Water is the most ancient healer of our body. It can have a powerful effect on us both psychologically and physically. One of popular ways health promotion is dousing cold water.
Hardening with cold water has many positive effects and to one degree or another (from rubbing your feet with cold water to swimming in an ice hole) is suitable for almost everyone. Everyone, with the exception of patients with severe forms of illness, will find for himself the most acceptable and affordable ways for him.
One of the most popular effects of hardening is the strengthening of the immune system, however, there are a number of equally positive consequences of such a cold training - normalization of the cardiovascular system, rejuvenation of the body, improvement of skin condition, regulation of the nervous and endocrine systems.
Dousing with cold water is a universal system and consists of several stages, each of which can become the only chosen way of healing with water. Of course, the most prepared and motivated people have a chance to come to winter swimming. 
It must be remembered that in order to determine the most optimal method of hardening in the presence of any diseases, you need to consult a doctor.
How to start hardening with water?
First stage: wiping the body with a terry towel soaked in cold water. It is very good to spend it in the morning, toning the body. Such preparation can be carried out within 5-7 days.At the same time, trying to walk barefoot on the floor, sleep with open window- that is, gradually accustoming the body to the cold. Also try to walk around in lighter clothes, in which you will not be cold, but you will feel the temperature of the air, gradually switching to lighter clothes.
Second phase: cold and hot shower. First practice alternating between cold and hot water, and then gradually lower the temperature by alternating warm and cool water. Duration 7 days.
Third stage: pouring cold water on parts of the body. Start by washing your face, shoulders, hands with cold water, accustom yourself to washing your legs up to the knee with cold water, gradually splashing cold water over your whole body. Usually 5 days are enough to get used to such a procedure.
Fourth stage: pouring cold water over the whole body. You can shower lukewarm at first and then lower the temperature of the water. Then dry well with a towel. 
Fifth stage: Dousing with ice water or swimming in an ice hole. Not everyone is usually suitable for this stage, since preparation for it should occur gradually, but if you started pouring cold water in the summer, then by winter you will already be able to plunge into water below 15 degrees Celsius.
However, if you do not consider yourself ready for such a load on the body, then continue dousing with cold water (it is possible on the street) or practice walking barefoot in the snow. 
Main rules success in water hardening are:
Systematic (every day or every other day);
- gradualness (listening to your body and a smooth transition from stage to stage);
- complexity (combination of hardening with water with other types of hardening, as well as with in a healthy way life).
Thus, following these steps, after 1-1.5 months, you can stop being afraid of cold water, and acquire cold resistance, improve health.
Do you have similar hardening experience? Share!
most famous and simple method to start strengthening one's immunity is considered to be rubbing with cold water. Almost every action aimed at hardening allows the human body to adapt to temperature extremes, hypothermia, this stimulates the work of all organ systems, and prevents the occurrence of respiratory diseases. Cool procedures invigorate, increase tone. Vessels expand and narrow - this has a good effect on the work of the heart and blood flow. Almost all hardening procedures have a positive effect on the immune system, they help to cheer up, tone up the body, and adapt it to low temperatures.
The easiest way to improve your health is to wipe yourself with water. As a rule, hardening begins with this. Strengthening health by hardening is best to start in the summer, and continue with the advent of winter.
The initial stage of hardening with water
If you decide to strengthen your immunity by hardening, then you should remember some rules. First of all, that all procedures on initial stage should be done as quickly as possible. You can douse for no more than two minutes. The first stage of hardening is adaptation to cool water.
How beginners harden: dousing with water
It is better to start pouring water with indifferent procedures, they are safe. After the aquatic environment is gradually cooled, you can gradually lower the water temperature to 12 degrees. The duration of the procedure should be gradually increased, reach up to several minutes in one procedure. After being in the shower, you need to sharply pour a basin of cool water onto the body. It is necessary to carry out this procedure a couple of times during the week. The water temperature should be reduced by 1 degree once a week - this is an important phase of hardening. You need to harden regularly. Otherwise, you won't get any benefit. Be sure to prepare a dry towel in advance and wipe them off at the end of the hardening procedure, so you minimize the risk of hypothermia and getting sick. The most successful time of the day for tempering procedures is the first hours after a night's sleep. It is necessary to provide a sufficiently high temperature in the room where you are going to shower. Much in the case of hardening of the body depends on the degree of hardening. Can be tempered in a cool room. You can combine cold water hardening and physical exercise. But do not rush to go under a cold shower immediately after gymnastics.
Is it good to soak your feet?
