What is the Wim Hof ​​Method: the chilling experience followed by celebrities like David Beckham and who already has his disciples in Spain

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Even the least knowledgeable taxi driver in the Netherlands knows who

​​(Sittard, the Netherlands, April 20, 1959) is, known as the

.

This sixty-year-old athlete registered under his name a method of physical and mental training that is based on exposure to cold and breath control, after reaching up to twenty

Among them, running a half marathon above the Arctic Circle, barefoot and wearing shorts or swimming 66 meters under the ice.

Today, with three million followers on social networks, he organizes

.

The next, without going any further, in the month of March.

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Famous figures such as the former footballer

, who we have seen submerged in cubes in a bathtub, the model Kendall Jenner, meditating in an icy cryotherapy session, or Lady Gaga trying not to freeze while singing, popularize this extreme practice that forces

to

.

In the opinion of some, it means undergoing unnecessary madness without scientific evidence, especially in winter.

Its defenders claim, however, that the anti-inflammatory power of cold is proven and it is a recurring therapy among athletes for recovery.

The physiotherapists consulted do agree that they have sufficient evidence of how ice alleviates muscle pain.

In the purely well-being section, the

is the traditional

of the Russians and the Nordic countries.

One of the most important activities for your

.

The spas also play on

in hot-cold areas, where hot and cold pools mix, or even rooms that combine blocks of snow with sweat.

It is nothing new, therefore, although it is becoming fashionable and more and more centers around the world are signing up for Wim Hof ​​in one way or another.

THE ICE BATH IN BARCELONA

Uri Imperial, creator of Ice Bath Barcelona and trained in the Wim Hof.Ice Bath method

In Spain, some of his big fans are Luke Wills, who after climbing

determined to "help people reconnect with their natural environment" by giving workshops.

"When I adapt to the cold in nature I feel really alive," he recounted on the Revolutionary Fitness podcast.

Or Uri Imperial, the

from Barcelona, ​​which has even created a tribe that meets on weekends to control the feeling of cold and even curb colds, he says.

"It's been so long since I've had a cold... and I'm wearing short sleeves in winter!"

The problem is that now we live disconnected from nature and we immediately turn on the heating or, in summer, the air conditioning, he criticizes her.

"We make ourselves weak by not exposing ourselves."

He acknowledges that these practices

. "

You have to be worth

Nor is it trying to convince anyone.

Although, in addition to the physiological level for athletes, he boasts of the benefits that he perceives as a tool to

.

Be careful, it is not about buying ice, throwing it in the bathtub and doing it like crazy.

All this is very measured and part of a personal concern, he says, after six years dedicated to the world of banking and in the midst of a crisis due to paternity.

"They told me about Wim Hof ​​and for me it was an escape valve to regain focus and gain perspective in that vital moment where I was a bit lost".

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As it went very well, he trained with the Dutch guru.

Eight months of theory and practice, he describes himself, and he started doing workshops with family and friends once certified.

"This works phenomenally from word of mouth, I never thought it would have so much interest in an organic way. And so the project was gaining importance."

He even created

(ice bath) in Barcelona.

WHAT IS IT LIKE IN COLD BATHROOMS?

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When a student is submerged at about three degrees of temperature in their steel bathtubs - "it is a material that does not rust even if we are by the sea," he clarifies -, the first minute he feels his nervous system shoot up and

.

In the second minute, if he succeeds, "the magic happens, the heart rate drops and he dominates the situation, but all this is very controlled, with a very safe practice."

That is why they are very small groups, insists the instructor.

"The mind makes the impossible possible and

because they release a lot of adrenaline and feel capable. It is, in fact, a very vital experience," he says.

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He believes that it is not

and if there are more and more options and people who get on the (ice cream) bandwagon it is "because they want to improve their quality of life and awaken their inner strength".

Wim Hof ​​himself has been in charge of propagating that

and has even frozen his retina.

But, beyond the feats in which he puts his survival to the test as if he were The

, he is clear about why he influences his immune system in such a chilling way: "For me God is the cold. I consider it a

, trains me, brings me back to an inner strength, to how everything should be. Not only am I able to resist the cold, I love it."

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