After implementing the Wim Hof Method for only five weeks, I'm a convert. The changes to my mind and body have been significant.
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Video Transcription
Hey guys, it's Jono here. Welcome to this episode of CuraVita life.
So at CuraVita life, as you probably know, we like to talk about things that can help you in your everyday life. And that's with with your sporting activities, whether it's for business, feeling better about yourself, just living a happier, healthier life.
One of the things that I've started doing in the last five weeks, I suppose... and I didn't know anything about this Method at all before I started. And it was just by pure coincidence, I was looking on some different things on Google, and then took me through to YouTube, and I found this process called the Wim Hof Method.
I had no idea what it was about, but to put it bluntly, it's been quite astonishing; the results I've got.
What Is The Wim Hof Method?
So what is the Wim Hof Method? Well, firstly, you might have heard about a guy called The Iceman. And it's been on things like 60 Minutes, and I think Sunday Night, some of the other TV shows in Australia.
And it talks about this Dutch guy, and he looks like a crazy Dutch guy, and he kind of sounds like it at times as well. But there's something to it. The Iceman, and he's got all these world records for doing things like swimming under the ice, in the Arctic, for a hundred meters. So holding his breath under the ice, and swimming for a hundred meters.
He's also climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in Kenya, in shorts. Sorry, bare feet, that was in bare feet, in Kilimanjaro. I think also he has climbed Everest in shorts. Sounds crazy, but that's what he's done.
So he's got now a bit of a core following all around the world. But he's developed his own method called the Wim Hof Method, that helps you improve your life in many different ways. So not only for discipline and commitment to anything you do. There's health benefits, and then improving your life in everyday living as well.
So what we're going to talk about today is the Wim Hof Method. How it's worked for me so far, in the last five weeks. How easy it is, how simple and free it is to do.
What Are The Three Pillars Of The Method?
And the three pillars of the method are, if you haven't researched it, or looked at it before is, there's a breathing component. So you breathe... We're going to go through it to the computer in a minute, and I'll talk about what the breathing component is.
There's a cold component. So this literally means getting in a cold shower. This is the hardest thing I found, but it's one of the most powerful.
And then there's a commitment element of it. It does, when you first get into it and first start researching it, it's a little bit hard to get your head around why you would do this and the benefits you're going to see. But after five weeks of me doing it, and I've also got a friend doing it with me, I can say there's something to it, big time.
It's hard to put your finger on exactly what, but you feel better, you feel healthier, and then things just start to snowball, and things happen in your life.
So we'll head on over to the computer now, and I'm going to go to his website and walk through it. What the process is, what the method is, and some of the benefits you can see.
The Wim Hof Method Website
Okay guys. So here we are at the Wim Hof website. So it's just wimhofmethod.com, and brings you here with all the information. Now that there's a number of different courses that you can take. There's a paid course, but there's also a free mini class which I'll go through in a second.
But you can also, there's so many videos online, and now this video is going to be one of them. But there's so many videos on YouTube talking about the Wim Hof Method, the results that people are getting. And some people go really deep into the method and how it works.
Because I find it does take a little bit of time to get your head around what its all about. So you need to do your own research and digging, and hear from different people around the world who are using it, and what results they're getting.
But if you just come to the site, this gives you pretty well all the information you need to get started. If you want to go really deep into it, you can purchase the the main course. But probably the best thing to do is what I've done, is just you join the free mini-class, and work through it.
But we'll just go through the basics of what the Wim Hof Method actually is. Also, just so you know, if you're on iPhone just go to the app store and you can get the Wim Hof Method app. And that's really cool, because it's got, when you're doing your different therapies, say cold therapy, or breathing, and other parts of it, the app actually allows you to time yourself. And then it tracks your results as well.
So, for example, with the cold therapy, you can track how many minutes you're in a cold shower, for example, every day. And it'll track it over time, so you get a chart and all the rest. So that's a good way of tracking it. And then same with the breathing. So it's got a stop watch on it. Yeah, so I just find that's a pretty good way of actually tracking your results, depending on how you want to do it.
But let's just go through the three fundamentals. So obviously they're cold therapy, as I mentioned, breathing, and commitment. So if we just got to cold therapy, actually, no, I'll go to breathing first.
