Does a Cold Shower or Ice Bath Before Bed Help You Sleep?

Whether you’ve been inspired by the famous Wim Hof Method or you’re simply curious about how cooling down before bed might help you drift off faster, you’re not alone. Cold showers and ice baths are making waves for their potential to improve sleep, and turning down the temperature might just be the refreshing twist your bedtime routine needs.

Aside from being a hygienic way to end the day, a cold shower or ice bath could offer surprising benefits for your body and sleep quality. In this guide, we’ll explore the pros and cons of taking the plunge and how to gently introduce cold therapy into your evening wind-down.

Yes, a cold shower or bath before bed can help you drift off more easily and may even boost the quality of your sleep. However, how well it works can vary from person to person, depending on factors like your environment, the water temperature, and how long you stay in.

For many, the gentle drop in body temperature helps signal to the brain that it’s time to wind down, syncing with our natural circadian rhythms. For others, it might have the opposite effect, leaving them more alert or even too cold to sleep.

We’ve outlined the potential benefits and drawbacks to help you decide if a cold shower could be the refreshing addition your bedtime routine needs.

Let’s dive into the chilly details and see how these frosty habits might just be the bedtime boost you need.

A cold shower or bath before bed can quite literally help you chill out. As your body temperature naturally drops in the evening to prepare for sleep, a splash of cold water can support this process, helping you feel calm, relaxed, and ready to rest. Lowering your core temperature slightly sends a signal to your brain that it’s time to wind down, conserve energy, and ease into a restful sleep.

Learn more about the best temperature for sleep.

Research has shown that regular exposure to cold water can significantly boost your immune system, helping your body fend off illnesses and reduce the likelihood of getting sick. This, in turn, can lead to better sleep by lowering inflammation and promoting a deeper sleep. When your body can rest without disruptions, it creates the best conditions for it to repair and recharge as needed.

A cold shower can improve circulation by constricting blood vessels, helping your body conserve heat and directing blood more efficiently to your vital organs. When you step out and your body warms up, those blood vessels open again, sending a rush of oxygen-rich blood into your muscles and tissues. This process helps reduce inflammation and promotes a sense of relaxation, which is ideal for winding down and achieving a good night’s sleep.

Cooling your body down with an ice bath or cold shower aids the production of melatonin, the hormone responsible for making us feel sleepy. This temperature shift aligns with the body’s natural dip in temperature as we begin to drift off, giving you a head start in the process of achieving a good night’s sleep.

Short bursts of cold exposure, like a cold shower or bath, can activate your parasympathetic nervous system, triggering the body’s natural “rest and relax” state. This helps you ease into a calm state, preparing you for rest and increasing overall sleep quality.

Despite the initial shock of cold water, a cool bath or shower can actually leave you feeling more relaxed afterwards. The brief impact of the cold helps your body adapt to stress over time, leading to a more balanced response to cortisol and making you better equipped to handle whatever comes your way.

Whether you embrace the chill or opt for a lukewarm bath, the simple act of washing or bathing each evening helps establish a soothing bedtime routine. Over time, your body begins to associate these calming rituals with sleep, signalling it’s time to wind down and relax.

While cold baths and showers offer plenty of sleep benefits, if the conditions aren’t quite right, they can have the opposite effect and disrupt your rest.

The sudden jolt of cold water can shock the system, leaving you feeling more awake and alert. If your body isn’t quite ready to handle the surge in cortisol that follows, it may linger, making it harder to fall asleep and affecting the quality of your rest.

If your shower is set a little too cold, or you brave the chill of a winter shower when you’re already feeling cold, it might be tricky to warm up afterwards. Just like being too hot, feeling too cold can make it harder to fall asleep and may even wake you during the night, leaving you with a restless, disrupted sleep.

Discover more causes of feeling cold at night and what you can do to stop it.

To reap the benefits of a cold bath or shower, the water needs to be cooler than your body temperature (around 37°C, the average body temperature). Approximately 20°C is a good place to start, but everyone is different, so it’s worth experimenting to find the temperature that works best for you.

Whether a hot or cold shower helps you sleep better depends on your personal preferences and how your body responds to changes in temperature. For some, cold water can calm and cool the body, preparing it for sleep; for others, it’s too invigorating, leaving them feeling awake and refreshed. Both have their benefits, but there’s no definitive research proving one is better than the other. It’s all about finding what works best for you.

That being said, hot baths have many benefits when it comes to getting a sound slumber, including:

• Relaxing the muscles – Warm water can help to soothe sore or tense muscles, promoting relaxation.
• Helping relieve stress and anxiety – A hot shower can help calm the mind, release tension from the body, and prepare you for sleep.
• Promoting sleepiness – When you step out of a hot shower or bath, your body temperature drops rapidly, signalling that it’s time to sleep.

A soothing hot bath or shower can be a wonderful way to practice mindfulness while helping you unwind. If you’re not a fan of a cold bath, it’s the perfect addition to your bedtime routine.

While a cold shower or ice bath can help boost melatonin and promote better sleep, it may leave some feeling more alert than relaxed. By experimenting with timing, temperature, and technique, you’ll discover whether this invigorating addition to your bedtime routine is the key to deeper, more restful sleep. For some, a brisk plunge an hour or two before bed might unlock a peaceful slumber, while for others, a warm soak could be a gentler way to ease into sleepiness.