Jan '24 • General discussion
Lesson #8: How to Overcome Resistance
Resistance to getting in the cold is something that will likely never go away.
Why?
Because of our hard wired physical response to protect ourselves.
It’s in our DNA, and it’s the same reason our primitive ancestors wanted to sit around fires and wear the skins of animals to keep warm.
It’s overcoming ourselves just to get in almost every single day.
You’ll find that depending on the stressors of life, it can be more difficult or easier on any particular day.
Here are a few things that have helped me over the years to overcome the resistance to get in the ice bath:
1-Schedule it. If you have it in your calendar and you have the time allotted, there’s a much more real chance that you’ll get in the car and go make it happen.
2-Create a ritual by doing your best to plunge at the same time everyday (similar to scheduling, but slightly different). You can use other triggers to be the cue that it’s time to get in the cold water. For example, it could be before or after a daily workout, after a morning walk, after lunch, after XYZ scheduled meeting each week. Connect the new habit to another thing that triggers the action
3-Have an accountability person you plunge with. You’ll feel as though you’ll be letting the other person down if you don’t show up to join them.
4-Place your body in a position of power (Power Posing) before you get in the water. Stand up straight, put your shoulders back, get into a warrior pose, place your hands up straight into the sky in a Y shape, or whatever position evokes a “powerful” feeling to you. For more on Power Posing, search Youtube for the famous TED talk by Amy Cuddy called “Power Posing”.
5-Visualize how you’ll feel after you get out of the ice bath and how good you’ll feel. See yourself smiling. Feel the increase of energy in your body. Feel yourself feeling confident that you just did something hard. The more you can feel it in your body before you even do the physical action, the more the resistance will melt away.
Last but not least, perhaps the most powerful way to kill resistance more than anything else is to simply make this practice a habit. Habits are formed anywhere between 21 and 66 days according to the research.
Stick with this challenge, and watch the resistance diminish the longer you commit to this life changing practice.
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Lesson #8: How to Overcome Resistance
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The 21 Day Cold Plunge Challenge is a place for cold plunge enthusiasts from all over the world to receive 21 days of coaching and community support!
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