More winter musings

Can you stand one more post about me musing on my general adjustment to tolerating winter? Clearly I find the subject somewhat fascinating based on how often I mention it. This time it isn't just about weather, though. 

I mentioned on Monday after my weekend away that I was exhausted. It was a full weekend of pretty constant people-ing and I assumed that was the root of my fatigue. I'm sure it was part of it, but my physical fatigue was significant. The first morning back to caring for the horses and cleaning the barn felt really hard. So hard, in fact, that I felt the need to break it up into two sessions. The next day, it still felt really hard, though I was able to complete the job all in one go. By Wednesday, I felt back to my regular endurance and nothing about it felt hard. 

I sat a lot during my weekend away working on various projects of one kind or another. Certainly I sat more than I usually do. But even then, there were other times I was standing, to use a suspended spindle or to work on the puzzle that was going. So it wasn't even straight sitting, but it was a lot less physical than my days typically are.

It took me an equal amount of time to feel as though I was back in shape again. I don't know why this surprised me but it does. I think it was the speed with which my stamina dropped that I find most surprising. 

The other, winter, piece of it all is how much colder I felt on Monday and Tuesday. It was warmer than is typical in January; above freezing by the afternoons, but I just couldn't stay warm. I was bundled up to a laughable degree. By Wednesday once again, I felt as though I was regulating temperature better. This morning, at a balmy 6°F, I mentioned to J. that I felt more comfortable than I did on Monday or Tuesday. 

This is also find interesting. Is my stamina connected to his well my body regulated temperature? Is regulating temperature something that can decline the less you use it? Is it a combination of the two? These are interesting questions to ponder and goes a long way towards explaining why winter in our old house was so difficult. I worked hard to hibernate as much as possible only ever going outside when absolutely necessary. 

I'm grateful I have to care for the horses multiple times a day... filling hay nets, carrying bags of shavings, hauling buckets of water, mucking stalls. I will fully admit that in really cold temperatures I am not excited about going outside. It is truly only because the horses need food and water throughout the day that I go. But every single time I am glad I have gone. 

Do with this what you will. I know not everyone has horses or wants to own horses. But finding heavy work of some sort outside that you need to do a couple of times a day might help you to navigate winter as well.