My Routine
As I mentioned previously, the way I do it is sometimes I do it at night time, sometimes I do it in the morning. But I try and do my breathing and my cold therapy, at the same time. Sometimes if I'm busy with kids, or work, or whatever, and I've only got time to do the breathing, I might do that.
The way I like to do it, since I'm doing it, I finish work... we're in the middle of winter here in Adelaide Hills at the moment, so it's cold outside, and obviously our water's really cold too. We have rain water, it's in a tank, so it's a really cool temperature.
So my routine is I'll finish work, I will strip down just to maybe a pair of shorts, and I'll go outside. If it's not wet, I'll sit on the grass, out in the backyard. If it's dark, I might have a a porch light on, or just have my phone with me, or whatever. I'll sit on the grass and I'll do my breathing there in the cold. And there's reasons you do it in the cold, which you'll find out as we go through this.
And then, I'll come inside and I will have a cold shower. And when I first started it, I was stupid and I realize now. But it's sometimes the way I do things, where I go at things like a bull at a gate, and then worry about the consequences later on.
I should have learned by now, at my age but... It's also a part of, I don't mind that I do that, because it does mean I take action on things, whether it's business, sport, decisions I've got to make; I take action.
And what we're talking about here, is all about taking action, and taking control of your life as well. So I don't mind that I'm like that. Some people, my partner, sometimes thinks I'm too bull at a gate. And sometimes it has consequences that not only affects me, but other people as well, and I get that.
But going back to what happened when I first started, and I go, oh, this Wim Hof Method, this sounds awesome. So I just jumped in an ice cold shower, not even thinking about it. And I got an instant, like an ice cream headache but my whole head, and that freaked me out a little bit. And then I'm like, this is stupid, who's going to do this? Because the water was just so freakishly cold, and it lasted about 20 seconds, and I turned it off and got out.
So again, that's just me. But then as I did some more research and listened to other people's testimonials and reviews, and then actually properly went through the mini-class, and then also how Wim explains how you should do it. And that's to hop in a warm shower, or even just a lukewarm shower, and then you slowly bring in the cold water. And that's the way I do it now.
I'm getting more and more towards... I've been doing it five weeks now... So now I can almost turn the cold water, on not completely cold, but a little bit of lukewarm, and then I'll hop in the shower. But that's the way I do it. But we'll go through why we're doing this.
But first, because the routine I do is my breathing, and then cold therapy, we will click through and go through the breathing. And I'm going to work through why and how it works. So I'm going to read this. Obviously you can go and look at it yourself, but I'm just going to read through it.
Wim Hof Breathing Exercises
So, "Breathing exercises are an important part of the Wim Hof Method. This infamous and powerful method enabled Iceman, Wim Hof, to achieve extraordinary things, like climbing Mount Everest in his shorts and running barefoot in the snow for extended periods of time. Wim Hof Method is like Tummo and Pranayama, a type of breath work."
Pretty sure I didn't pronounce that correctly. "A type of breath work, but has his own particular features. The Wim Hof Method breathing exercise will help you gain control over your body and mind, and ultimately help you to influence your nervous system and immune system. As Wim puts it, this method is based on called hard nature, and helps you battle forces like the cold, heat, and stress."
So that's how it works. The advantages of the Wim Hof Method, breathing exercises. "Practicing the specific breathing exercises of the Wim Hof Method will release your inner fire. The exercises are focused on deep and rhythmic inhalations and exhalations, described by Wim as controlled hyper-ventilation, or power breathing. And are followed by a retention time, when you hold your breath for X amount of time."
"By practicing the breathing exercises, you are releasing more energy, influencing your nervous system, and changing various physiological responses. You are inducing voluntary, a short stress response which ultimately, will lead to more resilience toward everyday stress, mentally and physiology, and feeling more in control."
"These breathing exercises are only one of the three pillars that form the Wim Hof Method. The other two pillars are cold therapy and training your mindset. When combined, the three pillars will help you become stronger, and gaining better health."
"Known benefits of the Wim Hof Method include, stress reduction, faster recovery from physical exertion, better sleep, improved sports performance, enhanced creativity, more focus and mental clarity."
