There is an every growing community for the Wim Hoff method, now what is the Wim Hoff method?

The Wim Hoff method was created by a man named Wim Hoff himself

Some say this man is crazy, although at times I would agree (in a superhuman way)

Wim Hoff is a Dutch Athlete, also known as the IceMan with many crazy feats such as:

• Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in shorts
• Running a half marathon in the Arctic Circle bare foot
• Standing in a ice for just under 2 hours
• Swimming under ice for 66 Meters
• Ran a marathon across the Namib Desert without drinking

Just to name a few. One would think "maybe it's just him, he might be a genetic anomaly". Yet he has an identical twin who does not practice the method and thus can not preform the same feats, Wim believes and has proven through his classes and workshops that it's all in the mind and your perceived capabilities. The Link to his website will be below.

"I'M NOT AFRAID OF DEATH, I'M AFRAID NOT TO HAVE LIVED FULLY."

Now onto his method, his method contains three parts:

• Cold Therapy
• Breathing
• Commitment

These parts can be done seperatly, in pairs or all together at once. They each work independently but do build off of each other, such as the breathing helps with cold exposure and one would need to have discipline to commit and push through. In its entirety the method is self paced, take as long as you need to progress because 1% better each day builds up very quickly and immensely.

Onto the three parts!

Breathing

Many stories and scientific papers link the breathing exercise to:

• Stress reduction
• Faster recover from exertion
• Improved sleep
• Better Physical performance
• Mental clarity
• Focus
• Improved creativity

a good chunk of the community center in on the breathing seeing that it can help with asthma, arthritis (reducing inflammation), MS, Some autoimmune diseases etc.

when doing the breathing the steps are as follows:

1. Sit or lie down so you are comfortable and do not restrict your lung expansion

2. perform 30-40 deep breaths by focusing on your breath, inhaling through the belly up through your chest and exhale without force (often you will breath in more air than what is released)

3. after 30-40 breaths inhale one last time very deeply and let the air flow out on exhale do not force it. Hold your breath until you feel like you need to breath.

4. once you feel like you need to breath, take in another very deep breath and hold your breath again for 15 seconds (i find pushing the air down to my abdomen with my chest/stomach helps)

5. Repeat for as many rounds as you like (most often 3-4)

DO NOT DO THIS IN WATER OR WHILE DRIVING. You will often feel tingly and light headed, this is normal as long as you are breathing deeply.

While performing the breathing I like to do so with my eyes closed and combined with mindfulness meditation. Once finished it is often very meditative to return to normal breathing and relaxing, being mindful of how your body feels. 

Here is a link to a guided breathing session by Wim himself

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tybOi4hjZFQ

There are communities on facebook and reddit such as

https://www.facebook.com/groups/wimhofmethod 

and 

https://www.reddit.com/r/BecomingTheIceman/

Cold Therapy

Cold Showers/cold baths/jumping in lakes are also largely practiced by the Wim Hoff community.

I have another post all about cold Showers and their benefits here

https://www.publish0x.com/simple-health-and-wellness/cold-showers-fact-or-fiction-xllzdpd

many find that cold therapy is much easier after preforming the breathing as it alters the CO2 and O2 levels in the blood, and helping regulate body temperatures. When seeing how Wim Hoff climbs mountains in shorts or runs in the Arctic circle barefoot you would wonder how he would do that?

Research as found that when performs these feats his core body temperature does not drop and he shows no signs of hypothermia or frostbite. It really throws a wrench in the thought of needing to pack on layers doesn't it. i find that after practicing the method I am  more able to bear lower temperatures, wearing fewer layers. Living up in Canada it works very well in our winters. It is not in the way that you have a higher tolerance to the cold per say that you can willpower through it but more so that it actually doesn't feel as cold, it has worked for heat as well for me. After exposure to the cold for long enough you begin to feel and realize that it is just another feeling, it is a sensation that gives you energy and power.

You don't need to live in a cold climate to practice the cold exposure, you can have cold showers, jump in a lake or ocean or even fill up your bath tub with ice. some buy a box freezer and put a timer on it to cool down the water without racking up the electricity bill.

Here is a link to a guide on how to make an ice bath freezer at home 

https://justbreathe.life/2019/04/28/so-you-wanna-build-an-ice-bath%E2%80%8B/

You do not need to start off siting in the cold for too long if you are not able to, for beginners it is heavily recommend to take your time and start slow, build up over time. if you have not been doing this for a while or have poor circulation it is also recommend to wear water shoes and gloves to protect your hands and feet. Now your limits when it comes to temperatures and time in the cold, it does not need to be close to 0/32 Degrees, if  you need to start higher that is okay, its all your own journey, which leads us into the final part.

Commitment

This is often the most important part because you can not be successful in the other parts without the commitment. It's all about going out of your natural comfort zone and understanding you have the power to do what you set your self to do. once you begin to perform the method it might seem scary and anxiety inducing at first but that is normal, it is something new and the cold is what not many people like. Think of it this way, as a kid remember not liking a certain food? but as you grew older and tried it more you began to slowly like it? you would think that it may have been weird to have liked it now but not before? often this turns into someones favorite foods. or for those who go to the gym, at first you dreaded it and didn't want to go but once you got to it and made it a habit you love it and feel bad when you don't go. it is similar to that. getting into it, it becomes less scary and it turns into something you love. 

Often the biggest barrier is your thoughts or discipline to do the action rather than the action it self. Just showing up is 99% of the work, it is often the hardest part. 

after performing the method you will grow to realize that there is no "barrier" just your perception that there is. your own will-power and focus will increase. this spills over into other parts of your life the same way that exercise does, once you start exercising you naturally start to want to improve diet without really thinking about it.

Wim Hoff has many trainers under him who travel and provide workshops for introductions and group training of the method. The community is ever growing. This is not a definitive guide, there are many ways to perform the method and many blogs/videos and research looking into the method. make sure to research further into the method and have due diligence.

Thanks for taking a read!