Modern recovery culture often reaches for intensity first. This conversation offers a more useful frame: a concise television segment on wim hof, specialized breathing, and the practical value of voluntary respiratory control.
This transcript is grouped in two-minute sections. Each timestamp opens the source video at that moment.
Well, you might know him as the Iceman. Wim Hof is known around the world for embracing extreme cold and showing people how breath and focus can make a big difference. Mhm. And Jee Lee is learning this firsthand this morning with the Iceman himself. G, you look so zen and calm here. We got to do some live TV at the moment, but hopefully you've got some tips here to help all of us kind of chill out a little. Yeah, these are all great tips that can you know, benefit you, relieve the stress, um heal any joys and also get rid of inflammation. It's a combination of breath work and cold plunges and joining me now is extreme athlete, motivational speaker, and the Iceman himself, Wim Hof. Good morning, beautiful people of Canada. You're on this whirlwind tour, traveling around the world. You had a stop here in Toronto last night. How was the show last night? Amazing. Exceeded any expectations. In 1 hour transforming people by bringing hope through evidence-based proof scientifically that cold water swimming changes the circuitry in the brain by which we are able to fend off stress, daily stress in this modern lifestyle of ours, weakening us, becoming strong again. Yeah, and you're you've been doing this for a long time. There's three pillars to your method. Can you walk us through the three pillars? So, the first one is the cold. There's plenty of cold in Canada. It's for free. And it saves energy. Take a cold shower. A cold shower or an ice bath. Uh we are very much built to be able to get in and to endure the stress and become stronger, ignite the adrenal axis and become really strong. So, that's one pillar. The second pillar is breathing. You think you are breathing? No, we go profound in a way that cold no longer
profound in a way that cold no longer feels cold. That means you are empowering through the breath your hormonal system becoming really strong. So, that is pillar number two. Number three is the mindset. The power of the mind exists. It's not only placebo, it's real. It's a in connection with yourself. A man who has hope wins the world. What a great phrase and what a great mindset to help you We live in a time that's really stressful right now. So, do you mind walking us through some of your breathing techniques? Yes. Okay. So, the breathing techniques very simple deep breathing. Guys, here we are ready? Yes. Take them fully in. [gasps] Let it go. And all in. Let it go. Fully in. Let it go. Little bit of looniness, light-headedness, it's okay. We are blowing off the CO2. Now And thus we become alkaline. And how long would you do something like this? 30 breaths like this alkalizes the blood. Uh it gets rid of the CO2, the soreness in the body, and suddenly you are able to breathe in fully, let it go, and stay after exhalation at least a minute without breathing. Oh, really? Because your body is alkaline. You don't need to breathe. We breathe to make the body alkaline in balance biochemically. And there is no need after this breathing to do that. And with that we enter into the depth of the physiology.
enter into the depth of the physiology. It's a great great bio hack. And so how often would you do something like this in a day? Yes, every morning before you go to your work. Yes. Work out your biochemistry in the body, cleansing through deep breaths. And it has shown, we did a experiment with E. coli bacteria. Our immune system suddenly becomes so strong, we can defy a bacteria inside. We cleanse. That is the power of the breath. Making you really strong. And afterwards we are able to go into the ice bath because we bio hack in the depth and the adrenaline makes us really strong and ready. So we are focusing on those three pillars, working on breathing right now. You definitely want to stay tuned cuz in our next segment we will be doing a cold plunge right here at Othership with none other than Wim Hof. And for more information, all you have to do is go to wimhofmethod. com. All the information's there and he is going on this global tour. We're going to take a break here on CP24 Breakfast. [music] More to come. All right. Well, you might have know him as the Iceman. Wim Hof is known around the world for embracing extreme cold and showing people how breath and focus can make a big difference. Mhm. Let's go live now to Jee-Lee who's live with the Iceman himself this morning uh getting those lessons, those key lessons and G again, he says he's got evidence here and proof that this really works. Yeah, it is evidence-based science with the breathing technique, the mindset, and now the cold plunge. He's known as Iceman for a reason. Wim Hof joins me now. We're live here at Othership, and we're going to do a cold plunge. Oh, absolutely. Yeah. Cold plunge,
