Kym Burls - Breathwork Practitioner

Not everything needs to become a slap before it deserves our attention.

The earlier we notice what’s being said, the more opportunities we have to respond.

I couldn’t care less that you sat in 2°C water.

Or that you stayed in for six minutes.

Or that you started shivering after the first minute and forced yourself to stay for another five.

That’s performative cold exposure.

It’s easy to measure.
It’s easy to compare.
It’s easy to post online.

What I care about is something completely different.

Can you notice yourself tightening before every muscle braces?
Can you notice your breathing changing before you’re gasping for air?
Can you notice the story in your head before it starts making decisions for you?

That’s what you’re really practising.

Because those are the same skills you’ll draw on in an argument with your partner.
During a stressful meeting.
When you can’t sleep.
When life doesn’t go to plan.

Cold exposure isn’t valuable because it teaches you to stay in cold water.

It’s valuable because it teaches you how you relate to yourself when things become uncomfortable.

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What are you really practising every time you step into cold water?

Folks that think cold exposure is about how mentally tough they are…

Misunderstand what the cold is actually showing them.

I’ve watched different people get into exactly the same water and have completely different experiences.

Some calm quickly.

Others spend the entire plunge fighting the cold.

The difference isn’t their physical capacity.

It’s how they relate to the experience in front of them.

When people ask me what the cold reveals my answer is always the same:

> It doesn’t create the relationship you have with yourself.
> It just makes it harder to ignore.

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What has cold exposure taught you about yourself?

If someone asked me what I pay attention to during cold exposure, it wouldn’t be how long they stayed in or how cold the water was.

I’d want to know how quickly they settled, how they felt afterwards, and whether they were noticing any patterns over time.

Those patterns might relate to sleep, stress, training load, the menstrual cycle or any number of other factors.

That’s why I’m cautious about blanket recommendations.

Research gives us useful context.

Paying attention to our own experience helps us decide how to apply it.

I think that’s one of the most valuable things cold exposure teaches us.

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When you reflect on your own cold exposure practice, what patterns have you started to notice?

Should women change their cold exposure practice throughout the month?

My answer is...

Maybe.

The menstrual cycle clearly influences women’s physiology.

What’s much less clear is how consistently those physiological changes translate into real-world cold exposure experiences.

That’s why I’m cautious about blanket recommendations.

Some women notice clear differences throughout the month.
Others notice very little.

Neither experience is more “correct” than the other.

Research can help us understand what’s happening physiologically.

Paying attention to your own experience helps you decide whether those changes are meaningful for you.

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If you’ve used cold exposure across different phases of your cycle, have you noticed any differences?

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Note: I’m aware there’s an obvious limitation here. I’m not a woman. My perspective comes from the research, conversations with female clients, and years of teaching cold exposure—not from lived experience. That’s one of the reasons I’m cautious about speaking in absolutes on this topic.

Women and men don’t respond to cold in exactly the same way.

That’s been established for quite some time (albeit seriously under researched).
What gets misunderstood is what those physiological differences actually mean in practice.

Understanding them shouldn’t create fear or more rules. It should help you make more informed decisions about your own cold exposure practice.

Research gives us averages.
Your body gives you feedback.

The two work best together.

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Which of these surprised you most? Or is there another question about women and cold exposure you’d like me to explore?

Should women cold plunge?

It’s one of the most common questions I’ve been asked over the past 18 months, and I think it’s been fuelled by an unhelpful shift in the conversation.

Somewhere along the way, “women respond differently to cold” became “women shouldn’t use cold exposure.”

They’re not the same thing.

The research is clear that women and men don’t respond identically to cold. Hormones, thermoregulation, body composition and the menstrual cycle all play a role.

What the research doesn’t do is automatically tell us that women should avoid cold exposure altogether.

Research helps us understand physiology.
Practice helps us understand people.

I think we need both if we’re going to make sensible recommendations.

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What’s the most confusing advice you’ve heard about women and cold exposure

I still use under-breathing and breath hold exercises with clients.

What’s changed is how I think about why they work.

A few years ago I would have confidently said we were increasing our biochemical CO2 tolerance. Today, I’m less certain that’s the most accurate story.

Instead, it may be that one of the biggest changes isn’t in our blood chemistry, but in how the brain learns to interpret sensations like air hunger.

Same exercises.
Different explanation.
Better outcomes.

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Big shout out to Martin McPhilimey | Breath & Sleep Scientist | MSc, MRes and School of Breath Science | Practitioner Training for his tireless work in this area.