Eating to Nourish Adrenals

There’s a lot of attention these days directed toward intermittent fasting, low-carb diets, fasted workouts and “bulletproof” coffees. While I firmly believe all these practices 1) have a valid place in a truly healthy person’s routine, 2) can help drastically improve health in certain populations, and 3) can help maintain optimal health for some, they cannot be a one-size-fits-all prescription. In fact, these practices may do more harm than good for high-stress individuals by adding more stress on an already run-down body (and let’s face it, many of us are becoming more aware we need to decrease stress not add to it).

Over time too much stress—any stress—taxes our adrenals. We can’t continue to live in a “fight or flight” state, pump out high amounts of cortisol like that and expect all the run smoothly—something’s gonna give. The high-stress life leads a good number of us into varying states of adrenal insufficiency and HPA Axis Dysfunction (which you probably read about on the Pitfalls of Low-Carb article). If you’ve reached this point adrenal insufficiency, which can be determined by an evaluation of symptoms combined with an adrenal stress profile (I use the DUTCH Test with my clients), then you basically want to go a totally different direction with your eating and exercise habits than those aforementioned practices.

In fact, this post was inspired by my own private coaching practice. These days I find myself recommending “eating to nourish adrenals” habits to my clients, which help heal adrenals and kick-start the HPA Axis, much more than the IF and BP coffee habits. It depends, but what I’m observing are a lot of Type-A go-getters who’ve just pushed too hard, too far, for too long and need a program that resets the body’s functioning. I’m right there with you, friends, I made the same mistakes and have learned many lessons from all those years living the high-stress life!

Maybe you’re not even taxed out at this point but you know you tend to push yourself hard. In that sense, these habits may be wise if you know you have some stress in your life (i.e. athlete in training) and you’re trying to be proactive to prevent adrenal burnout. Be ahead of the game!

It comes down to individualization. If you hear something being praised on a podcast or online as the latest greatest health hack, please be skeptical, do research, evaluate your health and determine what’s right for YOUR needs. (Keep digging around here at LPC where I help you decide what’s right for you.) If adrenal burnout is your issue, then take this post to heart and adopt these habits now:

What To Do:

Start each morning by drinking 1L of filtered water with juice of 1 lemon and ½ tsp. high-quality fine-grain salt.
- If using a coarse unrefined salt like Aztec Salt then, in my experience, 1 heaping tsp. works better.
Eat breakfast every day—no later than 10am, and preferably within an hour or two of waking (6-8am).
No fasted workouts before breakfast, ever! No fasted workouts at all!
No bulletproof/fat coffees on their own as breakfast.
Decrease caffeine intake to no more than 3-6oz day, or consider omitting completely.
No intermittent fasting. Instead, eat every 2-3 hours, i.e. have small snacks or small meals between main meals.
- Increasing meal frequency may actually have a positive effect on blood markers like cholesterol and insulin—probably not what you were thinking, huh!
- If you “screw up” here and occasionally go 4-5 hours without food because maybe you are like me and you had a huge bowl of paleo granola cereal and there was no possible way to eat more any sooner, that’s ok, just don’t make it a habit and especially don’t force yourself to operate on an empty stomach for more than a few hours.
- What about the 12-hour overnight fast? It may still happen based on your schedule, but the rule is to not force it or even think about it. If it happens, fine, if not, no big deal.
Have a bedtime snack: a light serving of carbs, protein and a little fat is ideal.
- g.) soaked raw nuts, protein powder “pudding,” etc.
Don’t restrict macros, especially carbs.
- If you tolerate whole grains (buckwheat, oats, rice, etc.) and legumes these are totally ok!
- Make sure to get at least 100 grams of carbs a day, up to 200-300 grams of quality carbs sources. The sweet spot is usually 100-200g for most people, and if heavily active then 150-300g.
Do load up on healthy fats.
- Monounsaturated oils and fats, saturated fats best.
Keep your protein clean and have in abundance—organic, wild, grassfed, pastured (plus non-animal sources of protein are recommended too).
Fruit is fine! (But no fruit salads for breakfast).
- Don’t fear fruit, it’s a whole natural food, but…
- Eat fruit in moderation
- Limit or avoid first thing in the morning (a light serving with a high-fat meal is ok, but oatmeal with banana, berries, apples not so much).
- Good choices are low-glycemic fruits, which you can read about in this article. I like berries, apples, cantaloupe, kiwi, papaya, and pineapple.
- Some fruits to avoid if your adrenal fatigue is severe are listed below…
Eat the rainbow—as much variety and color (especially veggies and fruits) as you can!
Support digestion with a digestive enzyme and betaine HCL.
Load up on sea veggies—seaweed salad, nori, etc.
Don’t follow a hypocaloric diet (i.e. don’t restrict calories that your body needs) and make sure you’re in energy balance—the body needs to know that it is not in a famine stress state.
Using a high-quality salt is encouraged! Adrenals need that extra bit of sodium. I like to have both Aztec Salt and Himalayan Salt on hand.
Eat slow, eat mindfully, and avoid distractions and electronic devices when eating.
A day at a glance, not going more than 3hrs without food:
- Breakfast 6-8am
- Snack 10am
- Lunch 12-1pm
- Snack 3-4pm
- Dinner 6-7pm
- Bedtime snack 8-8:30pm
Main food groups in order of importance:
- Vegetables
- Animal-based foods and proteins
- Healthy fats
- ‘Other’ carbs—starches, tubers, whole grains, legumes
- Fruits

