Wim Hof

Wim Hof (born 20 April 1959), also known as The Iceman, is a Dutch motivational speaker and extreme athlete noted for his ability to withstand freezing temperatures.[1] He has set Guinness World Records for swimming under ice and prolonged full-body contact with ice, and previously held the record for a barefoot half marathon on ice and snow. He attributes these feats to his Wim Hof Method (WHM), a combination of frequent cold exposure, breathing techniques, yoga and meditation. Hof has been the subject of several medical assessments and a book written by investigative journalist Scott Carney.[2]

Wim Hof
Hof immersed in an ice bath, 2007
Born (1959-04-20) 20 April 1959
Sittard, Limburg, Netherlands
OccupationExtreme athlete
Children6
Websitehttps://www.wimhofmethod.com/ 

Personal life

Hof was born in Sittard, Limburg, Netherlands, one of nine children, in order of birth: Rob (1954), John (1955), Marianne (1957), Wim and Andre (1959-identical twins), Ruud (1961), Ed (1962), Marcel (1964) and Jacqueline (1967).[3][4] Hof has six children, four of them with his first wife Marivelle-Maria (also called "Olaya"), who died by suicide in 1995;[5] a son, born in 2003 to his girlfriend; and a son born in 2017 to his last girlfriend.[6] When he was 17 he felt a sudden urge to jump into the freezing cold water of the Beatrixpark canal.[7][5][6] Hof has said that his sadness over the loss of his first wife was formative in leading him to develop techniques to face low-temperature environments.[6][8]

Records
Hof at, a 2015 event, at TheaterAmsterdam

On 16 March 2000, Hof set the Guinness World Record for farthest swim under ice, with a distance of 57.5 metres (188.6 feet).[9][10] The swim at a lake near Pello, Finland was filmed for a Dutch television program, and a test run the previous day almost ended in disaster when his corneas started to freeze and he was swimming blind. A diver rescued him as he began to lose consciousness.[3] A new record of 76.2 metres (250 ft) was set by Stig Severinsen in 2013.[11]

On 26 January 2007, Hof set a world record for fastest half marathon barefoot on ice and snow, with a time of 2 hours, 16 minutes, and 34 seconds.[12] This record was surpassed on 17 January 2021 by Czech Josef Šálek, who finished a half marathon in Pelhřimov with a time of 1:36:21.[13]

Hof has set the world record for longest time in direct, full-body contact with ice 16 times,[14] including 1 hour, 42 minutes and 22 seconds on 23 January 2009;[15] 1 hour, 44 minutes in January 2010;[16] and 1 hour 53 minutes and 2 seconds in 2013.[14] This was surpassed in 2014 by Songhao Jin of China, with a time of 1 hour, 53 minutes and 10 seconds;[17] and surpassed in 2019 by Josef Köberl of Austria, with a time of 2 hours, 8 minutes and 47 seconds.[18]

In 2007, Hof climbed to an altitude of 7,400 metres (24,300 ft) on Mount Everest wearing nothing but shorts and shoes, but aborted the attempt due to a recurring foot injury. He managed to climb from base camp to about 6,700 metres (22,000 ft) wearing just shorts and sandals, but after that he had to wear boots.[19] In 2016 he reached Gilmans point on Kilimanjaro with journalist Scott Carney in 28 hours, an event later documented in the book What Doesn't Kill Us.[20]

Wim Hof Method

Wim Hof markets a regimen, the Wim Hof Method (WHM), created with his son Enahm Hof. It involves three "pillars": cold therapy, breathing, and meditation.[21] It has similarities to Tibetan Tummo meditation and pranayama, both of which employ breathing techniques.[22]

Evidence and criticism

A wide range of claims are made for the Method's health benefits. While hyperventilation might temporarily reduced inflammatory response to an injection of endotoxins, Hof's claims have not been scientifically proven.[23][24][25]

One 2018 study of Wim Hof published in the journal NeuroImage used a combination of fMRI and PET/CT imaging, and found:

. . . forceful respiration results in increased sympathetic innervation and glucose consumption in intercostal muscle, generating heat that dissipates to lung tissue and warms circulating blood in the pulmonary capillaries. Our results provide compelling evidence for the primacy of the brain (CNS) rather than the body (peripheral mechanisms) in mediating the Iceman's [Wim Hof's] responses to cold exposure.[26]

