(OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING)
What we thought we’d do Chris, is just talk you through the plan,
so you’ve got a rough idea as to what you’re getting into.
So, the main risk is really that the longer you spend in the water,
the risk goes up exponentially. If you push yourself beyond the point
at which you should be coming out, there is a real risk you could die.
Yup.
CHRIS: As you can tell,
the safety team have one or two concerns about what I’m about to do.
So do I.
ROSS: Right, this is where we switch it on now, okay?
CHRIS: Somehow, I’ve been talked into an open water swim...
Good.
CHRIS: ...in the Arctic.
ROSS: Impose your will on the sea.
Two minutes! Two minutes!
CHRIS: And if there’s one thing I really, really hate...
it’s the cold.
Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this? Why am I doing this? (CHUCKLES)
(SQUEALS)
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
(CHRIS CHEERS)
-Special change of scenery. -LIAM: Epic surroundings.
I'll say, there's no mangoes falling off the trees here!
Yeah. (CHUCKLES)
As part of my mission to live longer, I’ve traded the warmth of Australia
for the frozen north.
And along for the ride, I’ve got these jokers.
My younger brother Liam, and my older brother Luke.
When I invited them to hang out at the beach,
not quite sure this is what they imagined.
Feather that clutch, mate.
Dude, I can’t feel the floor. These boots are a bit thick.
We’ve let the worst driver of all drive us.
-Why is Chris driving, mate? -CHRIS: Are you kidding?
I’m the best driver ever, dude.
(LAUGHS)
CHRIS: We’re here with a man who says extreme temperatures are actually
gonna be good for me. Sports scientist, Ross Edgley.
I mean, it doesn’t get much better than this really, does it?
I mean, as a training ground, as a sports lab...
I'm in my element.
(LAUGHS) I don't know how comfortable I am with that!
(LAUGHS)
Ross Edgley is one of the fittest humans on the planet.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: The kind of guy who takes everything to the limit.
(LAUGHS)
CHRIS: He's the only person in the world to swim all the way around Great Britain.
And he did it in 157 days straight.
(CROWD CHEERING)
CHRIS: But then he takes it even further...
(CHUCKLES) ...you know, with, like, swimming in ice-cold water.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
I believe we humans only really thrive in the face of adversity.
You find out about your physiology, you find out about your mentality...
and there are now theories that subjecting your body to extreme temperatures
could even help you live longer.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: And that is why I signed up for this Arctic adventure.
Ross might love the cold, but I'm more like Goldilocks.
Not too hot, not too cold, I'm happiest right in the middle.
And you’d think that staying in a comfortable temperature
is also the best way to keep healthy for the long haul.
But new science says embracing extreme cold, and extreme heat...
could force your body to upgrade its defenses...
and power up its microscopic repair systems...
which could cut the risks of disease, and maybe add years to your life.
So, it’s time for some serious shock therapy.
(MYSTICAL MUSIC PLAYING)
ROSS: After three days of training, Chris will attempt a cold-water swim
that's going to test his body to the absolute limit.
Two hundred and fifty yards across a bone-chilling Arctic Fjord,
wearing nothing but swimming trunks and a smile.
If he can endure that, then maybe he could fall in love with the cold...
and make it part of his life.
(MYSTICAL MUSIC CONTINUES)
(SEAGULLS SQUAWKING)
ROSS: So, how’s your Australian physiology coping with this?
It's in complete shock right now. My ears are about to snap off.
They’re like little icicles and I’m a little concerned.
(FOREBODING MUSIC PLAYING)
ROSS: This is the plunge.
Yeah.
And I want you to basically get down to your trunks, get in,
and I just want you to experience the cold at its rawest form.
-CHRIS: Yeah. -Think of it almost like a baptism.
That’s what we’re doing. Because you need to understand
what's going on inside the body. So...
Oh, it knows it's gonna freeze in a second, yeah.
-Yes. Yeah. This is it. -CHRIS: Yeah. (LAUGHS)
This is it. No, no, no. But it's gonna be a shock to the body.
I’m not gonna lie.
