Timing Protocol
What researchers say about when, how and with what to take cold exposure, and how strong the evidence is.
The verdict on Cold Exposure overall
Strong consensus for
Deliberate cold exposure is worth doing.
20 sources: 15 positive, 4 partly, 1 negative
Short answer
Morning cold raises core body temperature and alertness through cortisol and catecholamines (Andrew Huberman). Avoid cold immersion right after strength training: wait at least 4 hours or use separate days (Andrew Huberman; Rhonda Patrick). Cold after endurance training is generally fine and may help recovery (Rhonda Patrick).
One verdict, worked out from every counted mention. One dot is one source: a researcher or a study. Tap a dot to see its receipt.
positive partly neutral negative Each researcher and each study counts once per claim, however often they come up.
Cold immersion right after strength training blunts muscle growth unless delayed at least 4 hours.
3 sources: 3 partly.
Researchers say
3 partly
Dr. Andy Galpin, on Huberman Lab, at 4:23:25
Partly Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 4:23:25 →“you probably don't even want to do it that same day um it it's just not worth it it will blunt hypertrophy”
Andrew Huberman, on Huberman Lab, at 1:05:00
Partly Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 1:05:00 →“doing cold water plunging after a workout design to generate hypertrophy or strength gains is not a good idea”
Dr. Luc Van Loon, 2 mentions on this claim
Partly Video
on FoundMyFitness, at 1:37:42 · partly
“the lag in the cold water did not get the same stimulation of muscle protein synthesis”
on FoundMyFitness, at 1:40:11 · partly
“you shouldn't be using it at least not acutely after the exercise session”
Studies show
No study counted yet.
Dr. Andy Galpin, on Huberman Lab, at 4:23:25 Video · partly · Opinion
“you probably don't even want to do it that same day um it it's just not worth it it will blunt hypertrophy”
Andrew Huberman, on Huberman Lab, at 1:05:00 Video · partly · Opinion
“doing cold water plunging after a workout design to generate hypertrophy or strength gains is not a good idea”
Dr. Luc Van Loon Video · partly · 2 mentions
on FoundMyFitness, at 1:37:42 · partly · Their own research
“the lag in the cold water did not get the same stimulation of muscle protein synthesis”
on FoundMyFitness, at 1:40:11 · partly · Opinion
“you shouldn't be using it at least not acutely after the exercise session”
Built from every credited researcher and cited study on each claim.
Deliberate cold exposure is worth doing.
Researchers
Wim Hof, 14 mentions on this claim
Positive Video
on FoundMyFitness, at 11:03 · positive
“But the cold really forces you to breathe the natural way, which is very much more profound,”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 01:58 · positive
“a cold shower a day keeps the doctor”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 03:05 · positive
“a cold shower a day it is the best exercise to train all these little muscles then you get a lot more energy”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 51:38 · positive
“in the cold you learn to let go so the body is able to respond to adapt”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 28:34 · positive
“The cold, without a doubt, very directly, very effectively, very strongly, is able to tackle the biggest health problem in the world,”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 34:05 · positive
“Absolutely. Absolutely. The blood flow is going to be better, the muscle tone is going to be better,”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 37:25 · positive
“the cold can be a positive stressor to like a vaccination.”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 52:01 · positive
“once a day getting into a cold shower everybody is able to do. And with that it's the outcome is tremendous.”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 20:38 · positive
“in the cold you learn to let go so the body is able to respond to adapt”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 25:07 · positive
“stimulated through cold showers they help the blood flow go through then the heart rate goes down 20 to 30 beats a minute”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 27:08 · positive
“a cold shower a day is the best exercise to train all these little muscles then you get a lot more energy”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 05:54 · positive
“cold shower a day a is the best exercise to train all these little muscles then you get a lot more energy”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 19:31 · positive
“once a day getting into a cold shower everybody is able to do and with that uh it's it the outcome is tremendous”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 03:50 · positive
“is a hormatic stress uh exercise yeah a hormetic stretch which actually is positive stress”
Dr. Susanna Søberg, 6 mentions on this claim
Positive Video
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 1:05:00 · positive
“we should think about temperature change as something that is super healthy and natural and cheap and even free”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 12:08 · positive
“no no not in my opinion because I mean the more the more they rejected the more they might even need it actually”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 2:10:08 · positive
“because the cold shower is also going to activate your immune response but it's also going to activate your metabolism and also your brown fat”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 51:26 · positive
“and increase your insulin sensitivity which we also found in my studies”
on Huberman Lab, at 14:28 · positive
“it's always harder in the beginning but you should do hard things right”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 52:32 · partly
“if you go above two three four minutes in the in the code the top or in Winter swimming”
Dr. Casey Means, 2 mentions on this claim
Positive Video
on Huberman Lab, at 2:05:20 · positive
“I think it can be a very valuable tool to stimulate you know through that signal to to basically make more heat”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 14:01 · positive
“truly after five minutes in those Lakes everything felt better and I was almost addicted to it”
Tony Riddle, on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 1:17:51
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 1:17:51 →“So there's the recovery aspect of it, but there's also changing my mind's perception of cold,”
Andrew Huberman, 16 mentions on this claim
Positive Video
on Huberman Lab, at 15:38 · positive
“It makes you more alert, not just while you're in there, but in the minutes and certainly up to an hour or more afterwards.”
on Huberman Lab, at 54:54 · positive
“probably one to three times a week. If you really want this to accelerate fat loss.”
