How Cold Water Therapy Can Help You Lose Fat, Grow Muscle, And Boost Recovery

Way back in the 1800s, an Austrian peasant farmer called Vincenz Priessnitz, popularized a powerful ancient remedy that had people from all over the country, flocking to him and queuing up at his door. Among them were the Emperor’s brother, a monarch, a duke and duchess, 22 princes and 149 counts and countesses⁠.

Vincenz Priessnitz, The Water Doctor

Vincenz Priessnitz, the “Water Doctor”.

Vincenz Priessnitz discovered this powerful remedy when he watched a roe deer in the forest, heal itself of a bullet-wound in the leg. He went to the same spot every day, and watched the deer bathe its leg in the same cold water source, and gradually it became completely healed.

In 1816 Priessnitz himself got into a serious injury with a horse cart, where he broke his ribs. The doctors told him it was fatal, or at least crippling, but he went against conventional wisdom and used cold water therapy to heal himself.

He then used his cold therapy to heal some of his neighbors. Word soon spread of Vincenz Priessnitz and his ‘miracle-cure', and he soon became renowned throughout the country and beyond. People of all ranks went to see him from many different countries. Even doctors went to receive treatment.

Priessnitz' cold water therapy worked so well, that the Emperor awarded him the Austrian Gold Civil Merit Medal First Class, the highest civilian honor of the Austrian government. His therapy touched so many lives that monuments were built in his name, long after he died.

Vincenz Priessnitz Cold Water Bath

Vincenz Priessnitz was visited by royalty and common folk alike for his “miracle” water therapy.

After Priessnitz, there were many others who became popular with their use of cold water therapy to cure disease. One in particular, was a Bavarian priest called Sebastien Kneipp, who cured himself of pulmonary tuberculosis by regularly plunging into an icy river. Pulmonary TB is a serious condition that's difficult to treat, even today.

Kneipp wrote about the subject, and opened a series of hydrotherapy clinics which are still in operation today, and known as “Kneipp clinics”.

But cold water therapy existed LONG before either of these two guys found out about it. According to Dian Dincin Buchman, Ph.D., author of The Complete Book Of Water Healing, cold water therapy has been around since the dawn of man. Both Pythagoras and Hippocrates were known advocates of cold water therapy in the treatment of various illnesses.

The Roman Emperor Augustus used a series of cold baths to cure a liver abscess, when nothing else was helping. Cold baths were then used widely by the Romans. They were also used by the ancient Greeks and ancient Egyptians. Native Americans were known to plunge into icy lakes and streams as a general cure for all illnesses. Ancient Russians also frequently bathed in ice cold rivers for health and spiritual cleansing.

Ancient cold water bath

Ancient Romans, Egyptians and Greeks, all recognized the benefits of regular cold water bathing.

If you think about it in evolutionary terms, aside from the few that happened to live near a hot spring, man has only ever been exposed to cold water until fairly recently. I can't imagine our paleolithic ancestor Grok, ever having been exposed to prolonged periods of temperature-controlled hot water. To bathe himself, Grok would stand under a cool waterfall or dive into a cold lake, stream or river.

After over thousands of years of being exposed to cold water, it makes sense that our bodies adapted by developing a positive response to cold water. Survival of the fittest, right? Those who had negative responses died away.

There's obviously some magic in cold water therapy, and modern medicine has done a great job at hiding this from us because big pharmaceutical companies like nothing better than to sell us their drugs. Despite this, there are those of us who still practice cold water therapy for its obvious health benefits.

In the US, there's Coney Island's Polar Bear Club in New York. These guys take a plunge into the near-freezing Atlantic ocean every Sunday from November to April. Similar seemingly-crazy cold-water stunts are performed more regularly in Russia and many European countries like Finland, where “ice hole swimming” is a popular pastime.

Ice Hole Swimming

“Ice hole swimming” is a popular pastime in Finland

I used to wonder why all these crazy Russians and Europeans are always torturing themselves by jumping into frozen lakes. Now I know why – it makes them strong and keeps them young and healthy.

The way cold water works is it acts as a hormetic stressor. A hormetic stressor is something that's dangerous in high doses, but in lower doses, stresses your body in a way that results in a favorable biological response. Exercise is a hormetic stressor and cold water acts on your body a lot like exercise does. Both cause your heart rate and blood pressure to go up DURING exposure.

When you exercise, you could look at your increased heart rate and blood pressure and say something BAD is happening to your body. But no-one today would say that exercise is bad for you.

Exercise is a hardship and a stress on your body, but as long as you don't overdo it, you are rewarded after exercise with better health, strength, vitality and wellness in general. The same happens with a cold shower.

