system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: What do animals actually do during hibernation?

Do animals actually 'sleep' for such long periods of time? If so, how do they stay asleep for so long?
gpt
Hibernation means the animal literally just sleeps. It cannot get any meaningful amount of food during the winter so instead he just kinda skips it. He sleeps all the way through to conserve energy instead of walking around and doing stuff, and the fat it put on right before winter is whats being broken down and consumed to keep him alive and fed. He then wakes up again in spring when hunting is viable again.