The short answer is, yes, you should incorporate some level of physical activity even if you have adrenal fatigue. However, that will look different for each person. Exercise, especially high-intensity exercise, is stressful on the body and it causes your body to release cortisol.
People with Addison's generally need to follow the same basic principles of sensible exercise as those with healthy adrenals. You should stretch thoroughly before you commence exercise. You need to do a warm-up before and a warm-down after exercise.
When we exercise, regardless of whether it is strength training or aerobic exercise, cortisol is released in proportion to the intensity of the effort. Thus, even when you strength train, cortisol is released, and far more so than compared to aerobic exercise!
It's important to do low-impact exercise when you're fighting adrenal fatigue. High impact exercise is another form of stress on the body, making it harder for your adrenals to repair themselves. Consider yoga, pilates, or light cardio.
Overtraining can be a part of healthy training, if only done for a short period of time. Chronic overtraining is what leads to serious health problems, including adrenal insufficiency. Severe overtraining over an extended period can result in adrenal depletion.
While exercise does cause your blood cortisol levels to rise in the short term, exercising will also help to reduce your cortisol levels at night — helping you to sleep better. Endurance training, where you exercise for multiple hours consecutively, can raise your cortisol levels for several days or longer.
Exercise reduces levels of the body's stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol. It also stimulates the production of endorphins, chemicals in the brain that are the body's natural painkillers and mood elevators.
Take regular breaks from intense training and listen to your body. Leave intense sessions to later in the day, when cortisol levels are lower. Eat right to fuel your body and make sure you consume carbohydrates and protein after exercise to decrease the cortisol response.
Adrenal fatigue is thought to occur when the adrenals have been overworked to a degree that they can no longer secrete levels of cortisol that are adequate for optimal function. Potential stressors include environmental and dietary influences, as well as anxiety and emotional stresses.
Recovery from adrenal fatigue can take anywhere from 3 months to 3 years. Each individual has a unique set of symptoms and an individual response to treatment. The recovery process depends upon the stage and severity of the adrenal exhaustion.
Typically, the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis recovers after cessation of glucocorticoids, but the timing of recovery can be variable and can take anywhere from 6–12 months.
Stage 3: High Adrenal Fatigue
In this crash stage, the adrenals fail to meet the needs and can no longer produce cortisol. Therefore, cortisol level is low all day and all night. Chronic fatigue and inability to perform routine daily activities or work-related duties will occur.
As we discuss in the The Adrenal Fatigue Solution, one of the major causes of Adrenal Fatigue is getting insufficient sleep. Getting more rest is therefore one of the best ways to recover.
Eat Consistent Meals with Fat and Protein in the Morning: Going completely carb-free or intermittent fasting—two big trends right now—is probably not right for you if you have adrenal fatigue and your blood sugar is all over the map.
Perform simple, low-intensity movement. Get up and go for a walk for a half hour in the morning—just get low-level general movement. This will help with mental performance too. Perform daily stress-management, self-care activities, such as deep breathing, meditation, prayer, and journaling.
High intensity workouts raise cortisol levels, which is normal, but doing these workouts too often can have negative impacts on weight loss, sleep, and immune function. These potential health problems are especially relevant for those who struggle with chronic stress.
Over-training causes the body's adrenal glands, which manage stress, to secrete high levels of cortisol on a regular basis. High cortisol can cause bone loss, and muscle breakdown, create belly fat, increase sugar cravings, and lead to insulin resistance, a pre-diabetic condition that causes high blood sugar.
Regular strength training and exercise has been proven to improve self-confidence, lift your mood, help you relax and lower symptoms of depression and anxiety.
In addition to yoga and Pilates, walking, slow jogging, swimming, and a variety of lower-intensity boutique fitness classes (like the Lit Method) are all great examples of cortisol-conscious workouts.
Stage 1 (Alarm/Alert)
During the first stage of adrenal fatigue our body can create significant numbers of hormones needed for the response. If a lab test were given during this first stage it could show elevated levels of adrenaline, cortisol, DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone), norepinephrine and insulin.
I have personally dealt with adrenal fatigue in the past, and I can vouch for magnesium and cortisol's role in calming stress levels and rehabilitating hormonal systems. Magnesium helps to regulate cortisol levels, allowing for more balanced hormone production which is essential in our fast paced culture.
Once you stop taking corticosteriods, your adrenal glands may be slow to start working again. To give them time to start making cortisol again, your doctor will gradually reduce your dose over a period of weeks or even months. Even so, your adrenal glands might not begin to work normally for many months.
Symptoms said to be due to adrenal fatigue include tiredness, trouble falling asleep at night or waking up in the morning, salt and sugar craving, and needing stimulants like caffeine to get through the day. These symptoms are common and non-specific, meaning they can be found in many diseases.