The Iceman, Wim Hof came into my home, through the internet. I’d seen Wim Hof, a Dutchman known for his ability to withstand extreme cold, on a tv show in either high school or college and afterwards in the below Vice documentary. While I hadn’t considered the potential for application to my own life and running, more and more I’ve heard him quoted on interviews and podcasts, and while he sounds, well, slightly crazy sometimes, he truly believes in his practices, as do thousands of others. Some of these people featured in the video appear to be high as a kite, but who am I to judge at this point!
Who is Wim Hof?
While my English teachers look on in dismay, I continue by quoting Wikipedia:
“Hof holds 26 world records, including for longest ice bath. In 2007 he climbed to 6.7 kilometres (22,000 ft) altitude at Mount Everest wearing nothing but shorts and shoes, but failed to reach the summit due to a recurring foot injury. In 2008 he broke his previous world record by staying immersed in ice for 1 hour, 13 minutes and 48 seconds at Guinness World Records 2008. The night before, he performed the feat on the Today Show.
In February 2009 Hof reached the top of Mount Kilimanjaro wearing shorts within two days. Hof completed a full marathon…above the arctic circle in Finland, in temperatures close to −20 °C (−4 °F). Dressed in nothing but shorts, Hof finished in 5 hours and 25 minutes. The challenge was filmed by Firecrackerfilms, who make productions for BBC, Channel 4 and National Geographic.
In 2010 Hof again broke the ice endurance record by standing fully immersed in ice for 1 hour and 44 minutes in Tokyo.
In 2011 Hof broke the ice endurance record twice, in Inzell in February and in New York City in November, setting a new Guinness World Record of 1 hour, 52 minutes, and 42 seconds. In September, Hof ran a full marathon in the Namib Desert without water, under the supervision of Dr. Thijs Eijsvogels.”
In 2014, a study was performed showing that Wim and a number of participants, after weeks of training, were able to activate the nervous system and immune response, typically considered an autonomic process and not within our control.
This study is what led me to believe that whatever Wim was preaching was at least worthy of delving into further. Even the slightest ability control the autonomic nervous system and stress response associated with marathon running could be huge in maintaining control during a race! Hell, maybe even just improving the ever depressed immune system of a long distance runner could stave off the constant possibility of an illness developing before raceday. I almost always get sick within the three weeks of a marathon! Typically, I drop my mileage and, BAM!, wake up a few days later with a head-cold and have a mini-nervous breakdown as a result. Prior to Valencia, I was convinced a stuffy nose would derail the race, but luckily woke up on race day with clear sinuses.
What I also find hopeful is the idea of restarting my ice bath (cold shower) tradition, which is absolutely miserable, and may in fact just make us tougher human beings all around. I’ve seen some tough dudes wince at the suggestion of plunging even a foot into an ice bath, and toughness in marathon running is something that you absolutely need! Most societies today benefit from a myriad of new-age creature comforts, including air conditioning and central heat. I understand that there are way to many in this world who are not fortunate enough to benefit from these luxuries, but could living in our modern, regulated society be making us mentally weak?
Anything to help support a runner’s immune system or mental toughness is worth trying, in my opinion, so I dove head in…
An Intro to the Wim Hof Method
While the method in itself borders on the edge of spiritual, the tenants of the Wim Hof method are as below, and what I take away from each of these activities is they are intended to develop the ability to control your body:
- Breath work
- Ice Baths
- Meditation
Breath work:
Warning: Do not perform these activities while driving, in or near water, or near polar bears. Seriously, I am not a doctor, am not prescribing this work, and do not advise this if you have a serious medical condition.
The Wim Hof breath work is really a glorified form of controlled hyperventilation. Deep breath in, partial breath out, deep breath in, partial breath out (x about 40 breaths), which oxygenates the blood, followed by a breath hold as long as you can and then an additional large inhale and great old for 10-15 seconds. I’m not a scientist, but from what I understand, low CO2 levels associated with hyperventilation increase the oxygen saturation in hemoglobin in the blood, while decreasing oxygen levels in the tissues themselves. This oxygenation of the blood, and the resulting decrease in acidity, is what Wim Hof claims is the goal. While I know that oxygen and CO2 levels are critical for maintaining homeostasis during distance running, there are a dozen other variables in this hyperventilation exercise and within distance running physiology that I DON’T understand. I can hypothesize about the benefits of potentially improving hemoglobin’s capacity to retain oxygen or hold your breath, but then there’s the matter of releasing it into the tissues, arterial pressure, and whether higher PH acidity is even beneficial for the body. In the end, this speculation is beyond what I’m willing to make from a scientific perspective, and not much research is available online.