-CHRIS: Yeah. -I’m gonna be so honest with you.
ROSS: To prepare for the swim,
the first step is subjecting Chris to full immersion.
The problem is that cold water triggers some really powerful survival mechanisms.
But if you’re training for an ice swim, they actually work against you.
I need Chris to understand what those reactions feel like,
and then start to tame them.
One of the first things that we're gonna experience
is this gasp reflex.
-The body's basically just going... -(GASPS)
Is exactly it. You wanna gasp, perfectly normal. That is...
-It’s just self-preservation. -Mm-hmm. Perfectly normal.
-Yeah. Once we start the timer... -CHRIS: Yeah. Yeah.
...once we’re in, make no mistake,
we basically started the timer on hypothermia,
and to put it bluntly, consciousness and dying.
And saying, "goodbye, life." Yeah. All right.
Oh, yeah. (GROANS) Here we go!
ROSS: Before we let Chris loose in open water,
I want to see if he can get through the initial shock
and tough it out for at least a couple of minutes here in the harbor.
Do I reckon this warm-blooded Aussie can do it? I don't know.
Oh, yes, this is a great idea!
-Here we go. -(LAUGHS) Follow my lead.
(BREATHES DEEPLY)
CHRIS: All right.
(CHRIS BREATHES DEEPLY)
-ROSS: That's it. Breathe, breathe. -Oh, boy.
-ROSS: Good. Good. Really good. -Whoo!
-ROSS: Breathe. -Wow!
ROSS: Okay, there you go, okay. There you go. So that's that gasp reflex.
You know, that hyperventilation. Control it. Control it.
(EXHALES) Don’t let it bully me.
ROSS: Self-preservation, your body is going, "get out!"
-But override that. -(EXHALES)
-How we feeling? -Oh, freezing.
-Okay. (CHUCKLES) -Yeah.
-Feels like I’m in the fire. -(LAUGHS)
-Okay, breathe! We are at one minute. -(EXHALES, BLOWS RASPBERRY)
-ROSS: So, now, what's happening? -(EXHALES)
ROSS: Now we’ve got over that gasp reflex.
No, no, we haven’t.
-It's still going? (LAUGHS) -CHRIS: I haven’t got over anything!
ROSS: Someone forgot to put the hot tap on.
-Oh, God! Oh, God! -CHRIS: As if things weren’t bad enough,
Luke and Liam, and our buddy, Mick, have got front row seats.
Summer swim?
-(CHRIS YELLING) -ROSS: Yes, boys!
Oh, God!
CHRIS: Now, why did I invite them, again?
(LAUGHS) How is it?
Oh, it’s amazing, it’s so warm in here.
What’s the level of shrinkage?
(LAUGHS)
How would you feel if I said, "Let’s put our face under?"
Okay, let's go. (EXHALES)
-LIAM: Oh, boy. -LUKE: Oh, wow!
-Terrible idea. -(CHRIS YOWLS)
-LUKE: Yeah. I'm impressed. -(YOWLS)
All right, I think we’ve proved our point, right? Can we get out?
ROSS: Right. Hang on, give me 30 more seconds.
Oh, what?
Can you feel that blood going away from your extremities?
CHRIS: Yeah, I can feel all sorts of pain.
-So, quick test. -Yeah.
-Quick dexterity test for me. -(GROANS) Yeah.
-How's that? -They feel like...
-How quickly can you move your hands? -...pins and needles!
(GRUNTS, BREATHES HEAVILY)
-ROSS: (LAUGHS) Shit. -(BREATHES HEAVILY, GROANS)
-We are at... -CHRIS: Awesome.
-...two minutes, 50. -(CHRIS EXHALES)
-Talk to me. How are we feeling? -(EXHALES HEAVILY) I feel like I’m dying.
-Okay... -(LIAM SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY)
You actually probably are.
(LAUGHS)
-Let’s just get out! -ROSS: No, no, no, no,
-give me 30 more seconds. -(ALL LAUGHING)
-LUKE: No, don't get out. -(GROANS) Stop saying that!