And it's got also, "Wim Hof Method is also linked to reducing symptoms of diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, asthma, sarcoidosis, vasculitis, and several autoimmune diseases."
Okay. So the way I'm doing the breathing exercises at the moment. I do about 30 repetitions of the inhalation, and then I exhale, and hold my breath. At the moment, I'm up to about, my best is I think is about a minute-forty, or a minute-fifty.
I've got a friend who's doing this with me, and he's up to two minutes, and over two minutes, in a very short period of time. So it's interesting how different people react.
A lot of times when I'm doing the breathing, it's after I might go and ride my push bike, my mountain bike. And I've exerted my body for maybe half an hour, or 40 minutes. And then, if I come back and do the breathing exercises straight away, I certainly can't hold my breath as long. So obviously, your body's in a state of depleted oxygen, so it's not going to work as well. If I wait half an hour, an hour, and my body recovers, then I do the breathing exercises, I can hold my breath a lot longer.
And so, I do 30 repetitions... and they recommend you can do between 30 and 40... hold my breath, and then the exhale. And then, I do another round of the same.
And then also there's... which you'll probably see if you do the mini course... you can do your pushups at the end of one of those rounds. And I'm up to now about, it might sound ridiculous to some people, but I'm up to about 25 pushups in that process. When I started, I could only do 10.
So the benefit... bear in mind, this is in conjunction with doing the cold therapy, and the mindset stuff as well...
So stress reduction. Well let's just talk about how my body, and I think, my mind has changed since I've started this process. And also, the friend I was just talking about. His decision making... I know I seem to be going all over the place at the moment, but it's just interesting how the different effects it has on people...
So this friend of mine has got a very successful business. It's he and his business partner. They do really well, but like all businesses, if you're running them yourself, there's always loads of stress.
Now they had a big contract out that they were trying to get over the line. They were toing and froing with the people they were dealing with the contract with, to try and get it over the line for two or three months. And they could not get past these obstacles and these roadblocks with this particular contract.
And he said it was making him really anxious and doing his head in, and it was causing problems with his business partner, et cetera. And they were in fear that they thought they were certainly going to lose this contract.
It's really hard to make it tangible. But he started doing the Wim Hof Method about three weeks ago. A bit like me, bull at a gate, straight into it. But straight away, within the first few days, he started seeing differences in the clarity of when he was working, every day; felt better.
And he was doing his breathing and cold shower late at night, so then he'd go straight to bed. And he said, in particularly, he felt like he was sleeping a lot better, and he felt more refreshed when he got up in the morning.
Anyway, so long story short, yesterday he called me and said, we've got this deal over the line. And we came up with a way to get past the obstacles and the roadblocks. And he believes... and they made a very clear decision, and now they believe they've got their contract over the line.
He believes a lot of it was to do with the Wim Hof Method, because the way it's helped him focus, and just have a clearer mind; feels better, so he makes better decisions.
Again, it's really hard to be tangible with this sort of stuff, but it's coincidental that they were struggling with this problem for the last two months, then all of a sudden, after doing the Wim Hof Method for a period of time, they could then work through it. Again, it could be coincidental, but ducks line up, so to speak.
My particular results, and how I'm feeling, I think it's had a major effect on me. I'm also a believer in placebos. So a lot of people, you talk about snake oil, and all that sort of stuff; snake oil salesman. I don't have an issue if you purchase a particular product, or a service, or whatever, and it works for you based on placebo. So it might change your mindset about a certain area, or something you're doing.
Another thing people do is take pills. There's been lots of research where one control will have sugar pills, and the other control will actually have what the pill is. And there's either no difference, or in some instances, a sugar pill will have a better result on what the actual problem they're trying to deal with.
And that's that placebo effect, where your body and your mind changes, believing that you're getting what you purchased, or what you actually put in your body. And then you get the result you want.
But I don't think this is a placebo with the Wim Hof Method. There's science behind it... and you can read to your heart's content on the site and then listen to people on YouTube... that there's a physiological and a psychological effect on your body.
Can It Reduce Stress?
Yes
Okay, we'll just work through this. So stress reduction, I certainly feel like I'm less stressed. My job, my work, my business can be highly stressful. I certainly feel like I'm dealing with that better.
