For those on CAD and other Low Carb Plans. Has your weight loss stalled? Have you started to gain a bit even though you're sticking to the same program you had during the summer and exercising the same or even more? Are your carb cravings worse? Are your falls into the carb pit more numberous?

If your replies to any of these questions are yes, welcome to SAD or winter weight syndrome (a variant of SAD). A way to tell, if you've been on the board through last winter, is to check your journal entries around that time. You can also try to recall your past behaviors/weight trends over past winters.

What does SAD or winter weight syndrome mean for those affected (some people are not affected)? This component of SAD activates in winter due to low levels of light intensity as compared to those in summer. It is the difference in light that triggers it not just the difference in temperature though that is a component too. This lessening of light triggers a hormonal process in the body that causes the body to naturally secrete higher levels of insulin. Insulin is both the fat storing and hunger hormone!!! It can also be called the carb craving hormone!! It can also be called the survival hormone and this triggering mechanism comes to us from Neanderthal days when it helped us survive winters by signalling the body to have more hunger, eat more carbs and calorie dense foods, lower metabolism, and to store fat to protect us from starvation through the thin food months of winter. A lovely gift from Mother Nature, lol!!! Not needed now but still with us, unfortunately.

So what does this mean and what can you do about it? Unfortunately, not much!! It's just the way you're wired. The best thing that you can do is relax, stick to program, up your carbs a bit and wait for spring and restart of weight loss. If you're on CAD and your RM gets a bit unbalanced, that's fine. If your weight actually goes up a little, that's fine too. Don't agonize over it, don't stress. Don't allow it to get you out of control and off program. If you're on other lc programs and keep falling into the carb pit every two weeks or so, you might want to consider doing CAD for winter maintenance. For people who suffer from winter weight syndrome, now is not the time to do strict induction, IMHO. I think it will just make the cravings/binging worse.

I think probably the best and most practical advice I can give is to put the scale away for the winter and to stick to program religiously. That way your cravings will be under control, your mental attitude will be calm, your weight will remain relatively stable (you might even lose a couple of pounds over the winter) and you will be ready for the natural whoosh when spring comes.

Good luck!!!