THE

I C E

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M A N
COMETH

Wim Hof is able to withstand deadly sub-zero

temperatures by controlling his bodys core
temperature. It could have important
implications for you and your health
WordsMandi

Keighran

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The cold is
merciless but
righteous
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he cold is merciless but righteous,

says Wim Hof. Although, looking at
photos of the self-proclaimed Iceman
practising yoga and meditation in
sub-zero temperatures, relaxing in
vats of ice, or conquering mountains in nothing but
shorts and sandals, it is dicult to imagine the cold
is anything but Hofs friend.
The Dutchmans fascination with the cold began
at an early age, but his superhuman abilities werent
immediately apparent. At seven, he recalls, he tried
to build an igloo but instead fell asleep in the snow
and ended up in hospital suering hypothermia.
Fast forward to the mid-1970s, however, when Hof
was 17, and the story was entirely dierent.

Previous pages
Wim Hof goes ice
diving at Botshol,
a nature reserve in
the neighbourhood
of Vinkeveen near
Amsterdam
Above
Practising yoga at
Breiamerkurjkull
lake near the
Vatnajkull glacier
in Iceland during
a BBC television
recording

I had been discovering my mind and body

already through esoteric disciplines karate, yoga,
and philosophy, he says. When I was 17, I came
across some freezing cold water with a thin layer
of ice and it attracted me. I undressed and got in.
There was this feeling of igniting something within
my physiology at a deep level. It felt so good, I came
back again and again.
For the next 20 years, Hof built himself into the
Iceman swimming in icy waters, running barefoot
through the snow, and generally doing what would
leave most of us in a state of severe hypothermia.
It was only a matter of time before the media
became interested in the Dutch daredevil, and
Guinness World Records soon followed. To date,

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EXPERIENCE THE TROMSO REGION OF NORWAY

 




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54-year-old Hof has broken 21 world records.

Among these, he holds the record for the longest
time spent in direct, full-body contact with ice (1
hour 52 minutes 42 seconds); has run the fastest
barefoot half marathon on ice (2 hours 16 minutes
34 seconds); has run a full marathon wearing
only shorts above the polar circle in Finland in
temperatures of -20C; has organised the largest
barefoot race on ice (361 participants); and reached
the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro clad only in shorts
and sandals in just two days. And, to prove its not
just the cold he can
endure, in 2011, he
ran a full marathon
in the Namib Desert
without water.
The question
is: how? Hof
says its a simple
matter of mind
over matter. Im
able to control my
body through the
power of my mind.
We have perfect
mechanisms in
our bodies, but we
intervened with
nature when we
started wearing
clothes. We need
to reawaken those
mechanisms.
While most of us
would shiver at
even the thought of
attempting an ice
bath, Hof claims
that with training
anyone can become
an iceman or
woman.
He attributes
much of his seemingly superhuman endurance to a
special breathing technique he has developed based
on Buddhist tummo meditation and yoga. The goal
of tummo the Tibetan word for inner re is to
gain complete control over the bodys processes, and
it has been proven that practitioners, like Hof, can
signicantly increase the temperature of their core
and extremities (one experiment in 1982 showed
three monks could increase the temperature of their
ngers by more than 8C during meditation).
In 2007, following an impressive run of record
breaking, which led to performances around the
world, a series of experiments was carried out in New

Above
Wim Hof meditates
in the snow in
Amsterdam,
Netherlands

York. Hof claims these proved he had control over his

vagus nerve, a part of the automatic nervous system
that, among other things, regulates the heart, controls
muscle movement, and keeps the digestive tract and
stomach in order. It is generally acknowledged that
we cant consciously control the vagus nerve.
If Hof could, as he claims, teach these abilities
to others, the implications for healthcare would be
signicant, he says, given the automatic nervous
systems role in the immune system. There were
plans to conduct further research to see if he could
indeed teach
his methods to
others, yet this
never happened
Hof blames
pharmaceutical
companies with a
vested interest in
suppressing the
results.
Nevertheless,
in 2010, following
a performance in
Amsterdam, he
was asked to take
part in a research
experiment at the
Radboud University
Nijmegen in the
Netherlands, run by
medical professor
Dr Maria Hopman.
Hopman set up
an experiment in
which Hof was
exposed to extreme
temperatures in an
ice bath for 1 hour
and 44 minutes. In
a normal subject,
this kind of extreme
exposure would
cause the bodys core temperature of 37 C to drop
signicantly causing hypothermia, which kicks
in at 35 C (death occurs at 27 C). Hofs core body
temperature, monitored by a small pill-shaped
thermometer he swallowed, dropped from 37.7C
to just 37.4C.
It is absolutely not important, says Hopman
of the 0.3C dierence in temperature. His skin
temperatures dropped by 5oC to 10oC, which is
very cold, whereas his core stays warm. That is
very exceptional.
In addition, Hofs heart rate and blood pressure
showed little change (a normal persons would

