Anyway to increase resistance to the cold?

[OmniOck]

I have a slight, perhaps catastrophic problem. Ever since the weather turned cold this year, I've been feeling the cold as unbearable. I'm uncomfortable at anything under 74 degrees, and that requirement just won't suit my life style. I did lose a bit of weight over the summer, and that wouldn't be the most outrageous explination, but the problem stands two fold. First, the weather will only get colder. Second, I've applied early decision to a college in a cold climate. Besides bundling myself in ridiculous layers, does anyone know a way to decrease one's raw susceptibility to the cold? It is particularly bad in my hands when their exposed, like right now when I'm typing. This may seem ridiculous, but this is a sincere problem. Anyone else have problems with ambient temperatures?

 

[Kipper]

One winter in the cold climate (northeast?) and you'll get used to it. Until then, invest in a leather coat and plenty of sweaters.

 

[eits]

take l-lysine every morning, take echinacea, and make sure you wash your hands whenever you can. also, get plenty of rest and stay away from arguments or fights. exercise, but not too hard.

 

[Woosta]

 

[Kipper]

take l-lysine every morning, take echinacea, and make sure you wash your hands whenever you can. also, get plenty of rest and stay away from arguments or fights. exercise, but not too hard.

What does ANY of this have to do with the cold?

 

[eits]

What does ANY of this have to do with the cold?

whoops. sorry. i didn't read the op. i just assumed he meant the common cold virus. my mistake.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Where do you live right now? Your body has to physically adapt to the cold. If you stay in a place with cooler general temperatures, your body will actually increase the number of mitochondria (energy producers) in the body. If your hands get so cold, I'd check out Raynaud's Disease and get some nice gloves.

 

[eits]

intolerance to cold is a trademark sign of hypothyroidism, not reynaud's.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

intolerance to cold is a trademark sign of hypothyroidism, not reynaud's.

Raynaud's is much more common than hypothyroidism. He also specifically mentioned his hands being worse than the rest of his body. Sounds a lot like me and I have Raynaud's, not hypothyroidism.

 

[kalrith]

Your body can adapt to a colder climate. However, you can also keep your body from adapting to it. If you rarely go outdoors, bundle up like it's 20 when it's 50, and keep your thermostat on 75 all winter, then your body will have a hard time adapting to it. I recommend wearing lighter clothing than you'd normally wear for the temperature (but not to the point of getting frostbite) and keep your thermostat set cooler. I really enjoy the cold, wear a medium jacket for most of Missouri's winter, and keep my thermostat at no higher than 67. I'm from Michigan, and I enjoyed the cold there too.

I have friends who moved from Wyoming to Missouri and didn't wear a coat their first winter here. The next winter, they were so acclimated to the weather that they dressed like everyone else. I still haven't acclimated to the heat here though, and I don't really want to.

 

[Zargon]

One winter in the cold climate (northeast?) and you'll get used to it. Until then, invest in a leather coat and plenty of sweaters.

nope

my wife grew up near chicago, and cant take sub 80 weather

shes ALWAYS frickin cold.

I will sleep under just a sheet and she has a blanket and quilt

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Yea, I'd get checked for hypothyroidism. At one point I stopped taking medicine due to some run around with getting a refillable perscription and my general laziness, and among other things my cold tolerance plummeted.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Raynaud's is much more common than hypothyroidism. He also specifically mentioned his hands being worse than the rest of his body. Sounds a lot like me and I have Raynaud's, not hypothyroidism.

Acording to the info at the mayo clinic, you may both be correct. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/raynauds-disease/DS00433/DSECTION=causes

Other causes. Raynaud's has also been linked to thyroid gland disorders.

 

[eits]

Acording to the info at the mayo clinic, you may both be correct. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/raynauds-disease/DS00433/DSECTION=causes

with hypothyroidism (among many other conditions, habits, and dieases), you can get raynaud's phenomenon (secondary raynauds). that's different than raynaud's disease (primary raynaud's), which is idiopathic.

the thing is that raynaud's is characterized by cold hands and feet regularly with an intolerance of cold over the hands and feet. hypothyroidism can be characterized by a general intolerance to cold, not just in the hands and feet...

edit: i just looked at the link. lol i basically cliffs-notes'ed the link without knowing it.

 

[KoolDrew]

Dnp.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Dnp.

Lol, if you like ruining your cell's proton gradient. Dinitrophenol blowwwws.

 

[Titan]

Every year in VT my body acclimates in winter. When it's down to 45F, I get cold. When it's 38, I feel fine. I can handle temps well below freezing. If it gets above 40, i tend to "thaw out" and feel cold again. Of course, I have a thick layer of fat on my body. But I also love the cold, it charges me up. To get used t it, just walk around in a t-shirt when there's snow on the ground. Tough it out, and your body will adapt. Don;t go overboard and get sick. But I used to run in the cold and I think it helped my body adapt. I remember one 10 degree morning after running for 25 minutes my sweat permeated my sweatshirt and there was a layer of frost encrusted on my shirt as steam rose off my body.

