Search the Community

Thanks mostly to this forum I discovered the Wim Hof Method just over a year ago and ended up trying out the breathing technique at an (unrelated) event. Essentially, in this technique you hyperventilate then hold your breath for ages, and somehow this confers some vague health benefits on you. It was pretty cool to be able to hold my breath for more than 2 minutes, but as I was reading about some of the health claims, some stuff just didn't make sense. Even Wim Hof's explanations had some huge errors, which was confusing... Anyway, I like Science So I set out to determine what actually happens in the body while you perform the breathing exercise (which DOES work) and finally this month I have a full coherent explanation! So if you're interested: Biology of the Wim Hof Method Breathing If you haven't already heard of it, I do recommend trying it - many people (including me and others on this forum) have seen noticeable improvements to their fitness and stress levels since starting this Out of interest, who here is currently practising Wim Hof's breathing technique?

Wolverine has been sent to the wrong timeline! Apparently, Wolverine has been sent back in time, more exactly to the year 2015. She knows now that 2015 is not such a fun place, since it’s been confirmed that there were no auto-drying or self-adjusting clothes nor flying skates, and instead, here is what there is: Floating anxiety Anticipating events anxiety Self-defeating thoughts Lack of energy Lack of activity, laziness Despondency Mental dizziness and confusion Low blood pressure Heavy nose bleeding Hair loss Refusing to eat Refusing to practice This doesn't look like adamantium anymore... However, Wolverine is far more clever than 3 years ago, and knows how to face these troubles: with ACTION! Behold the weekly ACTION plan! WH BYS/ICE MP BB+G VG+S 123 15 PULL PUSH/SQ/BBS ABS MUS ÍSK Y2 R R/W/DNA/AN FLOW GR SHOP It includes basic restoring activities, like WH stuff or before bed yoga; anxiety reducing activities, like varied exercice and spending time outdoors; rest moments, like reading; and nutrition, as in, keeping enough food at home and eating things that nourish. At the end of each week, a check-in will be done to see if things need to be readjusted. I’ll take Wolverine back where she belongs

It's been a loooong while I haven't kept a regular schedule for my personal purposes. Schedules and to-do lists never worked for me because they triggered a lot of anxiety, so I have always been more about: do this a couple of times a week, whenever you feel like it. Which is ok, but I also tend to slack and do half of what I really wanted to do. Since this has been getting better -me being more responsible- and my anxiety levels are the lowest they've been in my whole life, I am going to give it a try and follow a schedule. I am also in a better mental place now than years ago, to understand that plans won't always work the way I want, or that there will be days when I'll need to be flexible and drop a couple of things, but I'll try to be disciplined, because I've been feeling I really want to level up, I mean REALLY LEVEL UP, and the best I can do to achieve this is not to miss workouts and/or practice sessions. What do I want and how do I achieve it: Physical I want to run faster and longer ---------> I`ll go for a run twice a week instead of once. I'll keep working on sprints but also on extending my usual last run. I want to be stronger ---------> I'll work on push-ups, pull-ups (only dead hang by now), abs and planks. I'll add 5” to my dead hangs every week, and also 1-2 push-ups to the same set (my trainer at self-defence recommended fist push-ups yesterday when I asked him about improving my wrist and fist strength and control when punching, so I'll work mainly on those). Base line for fist push-ups still to be determined, same for the time I can hold a declined plank (almost handstand). Abs twice a week. Dead hangs and declined planks are unscheduled because they will usually happen at any free moment along the day. I want to be more flexible and improve mobility and posture -------> Yoga everyday. First thing in the morning, last thing before bed. Animal flow once a week. I want to improve blood circulation (amongst others) and go ahead with the WH course -------> I'll add 5-10” seconds to my cold showers every week. Musical I want to play more freely, to feel I enjoy playing my flute instead of fighting against it -------> I've been journaling a lot about this, and I've decided the first thing I need to do is to be consistent. Rather than working on refining or perfecting things, I'll work on reducing “mistakes”. The biggest one is, no doubt, random practice, so from now on, no day without practice, no excuses. Once this “mistake” is fixed, others will be addressed. Mental I'll journal about those things that upset me, and whenever I feel ready/comfortable I'll choose some things to share at NF. I will keep a “thank me” journal. Everyday I'll write down what I did to take care of myself. MAGIC SCHEDULE! MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT SUN WAKE UP: BREATHING + YOGA WAKE UP: BREATHING + YOGA + PUSH-UPS WAKE UP: BREATHING + YOGA WAKE UP: BREATHING + YOGA + PUSH-UPS + ABS WAKE UP: BREATHING + YOGA WAKE UP: BREATHING + YOGA + PUSH-UPS WAKE UP: BREATHING + YOGA + ABS MORNING: SELF-DEFENCE MORNING: INTERVAL RUNNING MORNING: SELF-DEFENCE MORNING: ACTIVE RECOVERY DAY AFTERNOON: PLAYING WITH ANIMAL FLOW MORNING: INTERVAL RUNNING MORNING: ACTIVE RECOVERY DAY NOON O'CLOCK: MUSIC PRACTICE NOON O'CLOCK: MUSIC PRACTICE NOON O'CLOCK: MUSIC PRACTICE NOON O'CLOCK: MUSIC PRACTICE AFTERNOON-EVENING: MUSIC PRACTICE AFTERNOON 18:00: MUSIC PRACTICE AFTERNOON 18.00: MUSIC PRACTICE EVENING: JOURNAL + YOGA EVENING: JOURNAL + YOGA EVENING: JOURNAL + YOGA EVENING: JOURNAL + YOGA EVENING: JOURNAL + YOGA EVENING: JOURNAL + YOGA EVENING: JOURNAL + YOGA