Fast recovery from physical exertion. So I've got a really dodgy knee. I've got no cartilage in there, so I can't run anymore, which it did... that hurt me mentally for a while. But then I realized, once I started riding my bike that I could do that. So I go hard on my mountain bike, on a daily basis.
Riding the bike for me is always hard, we're in Adelaide Hills here, so it's always 50% of the time, you're going up quite steep hills. So it's always hard, but I do feel like my body's coping a lot better than what it was previously.
Will you sleep better?
The short answer is yes.
Better sleep, certainly think I'm sleeping better. Improved sports performance; go back to the mountain bike.
Enhanced creativity. So this is an interesting one. A bit similar to my friend, a couple of things in my business, and some of the other projects I'm working on, seem to be coming... and I've been doing this five weeks now... seem to be coming to a fruition a lot quicker than in the past.
I sometimes have an issue with focus. So not focusing on one thing in particular, and I jump around a little bit. And sometimes that's really important for what I do, because you need to put out fires, or you need to deal with something in the moment.
But what I'm finding is I'm becoming much more structured... without even thinking about it really... much more structured in actually, my day to day activities. And I'll focus on a particular problem, or a particular task, until it's completed in that moment, or completed with what needed to be done in that moment, rather than putting it aside.
And the other thing I think I'm doing, I'm making decisions to work on the harder problems, earlier in the day. So I work up with lists, so I just put my task down for the day, every morning on my list. And in the past, I probably would procrastinate on some of the tougher tasks and projects, but I'm finding I'm putting those tasks at the first part of the day, working through them. And then just by doing that, it creates less stress in my life.
And I'm also making better decisions, so certainly mental clarity is improved. So again, it could be a placebo, but I think there's something certainly in it. And it's enough for me to certainly continue doing the Wim Hof Method at this point.
So that's the breathing exercises. So now we will go... And there's a bit of scientific proof down here, and then testimonials, etc. So we'll go back, and now we'll look at the cold therapy.
Cold Therapy
Okay, so a bunch of naked European guys in an ice bath, so we don't need to do that, unless you really want to. I haven't done an ice bath yet. Certainly something I think I'll probably need to look at in summer time here, because it gets so hot, and because out water is in a tank, it warms up. So you're not going to get that cold shock that you need. So anyway.
So cold therapy. "Exposing one's body to cold temperatures is one of the three pillars of the Wim Hof Method. In recent years, cold body therapy has gained serious popularity because it is linked to numerous health benefits."
"Some people, including professional athletes, body builders and celebrities even swear by whole body cryotherapy. This kind of therapy is characterized by standing in a sealed container for a short amount of time while extremely cold air is circulated around the body. This whole body cryotherapy is relatively expensive and not widely available."
Methods like the Wim Hof Method provide an affordable alternative. You can practice the method from within the comforts of your home, by taking cold showers, so you can already start reaping the benefits of cold therapy today."
The benefits of cold therapy. "Frequent exposure to cold is linked to a number of different health benefits. For example, scientists have found evidence that exposure to cold speeds up metabolism. Another benefit of exposing your body to cold is that it reduces inflammation, swelling, and sore muscles. Therefore, many athletes use ice baths and other types of exposure to cold, as a means to speed up recovery after physical exercise."
"Furthermore, cold therapy is also linked to improved quality sleep, more focus, and even to an improved immune response. Cold is an important component of the Wim Hof Method, which is applied in the form of cold showers and ice bath. Participants of the Wim Hof Method report health benefits that range from high energy levels to relief of symptoms caused by autoimmune deficiencies."
And then there's some information about the scientific proof. Not going to read that, you can go and read it yourself.
Okay. So you might say, well, duh. If you've played any sport at all in your life, you know that for probably hundreds of years, using cold, so ice, after exertion, or after a sporting activity is going to help inflammation and help recovery, et cetera.
It's used by all the major sporting codes around the world, both human and otherwise. So a good example would be equestrian sports, where ice is used on horses after they've raced, or they've competed.
So the benefits are not in question. What's different here is you're doing it every day. So just an everyday person, you're using cold to improve your life.
