If your air conditioner is set at a high temperature in winter and low in summer, you may be suffering from sensitivity to cold. In Oriental medicine, coldness within the body is considered to be the cause of pre-symptomatic diseases that easily affects people with a “cold constitution” of their body and is considered a source of illness. If you have little muscle mass, your metabolism slows down, making you susceptible to cold. Even in summer, people with a cold constitution cannot regulate their body temperature well because they cannot sweat, and this increases the risk of heat stroke.

It seems the best way to improve a cold constitution is simply to exercise. When you raise your metabolism, your body temperature naturally rises accordingly. In particular, training the core, or inner muscles (muscles in the deeper layers of the body), and building muscle mass will increase metabolism and help you lose weight.

Yoga strengthens the deep muscles of the body. It also has a stretching effect because the body moves slowly, and it promotes blood circulation and warms the body from the inside out.

Walking, cycling, and running are recommended as convenient exercises. Walking is a full-body workout. It is very effective because you move your entire body, and especially works the muscles in the back of your legs and stomach. Even if you don't have time for exercise, you can incorporate it into your daily activities, such as walking one station on your commute, or taking the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator. Walking in the morning is especially good for improving cold sensitivity. Body temperature is still low in the morning, so walking helps raise body temperature.

Working out is also important, but it is challenging when it is cold. In such a case, it is important to warm up your body in an eco-friendly way, especially to warm your joints. Use gloves that cover your wrists, leg warmers or boots covering your ankles, and a scarf or neck warmers to help protect against the cold. A lap blanket will also help you through the winter, allowing you to not have the heating temperature set too high.

episode 8
Make Your Body Eco-Friendly