Winter Weight Loss
Tips
Winter, Weather and Weight
Loss
By Judith J. Wurtman, PhD, and
Nina Frusztajer Marquis, MD
Authors of The Serotonin Power Diet
 All other things being equal, you
are more apt to feel positive and energetic when the sun is shining, the sky is
blue and the temperature in the comfort zone. But for many people, when the
weather turns gloomy, they stop losing and may start to gain weight. In fact,
often the longer the bad weather, the more pounds are
gained.
Some of the
reasons are obvious. Exercising outside is hard when rain is coming down in
sheets or there is a windy snow storm. Extremely hot and humid or brutally cold
conditions also prevent most people from considering and especially enjoying
outside exercise. Eating suffers as well from unpleasant weather. Snacks and
hastily thrown together meals substitute for well-planned menus when it is too
hot to stay in the kitchen. Conversely, hearty (a.k.a. high fat) foods are more
appealing than salads and broiled fish when the snow is blowing and icy drafts
sneak under windowpanes.
But these
weather-related obstacles to losing weight can be dealt with: using home
exercise equipment, joining a health club or walking around a mall can minimize
the impact of weather on the ability to exercise. In the warm months a good
fan, air conditioner or outside grill can make cooking less of a problem, as
does preparing meals early in the day while it is still cool. When the weather
turns cold, thick soups and slow-cooked stews can be prepared with little or no
fat and still be warm and satisfying.
But there is
one weather-related threat to weight loss that cannot be dealt with quite so
easily. This is the absence of sunshine. There are many people whose moods
become markedly depressed during the late fall and winter, those months when
the hours of sunshine are limited and the hours of darkness seem endless. Along
with a downward plunge in their moods, such people feel extremely tired, would
sleep much longer if jobs and families allowed them to do so, and eat much more
than usual. This cluster of mood, energy, and appetite changes is known as
Seasonal Affective Disorder or the winter blues. In its more serious form, SAD,
as it is known, may leave some people 40 pounds heavier at the end of the
winter. The combination of eating more and exercising less or not at all
because of extreme tiredness is a prescription for quick weight
gain.
The impact of
SAD on weight gain is very noticeable especially among people living in the
more northern latitudes like Canada or
Sweden (or in the
more southern latitudes like Patagonia or
South Africa in the southern hemisphere). Even if the temperature is
relatively moderate, the shorter hours of winter daylight has a significant
impact on mood and appetite.
It isn’t
necessary to live in the Arctic Circle in
the dead of winter to feel the effect of too little sunlight on your mood,
eating and energy. A cluster of cloudy overcast days, even in the middle of the
summer, can give some individuals a case of the winter blues. The impact may be
subtle; a nagging feeling of wanting to snack more and a willingness to put off
exercising because one feels too tired to do so are classic
symptoms.
The opposite
effect kicks in upon the return of longer hours of sunshine in the spring. Even
a blue sky can make a difference. Suddenly appetite seems more under control,
mood becomes brighter and taking a long walk or working vigorously in the
garden is a pleasure, not an obligation or a chore.
Of course it
is neither possible to control the weather nor modify your life in order to
stay in a sunshine zone until you lose weight. But there are things you can do.
Therapies for people suffering from Seasonal Affective Disorder
include:
- Daily exposure to a special type of light that
supposedly mimics sunshine. Positive changes in mood have been reported in many
studies after patients have used such devices. For people with very mild
seasonal mood changes, getting sunshine at noontime may be effective in
increasing energy and uplifting the mood. Unfortunately neither special indoor lights
or outdoor sunshine seem to have any noticeable affect on appetite.
- Antidepressants are also used to treat SAD with
positive results. Unfortunately, weight gain can be a side effect of
anti-depressants; which is exactly what one does not want to happen during this
weight gaining season.
However, it
is not necessary to hibernate like a bear to prevent yourself from gaining
weight over the late fall and winter. In fact, it is even possible to lose
significant amounts of weight during this time.
Recognizing
that there is a problem is the first part of the solution. At our ADARA weight
loss clinics we always ask our clients if they tend to gain weight during the
late fall and winter when the sun sets so much earlier than in the spring and
summer. If the answer is yes we set up a program of defensive eating and
exercise. This
program is activated by the end of October and it protects our clients against
falling victim to increased appetite and lack of energy. The key to this
program is the brain chemical serotonin.
Serotonin is
a neurotransmitter, a chemical that regulates mood, energy, appetite and
several other functions in the body. Somehow serotonin activity is altered when
there are fewer hours of sun. We found that the solution to keeping our clients
on their diets and exercise regime was to make sure that their serotonin levels
did not go down just because the sun was setting early.
The way we
did this was as natural as changes in the weather. We made sure that our
clients were eating a prescribed amount of carbohydrates as snacks in the late
afternoon and eating dinners of complex carbohydrates and vegetables. Our
recommendations were based on MIT research that showed many years ago that
serotonin in the brain is made after carbohydrates are eaten but, as this is
important, not after protein is eaten. Since more serotonin leads to a better
mood, a quiet, controlled appetite and increased energy, we knew that just by
increasing this essential brain chemical, our clients would continue to lose
weight.
And our
clients loved our program. They ate the protein that their bodies required for
breakfast and lunch along with vitamin containing fruits and vegetables. But
just around the time the sun was going down, they could eat the carbohydrates
they craved and which made them feel so much better. A typical day’s meal
might include fat free cottage cheese, fruit and a bran muffin for breakfast,
grilled chicken and steamed vegetables for lunch, an afternoon snack of fat
free hot chocolate and low fat vanilla wafers, and pasta with mushroom-tomato
sauce and garlic bread for dinner. All the foods are low in fat and of course
portion controlled. But most important, the afternoon snack and dinner boost
serotonin, thereby boosting mood and energy.
As one of our
clients told us “I used to dread the winter and get into bed as soon as I
came home from teaching because I felt so tired. Of course I crawled into bed
with a bag of cookies and a large bottle of soda. But now I have my afternoon
snack and feel energetic enough to do 30’ on my treadmill. I know after my
exercise is over, I will have my favorite comfort food dinner of a large baked
potato and salad and feel great. And the best thing is that I am losing
weight.”
Copyright © 2006 Judith J. Wurtman, PhD, and Nina
Frusztajer Marquis, MD
Author
Judith J. Wurtman, PhD, has been recognized
worldwide for decades of pioneering research into the relationship of food,
mood, brain, and appetite. Dr. Wurtman received her PhD in cell biology from
MIT and took additional training as an NIH Postdoctoral Fellow in
nutrition/obesity. The author of five books for the general public, she has
written more than 40 peer-reviewed articles for professional
publications.
Nina Frusztajer Marquis, MD, received
her master's degree in nutrition from Columbia
University and
her medical degree from George
Washington
University.
Her articles on weight, stress, and lifestyle have appeared in numerous
publications. With Judith Wurtman, she founded the Adara Weight Loss Centers in
the San Francisco Bay Area, where she lives, and in Boston, where Dr.
Wurtman resides.
They are the
authors of The Serotonin Power Diet: Use
Your Brain’s Natural Chemistry to Cut Cravings, Curb Emotional Overeating,
and Lose Weight. Published by Rodale. January 2007;
$24.95US/$31.00CAN; 1-59486-346-6.
For more information, please visit
www.serotoninpowerdiet.com
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