And this is the other great thing I love about the Wim Hof Method is anybody can do this. It costs nothing. Most people have access to a cold shower. If you don't have access to a cold shower in Australia, you've probably got other issues you need to deal with first, and I'm not being flippant about that.
And then obviously with the breathing, you don't need anything. Anybody can do the breathing, and anybody can do the cold therapy. And there's other parts of the Wim Hof Method, such as stretching which you can do. So you don't need a gym, you don't need to pay a gym membership, you don't need to go, or drive to a gym and get in your car, you don't need a bike.
Even though, this, I feel it works best when you're doing some sort of other physical activity within your life, because that's just the way I like to work. So it's just so simple, and the benefits I'm seeing are so amazing.
So let's talk about how I do it, and the results I'm seeing. So as I mentioned, if I do it in the morning, I'll try and do my breathing first, and then the cold shower. So I hop in, I have a timer on my phone, and I put the phone on the window sill, or whatever. And I say, okay, I'm going to have a cold shower for two minutes.
So now as I mentioned before, I did it stupidly, where I just jumped in a cold shower. Now I get in there with a lukewarm shower, and I slowly turn the hot water off and the cold water on high, until it gets as cold as it can.
Then I'll stand under there, and I'll change my body in a shower to have the water over my head, over my shoulders, on my chest, and on my back. And actually moving around is probably the worst part, where it'll run down your legs and if it's freezing cold, it's hard.
This cold shower stuff is hard. The water doesn't get any warmer, although it feels warmer. But when you first get in, every morning, it's hard. And this is a big part of this commitment thing, where you're committed, and the discipline of doing it.
So it does get easier. After only two or three days, you realize you can do it. But when I first started, like that first time, "I can't do this". But you do get to a point when you know you can do it, and then you just hop in the shower and do it.
So I've got my stopwatch on for two minutes, and then the alarm goes off and I get out. But the first part of it, like the first minute, that can be hard, and then all of a sudden your body changes. It's obviously the blood also moving towards your inner part of your body and your organs, so you don't feel the cold as much after about that minute.
And I had a weird sensation yesterday actually, where I was in the shower and my arms and my legs felt a little bit cold, but I had this really warm and almost hot feeling, the rest of my body. It was quite strange and that's the first time I've had that. And I just stood there and took it in for a bit. And you do a little bit of the breathing in there as well, because I find that helps me cope with that cold.
So then I get out, and you get warm quickly, you should. I walk around with a beanie on in winter anyway, so I put my beanie on, and put a jumper on, or whatever. But the immediate feeling once you get out of the shower, after you've dried yourself off, Wim, and other people that do this talk about this euphoric type feeling. And I'm like, yeah, whatever, this is bullshit, this euphoric feeling.
But now that I've done it enough, you do get this amazing up, or high, when you get out of the shower. And again, when I first started it, it would last for maybe a minute, as my body is warming up. And it's as your body's moving back out to your extremities, et cetera, you have this feeling.
But now, after doing this for five weeks, that euphoric feeling, and that high, lasts a lot longer. So it can last for up to an hour. And just that alone, just getting that feeling, and that positivity surging through your body, it's amazing what it does to your mind.
If I do that, I might have a really stressful day, a lot of work and I know it's going to be a stressful lined up for work the next day, and I've been stressing a little bit about it. But during the day before, I do the Wim Hof Method at night, before I go to bed. And I go to bed just really relaxed, and clear, and understanding that tomorrow is going to be fine. It's a very strange, weird experience that this brings upon you.
So that's the cold therapy. Now let's talk about commitment. I think I'm a pretty committed person; my willpower's good. I've got to the point now where anything I want to do, especially physically, I'll just do it.
And Dave Goggins is another one that talks about this. I'll get up in the morning and I want to go and ride my bike, and it can be freezing cold; rain, there's mud everywhere, and every bone in my body's saying, you don't want to go riding out in that. But I just tell myself, I'll do it, and you do it. And once you get to that point, everything in life becomes a lot easier.
So that's the same thing with the cold showers, and the breathing, and that discipline, but obviously not everyone's the same. So you sometimes need to think a little bit harder about it. So let's just walk through this now.
