Welcome to 30 Days of Winter Wellness — a Healthline-powered daily challenge giving tips on small, supportive habits to help you stay healthy and well this winter.

Many people love winter for its beauty, atmosphere, and slower pace. However, it can be a challenging season for prioritizing health and well-being. Shorter days, colder weather, disrupted routines, and less sunlight can all impact our ability to maintain wellness routines due to their effect on our mood, motivation, and immunity.

That’s why, here at Healthline, we created the 30 Days of Winter Wellness Challenge.

It’s a gentle, practical guide to taking care of yourself throughout the month of January.

It’s one day, one habit, and one wellness topic at a time, bolstered with expert advice, community quotes, and our high quality medically reviewed information.

Winter can be more demanding on our minds and bodies. Many people find that they move less, spend more time indoors, crave comfort foods, experience changes in their sleep patterns, and sometimes feel more isolated.

Cold weather and health

A 2025 study noted that higher average ambient temperatures in cold seasons corresponded to lower stress levels among study participants, and intermediate temperatures were linked with less loneliness, better life satisfaction, and improved self-reported health. Although more research is needed to confirm these findings, they offer an intriguing link between colder months and mental well-being that many people may have experienced anecdotally.

There are also links between colder temperatures and increased health risks for older adults. Additionally, people with respiratory conditions, such as asthma, may alsoexperience exacerbated symptoms during cold weather or abrupt temperature changes, including moving from a warm outdoor space to a cool one. This can make it hard to maintain healthy habits typically associated with being outdoors, such as staying social or engaging in certain types of physical activity.

However, the 2025 study found there was no link between temperature and optimism, strength, and energy. This suggests that though our environment may make it more challenging to stay motivated during colder winter months, we can still have the right tools to continue building beneficial habits for our mental and physical health.

How this challenge can help

30 Days of Winter Wellness is not about “fixing” yourself or starting extreme resolutions.

We want to support your body where it is, helping you build accessible habits and teaching you facts about your health to better equip you to stay well in the winter. Small changes can make a big difference.

This challenge is a monthlong series of daily articles designed to help you:

  • learn why winter impacts health and wellness
  • discover realistic, accessible habits you can try that day
  • build a sustainable approach to caring for yourself in winter

Each day in January, we’ll publish a new article centered on a specific wellness topic, ranging from winter morning routines to at-home movement, nutrition, sleep, mental health, and social connection.

Content examples

Here are some examples of topics we’ll be focusing on during this challenge:

  • simple winter morning and evening routines
  • at-home strengthening exercises and stretches
  • nutrition support, including information on vitamin D, sugar-free snacks, and comfort foods
  • alcohol-free drinks
  • sleep tips and mental wellness practices
  • skin care
  • home hygiene
  • preventive health screenings
  • nourishing, warming recipes
  • journaling and meditation microhabits
  • social connection tips

We’ll be incorporating expert advice and community quotes with high quality health information reviewed by our network of medical professionals to ensure you’re set up for a healthy winter this 2026.

Winter wellness starts with awareness, and we can grow it through small, intentional choices.

Join us at Healthline for the next 30 days as we explore simple ways to feel more supported, energized, and well this winter.

This challenge will begin on January 2nd. On that day, you can start the challenge by accessing Day 1 here:

30 Days of Winter Wellness Challenge

Getting started

As you prepare for your first dive into winter wellness with Day 1 tomorrow, here are some ways you can set yourself up today to make the most of the challenge:

  • Bookmark this page: The list above will be updated with every addition to the challenge. If you’re reading this after January 2026, you can restart the challenge by following each article from the start of the list again.
  • Bookmark the Healthline homepage: We’ll update the homepage daily with that day’s Winter Wellness Challenge article.
  • Follow us on social media: We’ll be linking to articles on our Instagram page.
  • Sign up for our newsletters: Follow this challenge in our Daily News newsletter, and take a second to check our other newsletters to receive high quality health information on other topics that may be beneficial for you.