Im FREEZING from the weight loss

Question
QUESTION: I'm 35, 5'5" and now at 195 lbs.  I've been taking Meridia for weight loss and have lost 30 lbs in five months.  I have a good diet, lots of different veggies, good proteins, milk and yogurt, plenty of water.  Plus, I get exercise daily, from both my work, which is physically taxing, and a workout routine with weight-bearing exercises.  I feel like I'm doing everything right, am looking a LOT thinner, and feeling GREAT.  Except I'm so cold all the time.  I realize fat is an insulator and I'm not as "covered" as I used to be, but isn't there anything to be done?  Supplements maybe?  It's almost December so I'm good with layering on sweaters for now, but when spring comes and I'm another twenty pounds down and still freezing, I'm going to be upset having to wear layers and layers over my newly thinned body.  Seriously, isn't there anything I can do to get my internal thermostat back in check?

ANSWER: Hi Beki,
Congrats on your weight loss!  I'm glad that you are eating right, and exercising daily.   I don't see that you mentioned cardiovascular exercise anywhere?   Like bike, treadmill, stairclimber, etc.   You may have a physically taxing job, but that does not provide the same benefits as steady-pace cardiovascular exercise where your heart rate is elevated at a certain level for at least 30 minutes consecutively.   You may be having a problem with your circulation, and cardio is a great way to bring fresh blood all throughout your body and limbs, thereby reducing your sensation of cold.   You seem to be cold all over (torso and general coldness) rather than just your hands/fingers, so I can rule out Raynaud's disease.   Do you smoke?   Smoking can lower your heart rate, bp and temperature, so that might be a reason (if you are a smoker, that is!)    
Also, have you had your thyroid checked lately?   Being cold all the time may signal that you might have hypothyroidism---yes, it is possible to have hypothyroidism and still lose weight--it will just be slower weight loss.  Also, you may be in the early stages of hypothyroidism; coldness is one symptom.    Weight gain is usually a symptom as well, but if you have been changing your lifestyle--diet, exercise and Meridia, that might be enough to combat any weight gain if were sedentary and started developing hypothyroidism.   I'm not saying that you have hypothyroidism, but it wouldn't hurt to check it out (and I gave you a reason why you lost 30 lbs instead of gained weight---you changed your lifestyle, diet and are taking a weight loss drug).    Other than the reasons I mentioned--poor circulation, smoking and hypothyroid, just losing 30 lb shouldn't have made you so cold, especially since you still weight 195lb---if you were 100 lb, than I would say it's because you are underweight/malnourished, but your coldness is not from your 30 lb weight loss, and you really should investigate the causes I mentioned (I gave you the MOST likely causes).
Good luck!



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Oh, I absolutely think it's the 30 lb weight loss.  From all the research I've done, it's not unusual for someone of my size to lose this amount of weight and become cold.  BUT, to answer your questions:  Plenty of cardio.  I do 25 min on the elliptical doing interval training before I do the weights or some pilates or whatever.  Plus, on the days I don't formally workout,  my job is housecleaning, so I'm constantly vacuuming, scrubbing, mopping, etc, at top speed.  It's a workout all on its own four to six hours a day.  So yeah, cardio, check.  I don't smoke, so check that off.  Hypothyroidism does run in my family and we keep a close eye on that.  My last bloodwork for it was only a few months ago when I was checked out really well to be sure I could handle the Meridia.  So, like I said, I'm almost sure the weight loss is the reason for the cold; it happens to lots of people when they lose weight.  You don't have to be skinny to be cold... ;-)

Answer
Hi again Beki.   If you are absolutely sure that your coldness is from the 30 lb weight loss, I'm not sure why you wrote me a letter questioning why you are cold!   
That's great that you do 25 min cardio before your weights--I'm assuming that you do this on most days of the week (approx 5 or more).  However, your housecleaning job does not qualify as cardiovascular training.   Yes, it is a difficult, physically demanding job that requires a great deal of moving, lifting, scrubbing, etc, but it does not sustain your heart rate at, say 150 bpm, for a period of at least 30 minutes.   Even though your job is 6 hrs a day, your pulse rate is not sustained at a high level the entire time, which is why it does not qualify as a 'cardiovascular' exercise.  Your job is great for burning extra calories and weight management as compared to someone with a sedentary job (ie. an office job that just sits in front of a computer all day), but it is not a cardio exercise.
Glad to hear that you don't have hypothyroidism, and that you don't smoke.
I mentioned the most likely causes of the extreme coldness that you are experiencing, but since none of these seem to be the case, I'm not really sure what could be causing your coldness.
As far as your comment, "You don't have to be skinny to be cold", it seems like you have misinterpreted my answer and may have been offended.   One does not have to be "skinny" in order to be cold--obviously, since you said you are cold all the time!        What I did say was that the 30 lb weight loss should not be responsible for making you cold all the time (unless you had become underweight with no fat stores).    The fact that you are still overweight means that you have plenty of insulation to repel the coldness, so whether you lost 10, 20 or 30 lb is irrelevant.   It's not the amt of weight you lost that determines "coldness"; but rather how much bodyfat you currently have!   
In other words, a 30 lb weight loss per se is not enough of a reason to experience coldness.   Your current weight is what is relevant to me, because that same 30lb weight loss on a 100 lb person will have a very different result than a 195 lb person.

I am a fully qualified medical health care provider who is volunteering time to help people answer questions.  However in your case, you have decided to answer your own question ("So, like I said, I'm almost sure the weight loss is the reason for the cold;  it happens to lots of people when they lose weight.  You don't have to be skinny to be cold...")
 This is a common response when people either don't like my response, or have misinterpreted it.  Remember, I am here to help people, not get into arguments or catty quips.  I have given you the most common reasons for coldness, and told you that your 30 lb weight loss is most likely not responsible for this.   This would mean that there is an undiscovered cause,  and if this becomes a major issue/gets worse with time, I would recommend a general blood work up to make sure that you are in good health.
All the best in health and congrats on your 30lb loss so far.   Keep going, and check out www.oxygenmag.com for extra tips on how to accelerate fat loss.   This is an excellent women's fitness site for beginner to advanced.   
Take Care Beki,
Crystal

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