My journey with the cold began about 5 years ago in the frigid waters of the Californian coast. I'd arrive at the beach around 5:30 am, well before the first light of dawn could be seen tracing the horizon. There's something special about watching the sun rise from the water. It's a feeling like no other. What is also a feeling like no other is the feeling of shock you get from water that cold, and the water in Southern California is no joke. Even during the summer season, it rarely tops 70 degrees. During the winter, it stays at a nice and chilly 48 degrees that seems all the colder in the early hours of the morning.
I always came away from these frigid-water sessions with a general feeling of energy and well-being. I'd show up to work at 7 am refreshed and ready to go, while my co-workers were still staggering around, nursing a cup of black joe. I knew that It had to to do with the cold water, but it took some time before I began to research into the actual effects on the human body.
Spreading like a river system throughout the human body are a vast amount of veins, arteries, and corresponding blood vessels. Together, they make up the vascular system.
Were you to lay it out end to end, it would stretch 60,000 miles. Yes, you read that right. End to end, your vascular system could circle the planet twice. Throughout the system are thousands of small muscles which open and close like valves. When the body senses a decrease in core body temperature, these valves will open up to allow blood to circulate and bring equilibrium back to the body. Without the vascular system, our ancestors would have frozen to death each time they left the cave in search of food. They needed their systems to be robust and responsive.
In the modern however, we incubate ourselves in climate controlled rooms, and we rarely expose ourselves to the elements. When we finally do, we have a fair amount of clothing to protect us. The result is a vascular system that is in great disrepair, and look at the result: Cardio vascular diseases are the number one killer globally.
When cold water hits the skin, it causes all of these little muscles to open up so that blood can flow. Because the muscles are now working more effectively, the heart doesn't have to pump as hard to circulate energy, and voila, you have a healthier vascular system.
Trust me, just take a cold shower. You'll thank me later. :)
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