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What makes
an Iceman?
In experiments
conducted on
him, Hof stood in
a cylinder lled
with 700kg of ice.
His core body
temperature
remained at 37C

Hof is able to raise

his cortisol levels
and suppress
cytokines
(ammatory
bodies) using
his meditation
techniques

In 2007, Hof
attempted to
climb Mt Everest
wearing only
shorts and no
shoes. He failed
the attempt due
to a foot injury

Hof can suppress

his immune
response by 50
per cent, meaning
he showed hardly
any u-like
symptoms during
experiments

In 2010, Hof
visited the North
Pole, where he
held his breath
for 6 minutes and
20 seconds below
the surface of
the ice

Hof once
demonstrated
his free climbing
skills by hanging
between two hot
air balloons by his
middle nger at an
altitude of 1,500m

Getting there
The Iceman offers oneday workshops, held
around the world, and
one-week winter trips
in Krkonoe, Poland.
Norwegian regularly ies
to Prague in the Czech
Republic, which is about
a three-hour drive from
the Inner Fire centre.

Workshops
At the one-day workshop
you will learn to
master Hofs breathing
and concentration
techniques to create a
better connection with
the nervous and immune
systems. There will be ice
baths involved. Check
the website below for
upcoming workshops.

Wintry week
If one day with the
Iceman isnt enough,
you can sign up for a
week-long winter trip
in Krkonoe. During the
week, Hof will teach
the group his yoga,
meditation and exercise
techniques. You can then
practise while running
barefoot in the snow,
or going swimming in icy
waters. The next trips are
planned for February.
 icemanwimhof.com

Find more online

 innerfire.nl
 hofoutdoor.nl
 guinnessworldrecords.com
 @mandikeighran

Win!
Visit www.norwegian.com/magazine/iceman
to win an Iceman experience

increase dramatically), and he sped up his

metabolism to double the normal rate, using the
energy to produce extra heat. Unsurprisingly, the
results of these experiments posed more questions
than they answered.
Hopman has three theories to explain why
Hof can withstand freezing temperatures the
eects of tummo meditation, a gradual building of
resistance over many years of training, or simply
some kind of inherent genetic advantage but
still no answers. We call this a mystery, she says.
We need to do more research to see how Wim can
control processes in his body we thought you were
unable to control voluntarily.
After suering years of mockery and cynicism,
further research is exactly what Hof wants.
Ultimately, he wants his techniques to be widely
adopted around the world and used to boost the
immune system and treat disease. My mission,
says Hof, is to show that everybody can reach more
depth in themselves. We all have healing powers
an inner doctor but we have forgotten about
this. By opening our minds, we can free that inner
healing power and prevent disease.
So, since 2010, Hof and his son have run Inner
Fire workshops around the world, convincing
regular, albeit adventurous, people to run barefoot
through the snow and swim in freezing water
all in the name of boosting the immune system
and treating diseases from rheumatism and
cardiovascular problems to obesity.
He currently has a centre in Krkonoe, Poland,
where he runs regular winter workshops, and
there are plans to open a second centre in Spain
in the coming years. As might be expected from
the irrepressible Hof, he wont stop at these two
centres. For the past two years he has been training
several students to become teachers of his method,
with the intention of setting up a global network of
Inner Fire centres. Hes even considering installing
a cryochamber that reaches temperatures of
-120C (made famous by Welsh rugby player Sam
Warburton, who used one in 2011 while training for
the Rugby World Cup and dubbed it an evil sauna).
I know how to be happy without money, says
Hof. But, I do want to earn billions to create these
centres because they are good for all humankind.
Its impossible not to be infected by the Icemans
enthusiasm, and all of a sudden a barefoot run
through the snow or a dip in icy waters doesnt seem
like such a bad idea.
Krkonoe is three hours drive from Prague; Norwegian
ies to Prague from Oslo, Copenhagen, Stockholm
and Helsinki. Book ights, a hotel and a rental car at
norwegian.com

P H O T O S : H E N N Y B O O G E R T, J O H N W R I G H T, L I Z M C B U R N E Y. S T Y L I N G : N E U S P E R L A S

How to
become an
Iceman

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