When hardening with water by washing the feet, you need to lower them into a basin of water, and then wipe them with a towel. At this stage, you should feel warmth after rubbing your feet. The duration of this procedure can be one minute. After a couple of months, the temperature of the liquid should be equal to five degrees.
Watch the video film "Stages of hardening with water":
Walking on cold water
This method of strengthening the immune system has a positive effect on the urination system and on the respiratory system, and also stimulates the intestines. It is possible to carry out such manipulation at home. Dive into the basin should be on the calf. After a while, it is recommended to raise the water level. You need to stand in the bathroom for 1 minute. After a while, it will be possible to arrive in cold water for longer. First, you need to pour water into the bowl. Use room temperature water. After completing all the procedures, you need to quickly do different movements with your toes. The body must warm up.
Hardening with a contrast shower
A cool shower, if a person is completely healthy, allows you to strengthen the immune system. Don't take cold showers after your workout. It takes no more than a couple of minutes to arrive in the shower. The water temperature should be gradually lowered. This manipulation is suitable for those who move little.
A contrast shower is the best way to improve immunity. It is not necessary to temper the whole body with a shower, but only the limbs. It is necessary to expand the hardening area slowly. After all the manipulations, you need to wipe yourself with a dry towel. You will not feel the result immediately. Needs to be tempered regularly.
Cold water hardening
To activate all the processes in the body, it is enough just to regularly do tempering procedures. Being in ice water is better not alone, but with friends. It is better to temper under the supervision of specialists. It must be understood that people with diseases should not be hardened in this way. It is also not advisable to stop hardening. This will be displayed on your health, resistance to hypothermia. Swimming in icy water is highly discouraged for people who have experienced a heart attack. In this case, it is necessary to listen to the recommendations of more experienced comrades. First you need to learn how to do everything progressively. An inexperienced person needs to practice hardening under the supervision of a more experienced walrus. After all, tempering procedures are not always as safe as we think. In advance, you need to start preparing your own body for serious hardening procedures. A cold shower will help you with this. This is the only way to proceed to hardening in the hole. It is desirable that there is a bath near the hole. Before starting all the procedures, it does not hurt to warm up well. Experts say that it is impossible to harden with cool water too often. Do this regularly, but not too often.
snow rubdown
This type of hardening is quite common in Europe. And it is very popular in winter time. The first few procedures are best done in the shower with not very cold water. A cold shower will not only invigorate you during a hard day at work, but it will also help you prepare for the stress that the body usually experiences when rubbing with snow. Otherwise, hardening will turn to harm. Open your eye often in the room, this will allow you to adapt the body to the cold. This should be done at least several times during the day. Hardening with snow has a positive effect on thermoregulation. It is recommended to start by walking on the surface of the snow.
First you need to walk in the snow for no more than 3 minutes. After that, you can increase the time spent on the snow. And only after that you can start wiping certain parts of the body with snow. It is better to start by rubbing the hands and feet.
If you are a walrus for more than a day, then you can completely wipe yourself with snow. It is necessary to rub until the skin turns red. This means that the vessels have dilated. At this moment, you may feel warm. It is very useful to rub with snow after the sauna. You need to carefully monitor the time spent on the street. Scientists believe that hardening procedures that involve rubbing the body with cold water or snow are safer than swimming in an ice hole or similar procedures.
After completing the rubbing with snow, you do not need to wipe yourself with a towel. It is advisable to return to the sauna immediately after rubbing with snow. It is highly not recommended to rub yourself with snow for people who have survived a heart attack and who have other serious illnesses. In this case, you need to follow the advice of doctors and more experienced walruses. First of all, you need to learn how to do everything gradually. The hardening procedure is dangerous for an inexperienced person. In order to improve your health, you need to be consistent. Otherwise, there is a risk of harming your body. Know that it all depends on your perseverance. Don't rush and you'll be fine.
We are increasingly talking about the treatment of diseases, when prevention is of no small importance. Increasing the body's resistance to negative environmental factors - this is the goal of preventive measures. It is necessary to strengthen the body. One of the methods of prevention is hardening. What is the principle of hardening, what rules must be followed, we will consider further.
A bit about the history of hardening
Hardening has been known for a very long time. There are mentions of him in the treatises of the great scientists of antiquity, such as Hippocrates, Democritus, Asklepiad. great attention physical health and endurance were given in Sparta. From a very young age, the boys went barefoot, and in the warm season they were practically naked.
IN Ancient Rome hardening, strengthening the body was also treated positively. Only the main place for the procedures were the baths. There were pools with hot and cold water, as well as rooms for massage and gymnastic exercises, mud baths were practiced. Sunbathing on rooftops.
Ancient Chinese medicine had a positive view of disease prevention and health-promoting procedures. It was said that "the wise one heals the disease that is not yet in the body." Much attention was paid to water procedures, gymnastics, massage, and diet.
In Rus', hardening was of a massive nature. A bath followed by rubbing with snow was the norm. Swimming in reservoirs at any time of the year is popular at the present time.
hardening methods
Depending on the effect on the body, there are several methods of hardening:
1. Air hardening:
- Taking air baths. Air affects the naked body.
- Sunbathing. Practiced for the purpose of recovery and prevention.
- Walking barefoot regardless of the season.
2. Hardening with water:
- Cold and hot shower. Pouring alternately with cold, then moderately hot water.
- A visit to the bathhouse followed by a dive into the cool water.
- Dousing with water.
- Swimming in the hole.
Which type of hardening to choose depends on the area of residence, on the state of health and many other factors.
Hardening principles
Regardless of which method is chosen, certain hardening principles must be observed. If they are not adhered to, then the procedures will be random.
We list the basic principles of hardening the body:
- Systematic hardening procedures. They must be carried out regularly, regardless of weather conditions and seasons. You can fix the execution of procedures in the mode of the day.
- Gradual increase in load. A sharp increase in load can be detrimental to health. The gradual transition should be carried out taking into account the responses of the body. This is especially important when hardening children, the elderly and patients with chronic diseases.
- Sequence in the execution of procedures. Hardening begins with rubbing and foot baths. According to medical regulations, weak stimuli have a better effect on body functions, and excessive ones are detrimental.
- Complex effect on the body. It is necessary to use procedures with the influence of natural forces that daily affect a person - water and air. Pouring can be carried out on the street. The body must experience either a strong or a weak effect, not getting used to a constant temperature, otherwise hardening in this case will be impractical.
- Accounting individual features body and health. Decided to start hardening? Wonderful! But it is recommended to visit a doctor first. He will tell you which method to choose. Hardening under medical supervision will help to avoid undesirable consequences and makes it possible to correctly plan further health promotion activities.
water hardening
This type of hardening has a more powerful effect on the body than air.
Water affects the body in the following ways:
- At the first stage, there is a spasm of blood vessels and subcutaneous fat.
- On the second, the skin becomes red, adaptation occurs, mast cells, leukocytes are activated, substances with interferon-like properties are released. Feeling better. There is a surge of strength.
- At the third stage, if the body is supercooled, vasospasm again occurs. Since the body is supercooled, the body can no longer adapt, and chills occur.
If you follow the principles of hardening, the second stage will come faster. The most important thing is not to bring it to the third stage.
Who is contraindicated in water hardening
There are many stories of healing due to hardening procedures, but it is worth noting that in some cases such procedures need to be delayed.
- Cold water causes vasospasm, so if there are diseases of the cardiovascular system (tachycardia, ischemic disease heart, heart failure), such methods are contraindicated.
- A sharp change in temperature affects the central nervous system. It is necessary to practice hardening with caution in diseases of the central nervous system: epilepsy, psychosis, hysteria.
- If there are any skin diseases, from hardening with water must be abandoned until complete recovery. Especially in the presence of purulent, non-healing or open wounds.
- With diseases of the respiratory system: tuberculosis, bronchial asthma.
- Do not recommend dousing with increased eye pressure.
- For colds (ARVI, acute respiratory infections, influenza), you should refrain from procedures, even if classes were regular before the illness.
- Don't wrap your head around. This can adversely affect health.
Ways of water hardening
Hardening with water can be traditional and non-traditional.
Traditional methods include:
- Rubbing. Can be used at any age, even from the cradle. To do this, you need a towel that absorbs water well. How to carry out the procedure, we will tell further.
- Pouring. May be local or general.
- Swimming in natural waters. It can also be recommended from an early age, starting with a temperature of 24-26 degrees. After the procedure, be sure to move.
How the water hardening procedure begins, we will consider further.
Starting water hardening
The most optimal time for tempering water procedures is in the morning. It is recommended to recharge.
Hardening with water should begin with rubbing. To do this, moisten a sponge or towel with water of a certain temperature and wipe off. You need to start from the upper parts of the body - from the neck, then the shoulders, arms, chest, back follow. The next step is to dry with a towel, rubbing the skin red. It is necessary to move from the periphery to the heart.
