Nature's Secret to Avoiding Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD/WSAD)

This episode is featured in USA News. Winter doesn’t have to feel heavy or gray. We explore a practical, science-backed way to beat Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) by embracing outdoor time, adopting a winter-positive mindset and choosing activities that are fun, affordable, and easy to start. From daylight walks to moonlit hikes, we map out how fresh air, movement, and a little grit can lift mood, sharpen focus, create a healthy lifestyle, and make cold days feel like an opportunity instead of a burden.

In this solo episode, I break down what SAD looks like, why it hits so hard, and which lifestyle levers move the needle the most. We talk through approachable winter options—daily walks, cross-country skiing, and an eye-opening primer on skijoring, the hybrid sport that pairs skiing with a dog who loves to run and pull.

Grab our free Grit-Fueled Wellness companion ebook at nnbl.blog for distilled tips, step-by-step action plans, and first access to new drops.

Chapters

0:43 Winter Blues And Outdoor Mindset

2:05 Community Shoutouts And X Spaces

3:15 What SAD Is And Signs

4:16 Why Outdoor Activity Works

6:23 Build Resilience With Winter Sports

10:22 How To Start Skijoring

14:07 Skills, Commands, And Gear

17:06 Learning Paths And Costs

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Chapters

• 0:00 Free Grit-Fueled Wellness Ebook
• 0:43 Winter Blues And Outdoor Mindset
• 2:05 Community Shoutouts And X Spaces
• 3:15 What SAD Is And Signs
• 4:16 Why Outdoor Activity Works
• 5:18 Night Hikes And Family Confidence
• 6:23 Build Resilience With Winter Sports
• 7:21 Ski Joring History And Appeal
• 8:31 Moonlit Micro-Adventure Story
• 10:03 Sponsor Philosophy And Teaser
• 10:22 How To Start Ski Joring
• 14:07 Skills, Commands, And Gear
• 17:06 Learning Paths And Costs
• 18:16 Hopeful Wrap And Next Installment
• 18:57 Join Our Weekly X Space
• 19:23 Medical Disclaimer

