Simple Tips To Manage Your Health And Home Together This Winter

Winter has historically been the most challenging season. While indoor heat makes it easier to survive in the modern world, plummeting temperatures can still take a toll on your mind, body and property. These 6 simple tips can help you sail through the snowy season until spring chirps its arrival so that you can maintain your health and home.

1. Create A Secure Pathway 

Many urban jurisdictions mandate that property owners clear adjacent sidewalks for a good reason. Seventeen thousand people die each year from slip-and-falls on snow and ice, and more suffer injuries. Creating a secure pathway from your driveway to your front door could be the best way to maintain your health and home this winter, especially considering the cost of health care in America.

Additionally, doing your part prevents potential liability if someone else becomes injured on your property. Get out the shovel and de-icer, and keep sidewalks, stairs and other walkways clear.

2. Stay Dry, Toasty And Cozy 

Winterizing your home saves money on utilities and prevents pipes from freezing and breaking. If leaving your home, set your thermostat to at least 55 degrees Fahrenheit. Consider leaving sinks dripping and open cabinets that contain plumbing to get more air to your pipes, which you should also insulate, including around bends and elbows.

Additionally, use an incense stick to check for air leaks around windows and doors. If you see the smoke waft while standing still, it’s time for caulk or weather-stripping. You can pick up both for cheap at any hardware store for an easy DIY fix that can potentially save big money on your heating bills.

If winter typically gives you the blues, consider embracing hygge. This Danish term refers to a feeling of cozy contentment — picture a roaring fire, a cup of hot tea, a cat on your lap and a good novel. Make this your winter vibe as you surround yourself with comfy pajamas and hot chocolate galore. Bring back family game and movie night and transform being snowed in into a game.

3. Maintain Your Ride 

Your car also needs extra TLC during the winter months. Take the following steps to winterize your ride and stay safer on the roadways:

• Check your tires and local ordinances. For example, some exceptionally snowy regions have chain mandates. Even if yours doesn’t, you should test your tire tread by inserting a penny with Lincoln’s head down. If his head is fully covered, you’re OK — otherwise, it’s time for new tires.
• Perform a simple vehicle inspection and do a tune up complete with an oil change and check of your spark plugs, filters, lines, hoses, and belts.
• That same salt that protects you from slip-and-falls can ruin your car’s paint job. After washing and waxing your vehicle, fix any chipped paint and apply a coat of linseed oil to prevent rust for up to a year.

4. Make Fitness More Accessible 

Trudging to the gym in subzero temperatures — not to mention fussing with coats, boots and hats — can make you choose the sloth route instead. However, you don’t have to curl up on your couch until spring. In-home fitness is more accessible than ever.

Furthermore, getting moving over the winter staves off colds and flu. It enhances the ability of your white blood cells to fight disease and may move germs out of your respiratory tract more quickly.

YouTube offers scores of workouts for free. Exercise bands cost little and slide under your couch as an easy strength-training alternative to weights. Are you passionate about a particular discipline, such as yoga? Chances are, there’s an app for that — explore what your phone can really do.

5. Discover Healthy Seasonal Food Bargains

Eating seasonally helps you find food bargains. Producers pass shipping costs on to you, so buying what grows locally saves pennies.

Your farmers market is often the best place to nab discounts, but consider exploring nearby rural areas. Some small-scale farmers set up roadside stands, and you might make a new friend while scoring a deal.

You’ll also get better nutrition. Fruits and veggies lose their nutrients as soon as a harvester picks them, but getting them while they’re fresh means you enjoy more of their goodness.

6. Get More Zzz’s 

How did humans traditionally survive the harsh winter months before central heat? While they didn’t hibernate, they spent more time cuddled under cozy furs. Your body temperature drops during sleep, but feeling cold can also make you more tired. Also, your body produces more cytokines during sleep that ward off seasonal illness.

Spring will come again with renewed responsibility. For now, honor this time by making up for the sleep deficit many modern humans have by catching more Zzzs.

Maintain Your Health And Home This Winter

Despite what T.S. Eliot says, January — not April — may be the cruelest month. However, humans have a long track record of surviving hard winters. The right tips protect you and your home and property whilst you can maintain your health until the robins arrive again.