Then you can move on to the lower body. They are also wiped with a damp sponge or towel and then rubbed dry with a dry towel. The whole process should take no more than 5 minutes.
Then you can go directly to dousing.
Start using water a degree slightly below body temperature. The permissible range is +34 ... +36 ° C. Every 3 days the temperature is lowered by one degree. After dousing the body, it is also recommended to rub it red with a dry towel. The procedure should last no more than 1 minute.
Non-traditional hardening
Non-traditional hardening methods include procedures such as:
- Wiping with snow.
- Walking barefoot in the snow.
- Exposure to low temperature air.
- Sauna.
- Russian bath.
The meaning of hardening is that the thermoregulatory apparatus is trained by such procedures. immune system. This reduces the body's sensitivity to the harmful effects of the sun, cold, water and other factors.
The use of non-traditional hardening methods in children in early age often leads to backlash. Doctors believe that to carry out such procedures in childhood impractical. Since the body is not yet formed and cannot adequately respond to a sharp change in temperature.
Hardening of children
For children, it is advisable to use the following hardening methods:
- Water hardening.
- Air.
- Sunny.
As we indicated earlier, unconventional methods hardening is not recommended for the child's body, especially for preschoolers due to the immaturity of the neural and endocrine systems. What to do? Choose something else.
The best option for children and parents is hardening in the summer. The main rule at this time:
- Avoid hypothermia or excessive overheating.
- Along with water procedures, you can do massage, gymnastic exercises.
When hardening children preschool age several rules must be followed:
- Before starting the procedures, the child's body should be warm.
- Need to control redness of the body. If such a reaction does not occur, the body should be rubbed with a dry towel.
- The lower the temperature of the water, the shorter the contact should be with it.
In winter, the hardening of the baby should be approached carefully. If the child is ill, the procedures should be stopped for the duration of the illness.
General rules for hardening children
- It is possible to temper a child from an early age.
- The baby must be absolutely healthy.
- Adhere to the basic principle of hardening - the systematic implementation of procedures.
- Set an example for a child. Participate, for example, in water procedures.
- Gradually increase the duration and load. This is another important principle of hardening.
- Do not start procedures if the child is not in the mood. You need to set a good mood.
- Avoid overheating or hypothermia of the baby.
- Add exercises and massage to the procedures.
- Before the procedure, the hands and feet of the child should be warm.
- If you didn’t like the procedure and caused unexpected negative reactions in the child, then you will have to give up hardening for a while and show the baby to the doctor.
Air Hardening Rules
This type of hardening has been practiced since infancy. Some rules are very natural for each of us. They are the basis of hardening at home.
- The process starts with walking fresh air(at first, 10 minutes a day is enough). You need to walk every day, increasing the time.
- Ventilate the room daily.
- Be sure to ventilate the room before and after going to bed.
- Dress your child according to the weather.
- In good weather, the child can sleep outdoors. Older children in good weather should be outside as much as possible.
Water hardening of a child
The hardening of preschool children begins with a contrast pouring of the legs. You can also use the following procedures:
- Local contrast baths for hands and feet.
- Wipe with a damp cloth or washcloth. The best option to start hardening.
- Contrasting leg wraps. The main rule: you should not pour cold water on your feet without first warming them.
- Contrast shower with a small difference in water temperature.
- Swimming in the pool.
- Bathing in the sea/river.
It is worth remembering that children who have had pneumonia, pleurisy, who have diseases of the heart, kidneys, bathing and hardening are not recommended. A doctor's consultation is required.
General hardening rules
Let's highlight a few general hardening rules:
- If you decide to start hardening, you should first visit a therapist and choose an alternative method together.
- It is necessary to start the procedure being healthy.
- There should not be diseases in the acute or chronic stage at the time of employment.
- Observe one of the principles of hardening - regularity. There shouldn't be long breaks.
- Gradually increase the intensity and load.
- You need to monitor your health. Regularly measure temperature, pressure, pulse.
- Hardening will be more effective if combined with exercise.
- Recommend to adhere healthy eating, it will also increase the efficiency of the procedures.
- If you get sick or feel unwell, the hardening procedures must be temporarily stopped.
- If in the process of hardening there is no influx of strength, energy, but, on the contrary, there is a breakdown, depression, it is necessary not to delay the visit to the doctor and stop the procedure.
Hardening and health can be put on a par. By stimulating the body's defenses, you can forget about colds in the offseason.
Sun hardening.
