Wim Hof and his extraordinary achievements in extreme conditions have led astonished fans marvelling at his feats to call him The Iceman.
The label has stuck with good reason, for Hof has battled the cold – and sometimes heat – to win more than 20 Guinness world records for endurance.
Hof may have worked for decades to make sense of his talent, criss-crossing the world, consulting mystics and pushing his body and mind to the extreme.
He modestly dismisses his physical prowess as a talent innate in us all and something he can teach.
Hof has decanted his years of experience into the Wim Hof Method, a structured path that can lead individuals to an optimal physical and mental state by teaching them how to control their body.
His mantra is “What I am capable of, everybody can learn”
Wim Hof – The Record Breaker
Unlike many spiritual and physical teachers, Wim Hof has held 21 authenticated Guinness world records to demonstrate that his method works.
The Wim Hof Method enables him to withstand the extremes of hot and cold by taking control of his breathing, heart rate and circulation.
His fantastic achievements include:
- Running a half marathon barefoot and dressed in shorts above the Arctic Circle
- Plunging into freezing water and swimming 66 metres beneath ice
- Unbelievably hooking a single finger on to a handhold to suspend his body at a height of 2,000 metres
- Climbing Mount Everest in just his shorts
- Defeating the heat of the arid Namib Desert by running a marathon without taking a drink
- Standing immersed in ice for minutes on end
Wim Hof – The Science behind the man
Doctors and medical researchers have tried to explain how Wim Hof can control his mind and body with such precision.
They have run tests and experiments on Hof and some of his students to determine their secret and agree they can withstand temperature extremes where others could not.
However, they could not pinpoint how The Iceman beats the cold, but suggested the Wim Hof Method does act on the sympathetic nervous system and could, in some cases, become effective in reducing the symptoms of autoimmune diseases.