cold weather have a negative effect on diet?

So, over the last couple of weeks the weather here has started to really change; its went very cold very fast and at the same time ive noticed my diet has slacked a lot during this time. I was speaking with a colleague at work and she said that she also found her diet went a little bit more to pot during the cold weather, maybe due to comfort eating and wanting something hearty and hot to eat.
so my question is: do you guys find that seasonal changes effect your diet in any way? Do you find it easier to control what you eat in summer when you have all of those light meals and lots of summery fruits to eat. Give me your thoughts, i'm curious :)

Replies

  • FirecrackerJess
    FirecrackerJess Posts: 276 Member
    Yes, because I then want Hot Chocolate.... like now...
  • Naaer
    Naaer Posts: 212 Member
    Yes, it IS harder to eat healthy in the winter...But you can do it if you really think about it...I think the main thing is to try to get enough exercise...Even though it's cold, go out for a walk...It will perk you up...


    Reaan:bigsmile:
  • sunsetzen
    sunsetzen Posts: 268 Member
    I noticed! Its freezing cold and wet and all I want to do is to eat. I just try to be more active (good for a bit of vitamin D and helps to counteract SAD).
  • FirecrackerJess
    FirecrackerJess Posts: 276 Member
    This Hot Chocolate taste good... still within calories though!
  • 2013sk
    2013sk Posts: 1,318 Member
    Hell yes - I am always fatter in the winter, slimmer in the summer lol!!!

    We all want the hearty filling foods, the naughty carbs, Sweets, Chocs, crisps, savouries when its freezing outside.......God when its snows, I am a nightmare............ I WANT EVERYTHING LOL!!!!!!!!!!!

    Who wants to eat salads in the winter?
  • monisiaczeq
    monisiaczeq Posts: 131 Member
    Xmas doesnt help either! haha! but im always trying to eat more soups in winter- warm and hearty but without the bad bits ;)
  • misschoppo
    misschoppo Posts: 463 Member
    I defintely feel like eating larger meals/different types of food when winter approaches, I think it has less to do with the cold though and more to do with how dark it gets so early. I'm happy to wrap up and still get out if its just cold but it gets really dark really early by the time I get home from work its already pitch black and I therefore stay indoors. By staying indoors more I am guilty some evenings of mindless munching in front of the tv. I find the answer is to try and not let myself sit around doing nothing for a whole night as the busier I am the less inclined I am to eat through boredom so I just find something to keep me busy whether that is exercising indoors, doing any house/cleaning stuff that needs doing (something always needs doing!) or just using the miserable weather as an excuse for an extra long soak in the bath! :smile: I've also started taking my trainers to work a few times a week recently so that I can go for a brisk walk during my lunch break. That way even if I don't workout in the evening, at least as a very minimum I'm getting out most afternoons to stretch my legs. I also tend to eat a lot more soup because its yummy and filling and that keeps my cals in check because its difficult for me to overeat with soup as it is so satisfying,
  • annekka
    annekka Posts: 517 Member
    Now that it's gotten cold I've been hungry as a bear so I would have to say YES cold weather does affect your diet. I swear it has to be SAD related. I seriously cannot get enough food sometimes. It's crazy. As soon as spring comes I'm less hungry again. I've tried to change around my eating and get more protein, but I'm still hungry. I refuse to let this ruin my diet.
  • elsyoommen
    elsyoommen Posts: 155 Member
    yes I find I want to eat more in the winter. I've resolved this time to make large batches of soup to have on hand - hoping this will help provide me some warm comfort food while maintaining the deficit I need.
  • MaggiMoonwytch
    MaggiMoonwytch Posts: 12 Member
    I need more food in winter. But I cope by cutting out the salads, which just make me ravenous when I'm cold and making huge pans of different vegetable soups. Very low in calories but very filling and warming. Make a huge panful and have cups throughout the day. A tip I learned back in the 70's which works very well.
  • ilona1913
    ilona1913 Posts: 28 Member
    I find the opposite. In the summer I'm out so much that I end up eating fast food more than I'd like. In the winter I stay home and cook more. And I love soups in the winter, which can be pretty healthy.
  • Squidgeypaws007
    Squidgeypaws007 Posts: 1,012 Member
    It makes sense - to be fatter in the winter is to survive the winter if food is low. I know it doesn't really apply to modern day living in economically developed countries, but it would have done until at least a century ago.

    I think it stems from a long-standing evolutionary need for us to have more fat on us to help us get through the winter. Those of us that had more food and had more body fat would have an easier winter.

    Also carbs contain tryptophan, which helps the body produce serotonin, which is a happy drug - those referring to SAD could be on to something. Hearty, Carby food = happy :)

    This is all of course conjecture and educated guesses.

    I have exactly the same issue, just beat your impulses down and chin up - good luck!! :flowerforyou:

    Edited for interesting spellings ;)
  • LiveLoveLift67
    LiveLoveLift67 Posts: 895 Member
    No i dont really notice a difference. If i want something i usually have it no matter the weather.
  • erialcelyob
    erialcelyob Posts: 341 Member
    Yep agree agree agree! My water intake has reduced too cos its so cold! brrrrrr
  • helenwilliams78
    helenwilliams78 Posts: 46 Member
    I don't find it hard to eat healthily in the winter - soups and stews packed with winter veg are yummy! But I do find portion control harder. I seem to be constantly hungry when it's cold outside.
  • elyelyse
    elyelyse Posts: 1,454 Member
    It makes sense - to be fatter in the winter is to survive the winter if food is low. I know it doesn't really apply to modern day living in economically developed countries, but it would have done until at least a century ago.

    I think it stems from a long-standing evolutionary need for us to have more fat on us to help us get through the winter. Those of us that had more food and had more body fat would have an easier winter.

