Winter-Proof Your Body Today

Hibernating and the holiday season are bad for the body - here’s how to get your body ready for winter

By Hannah Seligson
CTW Features

The days are long, it’s an arctic temperature outside, and your calendar is chock-full of holiday parties. It’s a trifecta that does not add up to health and well-being, or a slimmer waistline. But fear not, Katherine Tallmadge, author of “Simple: 192 Mental Tricks, Substitutions, Habits, & Inspirations” (LifeLine Press, 2004), and a national spokesperson for the American Diabetic Association, checks in to tell you how to winter-proof your body, so you can actually spring (rather than roll) into spring.

Get some sunlight

Not only does a lack of sunlight trigger depression, it can cause you to crave sweets and carbohydrates, Tallmadge, a registered dietician, says. “So make it a priority to get outside at least once a day to get that necessary burst of sunlight.”

Trick your body with low-calorie hearty foods

Hearty foods are what the body craves in the winter. Unfortunately, hearty is often a euphemism for fat-laden and high calorie. That’s why Tallmadge advises people to eat hearty foods that are healthy. “For example, a big bowl of hot oat meal in the morning with skim or soy milk and some nuts will be really satisfying,” she says.

Remember: the holidays are only three days

Tallmadge says that people tend to forget that that the holidays are not the whole six-week period from Thanksgiving to New Years. “You can indulge, but prioritize your high-calorie items,” she says. “If you use every holiday party as a chance to indulge, you will gain weight.”

Eat your fruits and vegetables

In the winter, we don’t eat enough fruits and vegetables, because the selection is not as wide. But that’s no excuse, Tallmadge says. “Focus on the winter fruits – apples, pears, and Florida grapefruits. “

Don’t cut out your minor activities

Tallmadge says that people, typically, do put on a little weight in the winter because there is less incentive to go outside. “The weight gain often comes from cutting out the things that burn 100 calories a day, and that adds up to four pounds over the winter,” she says.

Throw out the leftovers

The good news is that if you indulge once, it’s not going to do you in, Tallmadge says. But if you keep your holiday party in your refrigerator for the next week, it will. “Throw out all the fattening and high-calorie left-overs, because those are the foods that pack on the pounds.”

Keep up the cardio

Stay fit not just so your jeans will fit you come April, but also because cardio helps with anxiety and depression, two things people are more at risk for in the winter. “Some doctors even say cardio exercise is just as effective as certain anti-depressants,” Tallmadge says.

Hannah Seligson is a writer based in New York and the author of “New Girl on the Job: Advice from the Trenches” (Citadel Press, 2007).

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