-ROSS: Five minutes. -Just another 30.
We're done, we're done, you did good, man. You're good.
CHRIS: I don't think I can get out. (GRUNTS)
-Nice, big man, nice. -CHRIS: I can't...
-Let's go. -LUKE: You got it, Chris.
(GROANS) My hands, I can’t feel them.
Go on, straight into push-ups, Chris!
-(GROANS) -ROSS: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Oh, my God, is there a towel somewhere?
-ROSS: I got it, I got it. Here you go. -(CHRIS GROANS)
-What’s that towel? -(ROSS) What are you... (LAUGHS)
The world’s smallest towel!
-It's okay, it's a warm wind. -LIAM: Oh, God. Wow.
LIAM: Fifty-year storm's coming in, guys, we've got to get to safety!
(UPBEAT PERCUSSIVE MUSIC PLAYING)
To safely recover from the shock, we have to bring Chris's core temperature
back to normal gradually.
Man. (EXHALES) My toes, mate.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
ROSS: Keep it going, keep it going.
Yeah, good. There you go.
-CHRIS: Whoo! -ROSS: All right, on three.
My fingers just don’t exist right now.
ROSS: They'll recover, don't worry about it.
That was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.
-(ROSS LAUGHS) -I'm fine. (SNIFFS) Yeah, by far.
-That was... -ROSS: That was terrific.
-...the most awful thing. -(ALL LAUGH)
You know when you, like, regret moments in your career?
(ALL LAUGH)
That was one, Ross.
(CHEERS)
-Wow! That’s something else, Ross. -(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(ROSS SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY)
CHRIS: Being that cold, it’s just so intense.
And I feel like I’m outside of my comfort zone
further than I've probably ever been.
-LIAM: Do you want me to hug you? -CHRIS: My arms are cold.
My arms are like freezing.
-Thank you. -LIAM: There you go.
(CHUCKLES SOFTLY) Finger in there. Is that boiling? Yeah?
-(ALL LAUGH) -No idea.
(IMITATES SIZZLING NOISE, SCREAMS)
ROSS: That was a struggle.
And out in open water, it's only gonna get harder.
To stand any chance of doing this swim, Chris has to start taming those reactions.
(SINISTER MUSIC PLAYING)
ROSS: And there are scientists who believe controlling the body’s response
to the cold could also have huge health benefits down the line.
(TENSE UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: As I get older, one quirk to look forward to is that my built-in
defense system could get trigger happy.
(ALARM BLARING)
CHRIS: Throughout the body's blood vessels,
an unwelcome surge of immune cells can cause collateral damage...
doing more harm than good.
The resulting breakdown in tissues and organs is called "inflammaging."
And it fuels two of the biggest killers in the modern world.
But there’s a theory that dialing down our reactions to the cold...
could also help to reset that rogue immune system,
and cut the risks of deadly disease in old age.
-(WAVES CRASHING) -(SEAGULLS SCREECHING)
CHRIS: So, I’ve gotta subject myself to regular blasts of icy pain,
and I might not even see the benefits for years?
Fantastic.
(FOREBODING MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: Fortunately, there is another upside
that can kick in much sooner.
After Johanna Nordblad smashed her leg in a cycling accident,
her fractures healed, but the pain never stopped.
JOHANNA: (IN FINNISH) It felt like fire in my bones.
I couldn't sleep.
My leg had been in agony for three years.
I was ready to try anything.
CHRIS: (IN ENGLISH) Conventional drugs didn’t cut through.
So, doctors prescribed a radical alternative.
A new treatment, based on the theory that cold water can scramble pain signals
before they reach the brain.
(BREATHES HEAVILY)
JOHANNA: (IN FINNISH) When I put my leg in the water
for the first time since the accident, it stopped hurting.
Tears welled in my eyes, and I cried.
(INHALES DEEPLY)
CHRIS: (IN ENGLISH) Johanna got her life back...
but she didn’t stop there.
(ATMOSPHERIC MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: She was already a free diver...
but taking on these frozen lakes...
has allowed her to not only to endure the cold,
but to embrace it.
