Resolutions come every New Year’s, and be it losing weight, the latest diet, or just plain eating healthy, many people hope to look leaner by the year’s end. With one third of Canadians being obese, becoming healthier is an admirable resolution. Unfortunately, while many plan to skip the freezer section and throw out the take out menus, most of these resolutions will wane with Valentine’s Day chocolate.

Low calorie diets are notoriously hard to stick to, and may be unrealistic in a college environment rampant with booze and processed food. The secret to getting a junk food addict off the couch is getting them addicted to something else: exercise.

Endorphins are nature’s incentive to exercise. Evolutionarily, they’re what allowed our ancestors to run from predators and endure the pain of childbirth. They block pain receptors during physical activity so that what should be painful is somehow bearable.

Anyone who has sampled morphine or heroin has been under the influence of opiates, which can block pain signals and even produce an addictive high. Endorphins are similar to opiates in structure, meaning that they can have similar behavioural effects. Like opiates used for recreational purposes, endorphins block pain signals from fully transmitting to the brain. This means that for some people, strenuous exercise may induce some of the same – albeit not as intense – feelings as heroin or the analgesic effects of morphine.

Many people have heard of the runner’s high – that a sub-four minute miler can feel no pain while racing, or even thereafter. Running is the typical sport used in reference to endorphins. This is probably because it is exercises the whole body, including muscles that are usually rather dormant, and usually very intensely. But the endorphins can be released in almost any strenuous activity, particularly those that require endurance, such as swimming, biking, or even cross country skiing.

That “high” varies from person to person, but it isn’t always just an absence of pain, and isn’t just restricted to professional athletes. People who have experienced an exercise high describe the experience as pain-free and euphoric. In case you needed another reason to don your sneakers this year, endorphins are also released during orgasm.

With endorphins running rampant in the body, it’s curious why so few people hit the gym. While you may not get a high every time you jump on the treadmill, the physical benefits of exercise should keep you going.

Unlike its illegal counterparts, it’s unclear if people can become addicted to the endorphins released during exercise. But one thing is certain: getting off the couch this winter may actually feel good in the long run.

It’s not always hard to be an ethical eater. I grew up on Long Island where fresh fish is easily found and organic produce comes from local farms on the east end of the island and nearby New Jersey (surprisingly fertile), and winters are relatively mild.

Montreal, however, provides a distinct set of challenges to ethical eaters. While during summer nearby Quebec and Ontario farms produce delicious foodstuffs, the harsh winters place limitations on vegetable production. Is it possible to eat fresh vegetables and still be an ethical eater? Yes and no. There are some seasonal vegetables that are available to satisfy fresh-food cravings. But there are some vegetables, I’m afraid, that we’re going to have to forego in their just-picked form if we want to be environmentally responsible and treat ourselves well.

Winter produce is pretty obvious: dark greens like kale, chard and broccoli; roots like potatoes, carrots, Jerusalem artichokes; and the gourd family. The meals this ingredient list calls to mind seem heavy – along the lines of thick stews and roasts – and they are. Salads in the middle of winter don’t make any sense at all. For instance, one of the most disgusting inventions of agriculture is the winter tomato. It might be grown in California, or South America, but after it’s been flown to Montreal, it arrives pale pink, mealy, and a pathetic reminder of what tomatoes are supposed to look and taste like in August. Please stop purchasing these monsters. Chop up a nice pear instead to throw into your salad.

Here’s what I’m really babbling about: eating sub-par produce out of season just isn’t worth it. In the frigid winter, our bodies crave warm meals with a ton of carbs and fat. And I think we should listen. Out-of-season vegetables should be purchased in their canned, dried, or frozen forms. I know that we’ve been taught that every vegetable is better when it’s just been pulled from the vine, but in this case, that’s wrong. Fresh tomatoes, bell peppers, raspberries, and peaches in January, in Montreal, are bizarre.

Last night I cooked a dish that I enjoy more or less year round. I seared a few thick chicken breasts and braised them in white wine and tomatoes. This time, I began the dish with chopped shallots, dried oregano, and a bay leaf. When I had browned both sides of the chicken, I stirred in some wine to deglaze the pan and added half of a can of diced tomatoes. I served the chicken in its thin sauce over beautiful, thick mashed potatoes blended with some sautéed leeks (keep the tops of your leaks to make vegetable stock). In the summer I would have used fresh tomatoes, perhaps added some baby spinach, and fresh basil instead of dried oregano.

Winter doesn’t look bleak to me at all from my kitchen window. It looks a little bit rich, with some extra tablespoons of butter here and there, but honestly it’s what I believe nature intended.