Cold exposure, anyone?

[liminal_luke]

I found this link on the benefits (and best practices for) cold exposure interesting and informative.  Enjoy!

 

https://www.marksdailyapple.com/definitive-guide-to-cold-therapy/

[silent thunder]

Cold exposure?  Absolutely.  Regularly.  It's brilliant!

 

My Norwegian ancestors experienced, understood and handed down the benefits of regular snow/ice bathing with and without sauna preamble.

 

Introduced my son to the practice when he was the age of these hearty Russian boys n girls and he loves it... talks about it every time we are heading up to stay in the cabin in the mountains.  It's a ritual for us, though I have yet to convince my gal of the beauty of it lol.  But for Connor and I, snow bath first thing in the morning and again in the evening after dinner.

 

Every shower ends full cold for a few minutes.

 

 

 

[Lost in Translation]

2 minutes ago, silent thunder said:

Every shower ends full cold for a few minutes.

 

[silent thunder]

It's so beautiful.  Invigorating yet grounding.

 

Here's another one that will utterly baffle many of my American and Southern Climate friends... infants, sleeping in the cold.

Scandanavia/Russia, this is common practice.

 

[Lost in Translation]

My hot water heater broke and I had to take cold showers for about a week. It was horrible!

[Stosh]

Showers are supposed to be either hot or lukewarm, end of story  

But as a kid I didn't mind swimming in rather cold seawater, and would play in there until blue. 

[thelerner]

22 hours ago, silent thunder said:

Cold exposure?  Absolutely.  Regularly.  It's brilliant!

 

My Norwegian ancestors experienced, understood and handed down the benefits of regular snow/ice bathing with and without sauna preamble.

Every shower ends full cold for a few minutes.

 

 

21 hours ago, Lost in Translation said:

My hot water heater broke and I had to take cold showers for about a week. It was horrible!

Choice; being able to choose is often the difference between pleasure and pain. 

 

If I do it daily after a week or so my body & mind adapt but the first few times, ouch.. In mid-winter when the shower is particularly frigid, then its also trying.  Good test of spirit and honoring my Russian ancestors of 3 generations ago, and ancestors 1,000 generations ago, who built ice slides down mountains, and slid down them buck naked, all the while chucking spears at mammoths and sloths along the way. 

Edited May 3, 2018 by thelerner

[silent thunder]

The cold is comforting now where it used to be a challenge.

I know my body feels cold the way it always has, but how I respond to the sensation has shifted over time.

My mind responds to the sensations with a familiar sense of comfort and the vitality generated is always welcome.

 

edit to add:  I usually start warm/hot and finish cold. 

That makes a real difference for palatability, particularly when beginning.

Edited May 3, 2018 by silent thunder

[Mudfoot]

On 2018-05-02 at 9:22 PM, silent thunder said:

It's so beautiful.  Invigorating yet grounding.

 

Here's another one that will utterly baffle many of my American and Southern Climate friends... infants, sleeping in the cold.

Scandanavia/Russia, this is common practice.

 

Why not? 

Should we stay inside just because it is winter? 

 

When it drops too low below zero you have to, bad for infants lungs. 

[silent thunder]

With no desire to convince you of anything, right or wrong...

 

I share with you that my mum and dad raised me in this tradition in the subzero temperatures of Minnesota as an infant and all through my childhood and I am a hearty and healthy 49.  Thriving with my own son who knows and continues to thrive with this same tradition.

 

 

[chaugnar]

I love winter.i didn't achieve the forged in ice status this last one though.