The Wim Hof Method Thread

[EverythingsHazy]

Well, I've been doing the Wim Hof method breathing daily (with some exceptions over the festive break), and have been really enjoying it. The first few sessions were semi psychedelic, which was a fun and pleasant surprise, but that seems to have passed now. But the more important thing is that I feel great after doing it, and I'm sure it's doing my body some good. I've done some cold exposure showers, and I like them, but the breathing is more my focus for now.

I want to learn more about the method and what it's doing physiologically. @EverythingsHazy you mentioned reading Wim's new(ish) book, and that it was a good primer and introduction, but it sounded like it didn't go into a lot of depth. Having watched some of Wim's content on youtube, while he's clearly super likeable and a great instructor, I'm not entirely convinced in his understanding and communication of the science - him talking about "alkalinity of the body" for example sounds like a bit of a red flag for pseudoscience to me. From James Nestor's book it's clear this sort of stuff is very much at the cutting edge of science, and there's a lot that isn't known yet. But clearly it works, and works well, for a bunch of things. Any reading recommendations very welcome - I'm not a big fan of relying on youtube for learning.

Also, does anyone here have experience of mixing Wim Hof method stuff with strength workouts? I ask as I saw a short youtube video on Wim's channel where someone does the fast breathing in & out, then rather than relax for 1-1.5 minutes, just launches into pushups with held breath, and allegedly can do double the amount of them in this state. I could imagine doing the final set of a workout routine like this, potentially, to get some extra muscle damage to promote more supercompensation, but I could also easily imagine that doing double the reps you could "normally" do could lead to slower and worse recovery and significantly increase the chances of overtraining. One for cautious experimentation, perhaps...

Hey, welcome aboard!

I do the breathing before martial arts training, sometimes, and I have tried the pushups on an exhale. I don't remember my record but I think it was 81. I'll have to try it again. Lol

To partly answer my own questions here, I recently watched the video at the end of @EverythingsHazy's original post here, of a doctor examining some of the physiological effects, and it was really good, I definitely recommend it. That doctor was also friends with Scott Carney, and interviewed him for the video and clearly thought he had a good understanding of the basic biology going on, and he wrote a book (partly) about the Wim Hof method called What Doesn't Kill Us that sounds fun, I may well give that a read next.

The book is great, and yea, I really liked that video. I've watched it several times, now, often while doing the breathing.

In regard to the alkalinity thing, the hyperventilation does cause a transient state of increased alkalinity as well as hypocapnia, but that is changes with the breath hold and with the resumption of normal breathing, after the exercises. It's not easy to change our bodies pH, for an extended period of time. Breathing is one of the ways that we regulate it, so once we resume an automatic breathing pattern, our pH should stabilize relatively quickly. Thankfully so, too. It would be pretty dangerous to remain in a state of hypocapnia, hypoxia, or respiratory alkalosis for a much longer time.

I agree that Wim doesn't necessarily know the exact science behind the method, but he's definitely figured out the "how". I have a good feeling that that's the case with a lot of the more traditional/mystical/etc. methods, like meditation, visualization, lying in the sun, etc..

 

[Cherubi]

I have and always had this intuitive feeling that the Wim Hof method is not at all good for my body type. I'm usually interested in and keen on trying out natural health exercises and routines. Having been egged on by a friend on numerous occasions to join one of Wim's sessions, which I have always declined, I was interested enough to go online to find out about what's what with the method, only to learn that several deaths have occurred with people pointing to Wim and his techniques as ultimately responsible.

I don't know the entire story, but the stories that I have seen pop up make me very wary of engaging in these exercises.

For many it might be great. And if you're one of those, good for you, have at it.

Though it do think it's worth mentioning that there are dangers to the method as well.

 

[EverythingsHazy]

I have and always had this intuitive feeling that the Wim Hof method is not at all good for my body type. I'm usually interested in and keen on trying out natural health exercises and routines. Having been egged on by a friend on numerous occasions to join one of Wim's sessions, which I have always declined, I was interested enough to go online to find out about what's what with the method, only to learn that several deaths have occurred with people pointing to Wim and his techniques as ultimately responsible.

I don't know the entire story, but the stories that I have seen pop up make me very wary of engaging in these exercises.

For many it might be great. And if you're one of those, good for you, have at it.

Though it do think it's worth mentioning that there are dangers to the method as well.

Are you referring to deaths caused by jumping into freezing/near-freezing cold water, and experiencing shock?
I don't doubt that it's a risk, particularly for those with underlying conditions (e.g. heart disease) and for those who aren't experienced with it.

The breath work can also potentially be risky. I want to speak to some doctors about how the long holds affect the brain, but so far, I haven't seen anything to worrisome (not saying that it's safe, but that there seems to be a lack of alarm among health professionals, even though the WHM got super popular during the pandemic, and also a lack of breath holding studies, much less ones with more than a handful of participants, like the one with divers).

Lastly, the valsalva maneuver, which is essentially the same thing as step 3 (inhalf fully and pressurize your body), can be risky for those with eye problems, like retinopathy, and I'd speak to a doctor before trying it, if one has cardiac issues, as well.

Overall, I do recommend everyone speak to a doctor before giving it a go.