Greetings, dear readers! Contrast shower is an amazing method. The power of its impact is amazing, because it is capable of: strengthening the immune system, giving cheerfulness and a great mood, and also slimness! Yes, yes, a contrast shower for weight loss is a pleasant and effective procedure.
In this article I will tell you why we lose weight by dousing ourselves with hot or cold water, and what is the secret? I’ll also teach you how you can apply it. I hope you find this interesting? Then read on!
How and why does it work?
Here are the benefits of exposing the body to water at contrasting temperatures in the context of weight loss:
- metabolism accelerates;
- all the muscles of the body sharply become toned;
- blood begins to circulate very actively, lymph flow increases;
- all harmful substances (toxins and waste) are removed from the body;
- For blood vessels this is also a good exercise and strengthening.
To launch all these mechanisms, it is important to do everything correctly. It's not difficult if you know the basic rules.
Strengthening the cardiovascular system
Swimming in cold water forces the body to work harder to maintain a normal body temperature, so regular showers strengthen the cardiovascular system.
Loss of heat is a signal for the body. It requires increasing blood flow to the skin, which contains many small blood vessels. The capillaries narrow during the procedure and then expand to ensure blood flow. Cold water serves as a complete workout for the circulatory system. Your hands and feet will no longer be cold, and many also note an improvement in the quality of their skin.
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How to lose weight in the shower?
Here are detailed instructions for the perfect contrast douche:
- Get into the shower and pour yourself first with warm water (40 degrees) for one and a half minutes.
- Then pour cold water over yourself for 30 seconds (temperature - from 15 to 18 degrees).
- Try to douse yourself completely, directing the water from top to bottom.
- After half a minute, warm up again under warm water, about two minutes, give your body the opportunity to warm up and recover from a slight shock.
- There should be 3 such cycles (warm-cold-warm), but you should complete the action with cold jets.
- If you want to lose weight faster, add contrast - by switching the temperature, apply the jets to the side, and only then towards yourself.
- Then warm yourself up by vigorously rubbing yourself with a towel.
- Also apply anti-cellulite cream to all your problem areas - such reinforcement will help defeat cellulite.
It is important! If you are not in good health and have not done this before, there is no need to test yourself.
Many people advise starting not with cold, but with slightly cool water (about 25 degrees), and lower its temperature gradually over the course of a week.
However, such a recommendation is not at all easy to implement in practice. Therefore, my advice to you is to start with 5 seconds of a cold shower and 10-15 seconds of a hot one. Then, after increasing your thermoregulation, gradually increase the time. You can read about three contrast shower methods here.
Remark: few people like the process of pouring water of contrasting temperatures at the very beginning.
Most likely, you will experience intense negative emotions the first few times.
But then you will get used to the procedure, feel its effectiveness, “gifts” in the form of cheerfulness, joy, energy. And you will see the first results. And then, most likely, you will wholeheartedly love the wonderful contrast shower! My reviews of the contrast shower can be read here and also at the link.
Low temperature and brown adipose tissue
Some scientists agree with this statement about the benefits of cold showers for weight loss: numerous experiments have proven that low temperatures help activate the so-called brown adipose tissue in the body.
For example, staying for 10 days in a room with a constant air temperature of approximately 16 degrees Celsius increases the percentage of brown adipose tissue relative to white in a person with an average weight of 60 kg by about a third. People with high amounts of brown adipose tissue tend to have a much lower body mass index than those who do not have this tissue.
Contrast shower for weight loss, nuances
Below are the main important points and rules for your safety:
- do not do this if you have a severe headache, have a cold, are on your period (for women), or simply feel unwell;
- Ideally, you should shower every day or every other day;
- in the morning, during the day, or 2 hours before bedtime;
- your head should not participate in the procedure - only the body;
- for an even better anti-cellulite result, rub your thighs with a hard washcloth, in a circular motion, or with a special massager;
- You can go outside only an hour after the procedure;
- Such douches provoke increased appetite, so try not to overeat after them, but “quench” your appetite with something light and low-fat (vegetable salad, low-fat yogurt, fruit, cottage cheese).
Hot shower after workout
Hypothesis
: Hot water is beneficial after an intense fitness session. It will relax the muscles, prevent soreness and allow the body to recover faster. In addition, this water procedure is very pleasant. And in response to pleasure, the level of oxytocin in the blood increases, the athlete feels calm and peaceful.
Science experiment
: In December 2014, a group of scientists from the University of Eastern Finland conducted a large-scale study to determine the effect of heating the body immediately after intense exercise.
The results were disappointing: 80% of men who regularly take hot showers have serious problems with the reproductive system: their sperm motility is two times lower than normal.
