Pushing Past Barriers #1

How long should you be in an ice bath to get optimum results? I get this question a lot from people interested in this crazy habit that I have of sitting in freezing cold water. It seems a simple question, but there is a lot of different research about what time of day works best, how often, what temperature, etc. You could probably mess it up and sit in it too little/often or for too short/long or not cold enough/too cold, but the reality is simply doing it regularly (you define) for a set time (you define) in uncomfortably cold water will likely get most of the benefits. Could this be fine-tuned for peak performance if you were a professional athlete looking for a tiny edge over your competitors? Sure. But generally speaking, it is not as much about the ice water itself (yes, that does have some benefits); instead, it is largely about the number of barriers that you can push past. 

Some days, I feel comfortable getting in, and without too much discomfort, I have no problem sloshing around for five or six minutes in water just above freezing. On other days...just getting in takes all of my effort. I shiver uncontrollably almost from the start, and getting to three minutes takes a heroic effort. Many factors play into the experience. Probably the most powerful is my overall mood but there is more too it than this.

Regardless, every time an ice bath challenges one to push past barriers that tell you "I don't want to do this." Andrew Huberman is a research scientist looking at human performance who has done a lot of research on athletes, and he talks about a structure of the brain called the Anterior Mid Cingulate Cortex that grows when you do something you "don't want to do." It might be exercise, dieting, or getting and staying in an ice bath just a little bit longer. In an ice bath, the first barrier is your brain telling you not to get in. Then there is a barrier saying to stop at your waist or chest. Thirty seconds in, I might relax for a while, and then a few seconds later, there is another barrier that again tells me to get out. Waves come at different intervals, and some are more difficult than others to push through.

The benefits of ice baths are many, but one of them is simply giving your willpower the opportunity to knock down one barrier after the next. In many ways, this may simply be a concentrated version of something that happens in the middle of a workout and want to quit. Or you are fasting, and here is a wave of hunger to push through. The benefit is more than simply what the ice/exercise/ diet can do for you. The benefit comes from the strength of your willpower as you push beyond a barrier and find that you can go further than you thought. 

Actual physical changes to the brain happen as you practice this over and over. This brain growth helps you push through the next time things get tough and you don't want to do an assignment for school, grade papers, file taxes, or do something else uncomfortable. Your brain will have physically changed from your experience on the ice to grow and allow you to tackle the difficult challenge more effectively.