During the intense summer heat, you’ve probably wished for the cold season to come a few too many times. But now that the temperature’s getting colder, we bet you’re excited for summer to come again.
Going out and taking a walk in the cold breeze of Whangarei air sounds like a great idea. But 5 minutes later, you’re dreading to go back indoors and turn on the heat pumps to warm up. Sometimes, the cold can become unbearable. But here are some easy ways you can fight the cold and stay warm during the cold season.
Put on warm clothes
This sounds pretty obvious. But have you ever asked yourself how wearing clothes keep you warm? Chances are, you probably don’t know the interesting science behind it.
Our body adapts to its surrounding climate. If the temperature of the air is cold, the heat from our bodies flows to the air. Clothing helps keep us warm by trapping air that comes from our skin. As the trapped air warms up, heat transfer slows down. Thus, our body can retain more heat when wearing warm clothing.
A common misconception about dressing warmly is that everything needs to be put on tightly. But it’s quite the opposite. There should be an adequate amount of space between your skin and the layers of clothing. Without it, there’s no space to trap warm heat that flows from our bodies. That’s why a single knitted sweater can keep us warmer than wearing a tight shirt and jacket.
Turn on the ceiling fan
Turning on a fan is probably the last thing you want to do when it’s cold. But switching on the ceiling fan will help your house get warmer. Warm air rises above cold air. Turning on the ceiling fan clockwise at the lowest speed will push warm air back to the ground and distribute heat around the house.
Switch between hot and cold water when taking a shower
Just thinking of taking a shower with cold water is probably already giving you the chills. During the cold season, the most appealing thing to do is take a nice, hot shower. Warm water is a quick way to warm your body temperature.
But cold water also has its funny way of keeping your body warm. When our bodies are immersed in cold water, it’s natural for our bodies to warm up. The cold causes blood to run through organs and activates what we call “good fat.” When “good fat” burns calories, our bodies use up energy and generate heat to keep us warm.
Stay active
When you’re active, both your heart rate and body temperature increase. That’s why we feel hot after taking a long walk or climbing up the stairs. Sweat is our body’s way of releasing excess heat.
It’s tempting to stay snuggled up under the sheets during the cold weather. But that won’t help with the cold. If you want to get warmer, you should get up and be active. There are many activities you can do. Use the cold weather as an opportunity to clean your house or get back on track with your fitness by exercising.
There are many easy and cost-efficient ways of warming up during the cold season. Save up on electricity bill expenses and use these hacks to keep yourself warm and help you survive the cold.
