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Cold exposure is popular among health-conscious people, from freezing showers to cryotherapy tanks. And rightly so, given its ability to boost fat burning, protect the nerves, strengthen the immune system, and other benefits. We will look at the science behind cold exposure, how to do it, and important safety precautions. What exactly is Cold Therapy? Cold therapy is not a new concept; it is one of man’s oldest medical treatments. The most ancient medical text, the Edwin Smith Papyrus (3500 BC), repeatedly mentioned cold therapy but, until the late 1980s, cold exposure was largely ignored by modern allopathic medicine. Recently, cold therapy has become more popular as a treatment for neurological injuries even though the numerous benefits of cold therapy remain largely unknown and untapped. Cold therapy can be applied in a variety of ways. You don’t have to do the “YOLO plunge” to benefit from this type of therapy – though short bursts in extremely cold water will. Cold therapy requires only a brief exposure to cold temperatures. Here are some examples of different methods: Soaking in a tub filled with cold water and ice is a popular cold therapy method among athletes, who are known to soak in an ice bath after a hard workout. Pool or cold shower: A brief immersion in cold water – between 50 and 59 degrees Fahrenheit – is an excellent way to begin incorporating cold therapy into your daily routine. Cryotherapy: Three minutes in a cryotherapy chamber results in a rapid decrease in tissue and core body temperature, as well as blood vessel constriction. Blood vessels dilate once they exit the chamber, allowing anti-inflammatory proteins to flood to the injured areas. Is exposure to cold good for you? Frequent exposure to cold have shown to be associated with a variety of health benefits such as reduced inflammation, swelling, and sore muscles. As a result, many athletes such as marathon runners, triathletes, and football players, are known to jump into a tub of ice water after an intense workout or game as ice baths and other forms of cold exposure to speed up recovery after physical exercise. Physical recovery An ice bath can alter the flow of fluids such as blood and lymph through your body. Because of the cold, your vessels constrict and then reopen when your body warms up after the ice bath. This procedure aids in the removal of metabolic waste from your body while also delivering oxygen and nutrients to your muscles. There is even scientific evidence that ice baths reduce inflammation following hard physical activity. Weight loss Cold temperatures activate the brown fat tissue throughout your body. In contrast to white fat, that stores and reserves energy, brown fat actively burns calories and utilizes energy. Brown fat assists your body in producing heat as it burns off white fat. As a result, taking regular ice baths aids in the prevention of excess body weight accumulation. Parasympathetic activity has increased. Regularly exposing your body to cold conditions can make you more resilient to stress. The vagus nerve, which is connected to many important organs via the parasympathetic nervous system, is stimulated as your body adjusts to the cold. The resulting increase in parasympathetic activity benefits a wide range of conditions, including anxiety, depression, and digestive issues. Many athletes such as marathon runners, triathletes, and football players, are known to jump into a tub of ice water after an intense workout or game as ice baths and other forms of cold exposure to speed up recovery after physical exercise. Wim Hoff How to get the benefits of Cold Therapy? And yes, the temperature does play a role in the benefits you receive from cold exposure. Cold temperatures activate our bodies’ natural fight-or-flight response (through activation of the sympathetic nervous system). This response to cold causes a significant increase in the release of noradrenaline (or norepinephrine depending on continent) – an important hormone and neurotransmitter responsible for increasing vasoconstriction – which helps to maintain body heat and protect our vital organs in cold temperatures. According to several studies, the physiological responses to immersion into water of different temperatures appears to have a temperature threshold, with one study showing that for the same length of exposure time, 20°C water did not activate noradrenaline release, while 14°C water increased it by 530 percent! Another temperature-related factor is the activation of brown adipose tissue (brown fat), which increases non-shivering thermogenesis. Brown fat is mitochondria-dense fat cells that play a role in the ‘fat burning’ effect of cold exposure (heat production without shivering). According to this study, brown fat increased by around 37% when exposed to air temperatures of 15-16°C. What about significantly colder temperatures? Does colder mean a stronger reaction? Our bodies detect temperature using phasic-type thermoreceptors in our skin and other areas. These receptors respond quickly to small temperature changes, but adapt and stop firing once the receptor temperature reaches a steady state. They also respond more strongly to changes in stimulus (i.e. larger temperature differences), and temperatures below 15°C are generally perceived as