Jumping into a cold shower or otherwise being exposed to cold water can shock the hell out of you. I'm sure you know the experience – whether you turned the shower faucet the wrong way, jumped into a public swimming pool, fell off a boat, or got sprayed with a garden hose. It makes you gasp, pant like a dog, and your heart races like you're being chased by a rabid dog.

This is all bought on by the “cold shock response”. It only lasts for about a minute, after which your body adapts and the cold water really doesn't feel so bad. And if you're worried about hypothermia, don't. Mild hypothermia starts only after about 30 minutes of cold water immersion. So as long as you keep it short, you have little to worry about.

I say “little” to worry about… if you have heart disease or high blood pressure, you have to be a little careful and seek permission from your doctor before you take that icy plunge. Your heart and blood vessels may not be able to handle the increased workload.

So this cold shock response, although different, has a lot in common with exercise. It shocks your body in a way that stimulates a powerful hormonal response in your body.

The Benefits Of Taking A Cold Shower

I could go on forever with the list of benefits. Unlike medical drugs, which have one or two benefits and 60 different side-effects, this is a natural, holistic remedy that our bodies were designed by nature, to respond well to. The list of benefits to regular cold water immersion really does go on and on. Here are a few important ones that matter to you and me.

Increased Strength & Muscle Growth

There are some studies that suggest regular cold exposure leads not only to a reduction of body fat, but also to an increase in muscle mass. Despite eating more, animals kept in the cold are found to have less fat and more muscle than those kept in a hot environment.

Cold water shower muscle

Bathing/showering in cold water can help you grow muscle.

A little lower down in this article, I also discuss a study where a group of 64 Indian subjects were found to have reduced abdominal girth and increased lean mass during an 8-week expedition to Antarctica.

In an interesting study in the Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, cold water immersion BEFORE a weight-training workout, resulted in significantly greater strength gains than both the control group (who did nothing before the workout), and the group that was immersed in HOT water before the workout⁠. A number of other studies have also reported this finding. Some authors suggest this could be because of the decrease in pain perception caused by cold water immersion.

And hey, I just had a thought.

Have you seen Rocky IV? Where Rocky trains out in the mountains in the freezing cold of Russia, while Ivan Drago trains indoors with all his fancy equipment and STEROIDS. It's probably just a coincidence, and I doubt they had this in mind when they planned to have Rocky train in the cold… but I like to think Rocky's muscles being kept cold, allowed him to train harder than Drago.

And hey, there's actually a study that suggests cooling the body is “better than steroids“.

So give it a go. If you find the burning sensation in your muscles while doing 3 sets of weighted squats unbearable, then maybe a cold pre-workout shower is what you need.

Improved Post-Exercise Recovery

Cold water has a powerful anti-inflammatory effect when applied on your body. It works very well with inflammatory conditions like arthritis, sprained ankles and acne. There's also a lot of inflammation associated with the muscle-soreness you get after exercise. Studies have shown that a quick cold shower after exercise, significantly reduces the time it takes for your muscles to recover.

One particular study found that taking a cold shower after a high intensity interval training session, improved next day running performance. What was particularly interesting in this study, is that running performance was better in those who had a cold shower immediately after exercise, as opposed to 3 hours after exercise. So it's best to jump into the shower while you're still at the gym, rather than wait to get home.

So cool off those muscles and you'll perform better at your next workout. Better performance leads to better gains.

Update: A recent study suggests that if muscle growth, strength gains, and boosting testosterone are your goals (as opposed to quick recovery for better performance for daily workouts), then you might want to hold off on that cold shower until at least an hour after your workout. More on this here:

https://chestsculpting.com/should-you-avoid-cold-showers-immediately-after-a-workout/

Better Mood, Energy & Vitality

I don't know about you, but I feel like crap when I come out of a hot bath – I feel drowsy and tired as hell. Maybe that's just me, but one thing we can all relate to is the fact that a cold bath/shower leaves you feeling energized and refreshed afterwards.

This is because exposure to cold water activates the sympathetic nervous system, which results in increased levels of norepinephrine in your blood. Norepinephrine plays an important role in keeping your spirits high. In fact, low levels of norepinephrine are known to lead to depression.

Since norepinephrine levels can increase by five-fold during a cold shower, cold showers are now being considered as a potential treatment for depression. If you're not depressed though, the least a cold shower will do is make you feel bloody good.

Regular cold water immersion also delays aging, improves circulation, gives you healthy hair & skin, strengthens immunity, and some say even boosts testosterone and increases fertility. But one of the most important things you and I need to know, is can cold exposure REALLY help us to lose weight?

There's a lot of talk out there that freezing your butt off for hours on end will only burn a few extra calories at best. But what are the latest studies showing?

Could it be that thermogenesis during cold exposure can be just as effective as exercise?

