Winter Arc ☃️❄️
You’ve probably heard this all over socials lately. Winter Arc.
Lock yourself away. Train harder. Get lean. Build muscle. Come out of winter looking completely different 😂
But there’s something much deeper behind it.
For most of human history, winter wasn’t a lifestyle phase. It was a survival phase.
Food availability changed. Daylight disappeared. Temperatures dropped. Energy had to be conserved and our ancestors had to become incredibly resilient just to get through those colder months.
And although our environment has changed massively, our physiology still responds to season.
Less daylight affects our circadian rhythm.
We naturally get less UV exposure, which can make maintaining vitamin D harder.
Cold weather increases the demands of thermoregulation👇
🥣Our appetite can change.
🚶Our movement often drops.
💤Sleep patterns can shift.
And then throw Christmas, alcohol, less training and months spent indoors on top of it.
No wonder so many people come out of winter feeling completely dreadful.
A winter food strategy
This is why I actually love the idea of a Winter Arc.
For me it’s about using winter to build the body. And food plays a massive part.
This is where seasonal eating becomes really interesting. As we move into winter, nature starts giving us completely different foods.
Foods that work in soups, broths, curries, slow cooks, roasting trays. Lean into it.
✅Boths. Make bone broths. Slow cook grass-fed beef.
✅Oily fish. Eat more oily fish like salmon, sardines and mackerel for protein and omega-3s. 🐟
✅Eggs. Get eggs into the diet. 🥚
✅Beans. Use beans, lentils and whole grains. 🫘
✅Onion, herbs. Load dishes with onions, garlic, ginger, turmeric and herbs. 🧅
✅Fermented foods. Eat fermented foods.
✅Colour. Keep plenty of colour coming from vegetables and fruit. 🌈
✅Protein. And most importantly. 🥩DON’T FORGET PROTEIN!
Maintaining winter muscle💪
Winter is an unbelievable time to build and maintain muscle.
And the older I get, the more I believe muscle is one of the greatest forms of protection we can give ourselves👇
☑️Strength.
☑️Metabolic health.
☑️Glucose control.
☑️Bone health.
☑️Independence later in life.
The basics
So rather than spending winter doing endless cardio trying to stay skinny👇
✅Lift weights
✅Protein
✅Recover
✅Sleep
Nutrient raw materials
And give the body the raw materials it needs to adapt.
Carbohydrates matter too🍝
Sweet potatoes, squash, rice, potatoes, fruit, barley🥔🍠
Your body still needs fuel. Especially if you’re training hard.
And one of the biggest things people completely overlook during winter.
Get outside🌅☀️
DAYLIGHT.
Get outside. Even when it’s bad weather.
Walk. Train. Move. 🚶🏻🚴♀️🌄
Keep exposing the body to the outside world instead of spending four months moving from the house → car → office → sofa.
Our ancestors couldn’t hide from winter. They adapted.
We don’t need to live like cavemen 😂
But I do think we’ve become incredibly disconnected from season, daylight, food availability, movement and nature.
I will have a whole chapter on this in my up and coming book, “Fuel” by the Performance Chef.
Chef James lives in Manchester, England
Chef James THE PERFORMANCE CHEF | Founder of Project Performance | Leading International Private Performance Chef to Elite Athletes | Michelin trained | Author | Performance Testing
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