Lucas Wilhelm Hedenbäck explains why winter drains your mood: your body gets confused when you eat tropical foods and stay inside while exposed to cold. He recommends a winter stack of early morning light, 20 minutes barefoot grounding, cold plunges for brown-fat activation, sauna sessions, and foods like bone broth and organ meats to align your hormones with the season.
Chapters
Winter hits hard if you're not prepared. Low sunlight, more screen time, less movement. But it doesn't have to drain your energy or your mood. The problem is most people live completely out of sync with the season. They're eating tropical fruits and summer produce while it's snowing outside. That sends mixed signals to your biology. Your mitochondria read light, food, and temperature as inputs. If your body's getting cold exposure but your diet says we're in the tropics, your hormones get confused, your thyroid slows down, testosterone drops, sleep gets wrecked. Winter is about conserving energy, not spiking it with sugar. That's why seasonal eating matters. So here's my winter stack. Get outside early, even if it's gray. The morning light still hits and resets your clock. I ground barefoot at least 20 minutes a day. Yes, even in the cold. Your nervous system loves it. I move daily. Long walks when there's daylight, strength training, sauna 3 to 4 times per week, cold exposure. That contrast therapy boosts dopamine, flushes inflammation, and supports hormone balance. Cold plunges in this case isn't just for the mental. They activate brown fat, boost dopamine, and harden your nervous system against daily stress. And in winter, your body expects When you give it the right stress, it gets stronger. Red light therapy is my go-to for mitochondrial health and mood, especially morning and night. Combine that with proper nutrition— bone broth, high-quality fats, trace minerals, vitamin D, and raw organ meats— these are the inputs your body expects in the winter. This isn't biohacking, it's seasonal alignment. Do this and seasonal depression won't stand a chance.