Sexy program completely nail EVERY aspect of the program, yet after 30 days she hadn’t shifted ANY body fat. For me that was a warning sign and straight away I sent her away to get some testing. Not surprisingly she came back with a diagnosis of early stages of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

4) Food Cravings: If you find yourself craving carbs there’s a good chance you could have a problem with your insulin levels.

5) Hormonal cycle: If your cycle isn’t ‘regular’ this is warning sign 101, and you need to get tested.

If you’re tired or can’t seem to lose weight, it may pay to get your hormones tested. Picture: iStock. Source: Supplied

Next, here are a few things that can help:

• Trust the gut: This area is so often missed when it comes to thinking about ‘hormones’. A gut that isn’t functioning properly can cause all types of problems — it can raise cortisol (your stress hormones), cause detoxification problems and leave you completely nutrient-depleted, which will then run havoc with the rest of your hormones. Gas, bloating, and slow digestion are common signs that either your hormones are in a little trouble or your stomach is in a little trouble (which is generally caused by the hormones). If your stomach is out of sync it doesn’t matter the quality of the food you eat, because your gut won’t be able to absorb the nutrients from it.

• Stress less: Easier said than done sometimes, isn’t it? Personally I believe the best way to deal with stress is through meditation, and the second is to identify your stresses and deal with them or distance yourself from them. Too much stress will mess with your cortisol (your stress hormones) which will increase your belly fat (where the cortisol is released from).

Doing short, sharp interval sessions can be the most effective way to train. Picture: iStock. Source: Supplied

• Detox: Yeah you love that, don’t you? Everyone loves a detox. The problem for most people is they are completely irresponsible with the approach they take to detoxing. For most people they don’t need to do anything too crazy. You could start by drinking better quality water (and more of it), reduce your sugar intake and sweat a little more.

• Shorter, faster training: Unless you’re training for an endurance event (marathon, ironman, long distance run) I suggest you do shorter, faster training. Long distances and too many hours of training can easily send your cortisol levels through the roof and mess with your hormones.

• Vitamin D: Yes our sun is very powerful, and yes you have to be careful of getting too much of it (and I DON’T want you to get burnt) — but many of us are actually experiencing a serious vitamin D deficiency. Don’t be stupid when you get sun or go crazy with it, but it’s important to get your daily dose of it.

You might also need to give up your daily dose of caffeine ... or maybe just some of it. Source: NewsComAu

• Go natural: I love the all-natural beauties! Not only do I find the natural look really attractive, it’s also great for your health. A lot of people think about what they put in their mouth but don’t give as much consideration to what they put on their skin, which is just as important when it comes to toxicity.

• Sleep better: Taking longer than 15 minutes to get to sleep or waking up in the middle of the night are just SOME of the signs that you’re not sleeping that well. This would be one of the areas I would address first, because sleep is where your recovery happens and without sleep its only a matter of time before your hormones are going to start going crazy.

• Cut the CRAP:Caffeine RefinedsugarsAlcohol and Processed foods. Sometimes people complicate things. If you made ONE change to what is above you would start heading in the right direction. Maybe cut back from three coffees a day to two or cut out one source of processed foods from your diet.

And finally, here’s what to do to get clarity on where you are currently:

14) Get tested. The best thing you can do to figure out whether your hormones are in balance is to get tested. To get your testing, it’s best you see a naturopath or integrative practitioner who can provide you with results based on either a saliva, urine or blood testing. For those that I train they are always looking at ways they can improve their ‘markers’ — even if they do all come back as ‘in the healthy range’.

Enjoy these delicious and quick summer recipes

Coconut Smoothie

A smoothie packed with berries and coconuts is a great way to start the day. Source: Supplied

Fresh berries are full of antioxidants. Source: Getty Images

Ingredients

1 young coconut

1-2 organic eggs

Handful of frozen blueberries

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

1 teaspoon vanilla bean powder (optional)

1 tablespoon grated ginger

Method

• Crack open the coconut and pour the water into blender

• Scoop out the flesh and add to blender

• Add all ingredients to blender and blend until smooth

Big Breakfast

Protein and green veges is a great way to start the day. Source: Supplied

Ingredients

2 eggs

½ Avocado

Spinach

½ clove of garlic

Asparagus

Dukkah

Method

• Poach eggs, saute spinach with garlic, roast asparagus, cut avocado and sprinkle with dukkah

Apple and Cinnamon Quinoa Oats

Get your fill of protein and grains for brekky with these quinoa oats. Source: Supplied

Ingredients

¼ cup quinoa flakes

¼ cup of water

¼ unsweetened almond milk

1 tspn honey/agave

1 green apple, finely sliced

½ tspn of cinnamon

Method

• In a small saucepan bring quinoa, apple, cinnamon, water, almond milk and honey to boil and simmer until thickened (porridge consistency)

• Place warm porridge in a bowl and stir through chopped mango, shredded coconut and added pistachios

WEEK 1 FITNESS PROGRAM

WEEK 1 MEAL PROGRAM

WEEK 2 MEAL & FITNESS PROGRAM

WEEK 2 HOW TO STAY MOTIVATED

WEEK 3 CUT BACK ON SUGAR

WEEK 4 HOW TO EAT OUT

WEEK 5 HOW TO EAT FOR WEIGHT LOSS

WEEK 5 6 THINGS HAPPY PEOPLE KNOW

WEEK 6 WHAT TO EAT BEFORE AND AFTER A WORKOUT

Find out more information from Blake Worrall-Thompson at www.wellbeingbyblake.com and the online 6 Weeks to Sexy program www.6weekstosexy.com / @wellbeingbyblake