(MYSTERIOUS SYNTH MUSIC PLAYING)
JOHANNA: (IN FINNISH) The treatment took away my fear of the cold.
If you keep calm, you can stay in much longer.
This has brought more than just pain relief.
By swimming in cold water, you get ill far less often.
I feel healthier and full of energy.
(UPLIFTING MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: (IN ENGLISH) The right dose of shock
could enhance your ability to fight off infection.
And you don’t have to be an ice-diver.
In one study, people who flipped to cold for the last 30 seconds
of their daily shower, ended up taking almost 30 percent fewer sick days.
That’s pretty impressive.
(TRANSCENDENTAL MUSIC PLAYING)
JOHANNA: (IN FINNISH) It's good to be outside your comfort zone.
Open your mind.
Embrace the feeling of the cold.
(EXHALES, GRUNTS)
(SOMBER MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: (IN ENGLISH) As more benefits come to light,
people are finding their own ways to harness extreme temperatures.
And as we take my training to the next level,
Ross has come up with the perfect way to lure me back into the water.
The one thing he knows I can’t resist.
CHRIS: Whoo!
It’s absolutely beautiful, but your brain’s going,
"What’s going on here? Why are we heading to the water,
"Why are we trudging through snow?" (GROANS)
-MICK: You’re gonna feel alive after this. -(CHRIS LAUGHS)
CHRIS: Back in Australia, I surf a lot, but going out in these conditions...
now, that's gnarly.
Luckily, I've got my good buddy here.
Three-time world champion surfer, Mick Fanning.
Who Ross has roped in to keep me on track.
MICK: Coming to a place like this...
it’s such a different experience than what we’re used to at home.
Yeah.
-It’s so easy at home, you know? -CHRIS: Yeah.
You have board shorts, it’s warm, you can park right at the beach.
When here, you gotta think about your warmth, you gotta think
about getting through the waves and...
With the elements just so raw and real,
you have to zero in in these conditions.
Otherwise, you’ll end up on the rocks over there,
-somewhere. -Yeah. (LAUGHS)
(FOREBODING MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: Let's get on with it, shall we? (GROANS)
I want Chris to experience prolonged exposure.
(CHRIS GRUNTS)
ROSS: But in these conditions, half an hour in his trunks could kill him.
So, this is the wetsuit test.
(CHRIS GROANS)
As he steadily cools down, he’s gonna experience a significant loss
in muscle strength, and his coordination is gonna go to pieces.
-(LUKE CHUCKLES) -ROSS: I’m keeping warm,
-with Liam and Luke. -What are they doing?
I wanna see if Chris can hold it all together and stay mobile.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
(GROANS)
MICK: Let's see how much harder it is to paddle, eh?
All right, here you go. Here goes Mick.
(CHRIS SCREAMS)
LIAM: Wow!
-Little boost on the end. Epic! -Whoo!
I started surfing when I was about ten, ten years old.
It's not a bad obsession to have.
(LOUD MUTED THUDDING)
But this is like being on another planet.
-A pretty brutal experience. -(HIGH-PITCHED RINGING)
You, go. You, go! Jump on.
(DARK MUSIC PLAYING)
ROSS: It's Chris.
LUKE: There you go! Oh, I can't believe it!
Oh! Yes!
-Oh, yes, mate! -(LIAM LAUGHS)
-That's an actual turn! (LAUGHS) -An actual good wave! Oh!
(UPLIFTING MUSIC PLAYING)
-Yeah! -That's huge!
I’m not easily impressed by Chris’s surfing...
-Right. Yeah. Yeah. -...but that was pretty impressive.
CHRIS: To begin with, you feel like you’re winning.
(GRUNTS)
-MICK: You all right? -CHRIS: It's just so hard to swim.
But eventually...
you start to get so cold.
They're so far out now.
LUKE: It’s so mental out there.
CHRIS: I can feel it sucking the strength out of my arms.
It’s harder to maneuver.