Use Cold Water Therapy To Lose Weight & Cheat Your Way To A Trim Physique

Did you know that water conducts heat away from your body 25 times faster than air?

When you throw yourself into a pool of cold water, your body still maintains its internal temperature at around 37°C. But it does this at a HUGE caloric cost. The latest studies show that this caloric cost can help you lose weight.

Not only that, but the latest studies show that your body adapts over time to regular cold water immersions. These adaptations increase your metabolism, so you burn more calories throughout the day, even when you're not in the cold.

All this time we've been obsessing over diet and exercise, and now we find that the high energy demands of thermogenesis during cold immersion, can play just as big a role in weight loss as exercise can.

So How Does Cold-Immersion Weight Loss Work?

When you take that cold plunge, the body uses 2 different mechanisms to maintain your core temperature:

1. Reduces heat loss (by making insulating changes).
2. Increases heat production (by thermogenesis)

The insulating changes I refer to above are the reduction of blood-flow to your skin, and the exchange of heat between your veins and arteries.

A lot of people worry when I say “insulating changes”…

“Won't cold exposure just make my body put on more fat for insulation?”

We humans aren't like arctic mammals. Although we DO adapt to the cold via various different mechanisms, an increase in subcutaneous fat is not one of them.

In a 1995 study by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, 64 Indian men were taken to Antarctica where they worked outdoors for 8 weeks. The findings of this study were pretty interesting. Although these guys put on a bit of weight, there was no change in skinfold thickness, and abdominal girth DECREASED⁠. This basically means that they put on more muscle and got more shredded.

Antarctica indian study

Indians living in Antarctica for 8 weeks were found to have decreased abdominal girth and increased lean mass.

When it comes to weight loss with cold therapy, what we're most interested in is how the body increases heat production. This includes shivering and non-shivering thermogenesis.

Shivering can increase your metabolism by an average of 400-550% the level of your metabolism at rest. Studies have also found that shivering draws most of its energy from stored fat.

Although full-on shivering is an excellent way to burn those extra calories, it's a tad discomforting for MY liking. Instead, you can stick to a temperature that causes shivering without shaking, where you simply experience an increase in muscle tone. Increased muscle tone without shaking, is classed as a low level of shivering, which still increases the energy demands on your body, and is still great for losing those extra pounds.

Perhaps more important than shivering, is another method of heat production called “non-shivering thermogenesis”. This involves brown fat cells, which are a good type of fat that we definitely want more of.

Brown fat cells play such a HUGE role in weight loss, that many scientists now even claim that reduced brown fat cell activity may be the very reason why people get obese!

Brown fat cells come from the same stem cells as muscle. They are more closely related to muscle than they are to the usual white fat you want to get rid of. Like muscle, brown fat contains lots of mitochondria. It specializes in burning the unwanted stored white-fat in your body, to produce heat.

We used to think that brown fat cells were only available in kids under the age of 10 (which is why it's so easy for kids to stay lean). But what we've recently found is that after the age of 10, brown fat simply gets deactivated. It gets RE-activated during cold-exposure…

Brown fat distribution during cold exposure

PET-CT scans reveal the activation of brown fat cells during cold exposure

Not only do you activate those dormant brown fat cells during cold exposure, but through frequent and regular cold exposure, you can actually increase the number of brown fat cells in your body. And after just a few weeks, your body's ability to burn calories through brown fat cell thermogenesis, increases. This increases your resting metabolic rate (RMR), helping you to burn more calories at rest. In a study on Korean pearl divers, divers were found to have a 30% higher RMR during winter, when the water temperature was coolest at around 10°C.

We also have evidence that warm temperatures make you GAIN weight, since a review paper in the journal Obesity Reviews, found a link between central heating and obesity.

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As new research unveils the connection between cold water immersion and weight loss, more and more people are experimenting with this new and different way to lose weight. Ray Cronise, a NASA scientist, and a pioneer in the field of cold water immersion, managed to lose 50% more weight in half the time, simply by adding cold-water immersion to his diet and exercise regimen.

Remember though, Cronise didn't achieve success from cold-water dips alone. He had a solid exercise and nutrition regimen as a foundation, and simply used cold water immersion therapy as a supplement. I suggest you do the same.

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The benefits of cold showers really do go on and on. They improve circulation, stabilize blood pressure, delay ageing, strengthen immunity (fighting cold with cold), and help prevent disease. The least you can do is give it a try.

Here's how it's done…

How To Have A Cold Shower

I've been incorporating cold showers into my routine for a few years now and I've noticed a big difference in my performance and recovery.

I started out by jumping straight into the coldest setting on my shower. The first few times it made my heart jump into my throat, and I thought I was going to have a heart attack. There were few experiences in my life that ever made me breathe that fast. One of those was when I was being chased by a stray rabid dog in Turkey. So yeh, real fight-or-flight-type response.