Solar infrared rays have a pronounced thermal effect on the body. They contribute to the formation of additional heat in the body. As a result, the activity of the sweat glands increases and the evaporation of moisture from the surface of the skin increases: the subcutaneous vessels expand and skin hyperemia occurs, blood flow increases, and this improves the blood circulation of air baths in all tissues of the body. Infrared irradiation enhances the effect of UV radiation on the body. UV rays have a predominantly chemical effect. UV irradiation has a great biological effect: it promotes the formation of vitamin D in the body, which has a pronounced antirachitic effect; accelerates metabolic processes; under its influence, highly active products of protein metabolism are formed - biogenic stimulants. UV rays improve blood composition, have a bactericidal effect, thereby increasing the body's resistance to colds and infectious diseases; they have a tonic effect on almost all body functions.
The skin of different people has a different degree of sensitivity to solar radiation. This is due to the thickness of the stratum corneum, the degree of blood supply to the skin and its ability to pigmentation.
a) sunbathing.
Sunbathing for the purpose of hardening should be taken very carefully, otherwise, instead of benefit, they will bring harm (burns, heat and sunstroke). Sunbathing is best in the morning, when the air is especially clean and not too hot, and in the late afternoon, when the sun is setting. Best time for sunbathing: in the middle lane - 9-13 and 16-18 hours; in the south - 8-11 and 17-19 hours. The first sunbathing should be taken at an air temperature of at least 18 °. Their duration should not exceed 5 minutes (then add 3-5 minutes, gradually increasing to an hour). Air baths while sunbathing can not sleep! The head should be covered with something like a panama, and the eyes with dark glasses.
A powerful tool with a pronounced cooling effect, since its heat capacity and thermal conductivity are many times greater than air. At the same temperature, water seems colder to us than air. An indicator of the influence of water hardening procedures is the reaction of the skin. If at the beginning of the procedure it turns pale for a short time, and then turns red, then this indicates a positive effect, therefore, the physiological mechanisms of thermoregulation cope with cooling. If the reaction of the skin is weak, blanching and redness is absent - this means insufficient exposure. It is necessary to slightly lower the temperature of the water or increase the duration of the procedure. A sharp blanching of the skin, a feeling of severe cold, chills and trembling indicate hypothermia. In this case, it is necessary to reduce the cold load, increase the water temperature or reduce the procedure time.
There are three phases of the body's reaction to the action of low water temperature. The first is an increased spasm of the vessels of the skin, with deeper cooling - and subcutaneous fat. The second phase - due to adaptation to low water temperature, vasodilation occurs, the skin becomes red, blood pressure decreases, mast cells and leukocytes of the vascular depots of the skin and subcutaneous tissue are activated with the release of biologically active substances, including those with interferon-like properties. This phase is characterized by an improvement in well-being, an increase in activity. The third phase (unfavorable) - the adaptive capabilities of the body are exhausted, vasospasm occurs, the skin becomes bluish-pale, chills appear.
With the systematic use of water hardening, the first phase is reduced and the second comes faster. The most important thing is that the third phase does not come. Water procedures are divided into traditional and non-traditional, or intensive.
Water is a generally accepted means of hardening. The advantage of water over other means of hardening is that water procedures are easy to dose.
The principle of gradualness is easiest to maintain precisely when using water: you can take water at the temperature that is needed in this case, gradually reducing it.
There are several separate methods of hardening with water:
a) Rubbing - the initial stage of hardening with water. This is the most gentle of all water procedures. It can be used at all ages, from infancy. It is carried out with a towel, sponge or just a hand moistened with water. Rubbing is done sequentially: neck, chest, back, then they are wiped dry and rubbed with a towel until redness. After that, they wipe their feet and also rub them. The whole procedure is carried out within five minutes.
b) Pouring - the next stage of hardening. It is local and general. Local douche - dousing the legs. For the first douche, it is advisable to use water with a temperature of about + 30 ° C, further reducing it to + 15 ° C and below. After dousing, vigorous rubbing of the body with a towel is carried out. General dousing should begin with a higher temperature, mainly in summer, and in the autumn-winter period it should be organized so that the water covers the largest possible surface of the body, the back, then the chest and stomach, then the right and left sides. After finishing - rub with a towel. Time under the jet 20-40 seconds. A shower is more powerful than a simple douche. Shower water has a massaging effect, feels warmer than even shower water.
In the shower– even more effective water treatment. At the beginning of hardening, the water temperature should be about + 30-32 ° C and the duration should not be more than a minute. In the future, you can gradually reduce the temperature and increase the duration up to 2 minutes, including rubbing the body. With a good degree of hardening, you can take a contrast shower, alternating 2-3 times water 35-40°C with water 13-20°C for 3 minutes. Regular intake of these water procedures causes a feeling of freshness, vivacity, increased efficiency.
