Blog Written By Guest Blogger, Alexia Bjarkan
Alexia Bjarkan is a coach on the keto diet and lifestyle at The Benefactory. As seen in Grazia, Marie Claire, and DHA’s Better Health; she offers guidance on optimal health and weight using a combination of the keto diet and biohacks such as cryotherapy.
“Go hard or go home.” I was telling that to myself when I was climbing a snowy mountain half-naked with Wim Hof, “The Iceman”; famous for his world-record of submerging in ice for almost 2 hours.
The expedition was part of my quest for finding the most powerful health hacks, and now years later, cold exposure is still one of my absolute favorites. Being in the cold has many benefits, like fat loss and release of “feel-good” hormones. I’ve shared before about how ice baths helped me break my binge eating pattern, which opened up my life to whole new freedom.
Now, as a keto coach, I guide my clients on getting rid of excess weight simply by changing what they eat. I also recommend methods for speeding up the slim-down process, and cold exposure and cryotherapy sessions are one of them.
Most of my clients are a bit taken aback by the idea of exposing themselves to subzero degrees in a chamber for a few minutes, and I don’t blame them. But most of those who are willing to try are pleasantly surprised by the experience and after-effects.
As the famous Swedish saying goes: “One time is no time.” That’s great news if you’ve been naughty, but it also means that you can’t rest on your laurels with your health hacks. So if you want to get maximum benefits from cold exposure, you need to stick with the process. Then the question is: how to make it an automatic habit?
So here are three ways that you can practice cold exposure in between your cryotherapy sessions, to make the cold a lifestyle for long-term health benefits!
Cold Showers
The concept of “eating a frog” means that by doing something uncomfortable the first thing in the morning, we feel accomplished and inspired to continue in the same manner for the rest of the day. Starting and ending your showers with 30 seconds of cold water is a simple way to feel like a master every morning while making the cold a part of your daily routine.
Ice Face
Although I love ice baths, I’m not a fan of getting huge amounts of ice together, and I don’t even have a bathtub any longer. A more convenient method is just to give your face an ice bath, which you can learn how here.
Light Clothing
There is no need to overcomplicate things: if it’s winter and you’re in the Northern hemisphere, just take off the layers of clothing during your walks. When I visit my family in Sweden, I like to chill out in the snow in my bikini (just kidding – it takes practice not to scream and make a run for it).
Start small by just skipping the jacket on a quick walk around the block, and advance from there (while trying not to get arrested for indecency).