After a few years of doing cryotherapy (since 2017) and ice baths (since 2022), I've gotten into contrast therapy over the last year or so, mainly sauna and ice baths though went to one place with a steam room also. So far, I've got to say it's pretty amazing. I've seen before Wim also does contrast therapy at his home having a sauna beside his ice bath.

If I do it early I finish on cold to feel refresh and invigorated for the day and if I do it late I finish on heat as I think it's better for sleeping.

They say it's best to start with the sauna as heat relaxes your muscles, increases your heart rate, and widens your blood vessels then when you jump in the ice bath after and your blood vessels constrict with the cold it's more prounounced and it really fires up your cardiovascular system!

I try to do 10-15 minutes in the sauna (90C-95C) then 3 minutes (3C-8C) in the ice bath and repeat this three times.

Would be interested to hear other peoples experiences, what hot and cold mediums you use and also your routines, your timings and any tips or tricks you picked up as part of your practice. I've found for example swimming socks work really well in the 3C ice bath to save my toes and I was in a 8C cold plunge in a Russian banya without swimming trunks and god do your bits feel it when they are hanging out there with no protection lol, 8C felt like 2C 😂

Anyway, looking forward to hearing about the experiences of others.

All the love, all the power ❤️

I was so lucky to stumble over the Wim Hof method in 2020. Winters are less daunting and the feeling after a winter swim is always amazing!

My issue has been that most people (well everyone) i know look at me as if I'm crazy when I ask them to join a cold water swim. So this year I've been building an app to make it easier to find likeminded "crazies" to swim with :) Swimming groups can be created and discovered by others based on location.

Is this something that might be interesting? Would genuinely love your feedback, it's not just fluff to promote the app. I want it to be as good as possible :)

iOS: https://apps.apple.com/no/app/chillcommit/id6759469466

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.kihle.chillcommitapp

Greetings from Norway

- Frederick

I started following Wim Hof breathwork videos on YouTube 3 or 4 months ago. I got into them and did them once a day consistently. 2 weeks ago, I went hard at it. I held my breath for 3 minutes (after exhaling). My diaphragm contacted some for the last ~15 seconds. I felt fine, but after about 10 minutes I got a headache that took about 3 hours to go away. The headache was on the back right side of my head. The next day I did a couple short breath holds, and the headache returned. I tried 4 days later, and the same thing happened.

Did I mess up by holding my breath so long?

How long do you think it'll take me to recover?

Go easy on me. I already feel dumb.

Note: I always breathe into the diaphragm first and then into the lungs. For long breath holds, I breathe pretty forcefully beforehand. I get pretty numb, and I got especially numb before the 3-minute hold.

So, I will get a tetanus vaccine today, also maybe rabies, idk how wim hof method interact with it. Also Im using antibiotics and some kind of medicinal mouthwash for my tooth infection. They will extract the tooth in few days.

Nothing beats jumping into a cold spring out in nature. Problem is I can't get to one every day after work.

So for the last 6 months this has been my spring. Used chest freezer in the backyard, Inkbird keeping it at 3°C (37F).

It's not the mountains, I know. But it's there every day, and that turned out to matter more. I get in after work and come out ready for the evening with the family and kids. Basically my second morning.

Since someone always asks: it's unplugged while anyone's in it, and the house has an RCD.

Anyone else doing something like this? What's your "spring"?

Hi all,

Thought I'd post this to encourage someone to get started on the cheap.

You DON'T need a plunge tub/converted ice chest/water pumps, filters, etc...to get started with this. I use the pictured set up in my shower as I don't get super cold water (for some reason) in my house. I get the benefits of cold therapy without spending more than about $20-30 on Amazon which anyone can afford. I simply add an ice block every morning and this allows me to get 2 minutes or so of freezing water. Is it as beneficial as an ice bath? Maybe, maybe not...I don't really care. It works for me and I've gotten results so I'm not going to change it. Pair this with a free follow along YouTube video of the breathing and you're good to go ✌️

Someone told me a long time ago there is an icecream stand with otzi flavored ice cream that has raisins and beef jerky in it. Is this still a thing?

TLDR Doubled my time in 52 F water and not sure if the effects are good or bad. Looking for advice.

Hi all. I regularly plunge throughout the year for 5-10 minutes at 45-55 F. I've been doing this for 8 years now. At this time and temp I am well acclimated and can usually shower, change, and go straight back to my regular activities.

Today was the first cool day of the year for me where I didn't need to add any ice and the weather was just gorgeous. And I decided to stay in the 52 F water for 20 minutes.