Oh, absolutely. Yeah. Cold plunge, warm-hearted going in. It's the best thing for your sanity. Both psychologically and physically. It's now evidence-based. I've been shouting out this all over the world over the last decade. Nobody was listening, but it got around. Hundreds of millions of people are going into cold plunges now. It's amazing. That is sanity. Power. So, we have a few volunteers, and we're going to go in together as well. Can you give us a few tips as we prepare to go into the cold plunge? Yes. Know that naturally we are built to endure a stress. And it's only 30 seconds, 45 seconds that you feel the stress. And then your body adapts, and it is a stronger version than before. Do you do a breathing technique as you go into the cold water? You do that before. Okay. Before you cleanse your body, you make it more alkaline, by which the nervous system becomes stronger. The adrenal axis is activated. That means adrenaline, and it makes you strong. And you were saying that depending on your mood, you might do different things. Like you actually might dance before you go into the bathtub, or you might do something I'm I'm in trance with the dance, going into the cold. And that makes me not old. I'm 66, and lately I did 67 minutes, because very soon I got a birthday, and I celebrated because I'm strong. You are strong. 67 MINUTES IN THE ICY WATER. WHAT IS THAT? THAT IS just regular exercise with environmental stress coming to me. I go to the cold, so the cold is not coming to me. Okay, so we don't recommend 67 minutes for everybody, but you and I are going to go in now for a couple of minutes. So Ken, I'll get you to come back here. Wim and I are going to go into the bathtub together. We were joking around that this is how we're going to get married, right? This is your idea of a perfect ceremony. Absolutely. I I'm I totally engaged.
Absolutely. I I'm I totally engaged. Okay. Now we marry up and go into the water. Okay, go ahead. All right. And you just go right in. Oh yes, you too. You do. Deep breaths. Oh my gosh. Long out breath. Okay. Long out breath. Your body is very much built to endure this initial stressful response. What are the health benefits of doing cold exposure? Absolutely cardiovascular. Cardiovascular and the endocrine system suddenly resets in the body. We cleanse our body in the depths. Yesterday I had a doctor measuring my condition of my heart. I'm 66 and she saw my the condition, biological condition of my heart is being 18 years. Wow. Yes. So what about joints and inflammation? What does a cold platter cold bath or cold plunge do? Yes, epinephrine suppresses inflammation, inflammatory markers, which is causing arthritis, Crohn's disease, any any type of disease uh uh how do you say uh yeah, whatever disease is inflammation. This suppresses by activating epinephrine in the body and it does it very effectively. So for somebody who wants to start slow, you recommend something like cold showers, but really the breathing and the commitment to your mind is what sets you up to do something like this. Yes, know that it is evidence-based that a human is very capable of doing this. And now it is your mindset. Make the choice. You want to be more sane, more strong, and more in control with yourself, then start with cold showers. Do some breathing on your sofa and then bed, never somewhere else. And then you learn to go into the depth of your own
learn to go into the depth of your own body. Oh, wow. All right. Wim, I know you're on a global tour right now. You had your show here in Toronto last night. Now you're off to Miami. Thank you so much. And if you want to say anything, last words to our viewers before we say goodbye, what would you like to say to them? I love you, Canada, and you Canadian beautiful people. I'll be back. There you go. You heard it from the Iceman himself. He is on a global tour, and if you want more information about his three pillars of strength, which is cold plunge, breathing, and mindset, you can go to wimhofmethod. com. You see her doing great, huh? Thank you so much, Wim. Wonderful, amazing! That is impressive, JILL. ANYBODY CAN DO IT. [laughter] BABY, I'm glad you're doing it, though, because it does look cold.
Transcript auto-generated by YouTube. Verbatim — duplicates intentionally preserved.
The most valuable protocols are not built around spectacle. They are built around signals the body can read, recover from, and eventually use as a path back to steadiness.
Before cold exposure becomes comfortable, breath gives the body an anchor. Slow, deliberate breathing changes attention and gives the nervous system a signal of control.
A short practice can still be meaningful when it is direct. Breathing affects state quickly because it sits at the meeting point of conscious choice and automatic survival.
The cold reveals whether the breath is organized. That is its practical value. It gives immediate feedback without needing elaborate interpretation.
Use breath first when stress rises.
Use breath first when stress rises.
Keep short practices precise rather than casual.
Let cold exposure test steadiness only after the breath is established.
