Intermittent Fasting and Adrenal Fatigue

We get asked questions about fasting and adrenal fatigue all the time.

Is it safe?

Will it help us recover?

What about my blood sugar issues?

On today’s blog we are sharing our thoughts on time restricted eating or intermittent fasting.

To start things off…

What is intermittent fasting or time restricted eating?

What this means it that you essentially give yourself a certain amount of fasting hours regularly (a certain amount of hours that you do not eat).  We tend to do this naturally (when we sleep) but lately science and more and more people are experimenting with different and longer fast times and reaping numerous benefits from it.

How do you do it?

There are many different ways you can do this and people everywhere are experimenting with different eating windows (the hours in a day you allow yourself to eat). Some people are eating 6 hours a day and fasting the other 18 hours and  some people are fasting for a full day at a time each week and there are lots of variations in between.

Fasting and Adrenal Fatigue

We know that fasting can be a bit stressful for the adrenals because when a cortisol response will go along with it as cortisol spikes to make stored glucose available to use for energy.  For a long time, fasting was not recommended at all for those struggling with adrenal fatigue and instead they were recommended to eat small portions regularly as needed to help keep blood sugar levels steady.

However, the stress-reducing benefits that intermittent fasting can bring about can be more powerful and significant than the adrenal stress, out weighing the cortisol response required for benefits like improved sleep, less inflammation, increased muscle mass, decreased body fat percentage and improved mitochondrial function, metabolism and support in regulating a healthy circadian rhythm.

When it comes to intermittent fasting and adrenal fatigue, we do have some guidelines to follow if you do want to try it.. and those guidelines start with not doing anything too extreme.

TIPS FOR DOING INTERMITTENT FASTING WITH ADRENAL FATIGUE

1. Start with a long feeding window
   Instead of doing 6 hours and fasting the rest of the day, eat within a longer 12 hour window
   (ie. from 7am to 7pm) or 8am to 8pm.

2. Eat nourishing foods
   When it comes to adrenal fatigue, many of us are depleted. Instead of going the route of “bulletproof” coffees and tea lattes, we recommend eating nourishing meals with a nice balance of carbs, fats and protein and lots of colourful veggies. You really want to maximize the nutrition you are consuming.

BLOOD SUGAR ISSUES AND INTERMITTENT FASTING

This is a big question we get.
As mentioned above, we don’t want to exacerbate the adrenals by excessive fasting if we are prone to blood sugar issues or subclinical hypoglycemia (if you have diabetes, it’s different and we recommend you work with your health practitioner in that case) The symptoms of hypoglycemia include things like headaches, fatigue, weak, light-headed, nervousness, excessive hunger and irritability. We tend to get caught in a roller coaster of high and lows, especially when we struggle with adrenal fatigue.

For many, it’s easy to get STUCK slaving away to snacking to help keep the scales balanced.
Intermittent fasting along with dietary tweaks can be a very helpful way to help correct the issues behind the blood sugar imbalance in the first place and thus, can help you break-free of the need to be at the mercy of chronic snacking to feel normal.

TIPS FOR DOING INTERMITTENT FASTING WITH HYPOGLYCEMIA

1. Eliminate sugar and refined carbohydrates from your diet
   Focus on plant based carbohydrates (like veggies and moderate starchy ones like sweet potato, carrots, beets, etc)

2. Work yourself into intermittent fasting SLOWLY
   If you jump into it over night, you will likely have symptoms and feel unwell, but if you get rid of the main sugar sources in your diet (processed sugar and refined carbohydrates) and eat cleaner more balanced meals, you’ll be starting on the right track. If you eat 6 times a day, ease it down to 5 meals a day—adding MORE fat to your meals to help you go longer in between. Do this gradually and eventually, you’ll be able to go longer between meals and comfortably adapt an intermittent fasting schedule that feels good to you.

We love the idea of integrating intermittent fasting into your adrenal recovery plan because we know there are tremendous benefits in how the body is able to repair and rejuvenate throughout the night and because it’s really helpful in supporting a healthy sleep/wake cycle both metabolically and hormonally.

We hope the tips above will allow you to experiment with this way of eating, in a way that stays supportive in reducing stress on your body— and not the opposite.

If you are ready to get clarity click here to download the free recovery starter kit (a guide to navigating through this fatigue thing once and for all) plus a whole lot more.

Do you do IF with AF (or have you tried)?
If so, let us know how your experience has been below!

xo Danielle

A Matcha Latte for Adrenal Fatigue

Depending on what stage of adrenal fatigue you are in, your tolerance for caffeine may vary.

For many of us, it's a crutch and for those with adrenal fatigue, mustering up enough energy to get through the day can be tough. We totally feel ya on this. This is where many fall into the cycle of drinking coffee for more temporary energy because they are fatigued, while at the same time putting more wear and tear on the adrenal glands over the long term. Do you see how this is a double-edged sword? 

If you are struggling with adrenal fatigue is any caffeine okay!?

This question comes up a lot.  The answer really depends on where you're at and how depleted your adrenals are. 