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

Hey Wellness Warriors, Antoinette Lee here, host of New Normal Big Life. The moment you've been waiting for is live. New Normal Big Life 2025 Grit Fueled Wellness Revolution. The official companion ebook to our biggest, boldest season yet is out now and it's 100% free. This isn't some fluffy recap, it's a battle plan. Every game-changing guest quote, every pro tip and wellness warrior takeaway, plus brand new science and step-by-step action plans that turn what you heard on the podcast into real results in your body, mind, and life. Three powerhouse chapters, 41 episodes distilled, zero medical gatekeeping, all actionable grit. Claim your free copy right now in less than 20 seconds. Subscribe at nnbl.blog. When you grab the ebook, you also unlock weekly expert drops straight to your inbox in 2026. First access to new episodes, exclusive brand new behind-the-scenes warrior updates for me. 2025 proved you're done being dismissed. 2026 is your year to rise stronger, clearer, and unstoppable. Download your free copy now at nnbl.blog. If you've already subscribed, your copy is on the way to your inbox. Let's make 2026 the year medicine catches up to you. See you inside the book and on the next episode. What if the key to avoiding wintertime blues or seasonal affective disorder, sad, is spending more time outdoors during winter. Two concepts that researchers agree on are getting outside to enjoy winter activities and having a positive mindset toward the winter season are keys to escaping depression in winter. In this solo episode that I'm dropping as a three-part series, I'll break down the data and show you how to incorporate three of my favorite winter activities. Winter hiking, cross-country skiing and ski juring, and ice fishing into your winter sad prevention strategy and have more fun in winter than you could have imagined. Hi friends, welcome to the New Normal Big Life Podcast. We bring you natural news and stories about nature that we hope will inspire you to get outside and adventure, along with a step-by-step plan to help you practice what you've learned and create your own new normal and live the biggest life you can dream. I'm your host, Antoinette Lee, the Wellness Warrior. Before we get into today's episode, I want to thank our listeners for financially supporting the podcast and for the wonderful text messages and recent reviews from Kathleen, Joey, and Tina. We here at New Normal Big Life appreciate the time you spend listening and sharing the show with the people you love most. And we'd love to hear from you too. Join me on my X Space because if I can find friends and listeners on this challenging platform, I can make it happen anywhere. My friends and I would love to hear what's on your mind, so join us for my coffee in the cabin X Space every Wednesday at 10 a.m. Central, 8 Pacific, 9 Mountain, and 11 Eastern Time. Drop your questions, vent, laugh, or hang out and listen. No agenda, no judgment. Feel free to agree to disagree, just real talk. I hope to see you there. Now back to our discussion on nature's secret to avoiding seasonal affective disorder. Anyone at any age can experience sad, but it generally starts between ages 18 and 30. Common symptoms of seasonal affective disorder or sad, winter sad if you're in Europe, include feeling sad or depressed, loss of interest in things you previously enjoyed, an increased or decreased appetite, fatigue, an inability to sit still, difficulty with concentration and decision making, feeling worthless, and in extreme cases, thoughts of ending your life, according to the American Psychiatric Association. Here is what the researchers know about preventing SAD. Two concepts are getting outside an adventure during winter and having a positive mindset towards the winter season. One of the lifestyle measures recommended by the NHS for England recommends outdoor recreation as one of the most effective ways to prevent and treat SAD. No matter the weather, I get outside an adventure daily. One of the easiest and low-cost ways is taking a daily winter walk, especially during daylight hours. But I often go for a moonlit nighttime hike to enjoy nature in a whole new light. The forest and its animals behave differently and the sounds are different at night. My dog Phoebe loves it too. Walking at night with or without a headlamp, alone or with my dog or as a family has helped me to be very comfortable in the dark. Try nighttime winter hikes with a kiddo who worries about the dark at bedtime. We took kids at Adventure Camp on nighttime walks and activities. When they return home, parents rave that their child was no longer afraid of the dark. Learning a winter sport that you can enjoy alone with your dog, with family, or as a club experience allows you to enjoy winter as much as the warmer months. It also helps you to build resilience against the cold. In addition, according to the compendium of physical activities, a 150-pound cross-country skier will burn about 1,000 calories by moving at 8 miles per hour or faster. It takes surprising little effort to get up to this speed on skis. Here's what the experts know about the benefits of outdoor recreation. In his book Digital Madness, Nicholas Carderas' PhD said, quote, we're just not meant to be sedentary screen steering and meaning-devoid creatures. Psychologists have known for decades that the most beneficial non-pharmaceutical antidepressant is physical activity. End quote. Carderas and other mental health researchers advises getting outside for physical activity with other people, which is an essential tool in your mental health toolbox, especially during winter. So here's a brief history of ski drawing before I teach you how to get started in the sport. Stay until the end, even if you don't plan to take up cross-country skiing or ski