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Other/Mixed Is Wim Hof's Cold Weather Training Any Good?

Other strength modalities (e.g., Clubs), mixed strength modalities (e.g., combined kettlebell and barbell), other goals (flexibility)
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mariaevinne

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Hello, all. I was thinking about the whole Wif Hof thing & found that, even though there's some good tips around, there isn't much out there & was thinking about getting that program. I realize that it's not free & I have VERY limited funds, however.

So does it work well? Is it good for your immune system, too? I remember hearing that it was something you could boost or control or something, as well as being able to better handle the cold weather.

I'm already pretty well-off on the level of handling the cold (I get hot just wearing pants & a shirt pretty frequently when it's not fall or winter), but I want it to be higher. I basically want to know if there's more to it than just using the shower (making the last few minutes of your shower cooler, then make more of it that temperature until the whole thing is that way, and then make the whole thing colder & colder).
 
I do the breathing every day and I do take some short cold showers.

The breathing is awesome, my immune system is working much better. For example I rarely catch a cold and when I do they only last about 3 days instead of 7. I am not so fond of doing cold baths etc., but the breathing alone is great.

Before you purchase it, though, try this for a couple of weeks.

1. Lie down and relax. (I usually do this right after waking.)
2. Breath in fully in a rather rerlaxed way....
2... and let go sharply. Don't force the exhale and don't exhale everything. Just let go.
3. Repeat the breathing for somewhere between 30-50 repetetitons. Most do 30, but I prefer 45 or so. Just take your time until your feel lightheaded and a tingling in your extremities.
4. Let go a last time (keep a tiny bit of air in your lungs) and just relax (let go of all tension) - without inhaling. If you want to, you can use a stopwatch.
5. When you feel a strong urg to breath in your chest, don't fight it. Just inhale and hold your "recovery breath" for 10-15 seconds.
6. Do 2-6 sets of this kind of breathing and relax afterwards.

There are lots of free videos about it to help you with the process. The app is pretty cheap and has some free videos and instructions too!
 
@mariaevinne, welcome to the StrongFirst forum.

If you use the Search feature, you'll find a number of threads about Wim Hof and also about Buteyko breathing.

-S-
 
One tip for cold showers/baths I stumbled on: "contrast showers/baths" i.e. start with 2 minutes hot as you can comfortably stand without damage to skin then switch to 1 minute as cold as you can tolerate. Then back to hot for 2 minutes, back to cold for 1 minute. Repeats up to you but always end with cold. The warmth of the room will be your final warm up.

Doing this I found the cold much more tolerable and it also seemed to speed my overall adaptation. If you can manage to relax into it, after awhile you can feel all the smooth muscles lining your veins, arteries, lymphatics contracting and relaxing in response to the temperature change.

I fiddled with the thermostat on my hot water heater so straight hot water from the tank is about 118 F which is hot enough to feel quite hot at first but will not burn you even with long exposure. That way, I don't have to mess with adjusting the faucet in the shower, I just turn it from straight hot to full cold back to full hot etc. Still plenty hot enough for dishes and laundry and reduces cost of keeping hot water tank heated.

There is research floating around on the interwebs that indicates the contrast method might be even more effective than straight cold alone.
 
Hello,

@mariaevinne
Welcome to StrongFirst

Here are some interesting threads about WHM and breathing:
Wim Hof
Anyone worked with Wim Hof Method?
The Oxygen Advantage / Buteyko experience and results

From my experience, I got from WHM:
- a better cold management (for isntance, I do not use warm clothes anymore, including in winter)
- higher energy level. I get a real and powerful energy boost after the cold shower.
- after the shower, I feet both energized and relaxed at the same time, and nicely warm
- when I dive, I manage far better cold waters (so I consume less oxygen)

In terms of progression, related to cold exposure, I simply reduced the temperature very progressively. Each time, I started with warm, and decreased, until reaching a cold start and doing it entirely with cold water. The coldest water I got at the final was about 30s or 60s, never more.

