Feeling cold all the time

[Britty]

Being a larger person, pre-cohens I didn't feel the cold very much (I normally wear thongs all year round and my friends think I'm crazy but I hate shoes!)

Now, one week into my program, I am finding myself feeling cold all the time and the weather is even warming up!

Has anyone else experienced anything like this?

I jokingly told my mother that it was because I'm so skinny now! Haha after loosing only 3.5kgs with 41kg to go!

Any input would be much appreciated!

Britty

[lil_doll]

Hey Britty...

Lots of people experience the cold more... me being one of them.

Here is a thread on the issue:
http://newyouforum.com/forum/showthr...highlight=COLD

We just have suffer through it and layer up!!

xMissy

[C-JAYE]

Hi Britty, completely normal! I have gone from being hot all the time to being so cold that friends remind me to take a wrap or a jumper when I leave the house in anything less than jeans and long sleeves!

But layering is so much fun!!! But I wonder if people who are naturally slim feel the cold as much???

[fornight]

you should start shopping for nice cardigan that matches with any outfit. I was so vain that I bought for a nice special one to put in the office and one to bring along with me at all times.

I even have a glove (with cut off fingers) to wear on my "mouse" hand because this hand always feel freezing cold being exposed to the cold air vent at the ceiling.

[Britty]

Thanks girls,

Glad to see that I'm not the only one feeling the cold!

Thank goodness it is officially spring in Aus now, so it can only get warmer!

Britty. xx

[Britty]

oh and ps, C-JAY, I'm pretty sure they do feel the cold as much! I live with 3 skinny girls and they are always cold in winter!

Britty xx

[Kohinoor]

Hi C-Jaye (and others),

But I wonder if people who are naturally slim feel the cold as much???

I suspect it is "relative"..... When we arrived from New Zealand to Brisbane, around 25 years ago, we didn't bother buying a heater for our first Winter here. But, by the following Winter, it was one of the first items on our shopping list !! We had "acclimatised".....

Maybe with 12 months as a skinny person, you might find you don't need to "rug up" so much for next Winter as you did this time.... Let me know, hey? Maybe (going from a "hot" environment to a cold one), you'll find "it's not so cold after all" when next year comes around... We did it in reverse,

Koh

[sweetie]

Hi,
I have another theory. It might also be due to the lack of carbs in the body. I started feeling cold as soon as I went on the Diet. I hadn't even shed much kilos at that point yet. Thus I couldn't blame it on "insulation" issues. You can look at my early diary entries a year ago. (28/07/09) I was feeling VERY cold on Day 15 already.
I used to dress like an eskimo. I had a pair of slippers at work, as I found that my normal shoes just didn't keep my feet warm. I was wearing exactly the same clothes as I used to, just never managed to warm up.
Since I am in maintenance, I don't have the "cold" issue any more.
Just a thought

[Kohinoor]

Hi Sweetie,

That is very interesting....

Since I am in maintenance, I don't have the "cold" issue any more.

Can you expand, Sweetie? Are you eating more carbs now? Or is there more to it? Does it come back to "You are where your body always wanted to be?"

I find this kind of discussion intriguing (and exciting).....

Koh

[sweetie]

I should have said Carbs and fats. I am eating a bit more carbs now, as well as protein and fat. I also think it might be that the diet is designed to be "just enough" to keep the body going, without having anything spare. Heating up the body uses a lot of energy. If you look at native people living in cold climates, their diets will consist of high proportions of fats.
You can even read up on the Pole explorers, where they would drink oil and eat plain butter to keep alive
http://www.vanityfair.com/online/dai...e-you-get.html
http://www.antarctic-circle.org/food.htm
http://www.solarnavigator.net/histor...ition_2006.htm
Obviously these are extreme examples.
I think that our bodies get used to having a certain amount of easily convertable fuel at hand (Eg Carbs etc that are eaten daily) and it takes a while to convert itself to using the stored reserves.
I don't think it has anything to do with your clothing or insulation.
It is now a bit more than a year ago that I started, and I did not feel as cold this year as last, even though our actual temperatures this year were lower than last.
I don't wear more layers, in fact maybe even less, since I want to show off what I have, and not hide it under bulky sweaters. And I definetely have less blubber.

[JoyJoy]

I am only just starting to feel the cold now, after nearly 11 weeks on Cohens, is this the usual time when it starts, everyone around me says its warm but i need to put on a heater in the car or in my office to be able to put up with the cold....