The good news is you don't have to EVER go through the same amount of discomfort I did.

Actually I encourage you not to. See, when the water is so cold that it makes you shiver, brown fat thermogenesis is DOWNregulated, because shivering is already producing the heat you need. You want it to be at a temperature that doesn't give you full-out shivering by shaking. This makes your body focus more on non-shivering thermogensis, i.e. the activation of brown fat cells.

Over time, your body will adapt – the science confirms this. You become better at non-shivering thermogenesis as your brown fat cells multiply. Your threshold for shivering goes up, and you'll find that you can handle cooler and cooler temperatures without shivering.

So there are many different ways you can do this. If you're brave (or crazy like me), you can use the Spartan method and just jump straight into the cold, shiver it out, and wait for your body to adapt over time. If you do it like this, here are some tips:

  1. Immerse your face FIRST. There are special receptors in the trigeminal nerve that supplies your FACE, which actually DECREASE your heart rate in response to cold water.
    This is a little trick I learned while studying extreme physiology in college. It's called the “diving response”, and it will help to keep your heart rate and breathing in check during the cold-shock response you'll get from step 2…
  2. Immerse your whole body. Let yourself gasp and breathe as fast as you need. After about 10-20 seconds, turn the tap off. Since you've just been exposed to the cold, your body will continue to adapt by reducing the blood supply to your skin. Use this time to apply soap, shampoo and all the rest.
  3. Give it at least a minute before you turn the tap back on. When you do, you'll find that the cold water doesn't feel so bad anymore, since your body has had enough time to adapt by taking insulative measures.

If you prefer the more civilized method as used by James Bond, simply jump into a warm shower, enjoy it, take your time, then reduce the temperature to the coldest setting for the last few minutes of your shower.

To make it easier on yourself, you can reduce the temperature gradually. Allow your body to adapt to each change in temperature before you lower it again. Go low enough so your body tenses up a little, but not to the point where you shiver. Over time you'll find that you can tolerate lower and lower temperatures, without ever breaking a shiver.

Keep in mind though, that you eventually want to get to at least 10°C. Although studies show numerous benefits derived from water up to 15°C, the best adaptations happen when the water is cooler at 10°C.

For your body to adapt, you also don't need to stay in there for very long at all. Aim for around 3 minutes, maximum 10.

What Body Parts To Hit?

We know that most brown fat cells are located around the back of your neck and upper chest⁠, so let the water run over these areas.

It turns out that Steve Reeves was also a fan of cold showers. Here's what he had to say in his book, “Building the Classic Physique”:

“Take a cold shower each morning upon arising—let the cold water run on your genitals for a minute or two to stimulate circulation—then dry off by rubbing briskly with a good Turkish towel.”

I haven't come across any studies that confirm this, but it doesn't hurt to try. If you paid attention in those high school biology lessons, you'll know that your testicles hang in a pouch outside your body because they work best at cooler temperatures. You'll also know that the testicles produce sperm and testosterone. Could it be that intermittent exposure to even cooler temperatures could boost sperm and testosterone production? Who knows? But it's a worth a try ;).

So, what are your experiences with cold showers? Hate 'em? Love 'em? Have you noticed any weight loss? How's it helping with post-workout recovery? Let us know in the comments box below, and let's get talkin'.

Remember though, if you're looking to get into shape, cold water therapy alone is not enough. You have to combine it with other methods that help to boost testosterone. Click the link below to discover some of the most powerful methods for boosting testosterone:

https://chestsculpting.com/how-to-boost-testosterone-naturally/

33 thoughts on “How Cold Water Therapy Can Help You Lose Fat, Grow Muscle, And Boost Recovery”

  1. I’ve been practicing cold showers for almost a year now and I can say that it does make me feel good inside out. Some of the noticeable changes I observed in myself are better immunity (I’ve had lesser experience of colds & flu), better looking skin and some improvement in muscle tone, although I can’t see it caused me to lose weight ‘coz I’m actually trying to gain weight in the first place.

    I have read many articles about the benefits of cold showers before but yours is different for it specifically discusses it’s effects on masculinity like increased muscle mass and testosterone in particular. The others I’ve read only explains it in a general overview but yours gives in-depth scientific/study-based explanations. However there’s this one article I’ve also read just recently that states some of cold shower’s contraindications, these are the situations where it’s advisable to avoid cold showers. You haven’t include them here so I think it would be good if I’ll copy-paste them here in my comment for the benefit of your other readers..

