Some of us hate the heat; others can’t stand the cold. I’ll do a post for the heat-haters later. This post here is dedicated to people like myself who feel like crawling in bed and staying there all day when the weather turns chilly. There are lots of ways to instantly feel warm. Like, build yourself a sauna. Or install a nice hot Jacuzzi in your backyard and submerge yourself up to the neck in it from about November through March. But I’m trying to focus on cheap, practical ways here.
• Do a task, any task: Sweep or mop a room. Rake leaves. Even the small exertion of pumping up a bicycle tire, I notice, makes me feel much warmer right away, and the effect lingers for a time after the activity is done.
• Cover your head and neck. I’ve read that 25% of our body heat dissipates through our heads. Great in hot weather; not so great in cold. Hats and scarves help a lot.
• Take a walk. Even just a lap or two around the block. If it’s a sunny day you’ll get the additional boost of vitamin D.
• Cover your feet. Socks make all the difference! When sitting out on the porch on a night that turns cool, I’ve found I can greatly extend my cool-tolerance by putting on socks.
• Cover your middle! For some reason, I feel disproportionately cold (and cranky) if the bottom of my shirt fails to overlap the top of my pants or skirt. That gap is lethal! I’m a huge fan of high-waisted tights and haramaki. (I’ve often made my own “American-style haramaki” by cutting the top part off a stretchy shirt, leaving just a stretchy tube to pull over my middle as a super-warming layer.)
Oh, and all of that said: If you can get away with crawling in bed and staying there on a cold day, you have my full approval! Now, more than at any previous time in history, there’s a staggering amount of productive activity you can accomplish without leaving your quilt-burrow. Writing, online banking, paying taxes, social-media tasks, and attending Zoom meetings, to name just a few.
I hope these tips help my fellow cold-haters enjoy winter more. They’ve definitely helped me! What else would you add to this list?