juring. This topic will make you the smartest person in the room when someone brings up the subject of having the winter blues. Around 1200 years ago, domesticated dogs began pulling gear and people for hunters, trappers, and Arctic explorers across frozen ground and bodies of frozen water in Greenland, Alaska, in the United States, Canada, and Siberia, a vast region of Russia and northern Kazakhstan. The practice known as dog mushing usually includes three to twenty dogs pulling a sled driven by a driver. Today, in nearly every country where snow can be found, people combine the principles of cross-country skiing and dog mushing in a hybrid sport called ski juring, especially along the Arctic coast and Scandinavia, the birthplace of skiing. Some adventurous people also ski jur with a horse instead of a dog. Before I teach you how to get started ski juring, I want to introduce you to the adventure sports lifestyle with what I call a micro story about an adventure that I've had. The adventure sports lifestyle and my deep connection to nature is essential to my good health. So here's the story. It was a Friday night, one day after a full moon. The forest was dark with one patch of moonlight shining through the canopy and what I call my enchanted forest. The light through the trees seemed to call out to my dog Phoebe. I had no headlamp, but Phoebe wouldn't wait. She looked at me in her let's go stance. Then noting the look of agreement on my face, we set off on an adventure. We ran through two feet of snow that was still falling like a cold wet blanket, only slowing after we entered the forest path. Phoebe proceeded with caution not to startle a creature of the forest. Bears, badgers, deer, squirrels, fox, and even a Canadian lynx that calls our forest home could be settling in for the night. Matt stood overwatch about a quarter mile away, hovering over a hot grill as he cleaned it after dinner. Yes, we grill in winter. It keeps us outside adventuring year-round. Our moonlit hike was peaceful and just what I needed to end a long work week. That is, until Phoebe and I heard the antlers of a large buck that we couldn't see clank against a tree. Phoebe sprinted toward the house as if saying, I don't have to outrun that large animal, mom. I just need to outrun you. Matt laughed as he watched his lady sprint through the snow back toward the light and safety of our cabin, and so did I. I did that. I hope this inspires you to get outside an adventure alone with friends or the people you love most. Quick heads up wellness warriors. I don't let just anyone into this mic time. The only sponsors I ever bring on are products that I plan to use, personally use, swear by, and that have legitimately moved the needle on my health and my families. No fluff, no fillers, no junk. So if you're serious about leveling up your energy, sleep, recovery, skin, whatever your goal is, do not bounce early. Stay to the very end of this episode. I'm dropping some of my absolute ride or die brands and exactly how they've helped me feel unstoppable. These aren't random ads, they're tools I stake my name on. You'll thank me later. Keep it locked. We're going all the way to the finish line together. So here's how to get started ski juring. Getting started with ski juring is simpler than you might think. All you need is a desire to be outdoors in winter, a dog of any size and breed that loves to run and pull, and a few gear items for yourself and your dog. Be warned, if your dog does not have a natural instinct to pull, they may not be the best ski juring partner. Pulling is hard work, and some dogs, just like people, don't enjoy being cold, occasionally wet, or physically demanding work like pulling. Fortunately, my American dingo mix Phoebe loves running, pulling, snow, and adventures with me. She's 45 pounds and in love with running in the snow. Unfortunately, at 15 years old, she can run and play in the snow, but not for long periods. So now Matt is my new favorite cross-country partner. Even if I low key forced him into the sport by buying him skis, poles, and boots for Christmas last year. So here's what you'll need for ski drawing. It's your ski drawing essentials. First, we start with training. To start ski drawing, begin with a dog with basic obedience skills like sit down, stay, calm, and stop. Reading a couple of books on basic dog training, dog psychology, and behavior would benefit anyone, even if you are an experienced dog owner. From there, you can easily train your dog to respond to the commands used in ski juring. Ski jaw with your dog, second edition by Marie Ho Raito and Carol Kaynor is an excellent resource on teaching your dog how to pull and teaching yourself how to work with your dog as a ski juring team. According to Ho Raito and Kaner, there are seven essential dog driving commands that you will need to teach your dog. Gee, turn right, ha, turn left, ahead, straight ahead, or on by to have your dog continue straight, ignore distractions, or go past a turn. Line out to keep the tug line tight. Whoa, to stop, get up or hike to speed up, and easy to slow down. Next, you must gain confidence and competency as a cross-country skier before tethering yourself to your dog. Practice cross-country skiing alone first, paying careful attention to learn how to navigate easy downhill maneuvers because not all cross-country ski trails are flat. Master turning right and left while in motion and stopping, creating that pizza wedge with your skis, or using a hockey stop to stop yourself are important to master before adding your dog to the setup. Don't worry, you don't have to remember all of this because you can go to nnbl.blog, sign up for our newsletter, and every week you will have access to all of our downloadable step-by-step plans to help you create your new normal and live the biggest life you can dream. Next, you'll