Chronic stress can be likened to a constant “fight or flight.” But what does this mean for the health and fitness of Black women?
In the realm of fitness and well-being, the advice is typically straightforward: eat well, exercise regularly, and maintain a healthy lifestyle. However, this one-size-fits-all approach may not be effective for everyone, especially Black women.
In our bodies, other factors can hinder our fitness goals, with chronic stress being one of the most significant factors.
Recognizing A Persistent Barrier
Considering the effects of systemic racism, it’s no surprise that Black women often grapple with chronic stress.
For Black individuals, stress is ongoing due to race-related trauma and fear. Yet, it’s crucial to understand that it’s not solely traumatic events that contribute to heightened stress levels. Continual experiences of microaggressions may substantially impact stress more than isolated traumatic incidents.
Additionally, research in epigenetics has shown that cultural stress and trauma responses can be passed down through generations via DNA.
This means that Black families not only contend with stress stemming from their own life experiences but also inherit stress from their ancestors.
The National Institute of Mental Health defines stress as “how the brain and body respond to any demand,” noting that challenges like work or school performance, major life changes, or traumatic events can trigger stress responses.
Our bodies manage stress through hormones; one of the primary stress hormones is cortisol.
Cortisol can be triggered and released over an extended period for various reasons, such as stress related to deadlines, ruminating over concerns, or reacting to race-related triggers that evoke fear.
Dr. Jameta Nicole Barlow, a community health psychologist and scholar with the Black Women’s Health Imperative (BWHI), distinguishes between stress and distress.
“People are carrying stress that doesn’t serve them in any way, and when you trace the root cause, it often boils down to fear,” explains Barlow.
Due to their intersectionality as a double minority, Black women experience elevated levels of race-based fear, resulting in heightened cortisol levels. This can lead to chronic conditions like diabetes, hypertension, and other health implications.
What Does This Mean for Fitness?
For Black women embarking on a fitness journey to manage stress, achieve weight loss, or prevent and manage chronic diseases, the path involves more than just diet and exercise.
It’s equally essential to address underlying hormonal issues that can hinder weight loss and contribute to health problems. This influence can be observed in our DNA.
Barlow highlights the role of telomeres, structures at the end of our DNA that indicate our biological age. Research has shown that Black women have significantly shorter telomeres than white women, signifying faster aging (6).
She further explains, “Researchers have compared the telomeres of Black individuals with mostly white individuals and found that we’re undergoing this ‘weathering’ process due to stress.”
The ongoing fear experienced by Black women is accelerating their aging process. DNA evidence reveals that systemic racism is altering their DNA, leading to hormonal imbalances and shortened lifespans.
Fitness Goes Beyond Diet and Exercise
According to Barlow, Black women facing obstacles on their fitness journey should address hormone imbalances in addition to maintaining a healthy diet and exercise routine.
“Complementary alternative medicine can help activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which plays a role in reducing cortisol levels.”
These alternative practices encompass activities like yoga, acupuncture, mindful meditation, and ensuring quality sleep. The emphasis should be on the quality of sleep.
Distinguishing between sleep and rest is crucial. You can go to sleep, but your body may not enter a state of true rest.
“If your brain never truly reaches deep sleep, some essential bodily functions don’t occur,” explains Barlow.
Deep sleep is akin to a system reboot, where the brain slows down, the liver and pancreas detoxify the body, vital hormones are released, and we recharge for the day (7).
All of this happens during the most restful phase of sleep. Without entering deep sleep, these vital processes don’t occur, and you wake up feeling tired and lethargic.
Barlow practices restorative yoga, a practice that brings the body close to sleep while allowing it to rest, even if you’re technically awake. She recommends this practice for all Black individuals to establish a new understanding of how they should feel.
She emphasizes, “For so long, we’ve been told to push ourselves relentlessly, to believe we can only rest when we’re no longer alive. But in reality, you can sleep and still lead a fulfilling life.”
Crafting A Personalized Fitness Plan
For Black women, the path to a fulfilling life through fitness involves paying attention to rest and recovery. It means balancing high-intensity workouts with mindful practices like meditation and yoga.
In fact, excessive high-intensity exercise can further raise cortisol levels if not balanced. The key is listening to your unique body’s requirements because there’s no one-size-fits-all solution.
Barlow notes, “We often oversimplify it, thinking that you’ll lose weight if you do A, B, and C. It’s not straightforward because we all have different experiences, stressors, and lifestyles. It’s about finding the right program for you and working with the right people.”
Assembling the right team may involve consulting a doctor to assess hormone imbalances and possibly a nutritionist to ensure a balanced diet. Enhancing your sleep quality is the next step if you’ve addressed all these factors and still face obstacles.
For Black women, achieving specific fitness goals isn’t isolated; it’s a holistic process that considers every aspect of life to promote overall wellness.
So, where should you start if you’re embarking on a fitness journey aimed at wellness, wholeness, and above all, a life with reduced stress? Begin by assessing your current life.
Identify stressors and set boundaries for yourself and others, including those related to screen time and toxic relationships even if you’re new to fitness and wellness, small steps count, such as walking, incorporating more vegetables into your diet, and reducing dessert consumption.
Prioritize sleep, and remember, it’s crucial to relax your shoulders, release tension from your jaw and tongue, and focus on your breathing. It’s a necessity.