Dealing with Cold Weather

 As the weather cools down outside, most of us will go inside and turn on the space heater and put on Netflix.  Some of us brave souls will try to put what warm garments we have and brave the low temperatures only to have our fingers and toes freeze off. Looking for the proper garments can be hard especially here in San Antonio where buying a winter coat is the last thing on our minds. So in this blog post, I will be going over where to look for good gloves and a breathing technique that I learned from the Ice Man Wim Hof that I practice to stay warm.

The Wim Hof Method:

I don't know if you heard about this guy before, but he's famous for going under artic ice and holding his breathe for several minutes. His name is Wim Hof and he is famously known as the Iceman. He teaches a simple breathing exercise to be able to deal with the cold. I practice this breathing exercise about 3 times a week. Now I cannot say that this method will work for you, but I can tell you what has happened to me. Now I cannot dive underneath artic ice yet nor am I planning to replace his name in the Guiness Book of World Records for the longest swim under ice. But what I am able to do now is wear shorts in weather as low as 34°F and I need to don on a hoodie when the temperature drops below 45°F.  His breathing technique needs to be practiced at least 3 times a week to see any effect.     

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Gloves & Apparal:

Finding a good pair of gloves is very hard thing to do here and when you do find that perfect pair it's like finding gold. For me I avoid Walmart and Target and their main brand 3M Insulate. The best gloves that I'm able to find are at Pilots and Flying J truck stops. They're sold in batches of 3 pairs for like $20 and you can find them in a basket right in the front of the store during the winter. (Image 2021-27-01 02) The best part of buying gloves from a truck stop is that they're work gloves with padding of Nitrle or Laytex.  And when I get the gloves, I put a key chain in them so when I'm not using them, they go on my belt. (Image 2021-27-01 01) 

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Another place to go hunting for a good pair of gloves is a Motorcycle Apparel store. Some cyclist have claimed that a good old pair of old fashion motorcycle gloves does wonders.  Being here in San Antonio I do recommend that you please call the store up before you go for the Harley Davision Store on the riverwalk don't have any gloves in stock.

Now for the record, I never had the money to go buy a pair of warm gloves at Bike Word or similar retail outlet but I have heard that they do sell good gloves.  The one place you should never buy a pair of gloves is Harbor Freight because their brand of Cold Working Glove doesn't do anything to keep the cold out.  

I think that you have notice that some people are wearing this Hi-viz hoodie but everytime you go to Walmart or Target, they never have it on hand.  Well the Hi-Viz hoodie that I own can be purchased at any of the truck stops around town.  Last time I checked, (because I have to replace my current one) they were going for $40 at Loves.  I have looked at the TA, Petro, Flying J and Pilot and you can't always count on those places to have it.  

And finally, you can go look for these items on Amazon, but I personally avoid Amazon because of the way they practice business and for the record, I am not being paid by any business that I've mention.  So get out and go for a bicycle ride, even if it's cold.