winter blues
beating the blues with food and movement
Happy Presidents Day, Noosers! We hope you are having a lovely long weekend or perhaps enjoying vacation (somewhere warm?!). In case this email finds you cold, miserable, and in the thick of whatever winter germs may have found you — this is the post for you. Anne and I are big fans of time outdoors in the winter, but these frigid temps have shortened our fuses and made summer feel like a distant memory/hallucination. If you’re feeling the same way, the winter blues are no fun, but there are ways to support yourself this time of year with nutrition and movement. In today’s post, Anne provides insight on mood boosting nutrients and Avery writes about how exercise isn’t just physical in these winter months — it’s critical for your mental wellbeing, too! If you’re feeling the winter slump, this one’s for you.
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nutrition for mood
As I write the subtitle for this piece, I find myself continuing to type out nutrition for skin health, nutrition for heart health (stay tuned), nutrition for cognitive function, nutrition for performance and so on. There is nutrition for every part of our body, from the aesthetics to the systems. Before you get your hopes up and think you’re about to find what’s at the end of the rainbow, I want to level with you: the Venn diagram of “foods that support your heart,” “foods that support your brain” and “foods that support your mood” is basically just a circle.
The same whole foods that reduce inflammation in your arteries also build your brain cell membranes and help produce neurotransmitters. We’re going to talk about specific nutrients in this piece—omega-3s, B vitamins, vitamin D—but don’t let that fool you into thinking mood nutrition is some special category. It’s just... good nutrition. The fundamentals remain the same whether you’re eating for your heart, your brain, or your mental health.
The doldrums of mid-February may be hitting hard right now. This is the stretch where winter stops being cozy and starts feeling oppressive. Yeah, there’s a little more daylight in the evenings now, but the relentless single digit temps out there are brutal, and overall morale is in the basement. For me, the single best mood booster this time of year is movement. There is NOTHING like a good sweat (or face freeze lol) to reset your mental state, read Avery’s piece for more on this! But when you’re battling both the cold and the winter blues? Food plays a crucial supporting role, especially when you understand what your brain actually needs to produce the neurotransmitters that regulate mood.
Research strongly supports four main areas for mood: the Gut-brain axis, Omega-3’s, Vitamin D, and B vitamins.
Gut-brain axis:
