Terminalxylem
Footballguy
There is some talk (and conflicting research) about brief exposure to extremes, both hot and cold, shocking the system and promoting longevity.
I’ve not scrutinized the data, but felt really good after plunging into glacial water on a couple occasions (predictably, in Glacier National Park). And when our water heater went out for a week, I quickly gained an appreciation for cold showers as well.
I don’t intuitively like the prospects of doing both in one sitting though. Physiologically, your skin blood vessels constrict in cold and dilate in heat, to shunt blood to/away from your core. Both will tax your heart, and the cold to hot transition seems prone to dropping blood pressure abruptly, which could be a recipe for passing out. The other way doesn’t seem much better, especially if you have heart disease (or blood vessel disease anywhere else), which isn’t exactly rare in middle aged dudes.
And alcohol will only compound matters.
If it were me, I’d pick one or the other, and acclimate before taking the plunge. You need to respect the limits of a middle aged body.
I’ve not scrutinized the data, but felt really good after plunging into glacial water on a couple occasions (predictably, in Glacier National Park). And when our water heater went out for a week, I quickly gained an appreciation for cold showers as well.
I don’t intuitively like the prospects of doing both in one sitting though. Physiologically, your skin blood vessels constrict in cold and dilate in heat, to shunt blood to/away from your core. Both will tax your heart, and the cold to hot transition seems prone to dropping blood pressure abruptly, which could be a recipe for passing out. The other way doesn’t seem much better, especially if you have heart disease (or blood vessel disease anywhere else), which isn’t exactly rare in middle aged dudes.
And alcohol will only compound matters.
If it were me, I’d pick one or the other, and acclimate before taking the plunge. You need to respect the limits of a middle aged body.
Last edited: