Getting lean and staying warm

[achigan]

As you add layers remember to keep your clothing loose, so the core heat generated by the hand/body warmers can circulate out to the fingers and toes.

[Sixby]

High fat diet plus a really good down vest that goes down low in the back. Its really hard to beat down for staying warm and I am surprised that no one mentioned it yet. Here in the N. W. there are a lot of down wearers in the winter.
BTW I have gone from 310 lb to 245 and still working on it. Ditto for the getting colder easier. Its a fact.
God bless, Steve

[Roy from Pa]

40? Geeze yer just a puppy...  
Wait till yer 68...

[mec lineman]

I feel this is worth mentioning,a full bladder will freeze you to death. Your body burns energy trying to keep all those fluids warm

[Sam McMichael]

Yep, fat is an effective insulator, so weight loss does create issues. Many of us are also diabetic, which greatly aggravates the issue even more.

Clothes make the man, especially a hunter on a cold day (applies to women as well). My favorite cold weather layering is a set of silk ski underwear next to the skin with merino long underwear. Sometimes my outer layer is wool, sometimes it is military BDU. I also like both my fleece and my down vests. Gloves, hat, and good socks are crucial.

Hand warmers are important, and as somebody stated earlier keeping the kidneys warm have an all over benefit. Long tailed shirts, vests, etc. really help. Even though I live in the sunny South, keeping warm is a tough issue for me.

It took a long time for me to learn to dress lightly while walking to the stand on a cold morning and then putting on my heavier garments after I cool down from the walk in. It keeps down the sweat, which will make you cold , no matter what you wear.

[slowbowjoe]

Lots of good advice. I've always been a skinny guy (like 125 lbs, 5'7"), get cold easily, I'm 62, and I've always been outdoors a lot in winter. This could be a long topic; I'lll try to hit some key points that work for me:

1) A light base layer on top- turtleneck- I prefer Capilene, or silk.
Next, "expedition weight" or heavyweight underlay over that (I'm very partial to Polartec Stretch), zip T-neck style.
A light wool low neck sweater in very cold over that.
And, down to single digits, a very good quality, tight weave wool sweater. I'm picky about how all that fits together so that I have decent freedom of movement and not a lot of bagginess, so as not to interfere with my shooting.
If it's windy,or single digits above to single below, I add a Carhardt lined vest.
A very light, thin windbreaker instead of the vest is very highly effective. Can also be worn with good results under the heavy wool.

2) Neck gaiter! WARM hat, or two lighter ones if need be. Keep your head warm!

3) Mittens. The best, warmest, you can find/afford. With warmers when it's frigid. NOTE: find what are labeled "hand/body warmers".
They're twice as large, and warm, as the regular hand warmers. And last 2-3 times longer. If you use them for just a couple of hours, put 'em in a ziplock sandwich bag- they'll re-activate when you open it. Even twice.

4) Boots: Hardest part. Need to fit well enough to walk/hike in comfortably, and well insulated to boot. I much prefer one pair of thick, high quality socks to two pairs. TRY YOUR BOOTS ON with the socks you'll be wearing, and make sure you have room to wiggle your toes freely.

5) Wool pants. Expedition weight fleece under that.

As a final note: A down or synthetic fill sweater or jacket over the expedition weight layer, with a light thin windshield over it, will be warmer, lighter, and less bulky than the heavy wool. I still hunt in cold weather, but would probably go that route if I were on stand.
Fat & protein food before you go out, preferably doused with hot sauce.

And that's trying to keep it brief!

[CRM_95]

Haha I know what you're going through. 4 years ago I weighed north of 350 lbs. I got serious about eating right and working out and now I'm 180ish. I get cold when it's below 70. But I'm good with it, I just bundle up. Congrats on getting healthy!!

[Al Dente]

Ginger and pineapple are excellent for blood flow.  Poor circulation will make you cold no matter how lean or fat you are.  
Dress in wool with a wicking base layer.  Wear bibs, they will keep your core warmer than pants.  Use a hand muff with chemical hand warmers inside.  Use boot blankets with chemical handwarmers inside.  And, as said above, place two over your kidneys.  A warm hat or balaclava.  Bring along a thermos with chicken broth and sip it throughout your stay.