    Also carbs contain tryptophan, which helps the body produce serotonin, which is a happy drug - those referring to SAD could be on to something. Hearty, Carby food = happy :)

    This is all of course conjecture and educated guesses.

    I have exactly the same issue, just beat your impulses down and chin up - good luck!! :flowerforyou:

    Edited for interesting spellings ;)

    I totally agree with these educated guesses! Plus, as someone else mentioned, it gets dark so early so were so much less active and boredom eating takes over.
  • Joannesmith2818
    Joannesmith2818 Posts: 438 Member
    I don't really notice the difference....except its harder to change into gym clothes. I have a lot of xmas party's to attend, so putting the weight back on isn't an option!
  • kcragg
    kcragg Posts: 239 Member
    It makes sense - to be fatter in the winter is to survive the winter if food is low. I know it doesn't really apply to modern day living in economically developed countries, but it would have done until at least a century ago.

    I think it stems from a long-standing evolutionary need for us to have more fat on us to help us get through the winter. Those of us that had more food and had more body fat would have an easier winter.

    ^^ this!
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,021 Member
    I think there is some truth to it, to the extent that winter weather can force you indoors, and that tends to result in eating more because of boredom and/or the proximity of food. I think the holidays also offer more opportunities for free-for-all eating. Although summer is full of Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and just-because-it's-summer barbecues and parties, it's typically only a weekend thing, and I think people tend to do more drinking than eating.

    During the fall/winter, the focus is most definitely on food, and it's an all-the-time thing. Starting this week and lasting through New Year's, I guarantee there will be some kind of food in our break room at work every single day. Attorneys and bankers and auditors and other people we do business with will send gift baskets. Lots of companies in our building have come-and-go donut/muffin/cookie/candy buffets set up. My co-workers will bring in homemade stuff. Our office manager makes sure there is always a tin of those Danish butter cookies around. And that's before even considering all the parties, some of which you're obligated to attend.

    Clothing is also an issue. There is more of a sense of urgency to look good in the summer because you're wearing less clothing. In the winter, you can hide under layers of wool and fleece, and no one will expect to see you in any state of undress in public.

    But in the end, it still comes down to priorities and decision-making. I try to keep to my "diet" (meaning my calorie and macro goals) and my training schedule as closely as possible because it's much easier, for me, to just maintain good habits all year long than it is to try to re-establish good habits every year.
  • willdob3
    willdob3 Posts: 640 Member
    The weather doesn't hurt my diet at all. I might cook more, make soups, etc. Hot tea instead of iced. I'm still eating only healthy foods. Adding sugary or junk food never even entered my mind.

    I take long hot showers instead of cool ones now though... lol...
  • Cold weather=gumbo, chicken and dumplings, chili, stew, hot cocoa, pot pies.

    Holiday season=pecan pralines, cherry nut bread, pmpkin cream cheese loaf, banana nut bread, fudge, divinity, peppermint bark, and pie -all homemade.

    I embrace the weight i gain this time of year, bevause it means my family is full of some damn fine cooks!
  • hels4397
    hels4397 Posts: 100 Member
    Im right there with you - mac and cheese, lasagna, stews and soups - all comfort food! I find I'm a lot more active and in shape during the spring/summer. I can't wait for it to be lighter later so I can go out and run after work. Until then, it's layers and lights to go out in the dark for me!
  • missashleigh92
    missashleigh92 Posts: 37 Member
    glad im not the only one it seems. My biggest problem this time of year is i usually go to the gym afterwork; since i dont drive i normally have to get 2 buses there which take long enough as it is. In winter the roads seem to be more packed and the buses are either extremely late (meaning i'd have no time in the gym before closing time) or they just dont turn up at all. Finding alternative work outs in this cold and dark weather is hard sometimes, and home workouts arent much of an option due to space. im trying to keep an eye on my eating habits, but knowing that on days like this when i feel ive binged a little and then i cant get to the gym really does knock it out of you. but i suppose this is going into a whole other topic about exercises in winter now.
  • sophiecreton21
    sophiecreton21 Posts: 26 Member
    I'm seriously falling off the wagon - I stick to my meal plans during the work day, but as soona s I get home I can't face exercising and end up snacking LOADS! If anyone had any tips I woudl really appreciate them :-)
  • berwick13
    berwick13 Posts: 18 Member
    I love veg. soups....comforting hot food.
  • tryclyn
    tryclyn Posts: 2,414 Member
    A bit of the opposite for me. I don't heat the whole house so I have to be very hungry to actually spend the time in my pseudo-kitchen getting food.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    does not have this problem....
  • Eleonora91
    Eleonora91 Posts: 688 Member
    Winter makes me seriously hungry, like, the kind of hunger I feel is completely different from the one I feel during summer or spring. I'm pretty sure that the low temperature requires you to eat more carbs and fatty foods. Last year I started off with my diet in May, and I gained a couple of kgs during November and December because I just ate whatever I wanted to. I went to the university everyday all day long, so I carried my lunch with me (usually a salad) but when I came back home I always used to have a big snack and we cooked huge soups with bread for dinner. This year I haven't had to go to the university so I can just stay at home and keep on track. I've been behaving great during November... to me the best thing to avoid this hunger is having hot plates (soups, pasta, cooked vegs), hot beverages once-twice a day, and trying to keep myself at least distracted by studying or doing something. It's even harder to workout often but at least I keep my diet effective.
  • SilviCor
    SilviCor Posts: 110 Member
    I find that the lack of daylight in winter affects me the most. I find it really hard to crawl outta bed at 5:30 am to workout when it is as dark as midnight. And I'm less likely to go out for a walk at 6 pm because it is so dark, it feels like night. I need sunlight!!!