Winter Wellness Rituals Women Professionals Rely On In December

Once upon a time, December was fun. You were younger, didn’t have a demanding job, and could enjoy the weeks leading up to the holidays without a running to-do list in the back of your mind. For many adults, however, December reigns as the most stressful month of the year. Shorter days, heavier workloads, year-end pressure, travel plans, and social obligations pile up quickly, often leaving personal health and wellbeing as an out-of-reach afterthought.

Heart attacks spike during December, driven by a combination of chronic stress, disrupted routines, insufficient sleep, and poor nutrition. In fact, more cardiac deaths occur in the U.S. on Christmas than any other day of the year, followed by Dec. 26 and New Year’s Day, according to the American Heart Association.

When you’re already overwhelmed, the idea of adding anything else to your schedule can feel impossible. But protecting your physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing during winter doesn’t require a total lifestyle overhaul. Below are a few realistic, low-effort winter wellness rituals for women professionals that can make a meaningful difference this time of year.

Getting sunlight within the first few hours of waking up helps trigger an early-day cortisol release. While cortisol often gets a bad reputation, this morning spike is both normal and beneficial. It supports immune function, metabolism, and mental focus while also helping prepare your body for sleep later that night. Morning light exposure also helps regulate your circadian rhythm and influences key biological processes such as hunger and body temperature.

One 2023 study examining office-based students found that exposure to bright morning light after just one work week resulted in faster sleep onset, improved sleep efficiency, less morning grogginess, and less time spent awake at night compared to standard office lighting.

On a sunny morning, simply aim to get outside for five to ten minutes.

Exercise is the best medicine for living a long, healthy life. Yet, many people fall into an all-or-nothing mindset, believing workouts only “count” if they’re long, intense, or done in a gym. Newsflash: the only thing worse than a short workout is not moving at all.

That’s where exercise snacks come into play. Studies shows that brief periods of movement — five minutes or less — performed multiple times throughout the day can improve cardiorespiratory fitness and muscular endurance, especially in inactive adults.

Exercise snacks are perfect for busy women professionals who don’t have an hour to spare at the gym. This might look like a set of air squats between meetings, a few pushups after lunch, pullups on a doorway bar, or turning a phone call into a walking meeting.

Winter may not be everyone’s favorite season, but it does come with one major upside: soups, stews, and crockpot meals. Let’s be honest, when your schedule is packed, the last thing you want to think about at the end of the day is what you’re going to eat for dinner. That’s when we swing through our favorite drive thru, filling up with foods that will certainly make us feel sluggish later on.

Before work, throw some chicken in your crock pot with a jar of salsa and seasonings for an easy taco salad dinner Make a hearty vegetable-based soup that can simmer slowly for a few hours. Make it easier on yourself while providing yourself with the proper nutrients that will make you feel your best.

December often leaves our minds feeling as chaotic as our calendars look. If your brain is scrambled with buzzing thoughts, grab a piece of paper and do a brain dump. This simple practice involves writing down everything like tasks, ideas, worries, reminders, and unfinished business without organizing or judging it.

Brain dumping can be done anytime. In fact, Mel Robbins recommends weekly brain dumps, but the end of the year deserves its own special edition. By taking thoughts from your head to paper, you reduce cognitive overload and create space to prioritize. From there, you can decide what needs immediate attention, what can wait, and what doesn’t need to come with you into the new year at all. Out with the old, in with the new.