 

[PricklyPete]

I really think you just need to get to a colder climate... you'll acclimate before you even realize it. That being said..invest in lots of layers.

I'm generally hot natured...I sleep often sleep outside the covers and love to open the windows to get fresh air even in the middle of the winter. My wife on the other hand is chronically cold. All of her extremities are always cold...even her But gets cold. Crazy. What is even crazier is that I am almost ALWAYS better prepared to deal with the cold than her whenever we go anywhere. I wear layers all the time and remove/add as needed. I always have a jacket available if needed...etc. She is HORRIBLE about this. She either wears too much or too little and never brings a backup plan. But anyway...that might just be my wife...but my point in telling you this is that it isn't always how cold/hot natured you are...but how good you are with dealing with the weather. My wife is going to be cold all the time...and a lot of that is her fault. So since you know you're cold natured, learn to layer and bring hats/gloves/coats/etc with you all the time.

 

[SZLiao214]

Just spend more time in it with light activity such as walking around. Resistance to temperature is a mental thing.

I don't even shiver now until its 30 or below and this is with a t-shirt and shorts.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

Acclimatize and tax your body. Take colder showers than you normally would. Wear lighter clothing. Wear shorts. I did this for a winter in Ohio and while it feels pretty crappy when you first start it, you will feel better afterwards after your body learns to handle it.

Some tips though:

Wearing insulating headwear can help a lot in retaining heat.
Insulate your core, the chest area.
Make sure you've got food energy in you to help you stay warm. You're at your coldest on an empty stomach.

 

[InflatableBuddha]

Make sure you've got food energy in you to help you stay warm. You're at your coldest on an empty stomach.

Definitely; I notice this.

Also, I tend to feel colder when I'm fatigued, so OP, make sure you're sleeping and napping enough.

 

[Zargon]

Acclimatize and tax your body. Take colder showers than you normally would. Wear lighter clothing. Wear shorts. I did this for a winter in Ohio and while it feels pretty crappy when you first start it, you will feel better afterwards after your body learns to handle it.

Some tips though:

Wearing insulating headwear can help a lot in retaining heat.
Insulate your core, the chest area.
Make sure you've got food energy in you to help you stay warm. You're at your coldest on an empty stomach.

I took more than a few ice baths this summer because my old houses AC was worthless. It would make you feel warm for hours

and it definately got easier everytime. but it sucks at first.

maybe I should just make my wife wear a stocking cap around the house

 

[wwswimming]

I have a slight, perhaps catastrophic problem. Ever since the weather turned cold this year, I've been feeling the cold as unbearable. I'm uncomfortable at anything under 74 degrees, and that requirement just won't suit my life style. I did lose a bit of weight over the summer, and that wouldn't be the most outrageous explination, but the problem stands two fold. First, the weather will only get colder. Second, I've applied early decision to a college in a cold climate. Besides bundling myself in ridiculous layers, does anyone know a way to decrease one's raw susceptibility to the cold? It is particularly bad in my hands when their exposed, like right now when I'm typing. This may seem ridiculous, but this is a sincere problem. Anyone else have problems with ambient temperatures?

exercise to speed up your metabolism.

it works in the ocean. 58 degree F water is normally pretty uncomfortable, but if you keep swimming, after about 10 minutes you get through it. then you have to keep moving. that is, if you're wearing a wetsuit.

right now i swim at an outdoor pool and it's the time of year when temperatures are going below freezing so the walk from the locker room to the pool can be chilly. same for the walk back. in the pool, you just have to keep moving.

when i don't have a pool available, i like to walk wearing a winter jacket to make me sweat.

anyway, once your own internal furnace is going, the cold is a lot more bearable.

 

[fleshconsumed]

I have a different question. How do you deal with running in cold? I just can't seem to handle it. I don't run a whole lot, but I would like to run more regularly in the morning before work. Problem is that now that it's almost winter I get sore throat too easily. Even if I breathe through my nose, the cold air still chills the back of my throat and I inevitably get sore scratchy throat. I wear a hoodie and scarf to keep my head warm, but it doesn't help much.

Any way to "fix" it?

 

[eits]

I have a different question. How do you deal with running in cold? I just can't seem to handle it. I don't run a whole lot, but I would like to run more regularly in the morning before work. Problem is that now that it's almost winter I get sore throat too easily. Even if I breathe through my nose, the cold air still chills the back of my throat and I inevitably get sore scratchy throat. I wear a hoodie and scarf to keep my head warm, but it doesn't help much.

Any way to "fix" it?

don't run in the cold. either that, or have something that covers your mouth and nose.

running in the cold triggers eib (exercise induced bronchospasm), aka exercise induced asthma.