A 2014 assessment compared Wim Hof and his identical twin brother. The scientists had them practice Wim's breathing exercises, then exposed them to the lowest temperature that would not induce shivering. They concluded that, "No significant differences were found between the two subjects, indicating that a lifestyle with frequent exposures to extreme cold does not seem to affect BAT activity and CIT (cold-induced thermogenesis)."[27] Both had rises of 40% of their metabolic rates over the resting rate, compared to a maximum of 30% observed in young adults. However, their brown fat percentage—while high for their age—was not enough to account for all of the increase. The rest was due to their vigorous breathing, which increased the metabolic activity in their respiratory muscles. The researchers cautions that the "results must be interpreted with caution given the low subject number and the fact that both participants practised the g-Tummo like breathing technique."[28]

A 2012 study of Wim Hof by a group of researchers in The Netherlands and published by the journal Psychosomatic Medicine found that his "concentration/meditation during ice immersion" greatly reduced his "ex vivo proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokine response":

The concentration/meditation technique used by this particular individual seems to evoke a controlled stress response. This response is characterized by sympathetic nervous system activation and subsequent catecholamine/cortisol release, which seems to attenuate the innate immune response.[29]

People have died while attempting the Wim Hof Method. Four practitioners drowned in 2015 and 2016, and relatives suspected the breathing exercises were to blame.[30][31] In 2021, a Singaporean man drowned in a condominium pool when attempting the Method.[32] Hof now cautions against using his breathing method when in water or driving due to the possibility of blackout.[23][22]

Critics of Hof say he overstates the benefits of his method.[23] On his website he says that it has reduced symptoms of several diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease,[22] but these claims have not been scientifically demonstrated.[23] Wouter van Marken Lichtenbelt, one of the scientists who studied Hof, said: "[Hof's] scientific vocabulary is galimatias. With conviction, he mixes in a non-sensical way scientific terms as irrefutable evidence."[28] However, Van Marken Lichtenbelt goes on to say: "When practicing the Wim Hof Method with a good dose of common sense (for instance, not hyperventilating before submerging in water) and without excessive expectations: it doesn't hurt to try."[28]

Publications
Cover of Becoming the Iceman
  • Hof, Wim (1998). Klimmen in stilte [Climbing in silence] (in Dutch). Altamira. ISBN 9789069634395.
  • Hof, Wim (2000). De top bereiken is je angst overwinnen [Reaching the top is overcoming your fear] (in Dutch). Andromeda. ISBN 9789055991136.
  • Hof, Wim; Rosales, Justin (2012). Becoming the Iceman : pushing past perceived limits. Mill City Press. ISBN 9781937600464.
  • Hof, Wim; Jong, Koen A.M. de (2015). Koud kunstje : wat kun je leren van de iceman?. Uitgeverij Water. ISBN 9789491729256.
  • Hof, Wim (2020). The Wim Hof Method. Penguin Random House. ISBN 9781846046292.