How to increase willpower. "Willpower and self control are very important factors for a successful and happy life. In the modern world, many people are used to follow everyday routine."
Just bear in mind, when I'm reading this, some of the grammar is not 100% correct. Wim's Dutch, and I'm sure his editors are Dutch as well. So even though it's very good English, it's just me making that point, but you'll see that as you go through the site.
"In the modern world, many people are used to follow everyday routines and patterns. You could say modern day people have developed an habitual brain."
Have we slowly lost our willpower? "The amount of willpower is different for every person, but everybody has some willpower. We're trying really hard to look good, to lose weight, get educated, et cetera."
"Most people are trying to become the best version of themselves. But if you really want to become a better version of yourself, then increasing willpower is one of the most essential things to do. We believe willpower can be trained. Increase your willpower by practicing our scientifically underpinned method. Ignore your hardwired thoughts and start today."
Causes and effects of willpower. "People with low willpower will tend to make poor choices in life, because they give in to short term goals at the expense of longer term goals. People with more willpower are happier, healthier, more satisfied in relationships, have better careers, and cope with stress, conflicts, and adversities more easily. So increasing your willpower will bring you a lot of benefits. Stop hesitating and take control of your body and mind."
I just will read this. Increased willpower with the Wim Hof Method. "Willpower, self control, and commitment, are very important parts of the Wim Hof Method, because conscious breathing and cold therapy require patience and dedication. We believe you can train your brain to increase willpower and self control."
"The exercises that are instructed by Wim all have a powerful effect on skills that relate to self-control. They improve your focus, reduce your stress levels, and make you more self-aware. Through meditation and conscious breathing, you can observe your thoughts, emotions, and impulses without identifying, or acting on them."
So yeah, this is pretty well what I was just saying before, it just makes life a lot easier.
Fasting In Conjunction With Wim Hof
One of the other things I do, and I think it certainly had a big impact on me, is I fast. So I fast at least two days a week. Sometimes I do it two days in a row, sometimes I'd do it one day, and then a gap, and then another day. And not only for the health benefits, and that might be in another video, the health benefits that that can provide, but it's all part of this same thing.
And that the hardest thing I do is fast, I think. I love my food, and when you're hungry, it's an incredible urge. And having the willpower to say, no, I'm not going to eat, and wait till the next day, or how ever many hours it is, takes a lot of willpower, in my experience. And again, it doesn't get any easier, but you just got to do it.
So you put all these three pillars together, so the breathing, the cold therapy, and the willpower, and you get this incredible effect.
Okay, so we'll quickly walk through the, the mini-course, so it's free. So you just sign up... Where is it? Go back to the main page. Oh, there it is, right there.
So up in the menu, free mini-class, you sign up, you come here, and then you go start class. And then you'll get a video, and Wim talks about the power of breathing. Then the steps, and actually doing it. And you click to hear more about breathing. So this is very similar to the app.
Oh that's the page we were on before; it talks about the breathing exercises. Yeah, so you can just go through the videos. I won't play them too long, just wanted to show you how to go through it.
And then, you do the breathing, and then there's one for cold therapy, and then one for commitment. So it just gives you a bit of an introduction, bit like we've done here today. A bit of an introduction on how it all works.
So yeah, I think the Wim Hof Method really has something to it. And again, because it's so simple, it's free, and anybody can do it. And the results I'm seeing so far, are quite amazing. I'm planning to commit to it indefinitely while I'm seeing the results. It's just quite astonishing really. So there you go, the Wim Hof Method.
Okay, there you go, so that's the Wim Hof Method. I encourage you to go and try it. You got nothing to lose; it's free; it's really simple. Nothing you're going to take into your body, no drugs, anything like that. It's just a really simple method that a lot of people, including myself, are seeing some pretty awesome benefits.
So sign up for the free mini-class, and just see how you go. And then, if you really want to get deep into it, you can sign up for the larger course.
Don't forget, we've got our CuraVita Green Boost online at curavita.com.au. We've also got some new products in there, so we've got some hemp protein, some hemp seeds, and hemp seed oil.
We've also got another green product on the side as well, another brand. We're going to be bringing in lots of new products in the next few weeks, and few months, so make sure you check it out.
Thanks. We'll see you next episode.