Kiki’s Comfort Zone Challenge: swimming in ice-cold natural water

Did you read my piece from yesterday? Why I'm going to do things more often from now on that I frankly (pardon my French) find shitty to do? If not, check it out here. So yes: hi, I'm back. I recently made a deal with myself to jump into the deep end more often. To do things I would have previously always said ‘no thanks’ to.

And as if the universe was eavesdropping on all my weird ideas, an email suddenly came in from Vessel: that lovely restaurant plus a similar terrace at the Houthavens in Amsterdam. Whether I would like to do a sort of belayed New Year's dive in the IJ. Including oliebollen and champagne. It would be a private dive guided by someone who specializes in the Wim Hof method. I'm trying to receive that whole email calmly and open-mindedly, but all I read is: Cold. Cold. Cold. WHY WOULD A NORMAL PERSON WANT TO JUMP INTO ICE-COLD WATER FOR FUN?

A few days later, I'm standing in a bathrobe on a platform at the Houthavens. I'm cursing myself, Wim Hof, the IJ, and everyone involved in this scene. ‘Our bodies have become quite lazy in this Western world. We have thick winter coats, we turn up the heating, our bodies are almost unaccustomed to cold anymore. And that's why we're going to wake our bodies up today,” I hear our coach Luuk say. Swimming in ice-cold natural water has been trendy here for a few months (yes, also on the Gram), but in Scandinavian countries, they've been doing it for years. To prevent hypothermia, you only stay in for a few minutes. After that, you feel completely refreshed.’

All I can think is: fuck my life. I also know that there is no one who irritates me more at this moment than myself. A sort of Kiki Panic mode kicks in because yes, I would of course be the one who ends up having a panic attack in that cold water, or worse: a heart attack. Who's calling my mother? Can that person also let her know that the dress code will be yellow at my funeral?

With my big toe, I feel the water and an instant shiver runs down my back. Damn. Why do I always end up in these kinds of weird situations? What am I actually looking for? For whom am I actually doing this? It's the negative spiral trying to pull me down. My friend Lau encourages me: ‘We can do this, Kiek.’ I don't want to back down. Ah, fuck it. We're going in now too. We're being counted in. We can stay in for a maximum of two minutes.

In the first ten seconds of chattering teeth, the show-off in me thinks I'm dying. Normal breathing is the art. Deep. From. Your. Belly. Keep. Breathing. ‘We can do difficult things. We just have to train for it,’ becomes the mantra in my head. After thirty seconds, I feel my legs a little less well. After a minute, the fight in my head stops and it seems my body has surrendered to the fact that my mind likes to seek boundaries this morning.

Ten seconds before I take the coach's hand to be lifted up via the stairs, I already feel it happening. The happiness hormone dopamine. The pride. The world seems to stand still for a moment and everything feels clear in my head. The strange thing about taking a dive into cold water? You think you can't do it. And of course, you can. From a young age, you are taught to avoid things that are uncomfortable. That's not a bad thing, but it doesn't make you very resilient either. This is an exercise that revolves around testing your mind and body. Stepping out of your comfort zone. Discovering that you are much stronger than you think. I didn't let myself be led by my resistance because resistance is actually just a package of fear. And piercing through that wall of fear, that's where the growth lies.

My tip for people who are hesitant to go swimming in natural water: just go do it once. Together with friends, a shitload of warm clothes, and a thermos of tea. Read up on it beforehand and then push through that resistance. You can handle much more physically and mentally than you think. Really!

P.S.: For images of our water challenge, I refer you to this video, joe.

P.P.S.: Soon I'll be back with a new challenge. And I can already tell you: I'm scared shitless...