Go Hot! Go Cold!

Saw this article in today's Seattle Post-Intelligencer, and it's a bit of advice I like to pass on to my clients.  Hydrotherapy, specifically hot-cold contrast, is very good for your health:

LIVING WELL:  Turn Up the Heat -- It's Good For You by Bob Condor

If you don't have ready access to saunas or hot tubs, you can use your shower.  Most folks enjoy a nice hot shower, but if you finish the shower on a cold setting, for as long as your can stand (but no more than 2 minutes), you will stimulate that "pumping" action that the article above mentions. It can take some getting used to, and, to be frank, there are days when I just don't have it in my to douse myself with cold water.  But when I do, I feel energized and awakened.  I also know that I've giving my immune system the boost it needs to help keep it in tip-top shape.   Important note:  if you have a heart condition or a constitution that is weakened or depleted please don't try this without a physician's supervision!