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The Benefits of Being Cold

theatlantic.com

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Re: The Benefits of Being Cold

#101

Post by _bdog »

I was very sick as a child: asthma, neurodermitis, a lot of allergies etc.

At one point when I was 8 or so I thought that it really sucks that I have to be careful about how, when and where to play, run etc. so I decided to ignore all my symptoms until they get too bad to ignore.

I also started to shower cold (or rather: end every shower cold). And i "taught myself" to sleep without a blanket. It really just feels weird, and after two or 3 times you are used to it.

I'm almost 30 now, i'm rather temperature-insensitive, which means than I have no problem going out in a t-shirt in winter, but also can do sports in the hot summer-sun. I also, on lab-tests still have all my allergies, but don't feel any of it.

It's very useful, and awesome what you can do with your mind :).

Re: The Benefits of Being Cold

#102

Post by colund »

sidek wrote: post #24

People's reactions to the cold always astonish me. I spend a lot of time in Canada and Hong Kong. In Canada, it can be 12 C (~53F) and lots of people will be wearing t-shirts and jeans, and it isn't too uncommon to see the odd person wearing shorts. In Hong Kong, 12 C necessitates a cold weather warning, and a fair amount of people die when it drops to 10 C (50F). It would be interesting to try this article's suggest…

I live in Sweden where -C is very common at winters. -25-30 is considered very cold even by us though. Nasal mucus freezes and skin "bites".

Re: The Benefits of Being Cold

#103

Post by cel1ne »

_bdog wrote: post #101

I was very sick as a child: asthma, neurodermitis, a lot of allergies etc. At one point when I was 8 or so I thought that it really sucks that I have to be careful about how, when and where to play, run etc. so I decided to ignore all my symptoms until they get too bad to ignore. I also started to shower cold (or rather: end every shower cold). And i "taught myself" to sleep without a blanket. It really just feels we…

Addendum: I think I learned something like autogenous training that way. There are times in winter when it's really cold (10 Fahrenheit or so) and I start shaking. Then I think about it and "just" stop cramping and instead "relax into the cold". Then suddenly I'm warm :)

Re: The Benefits of Being Cold

#104

Post by zo1 »

thisisdave wrote: post #5

>Seven million years of human evolution were dominated by two challenges: food scarcity and cold. Almost all of that time was spent in Africa. Even during glacial periods, was it ever icy? I don't know much about the paleoclimate, so I'm not sure.

It snowed last year here in Africa, South Africa more specifically... It happens once in a blue moon, but other than that it can get really cold here. Just because you think savannah and dry-desert and Egypt when you think of Africa, doesn't mean it can't get cold there.

Re: The Benefits of Being Cold

#106

Post by buro9 »

tmmm wrote: post #100
buro9 wrote: post #81

I used to dislike the cold, always feeling I suffered greatly from it due to growing up in poverty in the UK and living in damp spaces (mould on the walls, condensation on the window, a cough always a breathe away). Then I was homeless, sleeping rough through UK winters. One does adapt, and fairly quickly too. The first nights I slept out during snowfall I didn't get much sleep as I was shivering too violently and un…

I've always wondered how homeless people deal with cold when I saw them during winter. It's amazing what our bodies can do.

In the most extreme conditions I used to visit building sites as the site offices tended to remain unlocked (there's nothing in there to steal) and they were unattended from 7pm through 5am. They also tended to have a kettle and some enamel cups... usually all dirty at the end of a day but with boiling water to hand that isn't an issue. One can sleep there and actually feel really safe and secure, not just from the harshest conditions but I never saw anyone else in those spaces so I didn't have to fear being mugged either.

The very worst thing to do is precisely what you see some homeless people do, which is to drink alcohol. It's temporarily soothing and warming, but your body loses some of it's ability to effectively regulate temperature. The people I saw in the worst trouble when I walked the streets were those who drank heavily.

Strange how I didn't comprehend at the time that my extreme hunger over winter could probably be correlated with the cold and burning more calories to deal with it. Thankfully compassion increases during winter and food is slightly more readily available.