Moreover, laboratory tests have confirmed that glycogen synthesis practically stops at temperatures above +30 0C. Simply put: the process of muscle recovery is inhibited.
Conclusion
: After an intense workout, the athlete's body temperature is elevated, as is the heart rate. The most reasonable thing in this situation is to let the body gradually come to its senses. A hot shower will only stimulate the heart even more, forcing it to literally work for wear and tear. This is a huge stress for the body and a big chance of getting a stroke sooner or later.
And yet there are benefits from a hot shower! It removes toxins from the body, speeds up metabolism, and reduces pain in muscles and joints. Hot water is great for relaxing and relieving tension.
But the best time for such water procedures is a few minutes before training. A hot shower in this case will increase the mobility of the joints and will demonstrate the same effect as a good warm-up. But you can go to the shower after training in order to thoroughly warm up no earlier than an hour after completing classes.
Fans of hot baths and saunas are even less fortunate: sports doctors generally do not recommend visiting steam rooms on the day of training. But if it so happens, the duration of your stay in the sauna should not exceed 10-12 minutes. Moreover, in the first 2 hours after training, entering a bathhouse or sauna is strictly prohibited!
What will be the result?
A contrast shower for weight loss is a good thing. But I can’t tell you exactly how many kilograms you will lose by using it. Reviews about the results are different - some lose 3 kilograms after a month, others lose as much as 10.
But one thing I can say for sure is to supplement the douches with at least the simplest exercises or therapeutic exercises. I would like to offer you another effective activity - Nordic walking for weight loss!
Also remove pastries, fatty meats, and sausages from your diet and do not overeat. And then you will lose weight much more intensely! How to overcome gluttony, and what invisible helpers do you have for this? You can read this useful material.
Cold water helps only with an integrated approach
A cold shower, therefore, can only be part of a comprehensive approach to losing weight along with a diet and a reasonable amount of exercise - both strength and cardio exercises. It is best to entrust the creation of an individual program in each specific case to a professional trainer after consultation with a nutritionist.
Cold water really helps tone the skin and tighten it - especially when alternating with hot water. Frequent use of cool or cold showers actually increases and strengthens the immune system, but it will not be a magic wand that will help you lose weight quickly and effortlessly.
And now about the risks and disadvantages
Contrast shower is a powerful and extremely useful procedure. But, alas, it also has contraindications. To have only benefit, but not harm, study the list of taboos. You can’t get wet when:
- inflammatory processes in the body;
- high blood pressure;
- heart ailments;
- thrombophlebitis;
- period of menstruation in women;
- tumors of any type;
- chronic illnesses;
- allergic reaction to cold.
It makes sense to consult with a therapist who knows you before you start losing weight through a game of hot and cold. Please do not ignore this recommendation.
Contraindications
The benefits and harms of contrast showers have been discussed for several days now. As for harm, it is possible only in two cases - if you perform the procedure incorrectly or if you do not understand the existing contraindications. In the presence of the latter, such a seemingly useful contrast shower can cause serious complications. You should not resort to it in the following cases:
- Any inflammatory processes, such as tonsillitis, cystitis, and so on;
- Unstable pressure;
- Having diabetes;
- Tumors of various origins;
- Critical days;
- Asthma;
- Weakness of connective tissues, which can lead to rupture of blood plaques, and at the same time to thrombosis.
- Diseases of the heart, blood vessels, circulatory system, high cholesterol.
Do not ignore contraindications for contrast showers, otherwise the risk that you will harm yourself is very high.
If there are none, you can safely proceed to such water procedures. But be sure to read their rules first. Please note that the procedure can be harmful if you do not know how to do a contrast shower correctly. For an unprepared body, cold water can become a serious stress. This is why many people replace cold water with cool water (about 20 degrees), and this leads to colds and other diseases.
The point is that water at this temperature does not affect the body so much that it turns on protective mechanisms that wake up in emergency situations. But the body cools down, so the risk of catching a cold is very high. Therefore, those who are not ready to switch to ice water should not start practicing contrast showers. Its impact is very short-term, so the body cannot cool down much, but the body’s protective and other resources will work in full force.
The minimum temperature should be up to minus five degrees, the maximum – about 45 degrees.
What to do to enhance the effect
The use of additional cosmetics will enhance the effect. Massage helps a lot. Special massage brushes or mittens are used for this. The affected areas are usually the abdomen, buttocks and thighs. After a contrast shower, you can apply a tonic or any other cream. A massage with a stream of water is also good. To do this, the shower is brought at a distance of 10 cm from the body to problem areas of the skin. The jet must be moved in a circular motion over problem areas. The buttocks and abdomen are massaged in a circular motion, and the legs are massaged from top to bottom, the front of the thigh, and from bottom to top, the back of the thigh.
