Select Page

Week One


Breathing

Day #1 workshop! Today, January 29th 2017, we learned the WHM basic breathing technique. It seems similar to the Holotropic Breathing I’ve done in the past but a bit slower. It does bring a similar “tingling euphoria”. The longest I could hold the exhale retention on the first day was 1:30.  On Day #6 I held the exhale retention for 1:50.

Cold Exposure

On the first Workshop day our class concluded with a dip in Seattle’s Greenlake.  Our instructor Matt measured the temperature at 42 degrees… yikes! This is by far the coldest temperature I’ve experienced but I tried my best to relax, breathe slowly and embrace the cold. I lasted one minute.

On the second day through the fourth day I did cold showers for 1:30 – 2:00.  I pushed my “edge” on the fifth day and did a 5 minute cold shower – that was a challenge!

Notes

The cold water temperature in our house currently measures around 49-50 degrees (Feb in Seattle).

I noticed that my body adjusted to the cold after about the 1:30 minute mark. After that it seems to get much easier – I’m aware of the cold but it doesn’t have the same initial shocking sensation.

Also, cold water directly on the top of my head is on a whole other level!  I tried this and only got seven breathes before I had to stop and get out of the shower. It caused me to feel VERY light headed.  Be sure to proceed with caution when doing this.

Week Two


Breathing

I was able to hold the exhale retention for 2 minutes on day #9 – this is a personal best.

Cold Exposure

This week I’ve been experimenting with two cold showers per day (morning and evening).  Mornings seem to be more difficult

At the beginning of the week 3:30 minutes appears to be my edge. I even considered backing off to around 2 minutes.  However, later this week I have a “breakthrough” and can suddenly handle 4-5 minutes. My personal best was 5:50!

Notes

I’m starting to get a lot more relaxed now. The initial cold water exposure in no longer so shocking.

I’ve found that staying in one static position in the shower longer is easier than constantly rotating… is this cheating?

Also, cold water directly on my hands is brutal! Similar to the top of the head – I can only withstand a few seconds on these areas.

Feeling VERY strong in my yoga classes. I’m attributing this to an increase in mental focus and strength.

Week Three


Breathing

I was able to hold the exhale retention for 2 minutes four times this week (usually after 4-5 rounds of breathing).  Sometimes I only get to around 1:30 – 1:40.

Cold Exposure

Started off this week with a 5:30 minute cold shower. On the second day I did 7 minutes…. and by the end of the week was doing 10 MINUTES!

I’ve backed off from two cold showers daily to only one in the evening.

Notes

I wasn’t planning on reaching the 10 minute mark this week (I’m in no rush). But I started feeling warmer after the 5 minute mark so I went for it!

Also, since I’ve been doing 8+ minute cold showers I’ve been experiencing very intense, vivid dreams (a bit disturbing too sometimes).

Week Four


Breathing

Now I’m consistently doing two breathing sessions per day consisting of    3-5 rounds each time.

Around 2 minutes seems to be my maximum retention time.

Cold Exposure

Six days this week I did a 10+ minute cold shower (I took one day off).

One day I even did 11 minutes!

Notes

I’m experiencing very little initial shock when I enter the cold showers now. The first “hit” was always challenging… now I hardly notice it.

My appetite is less, the vivid dreams continue and I’m starting to feel extra positive and upbeat in my mood.

Week Five


Breathing

This week I finally am breaking past the 2 minute retention plateau.  Several times I reached 2:15. I know 15 seconds isn’t a huge jump but it’s still satisfying to see some improvement

Cold Exposure

Every day I’m doing 10 minute cold showers and some days I’m adding extra “mini” cold showers of 3-5 minutes at my gym. For example, one day I did two 3 minute showers and later did my regular 10 minutes for a total of 16 minutes that day.

Notes

I’ve been doing a niacin/sauna detox regime this week (3 times per week).  The sauna at my gym is 185 degrees and I can only handle 10-12 minutes at a time. So I take short breaks and do cold showers for around 3 minutes before getting back in the sauna. I repeat this several times.

After my sauna sessions I do my regular 10 minute cold showers.

Week Six


Breathing

My personal best for retention this week was 2:15.  All the other days the max was 2:00.  This 2 minute mark seems to be a sticking point for me!

Cold Exposure

My first ice bath this week… I did 10 minutes easily @ 47 degrees (see the videos I posted towards the top of this site).

10 minute showers every day like clockwork.

I’m also continuing with the “extra” cold showers at my gym (during the sauna sessions I described last week).  One day I did a cumulative cold shower time of 20 minutes.

Notes

Business as usual with the daily 10 minute showers. They have become a regular part of my routine and  I really look forward to them!

The ice bath was interesting… I found it to be more relaxing and meditative in comparison to the dynamic, moving aspects of the showers even though it was colder (47 degrees).  I’m going to continue to explore the ice bath option.  Next time I’ll add more ice to make it colder (I only added 2 bags)