At bathing a complex effect on the body of air, water and sunlight. You can start swimming at a water temperature of 18-20 ° C and 14-15 ° C of air.
For hardening, it is recommended to use local water procedures along with general ones. The most common of these are d) washing the feet and gargling with cold water , since at the same time the most vulnerable parts of the body to cooling are hardened. Washing of the feet is carried out throughout the year before going to bed with water at a temperature of 26-28°C at first, and then lowering it to 12-15°C. After washing the feet, rub thoroughly until redness. Gargling is carried out every day in the morning and evening. Initially, water with a temperature of 23-25°C is used, gradually every week it decreases by 1-2C and is brought to 5-10°C.
IN last years attracting more and more attention e) winter swimming . Winter bathing and swimming affect almost all bodily functions. In walruses, the work of the lungs and heart is noticeably improved, gas exchange increases, and the thermoregulation system improves. Winter swimming lessons should be started only after a preliminary hardening training. Swimming in an ice-hole usually begins with a small warm-up, which includes gymnastic exercises and light running. Stay in the water lasts no more than 30-40 seconds. (for long-term practitioners - 90 seconds). Be sure to swim in a cap. After leaving the water, energetic movements are made, the body is wiped dry with a towel and self-massage is performed.
g) Hardening in the steam room .
People's experience, acquired over the centuries, shows that the bath is an excellent hygienic, healing and hardening agent. Under the influence of the bath procedure, the body's working capacity and its emotional tone increase, recovery processes are accelerated after intense and prolonged physical work. As a result of regular visits to the bath, the body's resistance to colds and infectious diseases increases. Staying in the steam section of the bath causes the expansion of blood vessels, increases blood circulation in all tissues of the body. Under the influence of high temperature, sweat is intensively released, which contributes to the removal of harmful metabolic products from the body.
The familiar word "hardening" carries a deep meaning. In the medical sense, hardening measures imply a set of specific procedures that actively stimulate natural immunity, increase resistance to all adverse environmental factors, improve thermoregulation and form vitality. In simple words, hardening means the natural training of the body's protective barrier with the help of natural factors. Hardening gives a person a complete physical and spiritual balance, increases all the potentials of the body.
Without implying it, we train our body by visiting a bathhouse, swimming in ponds or walking in the fresh air. But in order to call these seemingly ordinary actions true hardening, certain principles must be strictly observed:
- Before proceeding with the hardening itself, you need to make sure that the body is absolutely ready for this. This implies that there should be no acute diseases and exacerbated chronic diseases (in some of which hardening is prohibited or limited). It is necessary to sanitize all infectious foci in the body (teeth with caries, inflamed tonsils, etc.).
- In addition to physical readiness, there must be a clear and motivated psychological attitude, i.e. awareness that everything is done for the benefit of one's own health and strong confidence in the success of these events. And only a positive attitude!
- Hardening is a system that is implemented continuously, i.e. daily. It should be understood that in order to achieve excellent health indicators, one should work long and hard, although it is difficult to call it work - after all, all the techniques are so pleasant and do not require much effort on oneself. Good reasons for temporary interruption of hardening procedures are health problems.
- The strength and duration of hardening procedures increase day by day, but smoothly, without extreme actions. This is a very important rule. Many, having felt a significant surge of strength and vigor after 3-4 hardening procedures, are ready to dive into the hole the next day. You will have to pay for such “impulses” with your own health. Everything should increase moderately and gradually, and nothing else.
- When hardening, a reasonable sequence of procedures is also important. You should start the hardening training of the body with soft and gentle methods, and then move on to more serious effects. For example, start hardening with water with foot baths and smoothly move on to dousing, first local, then full-fledged general.
- No matter how well the hardening procedures are perceived, one should still take into account the individual reactions of the person and the state of health. Hardening at the first stages is a kind of shake-up of the body, and during this period various dormant sores can come out. Therefore, having decided to harden, in any case, you should consult a doctor.
- In addition to hardening, it is necessary to use physical exercises, active games and sports. All this strengthens the results achieved and helps to fully train your body.
Methods for hardening the body
The natural resistance of the body must be formed to all natural factors without exception.
The main systems and methods of hardening (as the impact on the body increases):
1. Air baths. The technique is applied in medicinal purposes and preventive measures. It is based on the effect of the natural air environment on open skin.