more painful (the same fibres that mediate cold sensations are also responsible for prickling heat pain!). This means that at lower temperatures, the sensation of cold may be more intense. There is also evidence that the lower the temperature, the more noradrenaline is released; however, as this review demonstrates, this evidence is not conclusive. As someone who has taken an ice bath in the Portuguese summer sun, a winter swim in the danish Sea, a dip in a fast-flowing, icy Polish waterfall, and everything in between, I certainly agree that we perceive cold differently depending on water temperature, but this is also relative – and, in my experience, is influenced by a variety of external factors such as mood, setting, and, of course, outside air temperature. Is it better to swim in colder water? Should you aim for the coldest temperature possible? Not necessarily, in my opinion. Each temperature gradient, like the location you’re in or the headspace you’re in, offers a distinct learning opportunity. It is our responsibility to discover and apply the lesson. Time spend in cold How long should the body be exposed to cold before you see any benefits? well… the answer is really “When you no longer feel the need to get out!” When it comes to exposure time, how big of an impact does it really have? One long-term study showed that Noradrenaline levels rose by 200-300 percent in both groups after comparing a 20 seconds of cold water immersion at 4.4°C and two minutes of whole body cryotherapy at -110°C – so quite identical results… …however this presupposes that the major goal of cold exposure training is to raise your noradrenaline levels, which overlooks other important reasons such as managing your stress reaction and learning to change your mental state and controlling your though patterns. A person’s body goes into fight-or-flight mode when it’s cold. When you learn to manage your body’s response to the cold, you’re employing the stressor as a hormetic stressor, a “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” type of stress also referred to as the “beneficial sweet spot”, in order to raise your general stress tolerance and build resilience. So what are the benefits of longer duration cold exposure? well … the perfect time spent in an ice bath varies from day to day and from person to person. so there really is no ideal time, but the important exercise should be to more emphasis on the relationship with the cold rather than on the timer. Once we’ve been in an ice bath for about two minutes, our thermoreceptors relax, allowing our happy hormones to kick in. Never miss an update – sign up to our newsletter below First name Email address Breathing Technique The Wim Hof Method’s breathing exercises will help you unleash your inner fire and prepare you for the cold. Wim describes the exercises as ‘controlled hyperventilation or power breathing’, which involves deep and rhythmic inhalations and exhalations, followed by a ‘retention time’ where you hold your breath for a specific amount of time. Practicing the breathing exercises helps you release more energy, influence your nervous system, and alter your physiological reactions. You are voluntarily inducing a short stress response, which will lead to greater mental and physiological resilience to everyday stress and a sense of control. The Wim Hof Method is built on three pillars, one of which is these breathing exercises. Second, you need to work on your mindset. Cold therapy is the third pillar you need to use. The three pillars work together to make you stronger and healthier. The Wim Hof Method, in particular, is not about rules, precision, or perfection. Rather, it is about exposing yourself to the cold. For your own safety, there’s a set of guidelines to follow, but beyond that, enjoy the experience. Experiment. Explore. Look at the language: ‘need’,’should’,’must’. Obligation, a desire to be perfect, and a need to get it right are all strong motivators. Do 50 inhalations and exhalations. Start your shower by taking a deep breath in and out of your nose. It doesn’t matter if you practice once a day or every day. Dip your hands in the icy water. You can sing in the icy bath. Begin and end a shower cold. When you exit the bathroom, do nothing. Just go with the flow. Every day, we’re inundated with people telling us that “technique x” or “method y” is the right way to do things, or that this is the “best” or “ultimate” of those things. If you’re anything like me, you’ll try to put all of these suggestions into practice and have the attitude that “if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing perfectly.” As a result of this, we may not begin at all, or if we do, we may become discouraged by even the slightest slip-up in our efforts. If you are interested in learning more about breathwork, read this article To test my willpower, I’ve endured freezing temperatures in the name of self-improvement, and I’ve pushed myself to the brink of physical and mental exhaustion (out of frustration & pain). For me, the most transformative experiences have been those that I approached from a place of self-acceptance and love. Make sure you practice with intention, no matter what method you use. Mindfully. Connect with the present moment and yourself. Full of gratitude. And even if you make a mistake, keep loving yourself anyway.