One of my worst fears is cold. If you have seen my story you will know that cold is one of the most significant contributors to the pain in my body that use to prevent me from walking properly. So to stand under a cold shower or get into an ice bath, must have to be pretty damn beneficial for me to face that fear, where I was once told that pain could have me in a wheelchair.
So why would you care?
Well if its not for the other benefits I am about to run through, you will at least be curious to know if promotes fat loss. While I often keep the conversation of fat metabolism superficial for simplicity you may be ready for another layer of complexity which involves two types of fat. Brown and white.
Unlike regular white fat, which stores calories, mitochondria-packed brown-fat cells burn energy and produce heat thereby increasing fat loss. In this article here hormone FGF21 found in brown fat and hormone irisin produced by muscle are described as interacting to convert fat storing white fat to fat burning brown fat resulting in an increase in fat burning and therefore fat loss. Put simply more brown fat means you burn more calories and cold showers means you have more brown fat and less white fat.
Before we talk about how to have this fat burning shower lets look at some of the other benefits:
Makes You Happy
A study published in the journal Medical Hypotheses found that taking two to three minute cold showers over a two-week period boosted the moods of their participants. Cold water can increase increase beta-endorphin and noradrenaline in the blood and brain, creating an anti-depressant effect.
Increases your metabolism
The cold temperatures force your body to re-regulate the body temperature continually, which uses calories.
Keeps skin and hair healthy
Hot water dries out skin, hair and nails. Cold water tightens your skin and pores, reduces unwanted redness and puffiness below your eyes so the skin will look smoother and brighter.
Stimulates Your Immune System
A cold shower makes your body react and stimulates the immune system, making it more resilient.
Improves Circulation
Boosts blood circulation, transporting oxygen and nutrients throughout the body and flushing out toxins.
Improved lymphatic function
The lymphatic system plays the important role of removing waste and it relies on the contraction of muscles.Cold showers encourage that contraction and help the lymphatic system in its circulation.
Promotes healing, growth and repair
Promotes growth and repair of the circulatory system by stimulating capillary beds usually stagnant in the blood. The increased blood flow to cold areas can help repair damaged muscle or other tissue because your blood contains the nutrients that heal.
Increases Resilience to Stress
Putting the body under a small amount of pressure or stress allows the body to get better and stronger.
Improved leptin sensitivity
Leptin is the hormone I speak about with the biggest loser contestants HERE and influences how full or satisfied you feel but also regulates your metabolism. Improved sensitivity means you body can respond very sensitively to leptin and therefore increase metabolic rate and feel more satisfied.
[headline style=”1″ align=”center” headline_tag=”h2″]So how do you do it?
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Well to be honest I just turned the shower to cold at the end of my hot shower for 30 secs for the first day. Then I increased it to 1 minute, then to 2, and then I read that a minimum of 3 up to 10 minutes is ideal. Now I don’t even turn it to hot at all, even when I wash my hair I stand under and have my shower cold – shaving my legs is a little different I definitely need warm water for that!
Right now in QLD it is starting to get too hot for the cold shower to be producing shock in the body and therefore the benefits above. Also my body has started to adapt to the colder temperatures,what was ‘cringing, holding my breathe before I went under’ is now a pleasant morning ritual with my tapping and matrix re-imprinting in the shower. So next level for me to continue to create the shock and therefore the benefits above, is an ice bath! :O
What crazy rituals do you do to burn fat?