Cortisol it’s often called the “stress hormone”. But cortisol does much more than respond to a stressful day.
If you’ve seen advice about lowering cortisol, you might be wondering what it actually is, why your body makes it and whether you should be worried about yours.
Before adding another supplement or changing your training routine, it helps to understand what this hormone does.
What is cortisol?
Cortisol is a hormone, a chemical messenger that carries instructions around your body. It’s produced by your adrenal glands, two small glands that sit above your kidneys.
Cortisol helps your body:
- Make energy available when you need it.
- Regulate blood glucose and blood pressure.
- Control inflammation.
- Respond to physical and psychological stress.
These are essential jobs. Your body needs cortisol to function properly. Having too little can also cause serious health problems.[1]
Why is it called the “stress hormone”?
When you face a challenge, your body activates a stress response. Cortisol is one of the hormones involved, helping make fuel available to meet that demand.
That challenge might be an illness, a demanding workout or a psychologically stressful situation. Cortisol is part of how your body responds.
But you also produce cortisol throughout an ordinary day. It follows a daily rhythm, with levels generally higher around waking and lower towards night. A higher morning level can be completely normal.[1]
The aim is healthy cortisol function, rather than keeping it as low as possible.
Does exercise raise cortisol?
It can. The response depends on factors including the intensity, duration and timing of exercise.
A temporary increase during a demanding session doesn’t automatically mean the workout is harming you. It’s part of your body’s response to physical effort.[2]
You don’t need to choose every workout based on whether it might raise cortisol. A more useful question is whether your training is balanced with enough food, sleep and recovery.
If you’re consistently exhausted, sleeping poorly or struggling to recover, consider your overall training load and speak with a qualified health professional if symptoms persist.
What happens when stress doesn’t let up?
A short-lived challenge is different from feeling overwhelmed for weeks or months.
Long-term stress can contribute to sleep problems, headaches, digestive symptoms and other health concerns.[3] These deserve attention, whether or not you’ve had your cortisol measured.
Feeling stressed doesn’t tell you exactly what your cortisol is doing. And symptoms such as fatigue, bloating or poor sleep can have many possible causes.
Can cortisol cause weight gain?
Cortisol can influence appetite and energy regulation, but it doesn’t make body fat appear independently of energy balance.
Gaining body fat requires a calorie surplus over time, meaning you consume more energy than your body uses. Stress can make this more likely by increasing appetite or changing eating habits, sleep and activity levels.[8]
This helps explain why stress and weight gain can occur together. Cortisol may contribute to the conditions that encourage weight gain, but it doesn’t override energy balance. Changes in energy expenditure also matter, so a surplus doesn’t necessarily mean someone has consciously started eating more.
Short-term changes on the scales can reflect fluid retention, food in the digestive system or other fluctuations rather than an increase in body fat.
Prolonged excessive cortisol exposure, as occurs in Cushing’s syndrome, is a separate medical concern. It can cause changes in fat distribution alongside symptoms such as muscle weakness, easy bruising and wide purple stretch marks.[4]
If you notice persistent or unexplained changes, speak with your GP rather than assuming cortisol is responsible.
The Chief approach: support your everyday needs
At Chief, we believe good nutrition should be practical. That means making the everyday essentials easier to repeat, especially when life gets busy.
Eat to support your day
Build meals around a source of protein, add vegetables or fruit, and include other foods to meet your energy needs.
If you’re training, remember that recovery needs fuel. Protein helps repair muscle, while carbohydrate helps replenish the energy stores used during exercise.[5]
For example, that could look like eggs on toast, yoghurt with fruit, or beef with vegetables and rice.
Busy days are also easier when you have something convenient on hand. Chief Beef Bars and Beef Sticks are easy to keep in your work bag for a savoury snack, while Chief Whey Protein can be added to a smoothie with fruit and oats after training.
These options can make protein more convenient as part of your everyday eating routine. They aren’t treatments for high cortisol.
Give sleep a consistent place in your routine
Keep reasonably regular sleep and wake times, create a comfortable sleeping environment and allow time to wind down.
If you struggle to fall asleep, consider whether caffeine later in the day could be contributing. Its effects can last well beyond your last sip.[6]
Make recovery part of your training
Plan easier sessions and rest alongside harder workouts. Pay attention to how you feel across the week, including the demands of work and life outside exercise.
A routine you can recover from is more useful than one that leaves you constantly depleted.
Find a manageable way to unwind
Slow breathing, progressive muscle relaxation and other relaxation techniques may help manage stress.[7]
Choose something you can realistically fit into your day. A few quiet minutes can be a practical starting point.
You don’t have to monitor a hormone to take your wellbeing seriously. Start with what you can notice: your energy, sleep, meals, training and the support you need.
References
- Society for Endocrinology. Cortisol.
- Kim et al. (2023). Effects of exercise timing and intensity on physiological circadian rhythm and sleep quality: a systematic review.
- National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Stress.
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Cushing’s Syndrome.
- NSW Institute of Sport. Recovery Food: What to Eat and When to Eat It.
- Healthdirect Australia. Sleep.
- National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Relaxation Techniques: What You Need To Know.
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National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Factors Affecting Weight & Health.