need an X-Back styled harness and winter dog booties, especially if your dog will spend more than one hour outdoors in winter. When outfitting the skier in this team, begin talking with a knowledgeable person at your local sporting goods store or someone within your ski drawing community about ski selection. The type of skiing you plan to do most often, backcountry touring, short trips, or racing, and the kinds of trails you will ski most often, groomed, ungroomed, icy, flat, hilly, wide, or narrow, will impact your ski choice significantly. And your skiing style will determine the ski pole length. Ski jurors need boots that are more insulated than traditional cross-country skiers, and the boots must be compatible with your ski binding system. Buying a ski package like I did for Matt that includes boots, ski poles, and skis is an economical way for beginners to get started. Ski packages range from about$350 in the US. You will need a ski juring belt with a quick release snap and a toe line that connects from your belt to your dog's harness. A warm hat, gloves, an insulated and water-resistant jacket, and warm leggings are recommended. Be sure to dress in layers. You can easily add, subtract, and still away on your waist or in a small backpack. If you are slightly cold when you begin ski drawing, hiking, or cross-country skiing, you have the right number of layers to avoid overheating and excess sweating when you begin moving. So where can you learn ski jrawing? There are four practical ways to learn to ski drawer. You can learn from friends or family, or join a ski juring club in your local area. Learn to ski draw through online videos on YouTube, hire a cross-country skiing instructor, or learn how to ski drawer from books. I learned how to cross-country ski when I was in the army. I forgot a lot and I had to reteach myself, and now I'm relearning downhill skiing. In summary, hope and a solution exists for those struggling with the winter blues. Setting a goal to learn how to ski drawer, taking the time and effort to learn, and getting outside for an adventure could be just the solution to your winter sadness. In the next installment of this episode, you'll learn the history of ice fishing and how to get started in the sport. All right, wellness warriors. This is Antoinette Lee, your ride or die host, signing off for now, but I'm not letting you disappear on me. Every Wednesday at 10 a.m. Central, I'm pouring virtual coffee in the cabin on X Spaces, formerly Twitter, and I'm saving a seat just for you. We laugh, we argue, we unpack the latest episode, and we tackle whatever fire is burning in your world right now. No gatekeeping, no fake niceness, just real talk with real people wanting to connect and who are done being dismissed by the sick care system. Join us at 10 a.m. Central, 8 Pacific, 9 Mountain, 11 Eastern. The X Space link drops every Tuesday, so turn on notifications for NNBL blog right now so you never miss it. Raise your hand to jump on the mic, listen in the shadows, or just sip coffee with us. Every single option is welcome. I can't wait to hear your voice in the cabin. See you Wednesday wellness warriors. Don't keep me waiting. Magnesium, an unsung hero, fuels over 300 bodily reactions from heart health to stress relief. Magnesium expert Natalie Girado, founder of Rooted In, found freedom from anxiety, insomnia, and pain through topical magnesium. It transformed my life, she says, inspiring her mission to share this mineral's power. Cardiologist Dr. Jack Wolfson calls magnesium essential for heart health, helping regulate rhythms, blood sugar, and reduce inflammation. Up to 80% of people may be deficient facing issues like depression, migraines, insomnia, or muscle crail. For women over 40, magnesium eases menopause symptoms, boosts energy, and supports bones. Choosing the correct type of magnesium matters. Real stories, Natalie's in mind, highlighted impact. After interviewing magnesium expert Natalie Durado, I became a customer. I was already a magnesium fan, having been told by two cardiologists to take magnesium for a minor heart arrhythmia. Natalie explains it best in the Magnesium the Mineral Transforming Lives episode of New Normal Big Life, number four, an Alternative Health on Apple Podcast. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. Fast forward after the interview, I bought the Rooted Inn bundle for sleep, tranquility, and pain relief. As a spine injury survivor with several other health challenges, I'm in constant pain. However, I don't take any pain medication. Rooted in is now one more source that nature provided to give our bodies what it needs when it needs it. You can find magnesium in natural bodies of water like lakes and rivers, and in soil. But modern farming practices have stripped magnesium out of the soil and our food. 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Ready Hour has a long history of providing calorie-rich, reliable, and delicious nourishment for life's unexpected situations and adventures. They're part of a family of companies that have served millions of people like you for decades. My family and I use Ready Hour products for camping, mountaineering, and disaster preparedness for five years now. They're not just reliable, they're also your affordable option too. Long-term storable food shouldn't break the bank. That's why they have great sales and payment options for you. It's your bridge to safety and survival when you're on an adventure. So make your next decision your smartest decision. Be ready for adventure to work today. Trust Ready Hour. Ready to shop? Use my affiliate link in the show description. The information in this podcast is not medical advice and should not be treated as such. Always consult your physician or healthcare professional before pursuing any health related procedure or activity.