I am not a person who showers in the morning, because I refuse to get up at 3:00 AM to do it! I always shower at night (at least when I'm working) so I'm going to say this tip doesn't apply to me.

But for all you morning shower people this might be something to experiment with, if you can stand it!

I am the kind of person who goes out of my way to avoid taking a cold shower almost always. Now on a blazing hot day after I've been mowing, and I'm a sweaty, salty, filthy mongrel, I might, (with a capital "M") might, take a cool shower, not a cold one.

But I digress, Phil Dumontet a writer for Entrepreneur.com did the research for you and came up with a 90 second trick that promises to energize you all day at work. It does involve some stress that I'm not willing to put myself through, but I'm not you!

  • Once you've finished your usual cleaning routine, crank the water down as cold as you can stand it and stand under it for 30 seconds. Gasp and scream if you need to (some people say that doing this adds to the energizing experience).
  • Now turn the water up as hot as you can stand it for another 30 seconds.
  • Finally do another 30 seconds under the icy cold water.

Why does this work? He compares it to the hot and cold hydrotherapy which is de rigueur in Finland where a sauna is a standard feature in most homes for its stress-relieving properties.

Which personally, I don't understand, I mean how stressful could life be in Finland? They have one of the highest personal incomes in the world, their economic and education systems are thriving and their quality of life is also one of the best in the world. So, screw you Finland and your stress-relieving, free radical killing cold water therapy!!

Now, where was I? Oh yes, getting energized! This hot and cold shower schtick supposedly has many other benefits:

  • A stronger immune system (That would be nice)
  • Increased circulation (But what would I do with it, if I had it?)
  • Increased ability to burn fat (Wait a minute! What?)
  • Aids in battling depression (Less Prozac, more cold water? Forget it!)

Anyway- let me know if this works for you, as for me, I'll stick to my sleep-inducing toasty warm showers at night. At least until the hot water heater dies again, boy that was ugly! But I digress. . .

 

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