The system is phased, begins with hardening indoors at a temperature range of 15 - 16 ° C with a time interval of 3-5 minutes. After 4-5 days, you can start a ten-minute hardening effect on the skin in the open air, but at t not less than 20 - 22 ° C. In the future, the time spent outdoors gradually increases. This method is optimal for untrained people.
Hardening with cold air masses (from 4 to 13 ° C) can only be used by trained, well-hardened people. Start exposure from a couple of minutes and gradually bring this time to 10 minutes, but no more.
Air baths train the system of thermoregulation, normalize and optimize the functionality of the heart and blood vessels, the respiratory system, digestion and have a beneficial effect on the state of mental balance.
2. Sunbathing. The technique consists in a positive effect on the body of direct sunlight. More effective results are obtained by the simultaneous application of hardening by the sun and air.
The sun's rays are quite aggressive natural factor, which can cause burns and heat or sunstroke. Therefore, the following are very important: the time of the procedure (morning between 9-11 am or evening between 17-19 hours) and the duration of exposure (start from 3-4 minutes and increase to 1 hour, gradually adding a few minutes). The head and cornea of the eyes should be protected from direct sunlight. The last meal before tanning should be at least an hour and a half before sun exposure. When tanning, the sun should “look” at your feet, you should not stand or sit, it is better to lie down.
Solar infrared light has an active thermal effect. Sweating and evaporation from the skin of released moisture increase, subcutaneous vessels expand, and general blood flow increases. The body actively produces vitamin D, which normalizes and activates metabolic processes and is involved in the formation of highly active products of protein metabolism. As a result of this, the blood composition improves, and the overall resistance to diseases of any etiology increases.
3. Hardening with water. The most common among the inhabitants and loved by many techniques. It is best to start water hardening in the morning, after charging. The water temperature starts at 37°C natural for the skin, then gradually decreases by 1-2 degrees every day. Each water method has its own temperature limit, which we will discuss below.
Under the influence of water, the vessels initially narrow, the skin turns pale, and blood flows to the internal organs. Then the functioning of the nervous and cardiovascular systems is activated, the general metabolism is accelerated, which leads to the reverse flow of blood from the internal organs to the skin. Those. water comprehensively trains the entire body, tones and strengthens blood vessels.
There are several directions of the water hardening system that can be combined.
a) Local water procedures - the hardening effect of water on the feet and throat.
Foot washing can be done daily. The procedure is carried out before bedtime. To begin with, the water used should have t 26 - 28 ° C, then it decreases to 12 - 15 ° C, within a few weeks. After the procedure, the feet are thoroughly rubbed until visible redness.
Gargling is a procedure that should begin the morning and end the evening. Initially, cool water should be 23 - 25 ° C, weekly (not daily!) The temperature is reduced by a degree and brought to 5 - 10 ° C.
b) Rubbing is a very mild water procedure that has no contraindications. Dip a sponge or towel in cool water and wipe the skin. The body is wiped from top to bottom, after the procedure, the skin is rubbed with a towel to redness. The duration of exposure is about 5 minutes.
c) Pouring is the next stage of the water hardening system. They start with water at about + 30 ° C, gradually reduce t to + 15 ° C and below. After the procedure, the skin surface is also rubbed with a towel to hyperemia.
d) Shower is a very effective water procedure. They start from t +30 - 32 ° C and last about a minute. Gradually reduce t to + 15 ° C and increase the procedure time to 2-3 minutes. If the body accepts the ongoing hardening with a shower, they switch to a temperature contrast, alternating water 35 - 40 ° C with water 13 - 20 ° C 2-3 times for three minutes.
e) Swimming in the warm season in a natural open reservoir, starting at 18 - 20 ° C water temperature and 14 - 15 ° C air temperature.
f) Swimming in an ice-hole is the most powerful method available only to the most hardened people. This powerful health-improving technique is referred to the ancient methods of prevention and treatment of many diseases. Indeed, earlier people were healthier both in body and soul, and swimming in the hole itself was not such a curiosity as it is now. On the contrary, this healing ritual was performed by many, from young to old.
The medical history of this method, like hardening, is relatively young, dating back to the late 1800s. Today, traditionally, every Orthodox person strives to experience these unique sensations on the great day of the Baptism of the Lord.