My balance is off...
and I'm feeling pretty vulnerable at this point.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
-LUKE: He’s taking a break. -LIAM: Oh, my God.
LUKE: Oof! Oh!
-LIAM: I think he's... -ROSS: He got poleaxed on that one.
CHRIS: Oh, my God.
It's absolutely freezing.
And at this point, I’ve had enough.
-LIAM: How was it? -CHRIS: It was so intense.
-It's like... It's kind of scary. -ROSS: Yeah.
CHRIS: The storm kicked back in and started hailing,
couldn’t even see the waves.
-The hail was hitting me in the eye. -ROSS: Yeah.
-It's a completely different, you know... -And I’ve noticed as well...
-...game, right? -...the wind chill. Did you feel
-that out there as well? -CHRIS: For sure.
Yeah. -MICK: Yeah.
-CHRIS: At the end, not catching waves... -ROSS: Yeah.
...I started to get a little colder.
And when you get cold, it just hurts, right?
Yeah. It was... Feels like knives in your fingers and your toes.
Generally speaking, you’d probably do everything that you can to avoid
-a surf like that, but... -Yeah.
...hats off to you, guys.
(SOMBER MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: It was pretty wild out there.
That kind of cold is completely ridiculous and alien to anything I've ever done.
So, the idea of now going and swimming without all of that gear and the wet suits
and so on...
has become a really...
intense, scary reality.
ROSS: I think Chris has earned a break from the cold.
And up here, there’s another way to boost longevity.
At the other end of the temperature scale.
CHRIS: Whoo!
Ross has hooked me up with longevity expert, Dr. Peter Attia.
All right.
It's intense.
But Peter's convinced that regular saunas can boost my long-term health.
DR. PETER: You know, now that we just got in here, Chris,
let's take your pulse.
All right.
DR. PETER: Yeah, you're about 64 beats per minute.
But we've got this temperature cranked up to about
-hundred and ninety-five degrees... -CHRIS: Yeah.
DR. PETER: ...Fahrenheit.
So, let's see where you are in a couple of minutes.
I guess I gotta get used to this heat. (CHUCKLES)
Yeah, we're uncomfortable right now because we're hot.
And in response to that, our body is trying to cool us off.
-CHRIS: Yeah. -And so, it's pumping harder
so that your heart can quickly get the blood to the outside of your body.
And just as exercise is known to help with cardiovascular disease,
I think sauna has a number of those benefits as well.
-Like a workout. Yeah. -Yeah, exactly.
Yeah, you're about 135 right now.
About twice what you were when we started.
-It also... -CHRIS: It goes back to how beneficial
-stress is, right? -Yeah. Yeah.
I mean, stressing our bodies in any way
is... It forces us to adapt and evolve and change.
Yeah. Well, we just... Our body wants to stay in a certain temperature range.
And right now, we're pushing ourselves way outside that comfort zone.
And in the process of adaptation, our body protects us by increasing
the production of these special molecules called heat shock proteins,
which are extremely effective in the fight against disease.
(PENSIVE MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: I like to think I look healthy on the outside.
But on the inside, deep in my cells...
heaps of molecular junk piling up from the wear and tear of age.
Hoarding all that trash could lead to serious problems when I'm older.
But the blistering heat of the sauna tells my body to send in a cleanup crew...
heat shock proteins.
And these tiny heroes get to work fixing up the junk
to give my cells the ultimate spring cleaning.
By upping my heart rate and releasing heat shock proteins,
getting this hot can work wonders.
The two places where sauna is having the most benefit
is in cardiovascular disease, where it is about a 50 percent reduction
in risk of death, and Alzheimer's disease, where it's about
-a 65, 66 percent reduction. -Wow.
DR. PETER: Yeah, this exceeds that of virtually any drug that we can imagine.
Incredible.
(TRANSCENDENTAL MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: That's from simply taking frequent saunas,
fired up to around 170 degrees Fahrenheit.
Now, that's the kind of prescription I can handle.
But right now...
I've got some unfinished business with the cold.
(FOREBODING MUSIC PLAYING)
Yes, boys, how we feeling?