[danders]

I feel the cold terribly whilst on this diet and also did when I had a lap band. Ive always thought that as calories are a measure of heat or energy it makes sense that if you reduce your calorie intake that your body's ability to generate heat must also be reduced. And I agree with Sweetie I dont think insulation makes a difference. Dont worry JoyJoy, the sunshine will be here soon and we can get some free warmth!

[forfreddie]

So pleased to hear this cold thing might get better in maintenance! I hate it!! Especially when you want to be wearing things that show off your new figure not hide it under layers and layers!!!

I asked hubby to clean the heat pump filters (again) this morning as I am convinced its not working properly. Also the littlun has learnt a new catchphrase which is 'mummy's got cold hands, daddy's got warm hands'. This means that I am not allowed to carry out any task such as getting him dressed/undressed, into bath and nappies only if I don't touch him. Ha ha! Shame! Luckily hubby is v. obliging!

ff

[danders]

I was so sick of being cold all day that I took a hot water bottle to work today. Refilled a couple of times from the urn and concealed on my lap where no one could see what a granny I am - it was BRILLIANT. Im toasty cosy - very happy

[Kohinoor]

Hi all,

I'm glad this post showed up again today - you see, while I was in Brisbane, I read something that actually answered why people on Cohens feel cold !!

It went something like this :-

"Most of our warmth (60% ?) comes from the digestive process" (probably why Mum's and Grannies like to feed us up during Winter - probably also why WE like to eat more in Winter).

Of course, while on Cohens, the digestive process is not called upon to do so much - thus, the "internal heater" gets shut down somewhat !!

Made sense to me - but always open to other views....

Koh

[sundaymorningstaple]

I still think a large portion of it is the fact that our blood vessels are now much, much closer to the surface of the skin and thereby allowing the blood to cool more rapidly that it did under a large number of cm's of fat insulation. It's the same reason why we bruise much more easily as well, there is no fat to cushion the blows nor to hid the damages. That's why, when you are hot the easiest way to cool off is to run water over your scalp and the back of your neck. The blood cells are much closer to the surface so the blood is cooled much more rapidly there.

[Kohinoor]

Hi SMS,

I still think a large portion of it is the fact that our blood vessels are now much, much closer to the surface of the skin

That sounds fair - except that I read of MANY who feel cold just days after starting out (even when they might be looking to shed 50Kgs+)..... and that is where my posted comment makes so much sense - they are eating less, thus the "natural heater" has been turned off.

If indeed the digestion of food provides the bulk of "body heating", then it makes sense that Cohens will have everybody "feeling cold" - pretty much from Day 1.

Koh

[mumandnana]

I agree Koh, when feeling the cold it wasn't just feeling cold on my skin although that to the touch was usually very cold(hands,feet,face,) it was a deep within cold and shivers that has to be experienced to understand it.The only way I found to fix it was to get into a hot bath.I still feel the cold quite a lot( not on the days I was out of control and eating way too much,plenty of fuel for the furnace ! ) and before climbing I go into a sauna fully dressed and only once did I start to raise a sweat.I can't believe it, it is so hot in there yet it takes ages before I feel warm on the inside.
I think SMS has some interesting thoughts as well because I never had a vein issue on my arms before Cohens but now when I am warm they are very noticeable.So he must be right about the fat layer burying them.Isn't goose bumps a way of our system raising hair to try and protect us with a bit more warmth? Trouble is you have to have hair on your arms for that to work and I don't

[sundaymorningstaple]

Well, I never got cold at all until I got to just about norm BMI. I've been affected by the cold ever since. Even now, I seem to be cold and I'm in the tropics. (granted the damned aircon is set a 20 in my office) but even at home (where I don't have aircon at all) in the evenings now, I will feel cooler where I used to perspire profusely all the time. I'm eating a heck of a lot more that I did while on the programme, but I still get cold easily even here in the tropics. Guess it's gonna bit me when I go back home in a week! (although they are having a bit of Indian Summer there at the moment with temps around 32C). But I have to agree, there would have to be something to do with the digestive system as well as it's a known fact that you will burn more calories drinking cold water than you will drinking hot water. (the body has to expend energy to heat up the cold water).

[Kohinoor]

Hi SMS,

Helluva good point !!

But I have to agree, there would have to be something to do with the digestive system as well as it's a known fact that you will burn more calories drinking cold water than you will drinking hot water. (the body has to expend energy to heat up the cold water).

Many on here find it "easier" to drink water that is warmer - maybe for that reason? They may not lose as much (and that's not so bad) but they feel better doing it that way.

Ahh, bodies are mysterious beings !!

Koh