Cortisol - A Bodybuilders Biggest Enemy for Building Lean Muscle Mass

Chromium Will Promote Muscle Growth and Boost Your Testosterone Levels

Did you know that cortisol is your worst big enemy? I bet you never. Well it is true and your body makes tones of it every day. Not literally, I just want to open up your eyes a little here. It's like a kind of ongoing battle with your favorite hormone, testosterone. And as a bodybuilder like me, you know that your body needs a huge amount of testosterone to build lean muscle mass.

The difference between the two is this - testosterone is an anabolic hormone, while cortisol is a catabolic one. Catabolic means that this nasty little creature actually breaks down your hard gained muscle. Which is taboo for us, isn't it?

These two bitter enemies fight it out every day for your muscle cell receptors. This continuous fight plays havoc with your testosterone levels. The other negative thing that cortisol does is place like a barrier in your body, which resists insulin. Why do you need insulin you may ask? First of all, this is another huge bad thing to happen within your body if you are trying to gain a lot of muscle size.

Insulin has a big job within your body. It works with the carbohydrates and protein you eat, and kind of drives it into your muscle cells. Cortisol is a real muscle mass killer isn't it? Well, guess what else it does to you? Not only does it break down cells, but it actually stops protein synthesis. This is your protein doing the job you want it to - repairing and building those muscles you have just smashed in the gym!

It basically frightens the your much needed insulin away from your muscle receptors, so that they cannot do their job - repair and build. In a nutshell, this slows down your body building ability and even breaks down the mussel you have been building. Not a nice thought, eh?

And cortisol doesn't stop there! It tells your body to make more insulin at the wrong times, which leads to you gaining unwanted fat cells, making your nice ripped body look very unpleasant to look at in the mirror. But the worst thing about cortisol is that it can actually cause you to get Type II diabetes which can be fatal.

So how do you combat the effects of cortisol? Simple, with chromium. This wonderful mineral has a negative effect on cortisol, allowing your insulin levels to perform and act when and how they are supposed to.

How can you get chromium, what foods is it found in? You can get it from broccoli (which is great, because I eat mounds of the stuff), cheese, tomatoes, beef, rye, onions, chillies and eggs.

However, the problem with naturally found chromium is that your body has trouble absorbing it. Bummer. So if you feel that you could benefit from a higher amount of chromium in your body, you should get it from your supplement stockiest.