1 year of doing the Wim Hof method - Report

[cle103]

Preface

The main reason I got into it was Covid. I've dabbled with breathing quite a lot before (mostly Holotropic) and did a bit of cold exposure (ending a couple showers cold). However the main reason was immune function. 

Additionally I was also looking for a morning spiritual practice. Before I tried meditation but the grogginess always got in the way. Kriya was better but it just didn't feel right to jump from Kriya right into the hustle and bustle of the work day. 

 

Benefits

To be frank, I love how the breathing makes me feel. It's a slight high that carries through the day. It's really relaxing. 

I highly doubt it will make you enlightened but that's not the reason I started it. I wanted a practice that integrates into my morning routine and gets me energized. It's perfect for that. 

The cold showers are a lot of fun as well (I do full cold showers beginning to end in the morning and then a warm shower in the evenings). They wake you up for sure. 

Regarding immune function, it's only anecdotal: I usually catch 2-3 colds a year (pretty much have for my whole life). I got none since I started doing the method. The first symptom I always feel is a dry, itchy throat. I had this come on once or twice this year but it went away within hours and I did not get sick. 

Of course, this is not scientific in any way. And of course it could just have been me washing my hands more often. However I do feel it benefits my immune system substantially. 

Other than that my muscle recovery and connection to the cold have improved a lot as well. I'm fine without a jacket even in negative degrees and don't need gloves or long clothes for my runs. 

 

Downsides 

None that I have noticed. The quality of your results is of course dependent on the consciousness you bring to the practice. After a while it gets easy to coast through the breathing and not get anything out of it. That's a bit of a trap.

There are spiritual benefits (emotional releases and minor no self states when doing more rounds) but they are minor in comparison to a full holotropic session (then again it's 25 mins compared to an hour+). 

--- 

That's it. 

If you have questions, feel free to ask. 

I will most likely be continuing the method as it plugs so well into my workout and morning routine. 

[BlackMaze]

Do you also practice resistance to cold weather? If yes how do you train this? 

[cle103]

@BlackMaze I don't really train it, it's more a part of winter where I live. The cold effects me way less than usual. Other than that I took one ice bath at my parents house (I don't have a bath tub in my apartment). It was an interesting experience. I didn't find it much harder than cold showers, just different. 

[BlackMaze]

@cle103 cool. So you mean that the cold showers helped you become less sensitive to cold weather? Also how long do you stay in the ice bath? Is it an in and out thing or do you try to stay for minutes in there? Do you do some kind of preparation before? For example breathing exercises? 

[cle103]

@BlackMaze Yes, they help for sure. I remained in the ice bath for a couple of minutes and submerged my head completely a couple times at the end. I did some breathing (maybe one round of Wim Hof) before and centered myself, that was pretty much all. 

[BlackMaze]

@cle103 thanks. I love the cold showers and i plan to try an ice bath in some months. I stopped doing the breathing though. I am sure that a whole year of wim hof method brings some great benefits! 

[cle103]

@BlackMaze It's kinda hard to think back exactly how I felt a year ago. However, I def. have more energy and am more relaxed day to day.