And at parties I can ice down a keg of beer just
by farting on it.
--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, tartbrain <no_reply@...> wrote:
>
> Wim Hof, Dutch 'Iceman,' Controls Body Through Meditation
>
> http://weirdnews.aol.com/2011/05/22/wim-hof-dutch-iceman-cont_n_865203.html
>
> ROTTERDAM, Netherlands -- The sun beams down on a warm Dutch spring morning,
> and the Iceman's students look wary as they watch him dump bag after bag of
> ice into the tub of water where they will soon be taking a dip.
>
> The plan is to try to overcome the normal human reaction to immersion in
> freezing slush: gasping for air, shivering uncontrollably, and getting back
> out again as soon as possible.
>
> Instead, under the direction of "Iceman" Wim Hof, the group of athletes is
> going to stay in the water for minutes practicing his meditation techniques,
> seeking possible performance or health benefits.
>
> Hof, 52, earned his nickname from feats such as remaining in a tank of ice in
> Hong Kong for almost 2 hours; swimming half the length of a football field
> under a sheet of ice in the Arctic; and making the Guinness record books for
> running a half-marathon barefoot in Finnish snow in deep subzero conditions.
>
> He tried to climb Mt. Everest in 2007 wearing only sandals and shorts, but
> suffered frostbite and turned back at 7,400 meters (24,300 feet) he wants
> to test the limits of human potential, not die trying. He climbed Mt.
> Kilimanjaro instead the same way in 2009.
>
> Hof tells his students meditation in the cold strengthens mind and body. Some
> scientists also say ice bath treatments may have circulatory benefits for
> athletes, or help them recover quicker after training, although this remains
> controversial.
>
> For most people, hypothermia begins shortly after exposure to freezing
> temperatures without adequate clothing, and it can quickly lead to death once
> the body's core temperature falls below 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees
> Celsius).
>
> Hof says he can endure cold so well because he has learned to activate parts
> of his mind beyond the reach of most people's conscious control, and crank up
> what he calls his "inner thermostat."
>
> In one well-documented demonstration in 2008, Hof remained encased in a glass
> box filled with ice on a New York City street for 71 minutes, at that time a
> record. Doctors monitoring his vital signs said his body temperature
> descended gradually to 93.6 degrees as his heart rate rose slowly into the
> 120s. He didn't shiver.
>
