Benefits Of Cold Showers

in self-improvement •  2 years ago 

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Cold showers were part of many cultures since ancient times humans have bathed in cold water for health benefits many cultures adopted this practice for many health benefits, ancient greeks, romans and russians all use dips in cold water for health and spiritual reasons , japanese practitioners of shinto in both ancient and modern times would stand under ice cold waterfalls in a ritual called misogyny. Some native american tribes would alternate between sitting in a sweat lodge and then jumping into snow banks.

Improve Circulation

cold showers can improve circulation good blood circulation is vital for overall cardiovascular health healthy blood circulation also speeds up recovery time from strenuous exercise and work, alternate between hot and cold water while you shower is an easy way to improve your circulation.

Relieve Depression

The department of radiation oncology at Virginia commonwealth university school of medicine that was a mouthful indicates that short cold showers may stimulate the brain's blue spot this is the brain's primary source of a hormone called nor adrenaline. it's a chemical that could help mitigate depression so if you're feeling down in the dumps hop in a cold shower.

Burn Fat

When your body is exposed to cold it requires more heat to warm you up to do so it has to process more energy and in doing so you burn more fat more efficiently cold water exposure can also activate brown fat. Which is sort of a good fat that helps you generate heat and increase your metabolism and it burns up yellow or white fat on adults brown fat is located on the upper back and neck and on your chest above your clavicles so when you're in the shower with the cold water aim so the water hits those parts of your body.

Improve Your Sleep

If you've been having trouble falling to sleep lately you might try taking a cold shower one hour before bed for optimal sleep our bodies need to be cool and some research suggests that cold water exposure can trigger our body's sleep signalers and aid in getting to sleep faster and experiencing a deeper sleep at night.

Keep Skin and Hair Healthy

Cold showers can help to keep skin and hair healthy hot water dries out skin and hair if you want to avoid an irritating itch and ashy elbows turn down the temperature of your showers also cold water can make your manly mane look shinier and your skin look healthier by closing up your cuticles and pores.

Increase Fertility

Cold showers can help increase fertility are you thinking about becoming a dad well cold showers may be good for your little swimmers you see your testes aren't meant to get too hot that's why they hang outside your body sperm counts decrease when the temperature of a man's testes increases we know this because experiments done in the 1950s showed that hot baths were an effective contraceptive men who took a 30 minute hot bath every other day for three weeks were infertile for the next six months more recently the university of California at San Francisco did a study with men who were exposed to 30 minutes of wet heat which is like a hot shower or a steam bath 30 minutes a week and when the men cut this exposure out their sperm count went up get this by 491% and their sperm motility which is how well they move improved as well so while switching from a hot to cold shower may not have a dramatic effect on your fertility if you're trying to create some progeny it surely won't hurt to turn the temperature down.

Improve Emotional Resilience

If you want to stay cool calm and collected in the face of adversity cold showers may help. Scientists have found that rats who swim regularly in cold water develop the capacity to mount a quick and powerful arousal relying on adrenaline more than cortisol (stress hormone) and they can switch off that arousal just as quickly, when subsequently exposed to stressors these rats stayed resilient and are not as prone to learn helplessness. Some tentative research has suggested that much of the same thing occurs in humans.

Improve Immunity

According to a study done in 1993 by the Thrombosis Research Institute in England individuals who took daily cold showers saw an increase in the number of virus-fighting white blood cells compared to individuals who took hot showers, researchers believe that the increased metabolic rate which results from the body's attempt to warm itself up activates the immune system and releases more white blood cells and response.

Speeds Up Exercise Recovery

Cold showers can help decrease inflammation and aids in recovery after a hard workout take a cold shower for a quicker recovery ice baths have long been used by elite athletes to help decrease inflammation, after a workout or a big football game cold exposure constricts the veins throughout your body and helps remove toxins like lactic acid from your muscles. When you get out of the cold shower or cold exposure blood flow increases as your veins open up and your system is flushed with fresh nutrient-rich blood that can help bring stuff to help repair your muscles.

Increase Testosterone

Cold showers may help increase testosterone a study done by the Thrombosis Research Institute showed that cold water showers increase testosterone production of men increased testosterone levels not only boost a man's libido which helps out with that fertility thing but also increases a man's overall strength and energy level.

Energy Boost

Finally cold showers provide a quick but long lasting energy boost the shock of the cold water is like knocking back an energy shot, every time I take a cold shower I feel invigorated energized and that feeling doesn't just last right after the shower, it lasts what I find my experience the entire day so if you're looking for a little more energy the more pep in your step try taking a cold shower well there you go. I hope you found this information useful.

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