From a medical point of view, swimming in an ice hole is an acute stress with a short-term effect. There is a so-called "dance of the vessels" and the redistribution of blood. First, the vessels lying on the surface narrow and give their blood "to save" the internal organs. Then the internal organs give back this same blood, and the vessels again quickly expand. A huge amount of hormones is released into the blood: adrenaline and endorphins. There is a general stimulation of the body, all systems and organs begin to work more intensively and correctly. The protective function is activated, persistent insensitivity to the effects of pathogenic agents is developed. Emotionally, a person feels indescribably light and joyful. Many say that having experienced swimming in the hole, they began a different life! Bathing in an ice-hole relieves pain in the shoulders, back, joints, relieves insomnia, improves central and peripheral blood circulation and increases cold resistance.
The path to hardening in the hole is long. A person must overcome all of the above methods of hardening, then switch to dousing with ice water, and only then gets acquainted with the hole. You should not engage in this type of water exposure on your own and alone, control by professional "walruses" is required.
Naturally, this procedure requires a state of complete health and psychological readiness. Rules for immersion in an ice hole - gradual dipping with a minimum of time in the water (starts from a few seconds and gently increases to several minutes). It is very important to wipe yourself dry after dipping, dress warmly (but not hot) and move actively. A cup of herbal tea will further emphasize the beauty of this procedure!
In addition to the listed common methods, hardening includes walking barefoot, a bath, wiping with snow, sleeping in the open air, and others.
Walking barefoot is a hardening method available to every person. They start walking in the warm season and, with good tolerance, continue all year round. The sensations of walking in the snow are so contrasting that it is difficult to describe them, in a word - they cause children's delight in adults! It is important to maintain a balance of walking time: with a decrease in outdoor temperature, the duration of exposure is reduced. And only after getting used to the cold (1.5-2 weeks) slowly increase this time. It is better to walk in a certain place, for example, on the ground with grass.
A kind of barefoot walking, or rather, a more serious version of such hardening is barefooting. This technique means constantly walking barefoot, even in everyday life. Barefooting is common in Western countries, where walking barefoot is officially allowed by the authorities. We also use a softer version of barefooting - walking without shoes in nature.
The largest number of biologically active points is located on the feet. They are actively stimulated when walking barefoot and help to normalize the activity of many organs and body systems. The body becomes resistant to colds, immunity is strengthened.
Bath. The bath helps to achieve the correct reaction of the vascular bed to the effects of the external environment. The body quickly adapts to frequently changing environmental conditions, especially to high and low temperatures. The likelihood of colds is reduced, the heart and blood vessels are toned, and a stable psyche is formed.
But it should be understood that the bath gives a load and is of a training nature. The approach to bath hardening is the same as to other methods: a smooth increase in the time of exposure to heat on the body.
The first acquaintance with a steam room should be in a healthy state, outside physical activity and an hour or two after eating. It is recommended to take a bath in the evening hours, so that after pleasant procedures you can go to sleep. You should start with 1-2 minutes of being in the steam room, after which you need to take a warm shower and relax. Gradually, the time is increased to a three-four-minute visit to the steam room, and the t of the shower water is reduced to 20-25 ° C. The most optimal is a three-time visit to the steam room, but with a mandatory rest between visits. Trained people can take a contrast shower or swim in a cool and even cold pool. But even here there is a rule - the colder the water, the less time you can stay in it.
Wiping with snow. Only completely healthy people are allowed to perform this invigorating and useful procedure after a preliminary long hardening with cold water. Ideal weather: no wind and temperature around 0°C. Rubbing is carried out from the periphery (hands and feet) to the center. You should not wipe your head and ears, but your face is a must. It is enough to walk over the body 1-2 times, the duration of the procedure: 1-2 minutes.
The therapeutic effect of wiping with snow: the body's defenses are stimulated, especially in the fight against colds.
Sleeping in the open air refers to passive hardening techniques. The main rule is the absence of drafts. Daytime and nighttime sleep can be organized in the bedroom with open windows, on the balcony or loggia, on the veranda. Many are interested, is it possible to sleep on the street? If it is summer time, there is an equipped place, protected from wind and precipitation - then you can. But in the off-season and especially in winter, it is better not to do such extreme actions, because. in a dream, a person’s thermoregulation is imperfect, the body cools down very quickly. And sleeping in a padded jacket and felt boots is very uncomfortable, and there will be absolutely no benefit from such a dream.
Fresh, constantly circulating air is an excellent therapeutic and preventive factor in itself. All microbes and viruses floating in the air are neutralized, and the blood is saturated with oxygen. The result is a fresh and rested appearance after sleep, strong immunity and excellent health.
The positive effect of all the listed hardening procedures on the body has been proven for centuries. An invaluable mechanism for adapting the body to all environmental factors is launched, thanks to which resistance to various diseases is developed, a person becomes healthier, more durable and happier!