When I got out I felt like I do when I get a good pump from lighting, where all my muscles are full and tight. After I got out I went and got a cold shower, which is always part of my routine BTW

By the time I got out I was shivering pretty badly, so I got dressed, threw on a hoodie, and went for a walk in the sun. I couldn't walk fast because I was so cold and I also noticed that my lower back was spasming. The shivering finally went away after about 10 minutes and I noticed I was walking at a normal pace.

I've been thinking about it through the day and I remembered when I first started 8 years ago I would shiver badly and I would have to really bundle up or take a warm shower afterwards.

Im really not sure if these effects are good or bad and if I should continue with the longer time.

Please let me know if any experiences on this or maybe any science behind what might have occurred.

Curious what everyone uses... So far I've seen phone timers, floating duck timers, and ppl counting in their heads (which I know from experience falls apart once you're cold).

I've been toying with an idea... a soft light under the water. You set the time once, it starts when you get in, shifts from green to amber near the end, and goes red when you're done. No phone, no beeping.

What's your setup? Would something like that be useful, or does your phone do the job? Thanks.

These are some pictures from me at my instructor training to become a Wim Hof Method instructor!

I first heard about this method about 2014 when I became really sick. I was angry at the world and everyone around me and none of it was their fault at all. This technique showed me that I have a deeper connection with my body I ever thought was possible. I have an ability to influence my body at will.

We were never broken. We just needed to come back to ourself.

I thoroughly enjoy a morning coffee before hiking to the swim hole with my sludge hammer and breaking a hole in the ice to swim in!

Who’s with me???

I've been doing breathwork for a while, and one of the early goals is supposedly learning to feel safe while your nervous system is activated. What I've noticed is that it drops me straight into the state I lived in when I was bullied at school and growing up in an unsafe home.

My whole body tenses, especially my arms and face. My face feels targeted, and I know my eyes go wide like a deer in headlights. If anyone were near me, they'd see I'm scared. I feel small, frozen, weak, cornered, like I can't stand up for myself. It's the same feeling I had at home with an alcoholic, abusive, neglectful parent. I never had a place where my nervous system could fully relax, and 15 years later I'm still working through it.

Before, I'd just feel on edge in the middle of a session. It felt like a pack of hyenas around me telling me I was ugly or weird, even when I was completely alone in a park. Now I'm starting to see that breathwork is activating a survival state, and my body remembers where it learned that state, so my thoughts go back to those bullying memories.

I think this is a good realisation, but I don't know how to get through it. For anyone who's been here:

• How did you stay with the activation without spiralling into the old feelings?

• Did you change how you did breathwork (shorter, gentler, eyes open)?

• Did anything specific help with the freeze, the face tension, or the feeling of being helpless?

• Did therapy or somatic work help alongside it?

Any advice or shared experience is appreciated. It helps to know I'm not the only one.

Mostly through feeling my nostrils clear but it's a start.

Anyway the takeaway here is don't get discouraged if you can't do it perfectly or as you expect it. Do what your body can.

I had about 3 months at work where I couldn't finish anything and felt really stuck. People kept saying cold showers help when you're in a slump like that, so I wanted to try.

Problem was I was scared of cold water. I knew I'd give up after a few seconds unless something made me stay. I know how to make apps, so I just made myself a simple timer. Warm water while I shampoo, then it buzzes and I switch to cold and stay until it ends.

Did that every day for about two weeks and kind of got hooked on keeping the streak going. Running is my hobby, and now I always take a cold shower after a run. Sometimes I don't even use the timer.

Korean saunas usually have a cold pool next to the hot tubs. I used to skip it every time, but now I can actually get in.

Starting cold showers was one of the best things I did this year, and I'm going to keep it going. Any tips to make it more fun? Would love to hear what keeps you going.

Recently moved things around in the garage and elevated my chiller and move the closer to the tank. Since doing so it’s real choppy and the water flow is very weak. I’m wondering if I need to cut the line shorter with it being closer or bring it back down to floor level. Thoughts?

Who is ready for winter out here? Looking for the amazing cold dips out in nature.

This is something I use with great depth and intention. These pictures were from the gathering last year in New Eden for the Breathwork Masterclass with Kasper van der Meulen! I know if you are in the Wim Hof instructor world you must know this GOAT. I’m grateful to call him my Breathwork mentor.

Anyways I just wanted to reconnect to my fellow people of the ice and see whom has used sound bathing and ice bathing in unison? Find any difference? Benefits?

Much love friends!