🚿 The Truth About Cold Showers – 2024 update

A few months ago, in 2024,  my hot water heater broke. So, I had only cold running water in my home. It happened on a Friday afternoon and I needed to take a shower and go out for the evening. There was no time to call a plumber.

My only option was to “man up” and take a cold shower.

And that’s what I did.

Unfortunately, I quickly learned that maybe I wasn’t man enough because the water was damn cold. And certain parts of my body felt like ice water… if you know what I mean.

So I took a super quick shower and got out in like 5 minutes.

But something interesting happened – I felt really energized after the shower. It actually put me in a good mood and I felt refreshed the rest of the night.

And since the plumber couldn’t make it out until Monday, I ended up taking cold showers the rest of the weekend and to my surprise, I noticed a few other benefits.

Granted, this didn’t mean I was going to give up my regular warm showers.

So, let me quickly give you some of the benefits of a cold shower, as well as simple guidelines.

Benefits Of Cold Showers

More Alert

I already mentioned how it can wake you up. This is because of higher oxygen intake, faster heart rate, and higher adrenal levels and endorphins, causing more alertness.

Reduces Inflammation & Improves Circulation

Cold water, similar to an ice bath, but not as powerful, lowers body temperature, reduces inflammation, and improves circulation.

This can also help boost recovery after a workout, by reducing soreness, aches, and pains.

Good For Skin & Hair

The lowering of inflammation is also good for anyone who has acne, itchy skin and is suffering from hair loss. All three conditions being in an inflammatory response.

Plus, cold water doesn’t dry your skin and hair, unlike hot water.

Potential Weight Loss

Being cold is thermogenic and thus, it causes your body to turn up your temperature. In fact, your body will generate heat by burning brown fat, which can help with weight loss.

Doing It The Right Way

As with most things in life, there’s a right way and a wrong way to do things.

If you want to start giving cold showers a try, do so gradually.

Maybe at the end of a regular shower, turn the water to a cooler temperature for 2-3 minutes and see how you feel.

Next time, turn it down even colder, again for 2-3 minutes.

The third time, turn it to completely cold water and do so for a minute and gradually work up to 2-3 minutes.

I don’t suggest taking cold showers for 10 minutes or longer. Unless you like it and you enjoy discomfort. But there won’t be any additional health benefits.

So there you have it, the benefits of a cold shower.