    1. Cold showers should not be taken when a woman is menstruating. A woman needs extra rest and gentleness during her menses. Taking a cold shower is too much for the reproductive system during menstruation. A lukewarm shower is recommended. Generally speaking, hot showers are not good as they tend to depress the various physiological systems of the body.
    2. Heart disease. If my normal, healthy heart felt like it was about to explode during a cold shower, imagine how a diseased heart will feel.
    3. High blood pressure. The contraction in your blood vessels caused by cold water could apparently cause a stroke.
    4. Overheated or feverish. Your blood vessels need to dilate in order to release heat. Cold water causes them to constrict.
    5. Women after the 7th month of pregnancy (This all depends on your reaction to the water. If you’re not thrown into shock by the cold water, it might be OK.)
    6. Immediately after a man has ejaculated (His body is focused on making new sperm cells and semen at this time, so cold showers can be a bit too stressful).
    7. Suffering from an eating disorder.
    8. Immediately after a vigorous workout (Start hot and finish cold to avoid muscle cramping, it can happen!)
    9. If you are underweight.
    10. Some people have experienced cold showers making depression worse (Although it has also been said that cold showers can help depression, it’s best to use your own judgment).
    Reply
    • Hi Ryse, thank you so much for your detailed input. I do take issue with some of your points though. I’m going to explain why, for the benefit of my readers. Please don’t take offense or see this as me attacking you in any way, I really do appreciate your very helpful input, and hope to hear more from you in the future.

      I searched around on Google to see where your list of cold shower contraindications came from. They are from various sites that are full of articles with little or no scientific basis, mostly filled with conjecture.

      One thing we can do with cold exposure, is to see it in the same light as exercise. Both cause a sudden increase in heart rate and blood pressure, with initial peripheral vasoconstriction (where the blood vessels near the surface of your body constrict, in order to increase blood flow internally – to your heart and lungs, and to your muscles).

      Before I go on, quick disclaimer: I am not a doctor, so please do not take any of what I say as medical advice. If you have a medical condition, please discuss your condition with your doctor to see if exercise/cold exposure is safe for you.

      #2 & 3: Heart Disease and High Blood Pressure

      It totally depends on the extent of your heart disease. Discuss it with your doctor. If your doctor advises gentle exercise, then gentle cold exposure shouldn’t be a problem either. Just like you wouldn’t go from doing no exercise at all, to suddenly doing 100% effort high intensity training; you wouldn’t go from no cold exposure, to suddenly throwing yourself into the arctic.

      Same with high blood pressure. A sudden unexpected and large elevation in blood pressure (either through exercise, cold exposure, or some other stress), could lead to a hemorrhagic stroke. However, gentle exposure to exercise and cold exposure, with a gradual increase in intensity/cold, should help improve your condition.

      #4: Overheated or feverish

      If you go to hospital with a fever, the nurses will remove your clothes, put a fan by your bedside, and open the window. Cold exposure helps to keep your temperature down. As I mention in my article, Sebastien Kneipp cured himself of pulmonary tuberculosis by regularly plunging into an icy river.

      Your blood vessels dilate to help your body lose heat. Cold water immersion will help accelerate this process. Your blood vessels will constrict temporarily in order to prevent too much heat loss, but heat loss is still enhanced by cold exposure (this is common sense!). After your cold shower, your blood vessels will dilate again, so you can continue to lose more heat.

      And again, it totally depends on the severity of your condition. If you have a fever, please discuss with your doctor before you take that cold plunge.

      #6: Sperm Production.

      It’s common knowledge that cold exposure enhances sperm production.

      #7 & 10: Eating Disorder & Depression

      The general consensus in the scientific literature, is that psychiatric conditions like eating disorders, depression and psychosis, are helped by intermittent cold exposure, just as they are helped by exercise.

      #8. Immediately after a workout

      Olympic athletes are known to have ice-baths immediately after their workouts, because it aids recovery.

      #9: Being Underweight

      Would you tell someone who was underweight not to exercise? If anything, if you are underweight, exercise will help to stimulate your appetite. Cold showers will have the same effect.

      #1 & 5: Menstruation & Pregnancy

      Sorry, I won’t even pretend to be an expert on menstruation and pregnancy. Please seek advice for this elsewhere ^_^.

      Unlike with medical drugs, natural remedies like exercise and cold showers, have a balancing effect on the body. If you are overweight, exercise and cold showers will help reduce your body fat. If you are underweight, it will help to stimulate your appetite and put more weight on. If you are depressed, exercise and cold showers will improve your mood; if you are manic (i.e. mood is unusually high), exercise and cold showers will help to stabilize your mood.

      Reply
      • I don’t mean to attack you either, as you did suggest that anyone with a medical condition should consult a doctor before trying this, but I would kindly suggest that you don’t pretend to be an expert on 7 and 9. It is dangerous to encourage anyone who is underweight or suffering from an eating disorder do anything that burns extra calories without first consulting a medical professional.