-Wow, mate. -That's what I'm saying, mate.
-Yeah, Rossy! -(ROSS LAUGHS)
CHRIS: With the swim looming, there’s no let-up in the training.
-CHRIS: Are you plotting something? -ROSS: I just think... (LAUGHS)
I’m gonna be completely honest, now we’re out here.
I just... I don’t think there’s such a thing as too much acclimatization.
I just think we need to get you as cold as possible, as often as possible.
Let’s go, let's go, let's go!
-All right. All right. -(ALL SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY)
(GROANS, YELLS)
CHRIS: All my brothers and my friends have done so far is laugh at me.
So, this is payback time.
-Let's do it! -(ALL LAUGH, SPEAK INDISTINCTLY)
(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: Ross says that each blast of the cold will help tame my reactions.
And here’s another kind of Arctic torture.
-We're going. -ROSS: Let's go.
CHRIS: We're going. (WHISTLES, GROANS)
My brothers and I, we love a bit of pointless competition.
(GROANS, LAUGHS)
So, we’re going all in.
-All right, let's go, fellas. -CHRIS: Let's do it.
Go, get him. Where's he going with it? (GRUNTS, GROANS)
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
CHRIS: I’ve got to keep using my muscles in the cold...
(YELLING INCOHERENTLY)
...and maintain that coordination.
Oh! (LAUGHS)
Or try to, anyway.
And according to Ross, repeating these doses...
should eventually break the body’s resistance to the cold.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(CHRIS GROANS)
-Oh, boy. (CHUCKLES) -How do we feel, boys?
-(EXHALES) I feel... -(GROANS)
-I feel actually... -I felt like I was gonna vomit.
-For me, it’s like absolute agony. -CHRIS: Yeah. Yeah.
Does training for this actually make any difference?
Well, it's... I don't know if it's any less uncomfortable
or you're just more familiar with being uncomfortable,
and I feel like definitely having done it
-a few times, you're like, "Okay..." -Yeah.
-"...this is what it is." But... -LIAM: Yeah.
...I don't know that there's a massive change in my body
because it's still pretty uncomfortable, but...
-Yeah. -Still pretty incredible.
-Yeah. -CHRIS: It's... Thanks.
(LAUGHS)
Yeah, I think doing things that hurt, there's a benefit, right?
There's doing things that test you, doing things that...
-Yeah. -...are hard.
You know? Really pushing beyond the boundaries of what you think
-is possible. And that really is... -LIAM: Yeah. And also a mental thing
when you have to reeducate your mind, you have to change your mind to be like,
"No. I just need to find a way to get through it."
CHRIS: Yeah.
You know, keep moving and don't sort of let things fall apart.
Yeah. You wanna get every opportunity possible to live a longer,
-healthier, happier life. And... -LUKE: Yeah.
And also not just living longer, but living longer and strong.
Especially having kids, you wanna be able to play with the grandchildren
-and still be active and... -LUKE: Yeah.
...and run down in the snow, and jump in the ocean. You know?
-The emotional strength that comes... -Yeah, there's a real sense of achievement
-from doing that too. -CHRIS: Yeah.
Just the reward from actually run through the snow and diving into this...
-Yeah. -...you know, three degrees water...
-LIAM: I think it also... It's... Yeah. -...and running back again.
And I do think there's something to what Ross is saying about just...
We've just become far too comfortable in everything...
-Yeah. -...the temperature of our house,
-our clothing. We're not used to... -Yeah.
...any discomfort. And that initial handbrake is really
an emotional response of your body trying to preserve itself.
You know, whereas actually the body has a whole lot more in the tank...
-Yeah. Yeah. -...and you just gotta get past that.
I guess it’s easy to talk about embracing the cold
when you’re sitting in a hot tub.
(WIND HOWLING)
CHRIS: In reality, this swim is gonna take it to another level.
And if I’m honest, it’s a pretty daunting prospect.
(FOREBODING MUSIC PLAYING)
(SHUGENDO MONK CHANTING BUDDHIST SUTRA)
CHRIS: But for one community in Japan, the fact that the cold is daunting
is the whole point and leads to benefits that go beyond the physical.