on Huberman Lab, at 18:17 · positive
“So I'm obviously a fanatic about it in the sense that it's a powerful relatively safe, if done properly.”
on Huberman Lab, at 05:17 · positive
“many people do enjoy the effects of deliberate cold exposure, in particular for those increases in mood and alertness”
on The Diary Of A CEO, at 1:24:58 · positive
“it's absolutely clear that it causes a huge increase in Adrenaline dopamine and norepinephrine that are very longlasting and that makes you feel great”
on The Diary Of A CEO, at 2:17:53 · positive
“cold plunge it is a state shifting tool that's really what it is I like to do sauna and cold at least once a week”
on Huberman Lab, at 59:37 · positive
“I personally get tremendous benefit from doing deliberate cold exposure three times a week”
on Huberman Lab, at 1:00:24 · positive
“the use of deliberate cold exposure for sake of building resilience, which I do believe can be tremendously powerful.”
on Huberman Lab, at 1:02:04 · positive
“Deliberate cold exposure has a very powerful effect on the release of dopamine in our brain and body.”
on Huberman Lab, at 1:15:34 · partly
“So one could imagine using deliberate cold exposure as a way to accelerate the recovery from hangover.”
on Huberman Lab, at 2:59:46 · partly
“It's pretty clear that using deliberate cold exposure can be healthy for the sperm because of the ways”
on Huberman Lab, at 1:05:04 · partly
“is not a good idea but doing cold plunging at the other times of day can be tremendously beneficial”
on Huberman Lab, at 1:30:49 · partly
“but for most people getting into 60 degree water or 50 degree water,”
on Huberman Lab, at 1:36:16 · partly
“well then exposing yourself to cold can be beneficial, but you're not going to get as great of benefits from the resistance training.”
on Huberman Lab, at 1:19:09 · partly
“as a form of stress inoculation, that's great and works quite well for that purpose.”
on Huberman Lab, at 11:06 · partly
“guess what they increase your levels of energy and alertness so if you're somebody who struggles with energy and alertness it can be beneficial”
Dr. Roger Seheult, on FoundMyFitness, at 1:41:58
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 1:41:58 →“it was uh it was invigorating. So I I do that every day.”
David Spindler, on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 43:52
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 43:52 →“well the ice bath does the exact same thing and I showed them the comparison in the in the brain chemistry”
Dr Gabrielle Lyon, on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 1:17:21
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 1:17:21 →“I love it. I do it every day.”
Dr. Rhonda Patrick, on Huberman Lab, at 21:47
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 21:47 →“I feel good. I feel more focused which is why I usually do it before any type of public speaking.”
Mark Hyman, on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 06:01
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 06:01 →“cold therapy really helps activate this brown fat speed up your metabolism”
Chris Hemsworth, on The Drive, at 16:59
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 16:59 →“I've never felt the Endorphin kick and the sort of elation that I felt afterward”
Dave Asprey, on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 1:15:07
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 1:15:07 →“just believe me just try it for a week you're like you know what i like my life when i do this”
Josh Waitzkin, on Huberman Lab, at 2:11:35
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 2:11:35 →“getting in cold water every day is a very important I think it's a beautiful opportunity to train it”
Ben Bikman, on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 2:07:22
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 2:07:22 →“Even though I first presented cold immersion from a metabolic perspective, and I would certainly defend that.”
Studies
A 2016 study, cited on Huberman Lab, at 34:09
Positive Study
Open the tape at 34:09 →“you will have an increase in um uh in in your metabolism which will then make your insulin sensitivity uh better”
Researchers
Dr. Andy Galpin, 4 mentions on this claim
Partly Video
on Huberman Lab, at 4:23:12 · partly
“so there are a lot of benefits and we can talk about those later however that that being said”
on FoundMyFitness, at 2:57:58 · partly
“some people cold is great. Some people it is pushing past and making things worse.”
on Huberman Lab, at 2:37:21 · partly
“I'm a big believer in cold. Especially cold water.”
on Huberman Lab, at 1:18:40 · partly
“if you want to use cold shower for all the other awesome reasons cold shower that's totally great”
Dr. Luc Van Loon, on FoundMyFitness, at 1:40:04
Partly Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 1:40:04 →“for resistance training or for uh andu training it's you shouldn't be using it at least not acutely after the exercise session”
Studies
Heller, cited on Huberman Lab, at 17:48
Partly Study
Open the tape at 17:48 →“So Heller and colleagues have done experiments where they do palmar cooling under these environments. And that's wonderful”
Susanna Søberg, cited on Huberman Lab, at 1:14:18
Partly Study
Open the tape at 1:14:18 →“for 11 minutes total per week, that these men experienced increases in so-called brown fat thermogenesis,”
Dr. Craig Heller, 4 mentions on this claim
Negative Video
on Huberman Lab, at 47:21 · positive
“And those that were cool, didn't have significant muscle soreness.”
on Huberman Lab, at 12:25 · partly
“the benefit of a cold bath or a cold shower before aerobic activity is that you increase the capacity of your body mass”
on Huberman Lab, at 08:12 · negative
“But it doesn't necessarily translate into any benefit in terms of your physiology or performance, and so forth.”
on Huberman Lab, at 01:05 · negative
“this is really the uh so-called benefit, but it doesn't necessarily translate into any benefit in terms of your physiology, your performance,”
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