Freeze The Fear

Freeze the Fear

Did you catch the BBC series “Freeze the Fear” with Wim Hoff? If not, it’s definitely worth a watch, and if you did, you’ll understand why I’m feeling inspired and curious!

Wim uses cold water experiences to demonstrate how strong and adaptable the body can be. He shows that by controlling the breath we can soothe our nervous system and initial reaction of shock to become calm and resilient in the face of challenge.

It has inspired me to revisit daily shots of cold showers and to make more of an effort to find open water swimming spots.

It offers a pretty exhilarating experience and it’s not surprising therefore that after dipping a toe in just the once, many people quickly become hooked!

The simplest place to start is in the shower, and just trying a 15 second cold blast will make you feel like you have fizzy water in your veins and a shot of coffee to the head.

Begin with the shower hot, and then flick it to cold and count to 15. Gradually build up your time as you adjust. I find I have a sweet spot after about 90 seconds, when my breathing has totally calmed, I settle in and my mind wanders. And after about 3 minutes I feel like I can stay there as long as I like.

Cold water emersion actually helps you to relax, and can even help with feelings of anxiety or depression.

And it also has profound effects on your physical health too. The colder your shower, the more work your body is doing to heat itself. Every single goose bump you get is the action of a tiny muscle, and it counts.

There are so many benefits of exposing yourself to cold water.

·      higher levels of alertness, productivity and concentration

·      reduce stress levels

·      supports immunity

·      improves adaptability and resilience

·      increase metabolism

·      stimulates brown fat deposition

·      improves muscle recovery

·      stimulates the vagus nerve

Sounds like a wonder drug!

You can also try joining the growing numbers of people who have discovered the benefits of open water swimming.

It seems that swimming and being outdoors is not just beneficial to our physical health, but also for our mental health too.

A study published in British Medical Journal Case Reports provided the first case report that cold water swimming may be an effective treatment for depression. The theory behind this is that one form of stress – ie the shock of cold water – adapts the body for another, in this case the stress response associated with depression and anxiety.

As a complete convert to the screaming, gasping, breath-taking joys of wild swimming, I can highly recommend it! You can’t help but forget all your aches, pains and worries. It is a totally ‘in the moment’, focussed and whole-body present experience.

Gone are the worries of what has happened in the past or the concerns of what might be in the future, all you can think of is the grounding sensation of connection with water, wildlife and your breath.

There’s nothing like the feeling of emerging from a cold shower, river or the sea with tingling skin and a clear mind, but be warned – it is seriously addictive.

Emma Wightman
www.the-sop.com