“Nope, this is not happening!” was all I could think when the icy cold water attacked my naked body in the shower. According to Wim Hof, this was supposed to be good for me. “What have I gotten myself into now?” I wondered. And even as I asked myself the question, and as much as I knew I didn’t like how that frigid water felt, I already understood that I was accepting the challenge and would somehow find a way to make it happen. I was supposed to start off with five seconds at 15.5 ˚ C or 60˚ F, do that each morning for a day or two and then move up to ten seconds and so on. I don’t know if you’ve ever tried taking a cold shower with such a dramatic change in temperature from what you normally enjoy, but let me tell you…it is one heckuva shock to the system! When you go from water that is an enjoyable, steamy 37.7 ˚ C (100˚ F) to 15 ˚C, your body and your mind go into full on rejection mode.
So why was I doing this? Well, if you read my last article on Wim Hof Breathing, you know that Hof recommends having a cold shower or doing a cold water immersion every day. He says the cold is, merciless but righteous. I figured enough time had passed since I got Hof’s breathing technique under my belt that it was time to try the cold shower thing. However, when I tried going about it Hof’s way, I quickly discovered that it was not going to work for me. I decided – and I know this won’t surprise you, because by now you’re getting a sense of who I am and how I do things – that I would instead turn the temperature down gradually and hope to eventually get to the 15 degree target.
I have to say, even when I turned the water to what felt cool to me, I couldn’t believe how much further I had to go. I was so sure the temperature was quite low only to be disappointed in finding out it was 25.5 ˚C (78˚F). Some people keep their swimming pools that temperature! How could it only be 25˚!? It was so cold already!
When I first started adding cold water to my morning shower, I would do Hof’s horse stance breathing. It helped prepare my mind and body for the discomfort that was to come. In saying this, I did get to the point where I was mentally able to prepare myself without having to do this breathing. In fact, it got to the point where even on the mornings where I didn’t think I was feeling up to the cold shower, autopilot kicked in and my hand habitually reached for the tap before I consciously registered what was happening.
My 30 second cool showers (according to a count in my head) soon turned into 45 seconds, one minute and so on until I reached my two minute goal. As well, as the time of my cold showers increased, their temperature decreased. Little by little I got myself down to 15˚C. I remember how proud I was of myself and how invigorated I felt. My body was bubble gum pink, but I had a smile on my face. Each morning after drying off I would excitedly inform my husband of my accomplishment. Not only did I tell him, but I would enthusiastically report my newest cold temperature to my friend/co-worker as soon as I saw her each morning. She was in complete and utter disbelief. She couldn’t wrap her head around why I would do such a thing.
I told her of all the health benefits Hof states that result from cold showers. He says that a cold shower a day “will give you so much more energy and peace because the stress will go out of your body.” (Feel Better Live More) He says the cold helps the body tackle cardiovascular related diseases. These cold showers are a form of hormetic stress. Our bodies are so used to being a comfortable temperature because we have warm clothes, furnaces in our homes and heaters in our cars. We are rarely in a state of discomfort. With the cold showers, our skin feels the cold water and sends electrical signals to our brain signifying that we are alive! It also helps stimulate the tiny muscles in our vascular system. You see, we have 100 000 km (62 137 miles) of blood vessels -capillaries, arteries and veins - in our bodies. Within these vessels are millions of little muscles that assist in sending blood to every part of our bodies. Our warm clothing and being in a constant state of comfort actually work to de-stimulate these tiny muscles which then in turn impacts our heart. This means then that our heart is working harder than it has to. Having a daily cold shower helps stimulate the vascular muscles, so the blood flows better to the cells and some of the load is taken off the heart - between 20 to 30 beats per minute Hof says. (Feel Better Live More) Like with doing his breathing, I can’t say that I have any empirical evidence as to the positive effects on my body. However, being that Hof works with the top scientists in the world, I’m going to trust that he knows what he’s talking about and that just because I can’t feel the benefits, doesn’t mean they’re not happening. What I do know is that Canadian winter temperatures no longer felt so cold to me. I had started taking the cold showers in the fall and carried on into the winter, and for the time I spent outside I found that I didn’t need to be bundled up as much as I had my entire adult life. Hmm, I guess I do have some proof that the showers were impacting my body.
Back to my friend/co-worker for a minute…it seemed as though all of my excitement about these daily cold showers finally piqued her interest enough to try them for herself. It became a morning ritual for us to text each other before we left for work to inform the other of the temperature we had reached and for how long. A while after she started, she convinced her boyfriend to start doing them as well. My husband even joined the party. It seemed my enthusiasm was catching on.
After reaching my goal of 15˚C for two minutes I was debating pushing my goal even further and doing a cold water immersion. It was now the middle of December and a big birthday was coming up for me. I decided that I wanted to do my immersion in a nearby lake. I Googled the lake temperature and found out that I had to get down to 4.4˚C (40˚F)! That’s a HUGE jump from 15˚C! I remember though, once I had made up my mind that was it, I was committed. My next shower was 14˚C (58˚F) and by the end of the two weeks I got myself down to 10˚C (50˚F). On the morning of my birthday I put my bikini on under my sweats, donned a toque and slipped my feet into a pair of water shoes. My husband drove me out to the lake, thinking I was crazy, I’m sure. When we arrived I took a minute in the car to psyche myself up before taking off all but bikini, toque and water shoes. I got out of the car and did some Wim Hof breathing. I could feel the cold winter air settled on my skin. It’s funny though, I remember being aware of the cold, but I felt in control because I had come with such preparation and purpose. I knew exactly what I was there to do and I was going to do it! Satisfied that I had taken enough breaths and that my mind was where I needed it to be, I began walking very intentionally and with great focus on my breath. I got deeper and deeper into the frigid water. When I got to a point that I felt was deep enough I crouched down until only my head was sticking out. While I certainly was aware of the cold water, how could I not be? I was in control. I wasn’t gasping for air. I was calm. I was doing what I had set out to do. After counting in my head to 37 seconds, I was ready to come out. I slowly made my way to the shore, grabbed my towel to dry off and got back into my sweats and the car. I am happy to say that my husband filmed the experience on my phone and I watch it every so often. I was so proud of myself that I immediately started sending the video to my parents and all of my friends. My husband also told me how proud he was of me and that felt pretty great, too!
If you thought that was it, I was done because I reached my goal of the immersion, it wasn’t. I asked my husband to drive me back the following week and I did the same thing again - only this time I stayed immersed for 57 seconds. I have to say, doing something like that really does give you confidence. I remember thinking in my head that if I could do that, think of all the other things I could do once I set my mind to it!
As a follow-up, I would love to inform you that I continue to regularly do my cold showers, however, I regret to say that I do not. I would like to think that it’s due to Covid and the stress that we have all been under because of the pandemic, but I can’t say for sure. Have I given up completely? No, and I know I shouldn’t be so hard on myself, but that’s tricky too. I will get back to it at some point in time, I’m just not sure exactly when. In the meantime, if you are struggling with negative thoughts and letting go of your “stuff”, if you want to do something kind for your heart, or if you have simply been inspired by what you have read, go ahead, be brave, and try taking some Cold Showers.
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