Day 2 – Take a Cold Plunge and Shock Your System
The purpose of today’s Daily Stoic challenge to jump in or shower in freezing water for thirty seconds was to show your body and the world who’s really in charge. I am!
In the end, I did show the new year that I am the boss, but I can’t help but think my mind was in charge of me for most of the day, gently nudging me to procrastinate until the final hour!
Despite waking up early and breaking a sweat from a mid-day workout, I could not bring myself to shower until tonight at 9:30! My mind new what awaited for me and kept steering me toward other activities, including even multiple rounds of tabletop corn hole (yes there is such a thing!).
When I finally retook the reins from my mind to show it who is really in charge here, I entered the shower and took care of all the basics while luxuriating in the scalding water. Even then, my mind guided me to scrub once more for good luck and to bring my toothbrush into the shower for one of the most indulgent scrubs I’ve given my teeth in weeks. Finally, exhausted of all possibilities, my mind pause just long enough for me to recommit to the task at hand – the cold plunge!
I tapped the stopwatch on my phone and cranked the faucet down to as cold as it could get. The shock from scalding to freezing was instant! I let out a small yelp. I ran my fingers through my hair which sent huge pools of freezing water running down my back all at once. And then, just like that, I peered at the stopwatch and saw it read 45 seconds. Not only had I completed the challenge; I enjoyed it.
Finally, I showed 2020 who’s the boss, and it is me!
P.S. – Surprisingly the ocean on the Gulf Coast of Florida last week was Maine-like in its frigidness and I more readily took the plunge there in the sea. Next year, I’ll remember this and opt for a Polar Bear jump here in the San Francisco Bay to shock my system.