I know the best way to stop feeling tired, stroppy and lethargic. It will add no time to your day, doesn’t involve a blend of 16 green ingredients you’ve never heard of and isn’t coffee, speed or crack.
So what is it?!
Cold showers.
I promise you these badboys are the answer to your “I always feel so tired” prayers.
I could point to some scientific research, talk about how rapidly changing your physiology with cold water acts like a reset button on your mind or even refer you to the Ice Man, Wim Hof (seriously, you probably should check this dude out!), but I don’t want to overcomplicate it. There’s a lot of claims out there about the benefits of cold showers linking them to things like depression and testosterone but I’m not here to make any grandiose statements like that. I just want to point out that if you wake up and feel like you’ve been hit by a sleep deprivation truck, then this can help.
It’s simple.
Start by committing to 10-30 seconds of cold at the end of your shower.
That’s it.
I guarantee you’ll immediately feel awake and alive. It doesn’t matter the time of day. 5am, 3pm, 9pm, whatever. You’ll feel life scream into every part of your body.
When you feel like you’re getting the hang of it, gradually increase the amount of time under cold water. Soon you’ll find that you actually look forward to the sensation and may not need the hot water to start with.
Heck*, you might even end up like Wim Hof himself, pausing to take a quiet moment in your undies on an ice cap at -20 degrees celsius.
*I’ve been binging on Fargo and become quite fond of their lingo ‘eh.
Hey mate, I’ve turned the comments off on here, but if you want to add some thoughts you can over on my Medium profile https://medium.com/@2metretweeter
Hey Pete,
Haha, you would “shiver” to know how long my weekend showers are!
Tried the 60 seconds this morning, could only get to 30 secs! Wish me luck for tomorrow! 🙂
Hey Dave, 10min is a solid shower mate! I’d start small and make the last 30-60 seconds of your shower should be cold. Once you get used to the sensation, gradually increase it to up to 2min. Goodluck!
Hey Pete,
Love the advice. Generally, i’m a 6:45 – 6:55am weekday shower guy. What proportion of this should i dedicate to “cold” do you suggest?
Be brave Andy. You’ll thank me for it 😀
I mean, you’re absolutely right, Kale is still great! But so is cold water.
Hey Stephen, sorry for the late reply mate! Reintegrating with work has been a bit hectic, but I’m so grateful for your feedback. In terms of your question, my approach is to take 4-5 deep, long, concentrated breaths in and out while the water is still hot, then go straight to icy cold :)! There’s the initial shock factor, but I find if I tough it out for 5-10 seconds and focus on breathing, everything calms down and you can enjoy the sensation… Seriously 😉
Can’t wait to try this in the grips of a Ballarat winter! I’m going to try this for a week. I’ll let you know how I go. Great stuff Peter!
Now this is something that that sounds crazy until you try it. For those of you reading this going ‘hey, but I love kale…’ Google Vagus nerve. That thing won’t get the love it needs from kale. Peter has led the way here after he find Wim. Now all you have to do is follow Peter. Go. 🐆
Hey, Pete, I have to say I saw the title and thought I’m a Kale sceptic, this could be for me. Then I read your post…
Firstly cold showers… really. I’m an appalling sleeper because I’m a developer (long hours, poor nutrition, desperate need for long periods of focus time).. so thought I’d give it a go.
Had a cold shower for ~1 minute at the end of my shower, felt great! Had last focus and still feel pretty good 8 hours later. I’ve always preferred cold water drinks instead of coffee, but this seems like the terrifying but logic next step.
Another unseen win was you don’t get that sensation from stepping into the cold room, everything is warmer than icy cold water! 😀
I had one question, is it best to go straight into full-on ice bucket in an instant, or do I slowly reduce temperature, and what do I do about the shock-breathing that follows?
If you have any more genius hacks like this, can’t wait to read them. Things certainly must make sense when you’re 2m in the air!