The only other thing I'll add is shoes. If your feet are warm when you're walking your 30 miles a day (what I believe I averaged through rough calculation) then you feel warm. Cold feet and you feel freezing. Good boots, thick soles, are a blessing and felt more valuable to me than a heavy coat.

Actually, another thing. Wisdom says to layer, but if you're not actually mobile much overnight I always found fewer thicker layers to be better. i.e. a thick cable-knit jumper trumped multiple thinner layers. I suspect layers are really the solution for highly active people such as skiers, runners and so on, but if you're immobile in the cold a thick jumper helps more.

Re: The Benefits of Being Cold

#107

Post by dghughes »

tmmm wrote: post #100
buro9 wrote: post #81

I used to dislike the cold, always feeling I suffered greatly from it due to growing up in poverty in the UK and living in damp spaces (mould on the walls, condensation on the window, a cough always a breathe away). Then I was homeless, sleeping rough through UK winters. One does adapt, and fairly quickly too. The first nights I slept out during snowfall I didn't get much sleep as I was shivering too violently and un…

I've always wondered how homeless people deal with cold when I saw them during winter. It's amazing what our bodies can do.

I can't imagine how homeless people here in Canada survive -25C or lower temperatures, combined with wind it could feel like -50C.

Re: The Benefits of Being Cold

#108

Post by boothead »

I practice being cold on purpose too. It was about 0C today and I have a shirt and thin jumper on (I have a jacket in my bag in case of rain). I think the metabolic effects are potentially interesting, but I actually do it for another reason: The stoic idea of exposing oneself to voluntary discomfort. [1]

"While everyone around me is complaining about how cold it is or about how hungry they are I am content and comfortable with fewer layers of clothing and less food. I am just happy to be alive, as I have voluntarily endured much harsher situations.

This practice of voluntary discomfort that Stoicism does more than just make you appreciate comfort, it teaches you to have a high tolerance of that which is uncomfortable and you will always be content; it is something that you should practice at least a few times a month because you grow confident that if you can survive these minor periods of discomfort, you can also survive major discomforts as well."

I will always remember as part of Royal Marines commando training doing situps in a freezing stream in November on Dartmoor laughing hysterially with 20 other men about how freezing we were while the the training team looked on shouting "Come on men, this builds character!". They were right!

[1] http://www.lifehack.org/articles/productivity/how-to-practic...

Re: The Benefits of Being Cold

#109

Post by maxerickson »

mark38848 wrote: post #95
Renaud wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Don't forget one thing though: Canadian homes are built to resist the cold and they are usually well-insulated. Hong Kong, by comparison, is probably one of the worse places when it comes to thermal insulation. When it's 12 outside, it's not far from being the same inside. It always amazed me how such an energy-hungry place, where electricity is expensive, is built so cheaply that insulation doesn't factor at all. En…

No, Canadian homes are not built to resist the cold. They have the same silly 3cm cardboard walls that American houses have. This was very stunning for me coming from a country where the temperature rarely drops below 0 degrees Celsius. I have learnt that the Canadians only feel like they are being eco-friendly because the only place they are comparing themselves with is the US. I mean: a remote control for your car'…

Effective R value and the air barrier are a lot more important than thickness or material (of course material choice factors into R value, but better materials generally hit higher R values at lesser thickness...).

Modern building codes require a vaguely reasonable R value.

Re: The Benefits of Being Cold

#110

Post by tmmm »

buro9 wrote: post #106
tmmm wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've always wondered how homeless people deal with cold when I saw them during winter. It's amazing what our bodies can do.

In the most extreme conditions I used to visit building sites as the site offices tended to remain unlocked (there's nothing in there to steal) and they were unattended from 7pm through 5am. They also tended to have a kettle and some enamel cups... usually all dirty at the end of a day but with boiling water to hand that isn't an issue. One can sleep there and actually feel really safe and secure, not just from the h…

A little bit off-topic, but why were you walking so much? And where did you find so much energy to do so (I presume you would probably need to eat a lot (much more than 2,000 calories) to be able to walk so many miles)?
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