Does Being Cold Make It Harder To Be Healthy?

OK.  I admit it.  It is butt-numbingly cold here in the Midwest (-6 actual/-33 wind chill right now and blowing snow), and I'm having a more difficult time eating healthily and exercising than I usually do.  I think I miss the sun . . .

Is anyone else feeling this way, and do you have any suggestions?

It seems my favorite healthy drinks and foods (water, salads, fruit, frozen fruit, cereal, sandwiches, etc.) don't sound as appealing right now as HOT drinks and food, which I inevitably seem to eat more calories consuming.  It also seems that trudging through the snow and across the ice to the gym to get undressed/dressed again and work out on the treadmill or elliptical is not as much fun as my outdoor exercising. 

Sorry to complain, but I've lost almost 70 pounds and am just sort of motivationally stuck right now because I'm COLD!  :D 

Help!

The lack of sunlight does contribute to SAD...(Seasonal Aided Depression) But cold weather itself doesn't affect health. Being in a closed room  with other people and not being able to go outside DOES expose you to way more germs..therefore that's why we catch more colds and flu during January and February.  Getting outside on days the windchill wasn't so low would be a good thing. Maybe hot healthy foods would help...or a hot bath. Or heck, move to Colorado like I did ! The weather here is awesome and you have endless outdoor opportunites and activities! Minnesota is just TOO cold ! (I grew up there...) Congrats on the 70 pounds !  Yay for you !

I agree.  I'm in the Midwest as well, and the cold just makes me want to curl up in bed with some rich hot cocoa all day!  It is really hard to motivate myself to get to the gym when you have to put on 3 extra layers of clothes just to get out the door! 

I need to move south!!! :-)

Yeah I agree, I'm also in the Midwest and I find it very hard to drink 64+ oz of water when it's -30 degrees outside.

I'm making a cup of hot chocolate right now lol

Monarch: SAD is Seasonal Affective Disorder.  I've got it...

Write stuff and other fellow Midwesterners -- Being in colder climates, our bodies naturally want us to gain weight to be able to survive.  That's why, before everyone in the world started immigrating all over the place, the closer to the equator one lived, the generally taller and thinner people were.  Just like there aren't naturally many skinny mammals in cold, cold climates, our bodies are trying to stock up on fat and warmth as a way to combat freezing to death.

If you think you do have SAD, which is generally the onset of anxiety, depression, and a few other not-so-fun things, go see a doctor and consider getting a light therapy box.  It's like a replacement for the sun, you just turn it on 15-30 minutes a day while having breakfast or something, and it helps you feel like your normal self.