We’re going to cover 5 of the most common ways I see people accidentally screwing up their hormones, sometimes with the best health intentions. 

From blood sugar fluctations to the efficiency of your detox pathways (including pooping out excess hormones), you should be able to see where there may be some chinks in your hormone support armour!

  1. Under-eating 

  • If you’re only eating enough to support the caloric needs of a small child, your hormone levels will do exactly the same thing. 

  • Your metabolism will drop to preserve calories

  • If you’re eating way below your basal metabolic rate (what you burn at rest) and chucking in a tonne of exercise on top, you will be in fat storage mode

  • Your thyroid will slow and your sex hormones will tank

  • This is also super stressful for the body = raised cortisol levels 

  • The result = weight gain, low libido, irregular/heavy/painful menstrual cycle (or none at all - this is not a good thing ladies!), brain fog, cold all the time, low mood, constipation, thinning hair, loss of muscle mass etc (these are all signs you are NOT EATING ENOUGH) 

2. Overtraining

  • Know this, overtraining is MEGA STRESSFUL FOR YOUR BODY, particularly endless gruelling cardio and HIIT training 

  • When you are stressed (in fight or flight), this means excess work for your adrenals and raised stress hormones

  • This results in your sex and thyroid hormones being put on the back foot

  • We don’t need to procreate when we’re running from a sabre-tooth tiger (or smashing out 100 burpees), so overtime you will see your sex hormones drop, particularly progesterone (which gets converted to cortisol)

  • Your metabolism will also slow (as your thyroid levels drop to preserve calories)

  • The result = weight gain or stagnant weight loss, low libido, feeling sluggish, decreased performance in the gym, thinning hair, feeling cold all the time,  symptoms of oestrogen dominance such as heavy menstrual cycles, breast tenderness and weight gain around your hips, thighs and butt…

  • So as you can see, MORE IS NOT ALWAYS BETTER when it comes to exercise

    3. Poor blood sugar balance 

  • If you’re struggling with a blood sugar rollercoaster you will be upsetting the whole cascade of hormones

  • Again this is mega stressful for the body, and demands quite a bit of your stress hormones (adrenals kick out cortisol and adrenaline to raise your blood sugar when it drops too low - this will be why you’re waking up in a pool of sweat)

  • Overtime, these fluctuations in blood sugar will lead to insulin resistance

  • The result = stubborn weight gain (particularly around the waist), waking up throughout the night, PCOS, excessive thirst, excessive urination, irritability/fatigue/headaches if meals are delayed, night sweats, excessive appetite. 

  • As the blood sugar rollercoaster also puts you in a ‘stressed state’ it is also going to negatively impact your thyroid and sex hormones (as we’ve discussed) 

  • Don’t wait for the doctor to tell you that you’re ‘pre-diabetic’ before you take action on these symptoms 

    4. Not managing your stress levels 

  • We’ve already talked about the impact a stressed state has on your hormones

  • Chronic stress is the perfect storm for hormonal chaos as your sex hormones and thyroid are not the priority 

  • This will be exacerbated by frequent high intensity training and excess caffeine which both elevate cortisol levels 

  • With chronic stress, progesterone gets converted to cortisol creating a state of oestrogen dominance

    5. Poor gut health 

  • With poor gut health (particularly bacterial overgrowths and constipation) we see further symptoms of oestrogen dominance (all the fun stuff like breast tenderness, outrageous PMS, heavy periods....)

  • This is largely due to poor excretion of oestrogen (we want regular daily bowel movements) and an overgrowth of the oestrobolome (the who....??)

  • The oestrobolome is the collective name for bacteria which produce enzymes (such as beta glucuronidase) that release bound oestrogen back into circulation 

  • The oestrobolome often gets overgrown with poor diversity of commensals (your good bacteria) and overeating the same foods (poor fibre diversity)

  • If you also have a congested liver and poor bile flow this will also hinder the excretion of hormones. The perfect storm for oestrogen dominance


So plenty of underlying causes for hormonal disruption, many tangled up in the traditional ‘diet culture’ of squeezing as much gruelling exercise as you can into your week and eating as little as possible (even if those foods are causing you digestive distress)!

And, as you can see, the mindset and habits associated with this diet culture are actually doing you a huge disservice and setting you further away from your goals.

If you’re struggling with any of the symptoms mentioned and need help untangling your hormonal chaos, give me a shout and let’s get you to a place where you’re working with your body to create healthy hormonal balance!

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The content in this article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding your health.