        9. I can’t speak to whether cold showers would stimulate hunger, but that fact is irrelevant because most people who are underweight do not become that way from a lack of appetite. Generally it is caused either by poverty, or by a medical or mental health condition that either prevents food intake or causes calories to be burned/excreted/vomited more quickly than they can be replenished. Cold water therapy won’t remedy these problems. Either way, depending on how underweight a person is, extra calorie loss could be harmful, or, in some cases, even deadly. And yes, in some cases doctors will discourage exercise until a healthier weight is reached. It is always recommended that anyone who is underweight consult a doctor before starting an exercise program and I think this should be seen in a similar light.

        7. Similarly to 9, anyone with an eating disorder should discuss this with their doctor/counselor. While cold water therapy may improve mood, which may be helpful with any number of mental health problems, it also also burns extra calories, which can be a problem for those with eating disorders. Even for someone who is not underweight, this is the kind of behavior that can complicate an illness like bulimia or anorexia.

        If you visit a treatment center for eating disorders, you will find that many people who suffer from these illnesses do much more that limit or purge food to keep their weight down. When forced to eat, they will often hide food, or exercise all night. When stopped from exercising, they will put weights in their clothes, or turn the heat way down, or wear clothes inappropriate for the weather in order to loose weight. They will even, yes, take long, cold showers to try and stop themselves from getting back to a healthy weight. Many who aren’t in 24hr treatment will do all of the above at once and drop so much weight in a short time as to be life-threatening.

        For a population wherein many literally starve themselves to death (anorexia has the highest mortality rate of any mental illness) and relapse is common, it is imperative that this not be encouraged without at least discussing with a professional.

        None of this is to criticize your article. But, like most good things, cold showers have their limitations and I think it’s important to discuss the risks and shortcomings in addition to the benefits. Always best to be cautious and consult a doctor when there are any doubts about health and safety.

        Reply
      • I have been taking cold showers and swimming in the cold ocean for about three years.

        I don’t recommend cold immersion during your period because it stimulates more bleeding. I wait till the last day, usually it’s fine for my body by then.

        Since I began cold dipping my body has changed significantly. Loss of weight, better digestion, better sleeping, huge difference in mental clarity. Yes, muscle tone too.

        It calms me down while giving me endorphins every time.

        I dip in Washintgon State, in waters below 50 degrees. I stay in for about ten minutes, as much as 20 at times. I love the feeling. The first 100 times were hard, especially during the winter when the air was colder than the water. Surprisingly, it’s often easier in the winter because the water feels warmer.

        Start slow and build up some confidence. Definitely if you can get into some open water the experience is worth it. I also take ice baths at home when I can’t get get to the beach but there are numerous benefits to ocean water, such as iodine and the connection to nature that take me back over and over.

        It’s almost a panacea, has helped so many health issues. Best free therapy around.

        Reply
        • Wow Michelle, sounds wonderful having access to cold open water near where you live, and I totally agree with the added benefits of bathing in a natural body of water and having a connection to nature, as opposed to chlorine-infested water in swimming pools.

          Reply
  2. No problem. I really just thought it would be helpful and informative. Sorry if I shared it here with lack of evidence and if it appear as somewhat offensive to you.

    Reply
    • Hi Ryse. It certainly was helpful and informative. There is no need to apologize, I am grateful for your input, and in no way have you offended me.

      Reply
  3. I would like to start of by saying I am underweight and have breathing problems along with minor thalasemia. However, I have lot of stamina otherwise and don’t remember the last time I had the flu (which is never and I work in northern Canada) and/or fell sick. I was also suffering from chronic fatigue suddenly due to working in the mines in 40 deg c and also summer heat. I like to make sure my health is good so I took all kind of vitamins to remedy CFS. 

    Due to suffering from small blood cells and cfs, three days ago I decided to take cold showers and today was my third. It was magic. I have been so energized and my thoughts were quick and instant solutions come to my mind. In three days I also noticed a lil muscle tone which is insane because the only time I gain any muscle tone is when I am working out.  I told all my friends to give it a shot. Also, my friend could tell from talkin to me on the phone how energized I sounded. That was proof. Lastly, I have Acid reflux problems , GERD, and right after my shower.. I could talk in my normal voice without spitting any phlegm. I also get hungry quicker for some reason.. Even tho I ate a nice meal just a few hours ago.

    I never replied to any threads but I had to because it actually works and I feel like a million bucks :)

    Reply
    • Hi Karma, great to hear of your positive experience using cold water therapy. Please do let us know how you get on over time.

