If you live in a region like mine, you may grow tired of waking up in the dark and finishing the workday in the dark. With the rest of the year’s sundowns indicating that bedtime is not too far away, it can be difficult to stay awake when winter’s sundowns occur mid-afternoon. During this time of year, you may feel compelled to sleep more than you need to, feel sluggish, and lose the energy needed to accomplish more. Here are some ways to reclaim that energy and stay productive over the winter months.
Establish a schedule after the sun goes down.
If you don’t have any plans for leaving the house that day, set a list of things to accomplish. These could even be fun activities that prevent you from doing nothing. During the holiday season, we tend to occupy ourselves with so many festivities and things to get done that it’s harder to focus on the fact that we are dealing with an earlier sunset. Once the holidays are done, however, we often sink down knowing that the fun and craziness of the season is over. In order to keep our spirits up, it’s important to have a plan, whether that’s social activities, working on personal projects, or starting/continuing a hobby. Whatever you do, try your best to maintain the spirit that you had before the onset of winter.
Stay active.
The other issue with winter is, depending on where you live, you may be dealing with nasty weather as well. Heavy snow accumulations or icy, dangerous roads may keep you stuck at home for a long time. Being constrained to your home may leave you at a loss for what to do with yourself, and you may grow tired due to not having the freedom to roam. Luckily, there are ways to embrace physical activity, even when you don’t own any equipment. One of the best parts of regular physical activity is the energizing feeling you get from it. You may also notice better sleep habits when you’re working out!
Clean Your home.
When winter weather leaves you stuck in your home, you want to make sure that your environment is not adding to any negative feelings that you may have. I feel that January and February are great times to ‘Spring Clean’ indoor areas since you’re expected to spend a lot of time indoors anyway. Plus, a messy or unorganized room is likely to drain you further. Keep your space clean and tidy and see how this helps you!
Take Vitamin D.
Since Vitamin D is not found in a wide variety of foods, we often get much of it from the sun. In the wintertime, our sunlight is reduced, and it is much easier to become Vitamin D deficient. Take a look at this recent study that suggests Vitamin D may help with fatigue. Vitamin D is mainly found in egg yolks in certain types of fish, but you can also get it from fortified products, such as milk and orange juice.
I can say personally that I felt an improvement in my overall energy after taking Vitamin D. My doctor alerted to me that I was Vitamin D deficient (even though I was living in Florida at the time, oops) and prescribed Vitamin D supplements for me. I wasn’t aware of this possible correlation at that time, but I did notice a nice little boost as a result.
Although the above study and others are not 100% confident in this correlation, I wanted to include this since Vitamin D deficiency is so common, especially in the wintertime, and could be very useful in reclaiming your energy this winter.
Get Outside When You Can.
We also know that we mainly get Vitamin D from being in the sun. I like to make a habit of getting outside or sitting near a sunny window when it’s too cold. Up north, we know that sunny days are harder to come by in the wintertime, so take advantage of the clearer days and soak up the sun when you have the opportunity. The sun usually at its highest point around noon, which is an opportune time for those who can take a lunch break outside.
Consider A Dawn Simulator (Or Other Forms of Full-Spectrum Light).
If you’re like me, you may rely on the morning light in the summer to wake up and may feel groggy when you have to wake up in the dark. Luckily, you can specialized alarm clocks that emit full-spectrum light when you want to wake up. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of using morning light therapy to treat Seasonal Affective Disorder, a form of depression that occurs during the winter months (and in rare cases, over the summer). Whether or not you have Seasonal Affective Disorder, changing the lights in your home or workspace can have a drastic improvement to your mood and overall energy.
Were these tips and tricks helpful in reclaiming your energy this winter? How else do you like to stay productive while the days are shorter? Let me know below.
Sincerely,
Julie Anna