See also

References
  1. Shea, Daisy-May Hudson and Matt (16 July 2015). "ICEMAN". Vice. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  2. Carney, Scott (2017). What doesn't kill us : how freezing water, extreme altitude, and environmental conditioning will renew our lost evolutionary strength. Potter/Ten Speed/Harmony/Rodale. ISBN 9781623366919.
  3. Carney, Scott (2011). "The Iceman Cometh". Scott Carney. Archived from the original on 27 June 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  4. Hof & Rosales 2012, p. 10.
  5. Joe Rogan (interviewer) and Wim Hof (21 October 2015). Wim Hof (podcast). Joe Rogan Experience. Vol. 712. Joe Rogan. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  6. Innerfire. "Innerfire - Wim Hof, The Iceman - Innerfire". Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  7. Hedegaard, Erik (3 November 2017). "Wim Hof Says He Holds the Key to a Healthy Life – But Will Anyone Listen?". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  8. Tang, Vivienne (16 September 2019). "Wim Hof: The Iceman on Breathwork, Ice Baths, and How to Reset and Control Your Immune System". Destination Deluxe. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  9. Farthest swim under ice - Guinness World Records. Guinnes World Records. 20 August 2012. Retrieved 22 February 2019.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. Science Explains How the Iceman Resists Extreme Cold. Smithsonian Mag. January 2020. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  11. "Longest swim under ice - breath held (no fins, no diving suit)". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  12. "Fastest half marathon barefoot on ice/snow". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  13. Krejčí, Denisa (17 January 2021). "Půlmaraton bosý a na sněhu: Josef Šálek pokořil v Pelhřimově světový rekord". Deník.cz.
  14. Glenday, Craig (2015). Guinness world records 2015. Bantam Trade. p. 246. ISBN 9781101883808.
  15. "Full body ice contact endurance". Guinness World Records. 8 May 2011. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  16. Sunday, Alex (29 December 2010). "Dutchman Aims to Take Longest Ice Bath". CBS News. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  17. "Longest duration full body contact with ice". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  18. "Longest duration full body contact with ice". World Open Water Swimming Association. 11 August 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  19. Kathmandu (29 May 2007). "Everest climber falls short". The Age. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  20. "What Doesn't Kill Us by Scott Carney". PenguinRandomhouse.com. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  21. Hof, Wim. "Wim Hof Method". wimhofmethod.com. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  22. Hof, Wim. "Wim Hof Method Breathing". Wim Hof Method. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  23. Hall, Harriet (12 January 2021). "Wim Hof, the Iceman". Science-Based Medicine.
  24. Houtman, Anne; Scudellari, Megan; Malone, Cindy; Singh-Cundy, Anu (2015). "22. Endocrine and immune systems" (PDF). Biology Now. W. W. Norton & Company. pp. 388–405. ISBN 978-0393906257. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  25. Kox, M.; van Eijk, L. T.; Zwaag, J.; van den Wildenberg, J.; Sweep, F. C. G. J.; van der Hoeven, J. G.; Pickkers, P. (20 May 2014). "Voluntary activation of the sympathetic nervous system and attenuation of the innate immune response in humans". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 111 (20): 7379–7384. Bibcode:2014PNAS..111.7379K. doi:10.1073/pnas.1322174111. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 4034215. PMID 24799686.
  26. Muzik O, Reilly KT, Diwadkar VA (15 May 2018). ""Brain over body" A study on the willful regulation of autonomic function during cold exposure". NeuroImage. 172: 632–641. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2018.01.067. PMID 29438845. S2CID 3341846. Retrieved 22 September 2021.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  27. Vosselman, Maarten J.; Vijgen, Guy H. E. J.; Kingma, Boris R. M.; Brans, Boudewijn; van Marken Lichtenbelt, Wouter D.; Romanovsky, Andrej A. (11 July 2014). "Frequent Extreme Cold Exposure and Brown Fat and Cold-Induced Thermogenesis: A Study in a Monozygotic Twin". PLOS One. 9 (7): e101653. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0101653. PMC 4094425. PMID 25014028.
  28. van Marken Lichtenbelt, Wouter (11 July 2017). "Who is the Iceman?". Temperature. 4 (3): 202–205. doi:10.1080/23328940.2017.1329001. PMC 5605164. PMID 28944263.
  29. Kox, Matthijs; Stoffels, Monique; Smeekens, Sanne P.; van Alfen, Nens; Gomes, Marc; Eijsvogels, Thijs M.H.; Hopman, Maria T.E.; van der Hoeven, Johannes G.; Netea, Mihai G.; Pickkers, Peter (June 2012). "The Influence of Concentration/Meditation on Autonomic Nervous System Activity and the Innate Immune Response: A Case Study". Psychosomatic Medicine. 74 (5): 489–494. doi:10.1097/PSY.0b013e3182583c6d. PMID 22685240. S2CID 22707980. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
  30. Tijmstra, Fannie; Bomers, Loes (10 June 2016). "'Iceman' onder vuur" ['Iceman' under fire] (in Dutch). EenVandaag. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  31. Duin, Roelf Jan (2 July 2016). "'Iceman'-oefening eist opnieuw leven" ['Iceman' exercise claims a new life]. Het Parool (in Dutch). Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  32. "Coroner cautions against practising Wim Hof breathing method underwater after man drowns". CNA. Retrieved 14 January 2022.

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