For the next 7 days, I want you to get outside of your comfort zone by ending your normal hot shower with cold water. By doing something difficult first thing in the morning, you are setting a positive tone for the day by stepping outside of your comfort zone. Cold showers helped have helped me overcome negative emotional chatter, build emotional resilience, help me break unwanted habits and increase my energy. Here is what my first cold shower was like:
On a cold December night, a friend of mine suggested I take a cold shower every day for thirty days. I thought to myself, “There’s no way I can do this. I love my warm showers too much! Besides, it is wintertime in New Hampshire and I’m okay with being a hot shower addict!” However, my roommate at the time didn’t hesitate for a second and immediately went upstairs to take his first cold shower. I was blown away by his decisiveness.
Right then I decided to try it, too. I turned the knob all the way to cold and turned on some music. I got myself pumped up and jumped in. The water was so cold it took my breath away, and I was in shock for the first thirty to sixty seconds. I stayed in the cold shower for five minutes. When I emerged from that frigid shower, I was never the same again.
At the end of the 7 days, I want you to walk away with more confidence and energy than ever before. It’s not easy to take a cold shower every day, but neither is pursuing a life of meaning and purpose. When you consistently do things that make you uncomfortable and push you beyond your comfort zone, you inspire yourself and the people around you.
Here are the instructions for the upcoming week:
Day 1 Take a warm shower as usual then turn the knob to cold for last 10 seconds
Day 2 Take a warm shower as usual then turn knob to cold last 20 seconds
Day 3 Take a warm shower as usual then turn knob cold last 30 seconds
Day 4 Take a warm shower as usual then turn knob cold for 1 minute
Day 5 Take the last 2 minutes of you shower cold
Day 6 Take your first cold shower (or you can alternate hot to cold, but I encourage you to try!) – cold the whole time
Day 7 Take your shower cold the entire time (or alternate hot to cold)
Jesse Harless, M.A., is a Life and Recovery Coach, group empowerment facilitator, motivational speaker, author, and Entrepreneur in Recovery. Jesse is the founder of Entrepreneurs in Recovery, a platform to help people in addiction recovery reach their full potential. He works with several addiction treatment centers and programs in the Northeast U.S. where he facilitates his Appreciative Recovery Facilitation model. www.jesseharless.com/newbook
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