How to do a cold plunge at home safely
How to do a cold plunge at home: fill a tub with cold water, ice it to 50 to 59°F, check it, and stay in one to two minutes. The eight steps and what you need.
What a first plunge needs
- Suoimk Floating ice bath thermometer with timerUnder $300See it on Amazon
- The Pod Company Ice Pod ProUnder $300See it on Amazon
The short answer
50–59°F, 1 to 2 minutes
To do a cold plunge at home, fill a tub with cold tap water, add ice until a thermometer reads 50 to 59°F, get in slowly up to your shoulders, and get out after one to two minutes. Your own bathtub works for the first one.
What a first plunge needs
- Suoimk Floating ice bath thermometer with timerUnder $300See it on Amazon
- The Pod Company Ice Pod ProUnder $300See it on Amazon
How to do a cold plunge at home, in eight steps
A cold plunge is a few minutes sitting in cold water. At home it needs three things: a tub, a way to make the water cold, and a thermometer.
- Check it is safe for you. Ask a doctor first if you have heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes or poor circulation, or if you are pregnant.
- Fill the tub with cold tap water. Measure it. A tap that runs in the 50s may need no ice.
- Add ice and stir. Aim for 50 to 59°F, and never below 40°F.
- Read the thermometer after stirring, since the water is colder next to the ice.
- Set a timer for one to two minutes where you can see it from the water.
- Get in slowly, up to your shoulders, and keep your head out. Your breathing will speed up. Let it settle.
- Get out at the timer, or sooner if you feel lightheaded or anything beyond cold.
- Dry off quickly and put on warm clothes.
The temperature, the time and the warm-up are Cleveland Clinic’s advice for beginners, from a sports medicine physician. The slow entry with your head out is our reading of the cold shock guidance below.
We are not medical professionals, and we have not tested any tub. The steps are the sources’ own.
Why you get in slowly
The first seconds are the risky part. The US National Weather Service says sudden immersion in cold water “can trigger involuntary gasping, rapid breathing or hyperventilating”, and that cold shock “can cause dramatic changes in breathing, heart rate and blood pressure”.
- 50–60°F Cold enough for full cold shock
- 2–3 minutes How long the gasping can last
- 40°F Don’t go colder than this
- 5 minutes The most to stay in
The first two figures are the National Weather Service’s. The last two are Cleveland Clinic’s.
Two things follow. The water does not have to be icy to be dangerous: the same page says cold shock “can be just as severe and dangerous” at 50 to 60°F as at 35°F. And the gasping phase can last longer than a beginner’s whole session, so the first plunges are mostly about breathing.
Cleveland Clinic adds that hyperventilation “can be dangerous if it leads to dizziness or fainting, especially while in the water”. That is the reason to keep your head out and to have someone within earshot the first few times.
Three ways to set up at home
| Setup | What it costs to start | Each session | Read |
|---|---|---|---|
| Your bathtub and ice | Nothing | About 21 lb of ice for 40 gallons, then drain it | Cold plunge in a bathtub |
| A soft tub and ice | $80 to $160 | About 51 lb of ice for 100 gallons | Cheap cold plunge tubs |
| A tub with a chiller | From about $730 | Nothing to add. It is cold when you get there | The best cold plunge tubs |
Start with the bathtub. It costs the ice, and it tells you whether you will keep doing this before you buy anything. Mayo Clinic Health System says a cold plunge “can be as simple as sitting in a bathtub filled with cold water and ice cubes”.
Move to a tub when the ice becomes the nuisance. How much you need for any tub is in how much ice an ice bath needs.
What to expect the first time
The first minutes are the hardest. You will gasp, and your breathing will run fast. That is the cold shock response the National Weather Service describes.
A minute is a full first session. Mayo Clinic Health System’s starting point is 30 seconds to a minute, and Cleveland Clinic’s is a minute or two. More on the clock is in how long to cold plunge.
Afterwards, Cleveland Clinic’s instruction is to “dry off quickly and put on warm clothes”.
How often, and when
Once or twice a week to begin with, by Cleveland Clinic. If you lift weights, keep the plunge more than four hours away from a session, or use a rest day. The reasons are in when to cold plunge.
What you need
- A thermometer. The one item you should not skip. Cleveland Clinic says to use one “to make sure you’re in a safe zone”.
- A timer you can see.
- A towel and warm clothes within reach.
- A tub. Yours, until you know you want another. Our picks are in the best cold plunge tubs.
Common questions
Can I cold plunge in a cold shower instead?
A shower is only as cold as your tap and covers part of you at a time, so it is not the same thing. Cleveland Clinic counts a tub of cold tap water as a cold plunge.
Should I put my head under?
Not while you are learning. The gasping in the first minutes is the reason to keep your airway clear of the water.
Do I need ice to cold plunge at home?
Only if your tap runs warmer than you want. Cleveland Clinic says cold tap water alone “can be just low enough” for some of the goals of a cold plunge.
What should I do right after a cold plunge?
Dry off quickly and put on warm clothes. Cleveland Clinic says you may also want to try a sauna afterwards.