As we inch closer to the first day of winter, one of the obvious changes in the weather we can expect to see will be colder temps, along with the possibility of dangerous outdoor conditions (snow and ice). My experience as an outdoor, daily walker is that the number of fellow walkers diminishes drastically when the temperature drops.
But using cold weather as an excuse to stop exercising is a cop-out. Realistically, 90% of the weather this winter will be manageable for outdoor activities as long as you wear appropriate clothing.
If you’ve been working out regularly and then quit for a few months, you may console yourself that you are just taking a short, cold weather break from your exercise routine. No big deal, right? Well, it is a big deal to your body, because once the stimulus of regular exercise training is removed, you will eventually lose all of your previous training adaptations.
Your body works very hard to maintain homeostasis. Homeostasis is the process your body goes through while at rest to maintain a stable, internal environment. It includes regulating variables such as pH balance, oxygen and blood glucose levels, body temperature, and more. Any disruption to homeostasis will bring about multiple responses by your body to bring the disrupted variables back to normal.
Engaging in physical exercise is a powerful disruptor of normal, resting homeostasis. The more intensely you exercise, the bigger the disruption. For example, your heart will pump more forcefully and the blood vessels going to your muscles will dilate to increase blood flow. Those adjustments that your cardiovascular system has to make to ensure your muscles are receiving adequate blood flow is called the overload principle.
I can’t stress enough how important exercise is when it comes to this principle. If you habitually overload your system by exercising 3-5 times a week for several months, your body will make positive, long-term adaptations to the repeated stress of regular exercise. Examples include an increase in mitochondria and the oxidative capacity in skeletal muscle.
Stopping the overload process will result in reversibility, a backwards trajectory. Whereas overloading results in homeostasis adaptations, inactivity (stopping your exercise program) results in a return to baseline, or pre-training levels. You’ve more commonly heard it referred to as “use it or lose it.”
Need more incentive? You reap additional benefits exercising in the cold. Want to lose weight? You can burn more calories in the winter because your body has to work harder to maintain its core temperature. You also produce more endorphins when your body works harder to stay warm; this may help alleviate the depression that comes for a lot of people when the days get shorter, cloudier, and colder.
Written by: Donna Green, Extension Educator, Family and Consumer Sciences, Ohio State University Extension, Erie County, green.308@osu.edu
Reviewed by: Beth Stefura, Extension Educator, Family & Consumer Sciences, Ohio State University Extension, Mahoning County, stefura.2@osu.edu
Sources:
http://lams.slcusd.org/pages/teachers/morrow/Unit%20Handout%20Sheets/Fitness%20Principles.pdf
https://www.livestrong.com/article/325244-the-overload-principle-of-strength-training/
https://www.sports-training-adviser.com/reversibilityprinciple.html
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