      Reply
  4. Im conducting a body fat experiment with cold immersions right now. similarly designed to Ray's experiment and the results so far are pretty ridic. 60% through now…

    Reply
    • Hi Mohirah

      “Pretty ridic” – is that good or bad? Please do let us know, and let us know how you get on when you’re at 100%

       

      Reply
  5. I have been doing cold showers now for three months. I have lost 20 lbs. I have never looked so shredded before but I believe the cold showers played a big part. People say I look like a kid and I’m 35 years old. It has me also help me with public speaking and don’t get nervous before a speech. You would be foolish not to try this. Don’t wait!

    Reply
    • Wow Mikey, what an amazing result! A lot of other people have had some amazing experiences with cold water immersion – Ray Cronise and Tim Ferris being two famous examples. I got most of my weight loss when I switched to a low carb diet, but cold showers have helped as well. The thing I like most about them is how refreshed I feel when I come out of the shower, it increases my work productivity, and gives me more energy throughout the day.

      Reply
  6. Hi, I saw that cold shower is healthy but I wonder something about cold shower:

    – I learned that soap is not efficient when used with cold water in chemistry class. So, can cold water provide a clean bath?

    – Another thing is that doesn’t cold water make us ill? It’s winter and I think we are more likely to get cold or have flu.

    These two question really make me think not to use cold water. But maybe it is just a common belief and looks like a placebo effect. If you can answermy questions, that would be great.

    Reply
    • Hi Omer, thanks for your questions.

      It’s true that soap works better with warm water than it does with cold water. But that doesn’t mean that soap doesn’t work at all with cold water. You still have your body heat, so when you apply soap to your body, there is still enough warmth there to help with the cleansing process. If you feel this is not enough, then you can always have a quick hot shower to cleanse yourself with soap, then turn the shower to cold, and finish off with a cold shower.

      Yes, cold exposure can make you ill if you are not acclimatized to it. Just like exercise, cold exposure is a way of providing your body with a temporary harmful stimulus or stressor, and the adaptive response following this stressor is what makes you stronger. This process is called “hormesis”. Both exercise and cold exposure can make your immune system weak for a short period of time, during which exposure to the cold or flu virus can make you ill. However, when you exercise regularly, or are acclimitized to regular cold exposure, then your immune system will get stronger, and cold exposure will be less likely to lead to illness.

      Hope this answers your questions,
      Garry

      Reply
  7. First six months of the year I ended hot showers. Attempted a few full on cold showers, and just couldnt stomach it, so continued to wash up NEAR cold water. Still altered my mood and outlook. Just this week I have finally found the ba11s to go under, we will see what happens as i continue that. Diabetic, overweight, anaerobic exerciser.

    Reply
    • Hey Kent. Nice one, let us know how you get on. Anaerobic exerciser is great, but I would urge you to add “low carb dieter” to your title too :).

      Reply
  8. I’ve been taking them now for a bit and have in the past. I usually use them most when I’m trying to put on as much muscle mass as possible quickly as possible. It seems to help at least.

    Reply
  9. I’ll definitely add this cold water therapy to my blue fat freeze system which has already helped me reduced 3 inches around my waist in 2 months.

    Reply
  10. Hey sir i got to know you from my friend who also having a small case on moobs he and me talked and bought Paleolithic hiit putting half of the prices.
    I want to tell I started today
    Although we could not purchase machines and running and cycling will be some hard course I chosed skipping rope

    what warm ups suits for this exercise

    Today I could do jumping for 1 min with leg failiure to jump and legs a little bit are paining

    How to do warm ups for 60s for phase 2 with 75 percent intense ,I could not figure out how
    And last one do we need warm ups before doing phase 1
    I even sent u an mail but no response for long!!
    Hoping for quick advise!
    Thank you!

    Reply
    • Hi Heshan, thanks for getting in touch. I do respond to every email, but I don’t check my junk folder often, and sometimes emails can end up there by mistake. I apologize for not getting back to you.

      Regarding your questions on my program, Paleolithic HIIT, any time you exercise, the first thing you should do is a very quick basic warm-up where you move your joints around and briefly stretch your joints, this shouldn’t take any longer than a couple minutes. Move your arms around in circles, loosen up your neck by moving it side to side and in circles, move your hips around in circles, touch your toes, stretch your quadriceps and hamstrings, do 10 bodyweight squats, and 20 bodyweight calf raises to get the blood flowing around your shins.

      The above is the only warm-up you need before Phase 1. For Phase 2, you do the above brief warm-up, and you’ll see that the first two sprints at 75% intensity are warm-up sets. If you look at the table on page 160, you’ll see the first two sprints are at 75% intensity and the title column says “warm-up”. After that you’ve got higher intensities as workout sets.

      The best way to warm up for a particular exercise is to do the same exercise at a lower intensity.

