By now you must have heard thousands of times how cortisol (C) is catabolic and will break down all your hard-earned muscle. You might even be using discrete drugs or supplements to suppress cortisol release in the hopes that possibly this will help you to get bigger or stronger. Now, on the covering it appears to make sense for you to want to suppress C, after all it is catabolic. There is one puny catch though: Without C many important metabolic reactions become impaired. The result: Muscle frailness and in severe cases death. So, the trick is to train hard adequate to stimulate muscle growth without sending your C levels straight through the roof. Normal, wholesome ranges of C are what we want, not levels suppressed so far down that we can't even portion them.
Cortisol Control: Too Much or Too small and You Have Problems
What Is Cortisol?
Cortisol, or hydrocortisone, is a member of a house of hormones collectively referred to as glucocorticoids. Glucocorticoids get their name from their capability to growth blood glucose levels. While there are other glucocorticoids, C is the key player in wholesome individuals. Let's say you are lifting weights or stressed out from an argument. Both of these examples are types of stress. Stress can be physical, mental, or emotional. Stress stimulates your central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord). In turn, nerve cells, in a region of the brain referred to as the hypothalamus, get excited. They release a protein called corticotropin-releasing-factor or Crf. Now Crf in turn stimulates the former pituitary (a gland in the brain) to secrete adrenocorticotropic hormone or Acth. Acth then stimulates the adrenal cortex to produce C. Cortisol now goes to work by helping to raise your blood glucose levels. It travels in the body either bound to a protein or unbound in a "free" state. While dissimilar proteins can bind C, only one (corticosteroid binding globulin) prevents C from working in the body. The rest of the C in your body is active, meaning it can raise blood sugar, breakdown muscle, decrease inflammation, and control the immune system.
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