“Cold showers?”
“I’m serious.”
“I don’t know; hot showers are pretty good. I need that in the morning.”
Are you wondering who that was a conversation with?
See, to be honest with you it’s no one person in particular. Mostly it’s a conversation with anyone who asks me why I’m not wearing a coat or asks me if I’m cold.
Am I cold?
A little.
What if you could be more resilient to the cold?
What if winter mornings no longer filled you with dread and foreboding?
How would you feel if you could take back control over your own body?
You’re sitting there reading this thinking, “Yeah, what if, you’re going to say cold showers right?”
Right.
That’s the essence of this post. You can jump right in the shower now. Stick on that cold tap and let fresh, crisp water collide with your skin. You shiver uncontrollably; you think that your legs are going to give way. Steadying yourself against the wall. You reach out and turn the water off. The shower stops, the torture is over. You think to yourself, “I’m never doing that again.” as you stand, naked, exposed and miserable.
Here’s the thing, you shouldn’t do it like that.
Weak
Are you weak? How do you see yourself?
You probably see yourself as strong. I mean who wouldn’t? It can be hard to admit that you’re weaker than you thought. At least that’s how it was for me.
Now, I knew I was no Superman, but it seemed like I had some grit.
That was not the case.
It wasn’t until I took cold showers that I realised that I was weak.
You realise that all that it takes to know how much strength you lack is to put it to the test. When I put it to the test, I found myself wanting.
Cold showers have benefits like reduced depression, increased testosterone. There are other benefits like improved skin. Your skin is less dried out from hot water.
Best way to take a cold shower
Here’s the secret about cold showers.
You can take them at your own pace. You can do it over a more extended period. Give yourself a couple of months to get comfortable with the feeling.
You can do it this way:
Take a regular hot shower. Right before the end turn the temperature from hot to cold. You do that for ten seconds then turn the shower off.
That’s it.
Nothing more nothing less.
Do that for a week. Get used to it, take in the cold and you’ll realise that it’s not your enemy. After a week up it to 15 seconds
You’ll understand that the cold is an animal that can be tamed. Now like an animal, if you’re not careful it can kill you. You can learn not to fear it but don’t disrespect it.
If you’re like me and still struggle after a week, you can use the power of self-talk. You can even use my mantra which was repeating “I am warm” out loud. Eventually, your body will believe you.
The first two weeks are rough. After that, your body will come to expect the cold, and in some instances, your body will crave the cold.
Conclusion
Cold showers can be intimidating at first. You don’t even need to dive right into them if anything it’s a slow process that can take a couple of months. Once you’re over the initial hump, you’ll realise something about yourself. Not only are you able to handle it but you positively thrive in the cold.
It’s like most things in this life, the fear of the experience is worse than the experience itself.
Has there been anything in your life that wasn’t as bad as you thought it was?