      Reply
  11. Thank you for this interesting article. I have been swimming in the lake for almost 3 months, once, or twice a day. When I started, the lake temperature was about 16 degrees, and now it is down to 12. I did this as an experiement to decrease inflammation in the hope that it would help my migraines. I have not had a migraine since I started doing this. Going this long without a migraine hasn’t happened in over 50 years for me.
    I exercise for at least 2 hours a day, mainly hiking.
    My diet is healthy, organic, no junk, vegetarian. I had already lost 35 pounds before I started this cold water journey. Most of this weight loss has been achieved through exercise.
    I am not obese (5’7″, now 127 pounds, female, age 60), but I have belly fat that needs to go. During last 2 weeks, since the water has cooled, I discovered that I lost 4 pounds, with no change in diet, or activity level.
    During my first few swims, I felt that shock response described here, but now, going into the cold water has become effortless and pleasurable. I just relax into the water and spend about 10 minutes immersed in it. I don’t feel any shivering, but I notice that my hands really heat up fast after the swim and I feel warm all over within 5 minutes.
    Thank you for this great article.

    Reply
    • Great to hear about your results Rhiannon.

      Oh the luxury of having a cool lake nearby for you to swim in.

      If all you did was see your DOCTOR about your migraine, you’d have been put on one pain killer after another along with anti migraine agents.

      Oftentimes an ailment is just your body’s way of telling you there’s something wrong with your lifestyle. As long as it’s not an emergency, we first need to look at changing our lifestyle before resorting to drugs or surgery.

      Reply
  12. Cold showering has changed my life over the last three months, when I have been taking them twice a day. Energised in the morning, relaxed at night – it is a no-brainer for me. At the start I was a little underweight – about 62 kg and 172 cm tall – so weight loss was not a motivating reason to try them. Interestingly, I have gained a kg or two. Perhaps they are monitoring my metabolism in a positive way – i.e. I eat more to function better? It does feel like my body is balancing out and managing diet and exercise in a natural way.

    Reply
    • Great to hear it Greg. When you live the natural lifestyle your body is wired to respond to, those who are overweight will lose weight, and those who are underweight will gain wait. This applies to cold showers, eating a natural diet free of grains, doing high intensity exercise, etc.

      Thanks for the reminder. I’m going to start having more regular cold showers, just having read your comment :p . In fact, I’m going to jump into one right now!

      If you check back on this reply, please do let us know some more details about your cold showers and lifestyle. How long do you stay in the shower? What’s your diet like, what exercise if any do you do?

      Reply
      • I guess my lifestyle choices are a bit of a ‘package’ really! I have used intermittent fasting for 3 years – keeping an eye on the carbs – and work out regularly doing high-intensity training for short sessions mostly involving the use of body weight with some interval training on other days. These routines helped me get lean and it has been no problem maintaining a good weight.

        And as I said in the earlier post, I have now added cold showers to my daily routines. For two weeks I eased from a hot to a warm, to a cold shower. That worked. Then in late Winter, my wife and went for a holiday by a beach and leaping into a chilly ocean each morning was the key in deciding to just go straight into a cold shower. I now shower morning and night for around 5 minutes, taking care that the water reaches all of the body.

        I am not sure if I have gained all of the benefits discussed in many posts; I am however convinced that it has clarified my thinking provided me with a motivational tool to stay focussed and energised.

        As a matter of interest, I am a 69-year-old semi-retired educator who has taught and been in leadership roles in what we call in NZ Primary -usually up to age 11, and high schools where our young adults live!
        The key message, of course, is that I have never stopped learning.

        Reply
  13. So it is the holiday period here in New Zealand and a week ago I began my day with a swim in what is a pretty cold ocean, followed with cold shower (there was one on the beach), and then straight to the gym. On the first day my workout schedule was 20 minutes of interval training on the treadmill – walk for one minute, run for one minute. While I have never found this difficult, after being at the beach, I was absolutely flying! Since them I have noticed how much energy and focus I have during workouts after a swim. Cardio or weight – each feel much more connected. Then I went back into the article here and noticed a brief mention of a pre-workout cold shower…….when work starts I won’t really be able to go to the beach each morning, but will leap out of bed into a cold shower then race off to the gym – working out and looking forward to the cold shower back at home before heading off to work. Yes, it is all true folks!

    Reply
    • Hey Greg, thanks for sharing your experience.

      Cold exposure redirects blood away from your skin and into deeper tissues like your muscles, which is why your exercise performance increases. It also increases blood flow to your your brain, which is why cold exposure makes you feel more alert, improves your mood, and can even help with medical conditions like depression and autism.

      You’re really helping me out with these comments. I may have written this article, but we all tend to forget the importance of things we learn and need occasional reminders. I wrote an article recently about why you should avoid cold showers AFTER your workouts if your goal is to grow muscle. Having a cold shower BEFORE your workouts then, is the perfect substitute!

      Reply

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