[kecupochren]

Or you can start by turning on the cold water for couple of seconds at the end of your regular shower. Holding your breath helps. Gradually you will be able to stay in the cold water for longer and longer and it won't hurt. A neat side effect to this is that you won't feel cold when you get out.

[brigandish]

That’s known as the Scottish Shower, perhaps because Scotland is all too often wet and cold, or perhaps as a reminder not to relax in indulgent things as there’ll soon be something along to spoil the fun!

On a more serious note, I take cold or Scottish showers all year except for the coldest part (because Japanese houses have the worst insulation you’ll come across so you’ll go from cold to cold) and it does make me feel better. Even just enduring the pain of the cold seems to bring benefits.

[majkinetor]

You do lose some of the benefit tho - you need mild stress for it to be functional.

Also, hot water, especially with chlorine in it (as usual, unless you have a filter) will make it evaporate and thus you will inhale it (not good). Very damaging for the skin too as you wash up natural oils that protect it.

So its not the same.

[voisin]

This is Wim Hof’s advice.

[travmatt]

If you do his breathing exercises you can step into a cold shower and legitimately not notice the cold.