Benefits of a cold plunge tub
Let us go back two years when the pandemic has just begun. Kyle and I were newly dating and living together. On top of that, we were living in a studio (Our Airbnb) due to a lack of respect from Kyle’s roommate in regards to covid-19. Since the Airbnb was shut down temporarily we moved downstairs in hopes of keeping ourselves healthy and safe. Yet living in this new space with a new person in your life comes with its own challenges. I found myself more stressed than usual (no surprise) and stumbled upon Wim Hof. I was so intrigued by his breathwork and cold water therapy. It seemed to be helping so many with so many ailments including stress and anxiety.
I enlisted Kyle to try doing two months of Wim Hof method breathwork and cold showers every day. It was really challenging. I honestly strongly disliked the cold showers, ok I hated them. I never found enjoyment in them, it was painful and I never really felt the relief that people describe. Yet, I kept doing them every day until those two months were up. I felt like throwing my hands up and screaming, well this just isn’t for me! I thought, maybe something else will help with my anxiety, and went about my life without cold showers.
Fast forward to the summer of 2021 (a year later) and Kyle at this point has been diagnosed with brain cancer again and had experienced a seizure. I was feeling so overwhelmed, exhausted, traumatized, and so depleted of life. Then, as the world works, I started seeing many things about cold therapy. Specifically, about ice baths and not showers. My thought was, “maybe that would be easier than the shower”.
I happened upon Justin Weiss, a Wim Hof method instructor's Instagram page. He hosted weekly Ice Church classes and lived just twenty minutes away. We signed up and let ourselves be embraced by the cold. I again did not love it, I am not sure if anyone really loves getting into a tub of ice for the first time. I did feel more energized than before. This was such a gift. We went home that day feeling great, however, many more months passed and we weren’t doing ice baths. I knew the benefits and also knew that it only helped with consistency, and knew didn't have that in me.
Cold Therapy benefits:
Increased energy
Strengthen immune system
Reduced inflammation
Better quality of sleep
Reduced stress
Natural remedy for depression
Mental clarity
It wasn’t until I started experiencing my own major health issues that I finally returned to this practice. One day, I knew in my bones that I needed to start getting in the cold. It was January of 2022 and I was experiencing terrible period pain, chest pains, stress, anxiety, frequent panic attacks and chronic fatigue and knew my body was consumed by inflammation. I told Kyle, “we really need to get a cold plunge, I know it is going to help us.” Within two weeks we headed out and got ourselves a metal horse trough to use as a cold plunge. It was the dead of winter up in the mountains. Filling it up and leaving it overnight allowed it to naturally make ice every day.
This ice made it very challenging to get into the cold plunge. It was sometimes 16 degrees or colder with snow on the ground. It was very hard to motivate ourselves to do it. I started recording us getting in as a way to share on social media and see our progress. And that became the means of true accountability for us. We stayed really consistent with getting in every other day. The length of time we could stay in grew longer and the benefits more plentiful. We even started to crave the cold plunge, going in multiple days in a row just because it felt so good.
The benefits I experienced:
Increased mental focus and clarity in the plunge and in my life
Increased my joy and happiness
Minimized stress
Best sleep of my life
Easier periods
A deep appreciation for my body
Increased warmth in my body
No panic attacks
Then, we stopped filming our plunges. One day my phone storage was full and we decided, ah we don’t need to film this one, we can just enjoy it ourselves. Then we did another day like that, and slowly, with the lack of accountability, we stopped plunging. Weeks have gone by and we’ve gone in less than a handful of times. So, starting today the day I write this we are returning. Although the benefits are plentiful and so appreciated it hasn’t kept us driven to show up consistently. So I am returning to sharing our experiences with you on Instagram. I hope you will follow along but more importantly, I hope you will join us. Maybe it’s getting a daily cold shower, getting in a cold natural body of water, or getting yourself a tub filled with ice water.
My hope for returning this time, is to cultivate a relationship that will stick. One that isn't dependent on outside validation. Today though, that’s where I am, I haven't made it a habit so it’s not sticking on its own. Which is truly such a blessing; to see, understand and honor what helps in holding me accountable.
May we all enjoy some happy cold plunging! Please let me know in the comments if you will join us in doing a cold plunge every other day for the next thirty days. Be sure to follow along with our journey over on Instagram!
