Welcome to Litsy!

A book about the author's journey from couch potatoe to mountain climber. The book is mainly a testimony from a student of the Wim Hof method, which is a breathing technique and cold terapy which boosts your imune system and brings about other health benefits. It is an interesting book, not only for the explanation of the method but also for the journey the author went through and the interactions with Wim Hof himself. A good read.

How interesting! The narrator's tone of voice and the general perkiness reminds me of Born to Run, but if you aren't bothered by such things I'd highly recommend this book. I, for one, enjoy being cold and very easily overheat. I'll dress more lightly come winter and for once ignore all the "oh but aren't you cold!?". The breathing techniques are another matter. I'd like another book like this one but without the emotional stories and people.

The lessons provided by these examples is simple. Wars are fought as much with the weather as they are between men. And for every story of defeat in winter months, there is often also an equally potent story of triumph by victors who were able to deal with the cold even marginally better than their enemies.

"I found that as soon as I started doing difficult things that everything else in life got easier," he says.

You know it's going to be a good book when it starts with a warning like this one.

Anthropologists started conducting extensive surveys on cold adaptation on indigenous people around the world beginning in the 1930s. Back then the procedures were often rudimentary and often involved a sunburned researcher in a pith helmet convincing some unsuspecting tribesman to wear a rectal thermometer while standing out in the cold or jumping into ice water. One can only imagine the pantomime involved in such a transaction.

My obsession with reading about the cold continues....(from the comfort of my cozy warm home)