Wim Hof was born in the Netherlands and has developed his own method which consists of breathing techniques, cold exposures, and a specific mindset.
This has brought him not only more than 20 Guinness book world records but has led to scientific research showing that this method is able to influence the human immune system.
The cold brings back the warmth in our hearts!
Epiphany Corner
Wim Hof has been a guest on many podcasts before; e.g. the Tim-Ferriss-Show, Joe Rogan Experience, Ben Greenfield, Rich Roll, or Bulletproof Radio, just to mention a few.
But my plan was to go beyond what has been already discussed with Wim.
In this interview, Wim and I are talking about
his view on fear,
how his collaboration with science has started,
the latest news from research,
and how breathing has helped him raising four children on his own.
Want to take the plunge?
Go to wimhofmethod.com to receive all the info you need to start the method!
In a way the philosophy about tapping into your physiological potential by intentionally (gradually) exposing yourself to the cold seems somewhat similar to the idea that people might intentionally want to expose themselves to microbial organisms to train their immune system at an early age, instead of overemphasizing hygiene which can lead to problems like allergies later in life.
An unrelated issue is that at about 00:54:22, Wim Hof claims that the breathing exercise somehow allows oxygen to reach more deeply into the tissue and that this alters the chemistry of the body from slightly acidic to a more alkaline state.
But from what I understand about hyperventilation, it seems to me that the deep breathing primarily lowers the concentration of CO2 in the blood and that this altered CO2 concentration is actually what raises the Ph-value of the blood (towards a more alkaline state), while hyperventilation doesn’t significantly alter the concentration of oxygen in the blood/body.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freediving_blackout#Shallow_water_blackout
Yes, Wim Hoff doesn’t know that he is a natural-made Qi Gong master. The day he takes this Qi Gong practice into his own program, the value of his program will significantly sky rocket! 8D