[Chain2]

Neck gaiter. Finish dressing at your stand. Great ideas. I also lost a bunch of weight some time back. What I did, and still do that wasn't mention is to aclimate yoursel, sort of. I don't know how often you go outside but do it lightly dressed. Walk the dog, bring in wood, jog whatever you do outside do it in less clothing. It will get your body conditioned a little. It's not a cure all but it helps. Congratulations on the weight loss. That's tough to do. Good Luck

[Walt Francis]

First, congratulations on losing the weight.

Lot's of good advice, if you follow all of it you will look like the Michelin man…. Just joking.  I do a lot of cold weather treestand hunting and this is what works form me:
Wool base layer, if it is really cold, a second base layer.
Wool pants and shirt.
Insulated Wool vest with wind stopper.
Important is at least one good silk or wool scarf/gaiter for the neck and face.
Multiple wool cap, wool bomber, and a large wool cap.
Muck Boots with toe warmers.


This keeps me warm down to 10, sometimes zero if there isn’t much wind.  Lower then that it takes a combination of the below items

Insulated Wool Coat with wind stopper.
Important is a good silk or wool scarf/gaiter for the neck and face.
Wool cap, wool bomber, and a large wool cap.
If it is extremely cold I will add fleece and or quality down.  I love fleece but it stinks fast.  I love down if hunting when it is dry conditions, but it is noisy.
Insulated Wool bibs with wind stopper.
Micky Mouse boots

Everything goes on in layers.

Hand warmers and toe warmers are nice.  Use a couple of the sticky toe warmers on top of the first base layer between the shoulder blades and on the lower back.

Oh ya, I think most of you are using the toe warmers wrong.  Expose them to the air for five-fifth teen minutes then put them ON TOP of your toes.  When you get into your stand loosen the shoelaces or roll the tops of your muck boots down so a little bit of air circulates, otherwise they will quit working.

[MnFn]

My one word when it is cold on my stands-
Heater Body Suit.

[old_goat2]

I always noticed that when my weight went down, getting cold easier happened. Might check out the Gerbing battery operated  heater vests. I have heard good things about them but I haven't actually used mine yet. Not sure how I'm going to accomplish recharging the batteries on multiple day hunts though. They advertise 8hrs on low setting so we will see. I also bought some boot blankets for this year. My feet and hands are my biggest problems!

[huronhunter]

I also have the boot blankets and they do work ,but they are not ideal for tree stand setting. I only use them in a ground blind . In a stand I use a old rug on the stand floor to insulate my feet from the metal floor . I also put toe warmers in my pack boots.

[BlacktailBowhunter]

Hand, foot, and body warmers. Loose fitting layers.

[shankspony]

Ive always been lean. Drives me crazy on hunts with mates who are carrying more insulation. I dont want to hear, 'Man this bag is too hot!, ill have too sleep with it open.' as I pull on another layer of clothing and do the zip up tighter.   :D

To an extent you just have to get used to it, and pack more layers and enjoy waiting for them on the steep parts.

[PaulDeadringer29]

Heated jacket works great for me and I get cold really easy. All the major tool companies have great offerings so get I got a dewalt since I already had lots of batteries for my cordless tools. I bought mine to fit snug and then layer my camo over the heated garment. I don't even need to wear gloves or heavy boots because blood is allowed to stay in my extremities instead of being pulled to my core in an effort to stay warm.

[Krex1010]

Hand warmers! I take a pair of long socks and use rubber bands to block off section of each sock, inside each section is a hand warmer, I'll then connect the two socks at the top and drape them around my neck under my coat, so I have two long strip of hand warmers hanging down my chest, really works well for me.

[SELFBOW19953]

As long as my feet stay warm, I'm usually okay.  Once my feet get cold, I'm done.  My feet sweat A LOT!!  I've tried toe warmers and I drown them.  Sock liners do the best for me. I put 2 more pairs of socks on, the first pair light weight, the second pair heavy weight.  I also wear a light wind shear or wind block jacket as an inside layer, something that's quiet and blocks the wind.

[Ouchigan72]

Being one of the lucky ones that have been slim my whole life (125 lbs. when graduated high school -n- 140 now at 43 yrs old) all I can say is wool in layers.I spent many a year trying to stay warm using all the fancy new fangled camo clothing with little success.Switched to wool clothing -n- have been comfy since.

[drewsbow]

its way easier just to stay fat