Imagine having your blood flowing like you just finished a tough workout and feeling like you can do anything. Now imagine having this feeling without working out. The catch here is to have that endorphin rush you only have to immerse yourself in a freezing cold shower for a couple minutes in the morning.
Now many of you may be hesitant to do so and I certainly was when I started but I’ll explain why it was so worth it for me.
So I read about this somewhere online as I was browsing through stories. It turns out that this “cold therapy” is a great way to boost your immune system, energy, and productivity. So reading about others that had done the same I decided to give it a shot. Here’s how it went.
First ten days
This was by far the hardest part where you are so scared to hop into the ice cold water and give up that nice steamy shower for the coming days. The first 30 seconds you just find yourself shivering and me asking why I did this to myself. Then after that I started to calm down a little and stop shivering quite as much. This was my sign that I was starting to get used to the cold. It’s one of those things where you put yourself through so much discomfort but feels so good after.
When getting out of the shower I immediately toweled off and I saw my flush cheeks and chest in the mirror. I usually wake up and then feel groggy in the morning at least till I get my first cup of coffee every morning. This feeling was nonexistent post shower and somedays I didn’t even need coffee (I usually drink 2-3 cups). So now I did some research to see why I was really doing this and I came up with
“Cold exposure can potentially help you boost your endorphin levels, build up the right kind of fat, lose weight, help combat depression, and even reduce the size of tumors.”
So in my mind this seemed almost too good to be true.
Next ten days
After the first ten days it starts to become habitual and you understand that the discomfort is worth the end result. It’s just like that feeling when you know you don’t want to work out but look forward to the end result.
This is where you really start to realize some of the benefits of the experience. I started to feel so much more awake and confident to start the day. It was a great feeling compared to my usual groggy start to the day.
Last ten days
By the last ten days what was once so uncomfortable suddenly became routine. It started to become normal and I didn’t cringe before jumping in the shower.
These showers have been so awesome for me and have helped improve my productivity and overall feeling throughout the day.
This is definitely worth a shot for anyone who drags a bit in the morning. As for me, I have continued past my original 30 day plan and don’t’ plan on stopping anytime soon.