During the temperature decrease, slowing down the breath with abdominal breathing and closing my eyes helps me a lot

Kind regards,

Pet'
 
mariaevinne said:
Hello, all. I was thinking about the whole Wif Hof thing & found that, even though there's some good tips around, there isn't much out there & was thinking about getting that program. I realize that it's not free & I have VERY limited funds, however.

So does it work well? Is it good for your immune system, too? I remember hearing that it was something you could boost or control or something, as well as being able to better handle the cold weather.

I'm already pretty well-off on the level of handling the cold (I get hot just wearing pants & a shirt pretty frequently when it's not fall or winter), but I want it to be higher. I basically want to know if there's more to it than just using the shower (making the last few minutes of your shower cooler, then make more of it that temperature until the whole thing is that way, and then make the whole thing colder & colder).
Click to expand...
Wolfeye?
 
Isn't there a Wim Hof book one can buy? I thought I heard that.

-S-
 
I would recommend the original 10 week online course. I learned a lot from doing it. They are offering a revised course. I don't know how much has changed. I continue to do the cold showers and the Wim How course got me interested in morning yoga which I've found improves my strength training recovery.

I'm not doing the daily morning breathing right now but feel that I should do it and that I benefited from it. I'm just overloaded and finding an extra 20 minutes each morning is a challenge (I'm currently doing an Ashtanga intensive each morning). The breathing taught me a lot about what can be done with the breath and I use an adapted form of it during my KB lifting between sets(as recommended by some members of the WH community).

The breathing is supposed to alkalinize the blood and I wonder (but don't really know) whether that counteracts the lactic acid produced during strength training.
 
pet' said:
The coldest water I got at the final was about 30s or 60s, never more.
Click to expand...
Curious what you mean here. Big difference between 30 and 60 of anything but I assume you are talking about degrees F and not C? But which amount of degrees or was that time i.e. seconds at unknown temp?

You know about curiosity and the cat of course...
 
I use the Wim Hof Method as a part of my morning routine for 3 month now.
I never took a course, but I would recommend the app - there a videos for each (basic) exercise plus you can track your progress.
I do the breathing and pushup exercise plus the cold shower each morning. Takes about 25 minutes.

I do not use it as a warm-up for my strength training.

For now it's working great. Energy in the morning is far better, no colds so far. but well, it's summer...
 
Hello,

Here is a Scott Carney's interview of WHM regarding Covid


As a disclaimer, the guy is an investigative journalist. He is not a doctor. Nonethless, he wrote an excellent book where he dives deep into the subject (What does not kill us). He still practices everyday.

Kind regards,

Pet'
 
pet' said:
Hello,

Here is a Scott Carney's interview of WHM regarding Covid


As a disclaimer, the guy is an investigative journalist. He is not a doctor. Nonethless, he wrote an excellent book where he dives deep into the subject (What does not kill us). He still practices everyday.

Kind regards,

Pet'
Click to expand...

I’m reading his latest book “The Wedge” now, about 70% through it. It’s a good read - it has a chapter on Kettlebell Partner Passing!
 
Hello,

Mike Torres said:
I’m reading his latest book “The Wedge” now, about 70% through it. It’s a good read - it has a chapter on Kettlebell Partner Passing!
Click to expand...
Yes !

This kind of flow state, where everything is in perfect place, a perfect coordination of body and mind is something I find when I practice my sparring in boxing or when I do moves such as the get up. To a certain extent, I consider this state as some kind of "active meditation" because we are just "here and now".

Kind regards,

Pet'
 
pet' said:
This kind of flow state, where everything is in perfect place, a perfect coordination of body and mind is something I find when I practice my sparring in boxing or when I do moves such as the get up. To a certain extent, I consider this state as some kind of "active meditation" because we are just "here and now".
Click to expand...
Oh yeah! I was totally addicted to surfing for about 50 years w/ 6 years of snowboarding folded in because of that flow state. Lovely to be there. My goal is to find a way to live in that state permanently.
 
GeoffreyLevens said:
Oh yeah! I was totally addicted to surfing for about 50 years w/ 6 years of snowboarding folded in because of that flow state. Lovely to be there. My goal is to find a way to live in that state permanently.
Click to expand...
It's hard to explain that state to those who haven't experienced it...
 
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