What I think is interesting about breathing in general, however, is that the science is either complex beyond basic understanding, or within the realm of mysticism. Where’s the real practical middle ground? If you’re talking about breathing, you’re most likely either a PHD or a wizard, a scientist or a sorcerer. Wim Hof gives off that mystic kind of vibe too, but I think he sits closer to the middle of the spectrum than most due to the science that provides some support his methods. Maybe the study doesn’t hold up, but what I do know is that humans do not understand a large swath of the reality of the universe, and that includes how the human body works, so I’m going on faith that something here ties into the natural world because that’s what Young Hippocrates is all about! I mean, have you seen those people in that video! Holy shit!
Ice Baths:
Ice baths, cold showers, dread!
While I haven’t taken an ice bath in years, just the memory of peering into the icy waters back in college makes me cringe. Maybe I’m just not as tough as I used to be, so I decided I would start taking the cold showers as prescribed by the Wim Hoff Method in order to, at bare minimum, improve my mental strength.
Wim suggests building up to a point where you can take an ice cold shower for 5-10 minutes. I started at 15 seconds on, 15 seconds off for 2 -3 minutes at the very end of the shower and worked my way up to taking showers 30 second – 1 minute intervals. Where I’ve noticed the most improvement is in managing the initial “shock factor” of the first slap of cold water, which invokes that gasp reflex and an instinct to hyperventilate (hmmm). This reflex has largely disappeared, and I’m now able to breath in a smoother and more controlled fashion throughout the shower. Afterwards, I’ll admit that I feel pretty fucking amazing, and I do think it’s working on calming my nerves to the “shock” in general, and potentially improving my ability to control myself, physically and emotionally, during times of extreme stress.
Is there any application to running? Does your ability to withstand cold exposure improve mental toughness or your last 6 mile drive? I guess you could argue that, by the same logic, if we asked someone to punch us in the stomach over and over it might make us tougher too, which might well be true! However, cold exposure does have solid science to back it up, which I can’t say for getting punched in the stomach on a daily basis!
On top of what I hope is an improvement in overall levels of raw mental toughness, studies also show inverse correlations between cold exposure and levels of depression. How spectacular! Dr. Rhonda Patrick describes in a 20-page paper the benefits of cold shock as hormesis (improved health as a result of a low grade stressor), which increases norepinephrine, lowers inflammation, and potentially increases the body’s number of immune cells and mitochondria.
While more studies ultimately need to be done on ice baths and cold exposure, the benefits look reasonably promising. I’ll also admittedly commit a logical fallacy in saying that Tony Robbins, the man, begins every day with a plunge into a cold pool, so it’s probably legit. I’ll take even the weakest form of reasoning!
I’m going to continue working towards lengthy cold showers because I’m stinky and gonna be showering anyway! I feel good afterwards, so what’s to lose in the end. I can already sense an improvement in my ability to retain control during the stressful event of the cold shower, so maybe this will translate into improved control in running, or just better health in general.
Conclusion
While I don’t think I need to go into my view on the benefits of meditation, the third component of the Wim Hoff method, I admit that I haven’t finished his course. If there are any particularly interesting insights, I will absolutely share these!
While there is some science to support the benefits of taking an cold shower on a daily basis, and the study supporting improved immunity and autonomic control is incredibly interesting, am I going to be able to be able to fully replicate this, in my home, to the extent that I feel confident enough to inject myself with a bacteria like those participants did? Maybe not. What I take most from the Wim Hoff method most is that this might be a reasonable way to practice pushing both the body and the mind to their extremes. Marathoning is in itself an extreme push beyond a person’s comfort zone, so I view the use of the Wim Hoff Method as a challenge worthy of undertaking.
Is it possible that pushing our ability to withstand the pain of cold temperatures (within reason) improves our ability to withstand the pain in a marathon? Yes, so I’mma take that shower. Can learning to expand and control our breathing both in the cold and out have a positive impact our ability to retain control during the most unknown portions of the race? Yes, I’mma practice controlling my breath in the cold shower and out. I think it’s plausible that in combination, this may actually improve our nervous system and immunity, so I’m forging ahead. Keep on Wim, keep on.
Do good,
Young Austin