Typically, I'd recommend taking a good 30 day break from coffee while you give your adrenals some time to recover.
Why would I recommend this torture you ask? To help you regain balance and control.  30 days is enough time to release you from the clutch of caffeine addiction and to reset your relationship with it. It will also support you in re-establishing hormonal balance. 

Is there a better way to energize without coffee?

We think so! We wrote a blog all about this that you can check out here! 

I recommend tindering down your daily consumption slowly, rather then going cold turkey. This will just make things a little easier on you.  Start with smaller cup sizes or switch to decaf. 

I love substituting in matcha or raw cacao in place of one of my daily coffees during this phase.  These alternatives provide smaller amounts of caffeine to help prevent withdrawal headaches, while also offering comfort, deliciousness, and lots of great nutrition. 

WHAT IS MATCHA?

Matcha is finely milled, premium green tea leaves. The difference between this and regular green tea is that you actually consume the whole ground leaf (rather than steeping it in the water), because of this you consume all the nutrition from the leaf too. Because your consuming the whole leaf, you are getting a much more concentrated green tea with exaggerated benefits. 

The Benefits:

• It is amazingly high in free radical scavenging antioxidants! ORAC (oxygen radical absorbance capacity) is a method in which we rate the antioxidant capacity of things, and matcha is up there amongst the highest rated foods.

• Matcha has 137 times more antioxidants than 1 cup of regular green tea

• The nutritional equivalent of drinking 10 cups of regular green tea per 1 cup.

• It boosts your energy! Studies have shown that a cup of matcha can boost endurance by nearly 25%. Matcha does contain caffeine, but about half the amount of a regular cup of coffee. With matcha, the buzz is longer and more sustained, not up and down like a cup of coffee.

• At the same time that it is stimulating, it is also calming. Matcha is rich in L-theanine, an amino acid that promotes alpha waves in your brain promoting zen and calm. You won't get those jitters like you may from caffeine, just a blast of non-anxious energy!

• It is rich in detoxifying chlorophyll and fiber.

• It's amazing for skin health!

A CREAMY MATCHA NINJA LATTE RECIPE FOR THE ADRENALS

The Recipe:

• 1 cup steamed almond milk

• 1/2 tsp Matcha Ninja matcha

• 1 tsp coconut oil

• 1/2 tsp maple syrup

• 1 tbsp collagen protein powder

• a splash of vanilla extract

• a pinch of sea salt

Directions:

In a blender, combine all ingredients and blend until mixed well and frothy. Transfer to your mug and enjoy. 

Alternatively, add a 1/2 of your steamed almond milk and the rest of the ingredients to your mug. Mix well with a mini hand frother and then gently pour in the rest of your steamed milk. 

This matcha latte is special. The maple syrup and sea salt bring out a really delicious flavour and provide trace minerals that our adrenals crave for repair. The addition of collagen protein gives this drink a blood sugar balancing boost as well as extra gut nourishment. The coconut oil and collagen balance things out helping to energize you and fuel you- you'll find this is a perfect mid-morning or mid-afternoon energizer snack.

Hope you love it! 
xo  Danielle + the HYAF Team

Adrenal Loving Grain-Free "NOatmeal"

There is something so warm and comforting about a bowl of oatmeal, especially on a cold day. For many of us suffering adrenal fatigue, this carbohydrate dense start to the day, though delicious, can get in the way of our recovery. So voila, today we bring you our Adrenal Loving Grain-Free "NOatmeal".  (We couldn't resist that bad pun (#sorrynotsorry)). The way your typical bowl of oatmeal is handled by your body very much depends on a few important things, such as:

1. How well your body tolerates grains

2. How you prepare your oats and what you eat with them

Enjoying a bowl of oatmeal with berries, sugar, and milk is a very high sugar, low protein start to the day. This is not ideal for someone trying to balance their hormones and recover from adrenal fatigue. Instead, the focus should be on healthy fats and protein and THEN carbohydrates. This approach will help provide you with balanced energy all morning long and set you on the right path for the rest of the day.

The recipe we are sharing with you today is very unique. It has a similar taste and look to oatmeal, but this recipe is actually 100% grain-free. This recipe is packed full of healthy, anti-inflammatory fats, and blood sugar balancing protein. It will keep you full for hours while providing that comfort we all enjoy from a bowl of oats topped with your favorite fruits and lots of cinnamon. Whether you haven't been tolerating grains well lately or just want a new adrenal supportive breakfast recipe to add to your arsenal, this recipe has got your back.

Adrenal Loving "NOatmeal"

• 3/4 cup of cashew milk (or milk of your choice)

• 3 tbsp chia seeds

• 2 tbsp almond flour

• 2 tbsp coconut flakes

• 1 tsp cinnamon

• a sprinkle of nutmeg

• 1 tbsb of collagen protein powder

• optional: sweeten with a bit of honey, maple syrup or stevia or monk fruit if desired

• Top with ½ cup of organic berries and a dollop of coconut butter

Mix everything together in a pot on the stove top. Heat and stir. Remove from heat, add your fave toppings and enjoy!