Nov 16, 2021
The days are shorter, the weather is cooler, and the holiday season is approaching quickly. This is the time of year that it can be easy to get sidetracked from your weight loss goals. The shift toward winter can be difficult for many reasons. Lower levels of sunlight, stress over holiday gatherings, and the hibernation tendency might make it hard to maintain your motivation. While there are many things you don’t have control over, like changing seasons, the end of daylight savings time, or your body’s specific response to seasonal transitions, knowledge and planning can help you find ways to keep yourself on track.
Here are some ways to jumpstart your energy if you feel like you need a pick-up!
Even in brisk weather, getting your body moving outside can help boost your mood, clear your mind, and get your blood moving. Making a commitment to take a walk every day. Even a brief 10 minute jaunt to the end of the block and back can help you maintain your activity levels and stimulate your senses. Every bit of sunshine on your face can help!
The mental health benefits of exercise have been widely documented. Apart from the gains to your metabolism, bones, and muscles, moving your body is good for your brain. Exercise releases endorphins, which create feelings of happiness and euphoria. Moving your body is an effective way to combat depression and anxiety, and helps your body process and get rid of stress hormones that have been released. Exercise can sharpen memory and creativity as well, and contributes to the long-term health of your brain. You don’t have to look like a fitness professional in order to benefit from the confidence boost that exercise gives you. The practice of committing to moving your body and following through augments both your willpower and your self-esteem. If you have a tendency to feel sluggish during the winter months, daily movement can help
Unless you’re sunbathing every day, chances are your body needs more vitamin D than you’re getting. Our bodies synthesize vitamin D when sunlight hits our skin. With modern work schedules and arrangements, it’s highly unlikely you’re outside enough to synthesize the vitamin D you need. Vitamin D is essential for healthy bones, teeth, and immune systems, and plays an important role in regulating mood and energy. It’s worth considering taking a vitamin D supplement. Look for vitamin D3, which is the form most easily accessible to your cells. You may also want to get your vitamin D levels checked, in order to better understand how much to take. Talk to your healthcare practitioner about testing and supplementation.
This is a great time of year to take stock of your goals and values, and to be intentional about how to move forward. Take some time to sit with your feelings and work through them. Writing is an excellent way to move things from your brain out through your hand and onto paper so that you can deal with them. For some people, bullet journals with just a few words are helpful; others find long-form writing more helpful and still others find that doodling or drawing can help them sort things out.
It can help to make an agreement with a friend to check in with one another about how things are going. For some people, the shift in seasons can trigger mood and motivation changes that cause them to withdraw. Finding ways to encourage one another to pursue healthy choices can give you both a boost. Making arrangements to take a walk together can cover a couple of things at once—a chance to meet up and a chance to move your body. Both giving and receiving encouragement can hearten and uplift you.
Good nutrition can help you counter the winter blahs. Root vegetables such as carrots, beets, parsnips, turnips, and rutabaga are all packed full of the nutrition the plant was storing for the winter. They are often roasted, and can be eaten warm or cold. The sweet flavor and soft texture of these veggies make for an excellent contrast with the sharper flavors of greens. Greens fried with onion or garlic and olive oil can be combined with roasted root vegetables or squash for a savory-and-sweet combination that is comfort food and nutrition all in one bowl. Soups and stews are also an excellent option at this time of year. You can combine all of that vegetable goodness with some high-quality bone broth and have a one-bowl meal with plenty of left overs to spare.
The holidays can be a difficult time for people to maintain their focus on their weight loss goals. The stress, disrupted schedules, abundance of parties (and party food!), and family food traditions can all contribute to the challenge. One of the best ways to handle this is to think ahead and make a plan. Take some time to get clear in your own mind what your goals and values are, and then think through the scenarios that will be the most challenging. Whether you decide to indulge in your favorites, bring healthy options, or forgo things altogether, the fact that you have made choices for yourself will empower you to stay on track.
By acknowledging the challenges of this seasonal transition, you can make your plans and avoid getting sidetracked. For community support, you can check out Dr. Kiernan’s TRIBE, an online wellness community to inspire, educate, and equip you to put your health first. Dr. Kiernan’s e-cookbook, Eating on Purpose is full of recipes, and also contains wellness tips around nutrition, hydration, sleep, movement, and stress management. For personalized, one-on-one support, TruBalance offers virtual appointments as well as on-site appointments in Little Rock AR, Memphis TN, and Jackson MS.