Swifts are here! I impatiently await their arrival every year, and it's been a bit sad that it took them so long to come, but considering it was still snowing a couple of weeks ago I guess they were right to wait. Following what caracterizes swifts -nonstop flying, they can fly uninterruptedly for 10 months- this is going to be a movement challenge. A free movement challenge, no pretensions. Because a swift will just fly, without thinking of achieving results. So, I'll move as much as possible and it could be anything: self-defence lessons? Yes. Feeling like picking up my parallettes again and doing a workout? Sure. Weights? Why not. Running in the country? Lovely. Yoga, silat tables, walks, handstands, biking, exploring... anything goes, the final purpose being to spend sitting as little time as possible. Secondary purposes: - Keep on the WH thing, no hurry, no pause. - Keep reading. Let's go! Clarification: I know that bird is a swallow, but apparently it is impossible to find any swift gif/animation

There’s absolutely no need to painfully inject adamantium into your body to get that beautiful, totally shiny, unbreakable adamantium skeleton you’ve been dreaming of, you can build it yourself in the comfort of your own home… yes, you can, really, no pain. Well, some pain may be involved. But not much… How much, do you ask? Hmmm, do you see that barrel full of icy water, my dear? Just get in and we’ll talk… Main goal. Complete the Wim Hof course, so as to become The Wolverine. Starting the challenge at week 5 of the course – it doesn’t seem to involve moving to Svalbard yet Thinking on how intense this is going to be from now on, points are going to be generous here. Same as last challenge, it is an all or nothing goal, I do it or I don’t do it. 2 STR 2 DEX 2 WIS 2 CON Second goal. Exercise. Anything that helps to become The Wolverine, counts: self defence, running/sprinting, dead hangs/pull-up prep, push-ups, abs… 1 STR 1 DEX 2 STA 1 CON Third goal. Don’t throw everything in the trash. I’m getting back to work in a few days, and there is big danger here of getting overwhelmed. I am quite active at this moment, with plenty of exercise, the WH course, music practice and so, and soon my free time is going to be reduced. The goal will consist on being attentive and see whether I need to reduce my activity, by how much, and how much time it takes to adapt myself to the new routine. 2 WIS If I succeed in finishing the course and I get all my points both from the course and the exercise goals, stats will change and I will start at Level 0 as The Wolverine, won’t be a Wood Elf anymore.

Hello and welcome to a new challenge! To end the summer season, I will try to improve the things that didn’t work these past months. This means that: · meditation, eating freggies in every meal, and daily technique practice are not goals anymore, because after several months, they’re habits now. Yay! · PvP push-up challenge is over, so no more inclined push-ups everyday -and my arms do need that rest- but will be taking part on the dead hang challenge if it finally becomes a thing. Also waiting to see if there is a PvP abs challenge, in which case, I’m in. The remaining goals -plus a new one- are: Exercise I’m finding it difficult to keep a routine this summer, and I’d like to improve this before classes start again. 4 workouts a week, doesn’t matter which one, the ultimate goal being to move everyday. For 1-3 workouts a week I get nothing. For 4 workouts a week I get 4 points, to choose between STA, STR and DEX, depending on the type of exercise I’ve done. If besides this I do some active recovery days (walking, easy floor routine, stretching…) I can go up to 6 points (STA, STR, DEX) + 1 CON point. Icelandic Apparently, saying I’d sit and practice doesn’t work, who’d have guessed? Specific goal: 2-3 articles a week. 1 article a week: nothing. 2 articles a week: 0.5 CHA. 3 articles a week: 1 CHA Wim Hof course This is the big goal for next months. Things I hope I will get from it: improved tolerance to cold, to better enjoy the upcoming winter season; improved blood circulation (goodbye to cold feet!); lower breathing rate, to reduce floating anxiety and fatigue; and finally, having fun being a weirdo. This is a yes or no goal. If I quit, I get no points. I can miss some days if there is a reasonable excuse, and of course I can extend any week of the course if I consider I need it. If I stick to the task until september 10th (but the course won’t be finished, it is 10 weeks long), I get 0.5 STR (the course also involves physical exercise), 0.5 DEX (course involves some yoga/stretching), 0.5 WIS (meditation also present) and 0.5 CON (for cold exposure). That's it. Now let's see how it goes