Miami fitness and nutrition expert featured at Books & Books

Wellness expert and author Bill Cortright presents The Stress-Response Diet and Lifestyle Program (www.srdiet.com) at 8 p.m. Thursday, March 4, at Books & Books, 265 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables.

The Stress Response Diet and Lifestyle Program is designed to give readers the information they need to take control of their health and their biological aging process, as they are all important elements toward a lifetime of health and longevity.

Mr. Cortright’s book details his findings after years of working in corporate wellness programs in the United States and abroad. His strategies have helped thousands face the challenges presented by our modern and hectic lifestyles to become more balanced, healthy individuals by countering stress-related weight gain and other illnesses.

The Stress Response Diet and Lifestyle Program is a richly layered health guide that renders vital information for adults and even kids, while underscoring that each individual has his/her own response to stress; the detrimental effects present themselves differently in each person.

Throughout the Stress-Response Diet program, Mr. Cortright shares his innovative approach, built on hormone-balancing diets, supplement recommendations, and exercise routines that will help individuals create the lifestyle they need to counteract the damage done by their respective stress response.

The author shares stories of clients he has helped over the last 20 years, while demonstrating how they were able to achieve optimal levels of health by understanding their body’s stress-response signals and how to manage them.

Signs of an unhealthy stress response: Learn more at www.BioFitProgam.com

• Intense cravings for sweets and carbs
Explanation & solution: You need to eat every three to four hours. Perfect snacks: Yogurt, cheese, nuts of any kind, a protein drink or a protein bars that are low in sugar – 5 grams or less is ideal.

• Not hungry in the morning and starving at night
Explanation & solution:This means your body is in survival mode and it’s storing fat. You must start the day with breakfast and eat every three to four hours to get your body back in the proper balance. Our metabolism should be like that of a baby. Babies have the perfect metabolism.

• Trouble falling asleep and staying asleep
Explanation & solution: You’re producing a lot of adrenaline and that keeps you awake. You’re like a teakettle and you’re boiling all day. You need a stress outlet and that’s exercise. You need to get moving. Walk your dog. Take your child out for a walk. Take a stroll around the block. It doesn’t take much or require much. You don’t need an intense workout to be effective. That’s a misconception

•Waking up feeling tired and unable to think clearly
Explanation & solution: You’re suffering from low oxygen levels. Exercise is the key. Your body has to move every day even if it’s a 20-minute walk. Our DNA is still back in prehistoric time. It just reacts. We have to work with our bodies. Just get moving.

• Feeling overwhelmed
Explanation & solution: Your mind is the key to optimal health. Your mind affects your body. The best thing you can do is journaling. Write a list of things you need to do. Having a plan. Write out what you can accomplish today.

• Tachycardia or fast heart beat
Explanation & solution: This means you have too much adrenaline and that your body is on a state of alert. The key is ensuring that you are breathing properly, and most of us aren’t. Take a few deep breaths every hour. Set the alarm on the computer for a few minutes of deep breathing every hour.

• Can’t function without caffeine
Explanation & solution: Your body needs fuel like a car needs gasoline. Craving caffeine is a sign that you’re stressed out. Eating the right combinations of food is key.
Vitamin support is good. Take good multi-vitamin. Tip: 3 p.m. is our highest stress point of the day. Stop and drink three to four glasses of water until you have to go to the bathroom. You release toxins and you get a surge of energy.

•Catching frequent colds
Explanation & solution: This means your immune system is down. Your body is out of balance and isn’t recuperating, it’s breaking down. You need to work on balancing out your body by putting into practice the solutions we’ve talked about: eating right, exercising (event if it’s a little every day), breathing properly, journaling etc.

•Panic Attacks
Explanation & solution: You have to take care of the mind. Invest in improving your organizational skills. Look at ways you can better manage your time.

• Can’t lose weight
Explanation & solution: When you can’t manage stress you can’t lose the fat and you aren’t producing energy properly. You can lose muscle, but the unhealthy levels of fat remain in your body. The key is incorporating the five biolinks:

- Diet: Eat the right combo of foods at the right time
- Water: Drink more water and remain hydrated.
- Circulation: Incorporate aerobic exercise like walking
- Resistance training: Incorporate two days of week to resistance training. Muscle is key to anti-aging. You don’t have to lift weights. You can practice getting out of a chair or doing wall pushups.
- Junk night: You need one night a week where you cheat and eat what you want.

Learn more at www.BioFitProgam.com