As we enter the hot or cold temperatures throughout the year, there must be some ways we can keep comfortable without freezing or sweating. What we do and what we wear can help us regulate our temperature so we stay comfortable during those extreme temperature days.

Beat the Heat

• Eat small meals and eat more often. The larger the meal, the more metabolic heat your body creates breaking down the food.
• Avoid foods that are high in protein – they increase metabolic heat.
• Eat spicy food. Curries and chili’s can stimulate heat receptors in the mouth, enhance circulation and cause sweating which all help cool the body down.
• Take a shower or bath at a temperature that is just a little cooler than body temperature. Too cool will actually generate more heat to compensate for the loss.
• Run your wrists under a cold tap for five seconds each, every couple of hours. The main vein passes through your wrist and this will help cool the blood.
• Use your basement in the hottest hours of the day when the sun is at its highest. Basements tend to be 10-15 degrees cooler.
• During the day, keep the curtains drawn or windows covered. It will help keep the house cooler – preventing it from heating up.
• Wear lightweight, light colored cotton clothes. Heat is trapped by synthetic fibers while cotton absorbs perspiration and its evaporation causes you to feel cooler. Light colors reflect the sun’s radiation.
• Avoid alcohol and drinks with caffeine. These drinks will increase the metabolic heat in the body.
• Choose to do any strenuous activity before it gets hot. Early morning or late evening is a better time to go for that run.

Keep Warm

• Open the curtains and raise the blinds in the morning so the sunlight can flow in to help naturally warm up your space.
• Use thick curtains at night to prevent heat loss. Once the light disappears, windows allow for heat to escape quickly. Trap the heat in with thick window coverings.
• Reverse your ceiling fan direction to clockwise to bring down the rising heat.
• When you feel a chill, put on an extra layer. It will help you warm up faster than turning up the heat will.
• Warm drinks will help raise your body temperature quickly. Tea, hot chocolate, coffee, and soup.
• EXERCISE! Get the blood flowing and warm up. Just a couple of minutes of squats, sit ups, bicep curls, or even a quick walk will have you toasty in no time.
• Warm up in bed with a hot water bottle.
• Wear layers to help you regulate your temperature. You can take off and put on as you warm up or cool off.
• Avoid cotton – it doesn’t dry fast and will pull the heat away from you instead.
• Keep your hands, head, ears and feet warm. A lot of heat can be lost from those parts of the body.
• Eat well balanced meals throughout the day. Eating helps get your metabolism going and helps keep your heat going.

Eating right, wearing the right clothes, and adding a couple of tips here and there will help you stay comfortable whether it’s the sweltering summer or the dead of winter. Be smart, and you can continue to enjoy yourself in any temperature.

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