Metabolism is seasonal

Jul 02, 2025

Your metabolism isn’t meant to function the same way all year

What most people don't understand is that your biology runs on seasonal cycles; shifting in response to light, temperature, and food availability.

This is deeply wired into your physiology & your circadian clock, and it’s how every organism has lived since the beginning of time.

Today I want to share why some people need to shift out of "summer mode" - even in the summer ๐Ÿซฃ - and how to know if this is you!

Learn how to tap into Metabolic Health Year Round - Get Quantum Nutrition!

โ€‹New here? โ€‹Grab my $5 Seasonal Food Course, my $7 Cortisol Course - or explore all mini courses & bundles โ€‹

You’ve probably been told your metabolism slowed down because you got older (my doctors started telling me this in my mid 30's ๐Ÿ˜“). and that you need more willpower… fewer carbs… harder workouts… more supplements.

What if the real problem is that your biology thinks it's July year round?

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Modern life has completely disconnected us from the seasonal rhythms that once shaped our metabolism, hormones, and mitochondria.

We live in climate-controlled homes. We eat tropical foods in January. We work past sunset under blue light in the middle of the winter, and we wonder why our bodies feel like they’re short-circuiting.

In other words - we have created a world where it’s always summer…And our biology is paying the price big time.

โ˜€๏ธ In summer this is what happens to support your physiology:

  • More daylight = earlier cortisol spike
  • More UV light = increased α-MSH (melanocyte-stimulating hormone), which boosts fat oxidation and appetite regulation
  • Leptin sensitivity improves - making your body better at telling when you’re full
  • Melatonin declines, which supports more activity and movement
  • Greater carb tolerance and glucose disposal capacity, thanks to enhanced insulin signaling from natural light exposure

๐ŸŒ‘ In winter this is what happens to support your physiology:

  • Longer darkness = extended melatonin window → deeper sleep + better autophagy [4]
  • Thyroid activity slows to preserve energy
  • Carb tolerance drops
  • Mitochondria shift into repair mode, upregulating stress resilience and fat storage for survival [5]

This seasonal rhythm supports metabolic flexibility - the ability to shift between fuel sources, regulate hunger, and adapt to changing environmental conditions.

Don't get me wrong - I absolutely LOVE my modern conveniences, but I know how to mitigate my environment year round to support my metabolism & hormones.

The modern world is full of:

  • Constant blue light and artificial stimulation
  • Year-round fruit, sugar, and smoothies
  • Climate-controlled homes (no real cold, no real dark)
  • Late nights, early alarms, and skipped circadian cues
  • Never-ending cortisol from overstimulation and under-recovery

Unfortunately - We’ve flattened the seasonal curve, and most people are living in perpetual summer - while their bodies really need winter (more rest & repair).

What happens when your body never gets a metabolic winter?

You enter a state of biological confusion.

  • Leptin resistance creeps in
  • Thyroid output slows
  • Fat oxidation stalls
  • Dopamine signaling gets dysregulated (cue cravings and reward-seeking)
  • Melatonin never fully peaks
  • Inflammation rises
  • Autophagy and mitochondrial renewal get skipped

You don’t need more protein shakes or supplements, but you probably need a metabolic winter.

This doesn’t mean starving yourself or taking cold plunges every day. It means supporting your body’s natural seasonality with nutrition - light cues & sleep.

What most people don't understand is that true metabolic health includes knowing when to go hard and when to pull back and reset (this is a skill you can learn - but it does take some education & reconnection with intuition).

How do you know if you need a "winter reset"?

You might feel:

  • Puffy
  • Wired and tired
  • Reliant on caffeine and willpower
  • Inflamed, achy, or “off”
  • Resistant to workouts or fasting
  • Like your metabolism just doesn’t respond the way it used to

Honestly - it doesn't matter where you live - (I have many people who live in tropical regions that are in need of a Winter Reset).

If the symptoms match up - it might be time to make some changes!

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Inside Quantum Nutrition, I teach you how to:

Use light cues to restore circadian and seasonal rhythm

Sync your food with your mitochondria, not just your macros

Recover leptin and thyroid signaling without pills or endless tracking

Understand why your body resists weight loss when it’s stuck in summer

Know when your body needs less, not more

Rebuild fat-burning from the redox level up - by shifting your inputs to match what your biology actually responds to.

Click here to get started now!

Citations for my ๐Ÿค“ friends who love them:

Ceglia, L. et al. (2014). “Circannual rhythm of alpha-MSH in humans: implications for seasonal fat metabolism.” J Endocrinol Invest.

Friedman, J. (2019). “Leptin and the endocrine control of energy balance.” Nature Metabolism.

Buxton, O. et al. (2012). “Adverse metabolic consequences in humans of prolonged sleep restriction combined with circadian disruption.” Science Translational Medicine.

Hardeland, R. (2005). “Antioxidative protection by melatonin: multiplicity of mechanisms from radical detoxification to radical avoidance.” Endocrine.

Hood, D. A. et al. (2019). “Mitochondrial function and seasonal energy demands in mammals.” Journal of Experimental Biology.

Panda, S. (2016). “Circadian physiology of metabolism.” Science.

Dyar, K. A., et al. (2014). “Atlas of circadian metabolism reveals system-wide coordination and communication.” Cell.

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Be notified of new events as soon as they are open & get special discounts for being a subscriber.

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*excluding the Sarah Kleiner Wellness Membership and my Course Bundle