Everyone knows that exercising regularly and eating healthily are important for the elimination of excess pounds. Sadly, not a lot of people are aware of the fact that there are many other steps that need to be taken in order for noticeable results to be obtained. One example of those is stress management. Health authorities say having a very stressful life can come with various health complications, and being obese or overweight is just one of those. For those who like to slim down, there are a few simple tips on managing stress for weight loss San Jose CA fitness experts are recommending.

Being constantly stressed encourages the body to shift into survival mode. It will try to give the individual lots of fuel reserves in the form of fat just to ensure his or her continued existence. It's no secret that the reason behind unwanted weight gain is the presence of excess fat.

There's a place where the generated fat cells love to gather, and that's the belly area. It's for the fact that there are numerous organs present in there that require constant nourishment. The collection of fat in the abdominal region, needless to say, can expand the midsection which can cause a person to sport an unflattering body shape.

For the body to amass plenty of fat, it needs to be supplied with generous amounts of calories. This is the reason why somebody who is leading a stressful life tends to have a voracious appetite. Such is actually the doing of the body so that it may be able to obtain all the calories that it needs. Basically, this is the reason why stress eating can cause a person to crave pizza, burgers, hot dogs, doughnuts, ice cream, chips and many others that are loaded with calories.

Certainly, you should put your stress under control if what you want is to drop those excess pounds. After all, it can be extremely challenging for you to exercise regularly and go on a diet if you are stressed all the time. Stress can keep you from going to the gym because it drains your energy. It can prevent you from making healthy food choices because it can turn you into a stress eater who wants nothing but foods that are loaded with saturated fat, refined sugar and carbohydrates.

Luckily, you can deal with stress effectively though a number of ways. According to fitness professionals, you may try taking breaths that are slow and deep. By lowering your breathing rate to 6 cycles per minute, you can have your stress levels reduced significantly.

Meditating is another step that you may take. It is basically all about allowing your mind to be empty or blank for some time. If you want to meditate correctly, you may go online and access one of the hundreds of guided meditation videos posted there.

Many swear by the effectiveness of listening to music, writing in a journal, reading a book and taking a relaxing bath. The fact is it's virtually impossible for anyone to run out of stress relieving activities to try. With so many options, eliminating excess pounds should be easier once the person's stress is considerably reduced.