In this blog post I share why cold water showers are good for mental as well as physical health.
A very toasty welcome to everyone who is hustling out there to make their life a masterpiece. In today's episode, I want to share about Why Cold Shower Bath. Many of you who have been following the #21dayschallenge, have asked me about a question that Why cold shower bath? So I thought of rather than sharing the Why? with each one of you individually, why not I create a blog about it in which I shall share
What is a cold water shower?
What are the benefits of it?
How to take a cold water shower?
A disclaimer before we start, those who have cardiovascular disease or are exposed to the risk of having a heart attack or a stroke are requested to skip this episode and first consult to your doctor for a cold water shower. I repeat those who have cardiovascular disease or are exposed to the risk of having a heart attack or a stroke are requested to skip this episode and first consult to your doctor for a cold water shower. Having made myself clear, let us move ahead and tackle our very first question.
What is a cold water shower?
Coldwater showers are any showers where the water temperature is being under 22-degree Celcius or 70-degree Fahrenheit. Now, these showers can be your routine morning showers as well as evening showers. Many who don't use the shower and use a traditional way of taking a bath with a bucket and mug, they can call it a cold water bath.
It is really no different than the technical difference of a shower and a bucket-mug.
The majority of the population around the globe, right from their childhood, prefer taking or are used to take a hot water shower or bath.
If you pick up the history and read about the morning rituals of Yogis, Monks, Kings, and other personalities who demanded from themselves to be on a superior level of spirituality. They had a daily routine of waking up at dawn and diving into a cold water river or anything that had cold water. And before stepping in to take a dive in cold water, they had prayer as well. And this ritual always was followed despite the water being iced cold.
Today, many successful sports personalities, business owners, entrepreneurs, philosophers, and all those who know the benefits of cold water shower follow it religiously. For them, this may sound an impossible thing. But trust me, it is one of the simplest ways to take care of many health-related aspects. I know it might not be easy, but sure it is simple. Well, how to take a cold water shower or a bath, I shall cover it in the latter part of this video.
So, I believe we have very much established what cold water shower is. Let us move on to the second question, and that is,
2. What are the benefits of a cold water shower?
There are several benefits of cold water showers both on physical levels as well as mental levels. Let me take you through the most important ones, which you can see and feel immediately.
The only benefit that really caught my attention for a cold water shower was a mental boost. When I started my entrepreneurship journey, My day used to be like engaged for 14 hours minimum with no break. I absolutely use to take no breaks, which had started causing stress on my physical as well as mental health. I continuously use to look for anything that will give me a mental boost. And this welcomed 8 to 9 mugs of black coffee in a day. I had started observing the effects of overconsumption of black coffee and stress on my health. I managed to keep myself up for 14 hours at a stretch but at the cost of my health. Soon I realized that the overconsumption of coffee, just for a mental boost, is doing no good to me. I need to figure out a different way to keep up with my mental boost. While browsing through the internet, I happen to come across the cold water shower. To cut short, I started to take a cold water shower every morning.
The cold water shower is like electric shock therapy to wake your brain in the morning and prepare it to perform at it's best. And for me, that really happened. From day one, I started feeling being awake throughout my day without having the afternoon slumps or feeling tired at any point of the day. My energy levels were an all-time high, which further gave me a mental strength to deal with any degree of my work stress. Also, I observed myself being mentally alert and awake. Here are some concluding benefits of a cold water shower:
Wakes up your sleepy head instantly
Increases mental alertness
Equips you to deal with stress and stressful situations
Increased willpower
Relaxing feeling throughout the day
Relief to itchy skin
Weight Loss (please read the facts first)
3. How to take a cold water shower?
I would love to share my day one of taking a cold water shower. It was hilarious. I cannot forget that day. It was like a shock for a lifetime. So let me explain to you in a little dramatic way. The night before my day 1 of a cold water shower. It was a winter night when I happen to read the benefits of a cold water shower. Having been impressed by it, I decided to really take it. Now for many, visualizing themselves taking a cold water shower, might be an easy task but save your comment for the shower moment. I was very much high in confidence until the moment arise.
So here, the moment comes. I wake up as per my schedule, do my meditation, and a quick set of exercises. Then I had my morning tea, read a few pages of a self-development book, I guess I was reading The Lean Startup by Eric Ries back then, and then headed towards my bathroom. I enter the bathroom, strip down my clothes, enter the shower area, and then I pause. I was not ready to let that cold water hit my body and give me the most uncomfortable feeling of my life. A shock of life that I was not ready for. I literally take a pause and then think. Do I really need a mental boost in my life, or Am I ok with whatever low-level boost I have? The answer was instant, A freaking no. I want to increase my mental boost. Like what every entrepreneur does, find a solution in any given problem. I started thinking of the best possible solution, and I got one that worked out for me and still works out for me like a breeze.
I stepped out of my shower area, came out of the bathroom (no, I covered myself with a towel, don't think so much). I grabbed my phone, and came back in the bathroom and then in the shower area(yes, I removed the towel, don't you worry). I opened youtube on my phone and searched for motivational videos. I found a perfect one with motivational music in the background and Les Brown at his best addressing the large crowd "It's Possible ladies and gentlemen. Your dream is possible." I quickly tuned in to my immediate dream of taking a cold water shower and said to myself, If I can't face water, then I can't face f*ucking anything in my life. I am possible, and I am going to f*ucking do it. I restart the speech of Les brown from the top, and in that video, there was a loud uplifting beat. So I waited for that beat to come. Now I am facing down, holding the shower tap in one hand to turn it on at the loud uplifting beat. The beat comes, I turn the shower on...
"F*****uuuuccckkkkk! I am a f*ucking possibility. I am the f*ucking master of my life. I am the f*ucking energy of my life, and I am the f*ucking success I desire." Excuse me for the language, but these were the exact words when the iced cold water hit my body at 6:00am of a winter morning. I stayed there for 5 minutes, and then I turned off the shower.
It was one of the best moments of my life. I can tell you that. So to conclude how to take a cold water shower, I have already shared how I did it. You can do it or follow this formal process
Start with lukewarm water
Start with your legs, wet your legs.
Then slowly wet your entire body from bottom to up
Slowly start changing the temperature of the water to cold
Take as much cold temperature possible, and daily try to lower the temperature of the water.
Stay there for at least 3 minutes after the entire body is under the shower.
Enjoy that every moment, because you shall get an experience of being in the moment philosophy.
So that is how you can take a cold water shower. You can read more about the cold water shower on Wim Hof's website.
I hope you have got the right amount of insight around cold water shower and why I have added in the #21dayschallenge. We need to break our pattern of comfort, which holds us back from being a high potential being.
Lots of Love...
Rohan Arote