What To Avoid:

Excessive coffee, tea and caffeine (no more then 3-6 oz. weak coffee if you do drink it).
Fruit and dried fruit in the morning—unless it’s a post workout food, fruit in the morning can cause a spike and crash in blood sugar leading to fatigue.
- If you have more severe adrenal fatigue avoid grapefruit, banana, orange, raisins, dates, and dried figs—as these all can throw off sodium potassium imbalance.
High-carb or sugary breakfasts—especially refined or processed carbs and sweets. This can also contribute to a spike, crash and fatigue, especially if not working out. Read “Break Up With Breakfast Cereals.”
Sugar bombs any time of day—fruit juice, refined carbs, conventional baked goods, excessively rich sweets, etc.
- You don’t have to ban all sweet foods and treats, just keep to moderation. I prefer a little dark chocolate or a treat sweetened with lacanto monkfruit sweetener or stevia.
Junk foods like soda, candy, deep fried foods, and unhealthy packaged items.
Hydrogenated oils and trans fats.
Alcohol (mostly or entirely)—if you regularly drink cut back to 1-2 drinks a week or consider none at all; if you don’t drink now’s not the time to start.
Any foods you’re allergic or sensitive to—this is to avoid stress reactions and adding inflammation in the body (this may include alcohol for many people).
High-FODMAP foods or gluten if other gut issues are present (often the case) and if they’re known to trigger a reaction in you.
Rushing through meals and eating on the go—big no-no.

Supplements To Consider*:

B vitamins (or B Complex) especially:
- B3 (niacin)
- B5 (pantothenic acid)
- B6 (pyridoxal-5-phosphate)
- B12 (methylcobalamin)
- (Other B vitamins include B1, B2, B7, B9)
Vitamin C with bioflavonoids—2000-4500 mg/day
Magnesium citrate before bed and magnesium baths
Vitamin E
Digestive enzymes and Betaine HCL (as mentioned above)
Adaptogenic herbs, especially:
- Ashwagandha
- Rhodiola
- Eleutherococcus
Licorice root
Maca

* Consult with a professional before starting new supplements.

Can You Still Be Fat-Adapted?

…’Cause I’m sure you’re wondering! First off, remember your priorities! Perhaps healing your adrenals and mitigating stress should be the No. 1 priority right now, not necessarily dialing in mega fat-burning. That said… Secondly, yes, you can still support fat-adaptation during this time and in fact many of these guidelines promote just that by teaching you to manage blood sugar better, avoid the wrong carbs in the wrong amounts at the wrong times, and nourish with fats. More frequent eating isn’t necessarily a deal breaker either. Some research has shown that one big meal followed by or preceded by a long period of fasting is actually worse for blood sugar regulation than more frequent smaller feedings, and as mentioned above other research shows that increased meal frequency (more feedings, smaller/moderate portions) is better for insulin regulation. So, remember, fat-adaptation is not just about fasting and low carb; it’s about proper timing of nutrients and choosing the right kinds of foods (quality) in appropriate amounts (quantity).

For example, you can have a calorie-rich breakfast of eggs, coconut oil, veggies, avocado and berries (relatively low in carbs) then do a low-volume aerobic workout, have a small snack after (Primal Kitchen bar for something quick, or maybe a low-GI green juice and protein source), and the next main meal load up on more carbs like a bowl of quinoa, veggies and protein, gluten-free chicken/lettuce wrap (I love WrawPs and this article’s photo is a wrap I made for lunch) or sweet potato mash aka grain-free porridge. This is totally nourishing your body and keeping macros and meals in a good balance for a healthy metabolism.

Have you gone through the process of healing adrenals? Are you in it now? Tell us about it! Ask questions too!

Resources:

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