Reflections: 365 Days of Cold Showers
Two weeks ago I completed a goal I set last year. One year of 100% cold showers. Below are my thoughts.
If you read about cold showers they always focus on the physical changes and adaptions which I found marginal at best. The psychological changes I found are much more worth speaking about IMO.
The most profound aspect is the daily mental fortitude that you will foster by taking something comforting and instead turning it into a rather uncomfortable part of your day.
I always felt better stepping out than when I got in. Each time I got this feeling of accomplishing something.
The colder it got, the greater the euphoric feeling I'd have when I got out. The 7 weeks spent in Denver were by far the coldest but also the most enjoyable in a very masochistic type of way.
There was never a thought of "I can't do this" because it never got any harder, per se. No single day required anything more from me than I had already accomplished the day before. I simply had to just keep showing up. I really like setting goals in this particular manner.
I used to do a lot of thinking in the shower, but the cold showers find a way of completely consuming your mind about when it'll be over. However, after about 7-8 months I'd find myself just standing there daydreaming in the shower again, lost in my aimless thoughts for 10+ minutes.
So the natural question I get is where do I go from here?
I've been splitting about 50/50 hot/cold showers since reaching my goal. I do however start every single hot shower cold first and will continue to do so. From the approach of, "if you don't use it you lose it."
If the sun is out my showers will continue to be cold, if it's dark out I'll take a hot shower.
It's a relief knowing I no longer "have to" but after an entire year that cold water now has a strangely familiar and somewhat sentimental type of feeling to me.
I'm really happy I did this.
