Wim Hof and/or cold therapy

hawaii_five0

hawaii_five0

Well known member
Wondering if anyone on here has tried the "Wim Hof Method"? Or know anything about it, particularly the "cold shower" therapy part of it.

I don't even know how to classify him, but Wim Hof is a Dutch extreme athlete who has set a number of cold weather records like swimming under ice or running a marathon barefoot in snow. Stuff like that. He's kind of a character. He also has an app and a "method" of renewal that in essence consists of three things: deep breathing, cold showers every day, and meditation. Looking at comments on YouTube there are people that claim to have "cured" themselves of various ailments, depression, etc. with it.

The cold shower part of it is something I am curious about, because of an experience I had about a month ago. I was out for a walk, which usually is not that comfortable, but got caught in a huge thunderstorm downpour, and the air temperature also dropped 20 degrees. After a while I realized that walking felt way better (walking thru this driving cold rain). That was actually the most comfortable walk I've had in months, I guess because of the shock of it and my mind distracted by the extreme conditions. When I got home I stripped and took a hot bath, which also felt great. So I'm just wondering about the efficacy of intentionally subjecting yourself to a cold shower.

Thanks in advance!
 
Love Win Hof.

I have been taking cold showers for a few years. For a while I went cold all the way with showers and everything. But I pushed the limits too much without giving my body a break. I started having rapid heart rate. So I had to balance it with some heat.

These days I alternate between cold and hot. Feels wonderful.

You can start with warm and hot. Then gradually over a few days go with hot and cold. Always finish with hot until you notice you feel good finishing with cold.
 
Interesting. I don't recall ever hearing/reading of Win Hof or the cold shower therapy.
Thanks @FredAmir and @hawaii_five0.
If you give it a try H50 (hope it's okay I abbreviated), would you post your results on this thread?
Cool experience with the rain and walking.
I wonder if my daughter, as a toddler, used this therapy? lol She loved to have cold water poured over her head. That was 31 years ago. :D
 
@FredAmir: thanks for the info! Also the video and your experience. Yes, he is a wild dude. I have not tried it yet, but I have seen people suggest 3 ways of taking a cold shower: 1) start off warm and gradually turn the temperature down, 2) cold, but start with just your head, the gradually get the rest of the body under, and 3) just full-on get in it right away.

My most recent experience with "cold" was also kind of funny. I went swimming a few weeks back in an outdoor pool (even though I am a terrible swimmer) and got in the pool and it seemed so cold. The lifeguard was right there so I asked her what the water temperature was, not really knowing, thinking it must be in the 60s or something (it was a cold day, and this was early season). She said 78. So I had to laugh. Apparently the cold water coming out of your tap is more like 60 degrees.
 
@oneperson: thanks for your reply. Yes, there is something intense about it for sure and I guess it kind of shocks you out of your comfort zone and energizes you which can then carry over to other parts of your life.

I will definitely post results here if I do anything. I am kind of looking forward to the next intense thunderstorm though, because I intend to just go out and walk and see how it feels, haha.
 
hawaii_five0 said:
@FredAmir: thanks for the info! Also the video and your experience. Yes, he is a wild dude. I have not tried it yet, but I have seen people suggest 3 ways of taking a cold shower: 1) start off warm and gradually turn the temperature down, 2) cold, but start with just your head, the gradually get the rest of the body under, and 3) just full-on get in it right away.

My most recent experience with "cold" was also kind of funny. I went swimming a few weeks back in an outdoor pool (even though I am a terrible swimmer) and got in the pool and it seemed so cold. The lifeguard was right there so I asked her what the water temperature was, not really knowing, thinking it must be in the 60s or something (it was a cold day, and this was early season). She said 78. So I had to laugh. Apparently the cold water coming out of your tap is more like 60 degrees.
Click to expand...
You can begin with ending your hot showers with running cold water on your hands and feet.

See how that feels later. If your hands and feet feel cold for a long time, your body has a hard time rebounding from it. Keep doing that until it does.

Once that works do the same for your legs and arms and see what happens and so on.

Also, check you pulse and blood pressure to see if it has any effects on your cardiovascular system.
 
Hi there!
I came across this form as a result of your post. Because like you I have been looking into cold therapy as well.

I wanted to share with you some great resources I came across Cold Therapy that I wished I came across when I first started. It's important people do the proper research first because we can shock our system too much otherwise.

Great starter video that I would highly recommend is this one... Especially for any other people looking into it for the first time.
"WHAT HAPPENS AFTER 30 DAYS OF COLD THERAPY?" (Dr Dr Rangan Chatterjee interviewing Dr Susanna Soberg:

Here's my playlist with some other great videos as well that should answer all your questions! There are some short 4-10 minute videos on this playlist that are great starter videos as well if the above one is too long for you to start off with.
This YouTube playlist of mine includes great research from neuroscientist Anthony Huberman, inc the medical doctors above, etc, and of course, Wim Hof too. ☺️
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXYIu_7e92kh4rlqlEFcrSrvvYS2wgk1B

But yes! Cold therapy has a great impact on our physical and mental health! The science is definitely there!
I've been doing my cold therapy by going for cold walks in the winter with not a lot of layers on but warm enough to keep me from shivering. I find the crisp cold in combination with exercise and direct sunlight has had amazing benefits!
Once the warmer season starts... I will introduce the cold showers.

When it comes to cold showers...
The goal is to get to 2 -3 min with a min of 11 min per week ...spread out over a total of 2-3 days. That's where the health benefits begin!
Some people might need to start off with 15 seconds a day and gradually increase 10 sec each day thereafter until they reach the 2 - 3 minute level. Some people can and will go longer than this as their body adjusts.
Taking cold showers you only need to turn the temperature to cold enough where you feel like you want to get out, but also feel like you can safely stay in. As your body adjusts, so can the length of time and the temperature of the water. The important thing is, you don't want to overshock your nervous system too quickly...especially when you're first starting out. Let your body naturally adjust. Everyone's cold tolerance will be different. (It's also important to practice proper breathing while performing cold therapy as well.)

You can start with a warm shower if you like...but when it comes to Cold Therapy, it's important you "always finish off with cold."
Just remember it doesn't need to be ice cold! You can graduate to that later. The important thing is that the water is colder than your body temperature to start.

⚠️Keep in mind Cold Therapy must be approached with caution when it comes to specific health conditions.
A few examples I heard of being those with:
1. Heart Disease
2. Unregulated High Blood Pressure
3. Circulation or Sensory Disorders (who may not be able to feel when damage is being done from too much cold.)
4. Stiff Muscles or Joints
Thus why proper research is always recommended first... and why I always be sure to leave a link to my YouTube playlist with some good scientific medical research on what Cold Therapy is and how to start.)

Wishing you the best of luck!
 
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New here, put my intro post up just yesterday. One thing I didn't mention there, I feel that, in general terms, I've been getting very slowly better for a couple of years now, and what kicked it off was WHM! I had some issues with the breathing exercises and eventually gave that up but I still do the cold showers regularly. My energy and mood go up and my pain levels down fairly reliably. It only lasts a couple of hours but that's a lot better than nothing! (The other thing that helped me a lot during that time was microdosing, about which I'm happy to answer any questions.)
 
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