If you’re not familiar with Wim, he’s an animal. He holds 26 world records and does things like running a marathon on the arctic with only running shorts on. I’ve met him a few times, and frankly, he’s incredible. I saw the beginner’s course of the “method” being taught last weekend and decided to do it. For context: I can’t stand the cold. I have a heated blanket for Januarys in San Diego when it dips below 60 degrees. When I run in the snow, which I do, I wear three layers of gloves/mittens. Mostly, I have shit for circulation and am already long in the limbs so cold is not where I do best. File “death by ice water drowning” as my top way to go. An ice bath sounded like the ideal uncomfortable experience. I don’t ever watch Titanic because of that Leo drowning, gawd.

The four hour course had about 20 students, mostly dudes and many who were looking for ways to level up, change up their mental abilities, and expand their physical capabilities. It was a great vibe in there and notably supportive which was great when you’re having a bit of a break down in the ice. There are three pillars to the method that encompass breathing, mindset/commitment and “cold therapy.” The why of the cold therapy, according to the website, “Proper exposure to the cold starts a cascade of health benefits, including the buildup of brown adipose tissue and resultant fat loss, reduced inflammation that facilitates a fortified immune system, balanced hormone levels, improved sleep quality, and the production of endorphins— the feel-good chemicals in the brain that naturally elevate your mood.” Now, one would think: “of course you’d be fucking ecstatic to get out of a tub of ice,” but the course gets quite into the science behind inflammation and our immune systems. Before the bath, we did a lot of breathing work. Wim advocates to “get high on your own supply,” and after an intense set of breathing, a few people were indeed dizzy. I was loopy and lost hearing in one ear, and that’s just par for the course as a beginner. Long story short: you can REALLY get yourself pumped up with oxygen that can help power you through incredible things.

The last hour focused on the bath and just the prep to do it. As beginners, we had to stick to 2 minutes, tops, just so hypothermia and other deranged things didn’t happen. I could tell these guys were nervous and pumped at the same time, including me. Something about pouring bags and bags of ice in a pool, feeling the shocking cold of the ice just on your hand, and then thinking, “I’m now going to sit in that ENTIRE pool there” is daunting. Perhaps if the guys were brushing it off I would have had a different energy about it, but you could sense the trepidation on the patio as we all peered into that little blue pool. Our instructor, well aware of the contained fear, told us not to freak out. If we did, he’d come up to us and say, “blow through my hand” to aid in our controlled breathing. Then, we started the “whoo-HA”s, a deep squash and arm motion while saying “whoo!” and “HA!” with every hand motion. Frankly, we looked ridiculous in swim trunks standing around a little pool as kids played on a playground behind us. Some of the kids giggled and did modified whoo-has with us, and some Asian ladies sitting on little stools at the back of the shop we were sharing the space with looked onward at us with disgust. Whatever. We were too hyped about the bath and the whoo-HAs helped get a lot of blood flowing.

Our instructor then said, “Who’s first?” I and three others hopped reluctantly in. I wanted to be first because I wanted ALL of that ice bobbing around me. (Twenty or so minutes later it was still freezing but all melted with the additional bathers.) Then the two minutes began, which were quite the longest two minutes I can recall in recent history. There is something wretchedly painful about the ice. I recalled that sweat lodge uncomfortable experience I did a year ago, the one in which I thought at various times that my skin was on fire. It was hard to hold this memory when the pain was bolting through. I thought, “oh, maybe it will just feel like you’re completely numb which would be no feeling at all.” That is unfortunately not the case as the body is in complete panic mode trying to preserve your organs. I did feel almost a little shield of warmth around my thighs, probably from all the blood flow and workout I just did with the whoo-HAs. Thankfully, the group was all whoo-HAing hard, and there’s something to be said about a group of people encouraging you so sincerely. I had the instructor count down the last 20 seconds, and that was a god send. I hopped out pretty much the second time was called.