MR. SHINBO: (IN JAPANESE) Entering the mountains
you can test your capacity for all kinds of suffering.
CHRIS: (IN ENGLISH) Becoming a Shugendo monk takes years of training.
For some, it's a fresh start.
Like Mr. Shinbo, who joined the order after the death of his wife.
(IN JAPANESE) I couldn’t see the point in life anymore.
I was in great distress.
Then I encountered the Shugendo.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
-(WATER LAPPING) -(MONK CHANTING)
CHRIS: (IN ENGLISH) Today, for the very first time,
Mr. Shinbo faces a truly terrifying test.
The waterfall.
Fresh from the snowfields upstream, this torrent of meltwater
is so cold it can cause heart failure.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: To pass, he needs to withstand this freezing cascade...
-until his master is satisfied. -(MEN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY)
(CHANTS BUDDHIST SUTRA)
MR. SHINBO: (IN JAPANESE) The effect of the cold water...
is like an electric shock.
(CHANTS BUDDHIST SUTRA)
MR. SHINBO: Putting yourself in a place where you feel fear.
That’s the test.
(TRANSCENDENTAL MUSIC PLAYING)
MR. SHINBO: There’s a story about baby eels.
If you add a predator like a catfish to the tank...
they say more of the young eels will survive.
(INAUDIBLE)
MR. SHINBO: Humans also excel in the face of adversity.
That’s what we’re trying to achieve.
(GRUNTS)
MR. SHINBO: I have experienced huge trauma,
but through these tests, I’ve come to terms with the past.
If I met my younger self, I’d say,
"It’s going to be all right."
Even if you endure suffering,
you’re going to be all right.
CHRIS: (IN ENGLISH) I know extreme temperatures could help
combat physical decline.
But during a long life, there are bound to be mental challenges too.
The Shugendo rituals show that confronting fear
and enduring the cold can build a stronger mindset.
To do it with such focus and such grace...
that’s truly inspiring.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
-What happens if you don’t make it? -You’re gonna be there to fish me out!
-(CHUCKLES) Although, I’m not getting in. -(CHRIS CHUCKLING)
LUKE: You know, it’s snowing right now, too?
It is snowing, yeah.
-Oh, good luck with that. -(LAUGHS) Thanks.
-LIAM: Exhilarating. -CHRIS: Yeah. Hmm.
(LUKE LAUGHING)
Yeah, I think I’ve lost my mind.
-LIAM: Yeah. (LAUGHS) -(CHUCKLES)
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: My challenge is to reach that buoy.
Two-hundred and fifty yards in water close to freezing.
But I know why I’m here.
Enduring extreme conditions could help me fight inflammaging,
manage pain and boost my immune system.
It can trigger repairs inside my cells, and even improve my mental wellbeing.
So, it’s time to step up,
and just get this thing done.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
-(INDISTINCT CHATTER) -ROSS: Here we are.
And I have got to admit, I'm nervous, because despite all the training,
this is now uncharted territory...
and so much could go wrong.
-CHRIS: Hey, boys. How are ya? -Hi, Andy, safety team doctor.
-CHRIS: I see, yeah. Hey, mate. -TOM: How you doing? I'm Tom.
-ANDY: Hi, Ross. How are you? -ROSS: Andy, how are we, mate, we good?
-You good? -TOM: Hey, mate, you all right?
Oh, yeah!
So, when you’re swimming, you’re gonna have a tow-float tied to you.
And so, any issues, you can obviously just grab that and hold that.
Do we have to have that or to... What?
Yeah, I mean... And especially on ice swimming as well.
It just means if something goes completely wrong and you go under,
-you’re still attached to it... -CHRIS: Yeah.
...so we can then find you, we grab the float.
Obviously, it’ll be a lot harder than anything you’ve done so far
and your muscles are gonna get very stiff, cold, and you'll become uncoordinated.
And when you get out of the water, we don’t want you to warm up too fast,
because your limbs are gonna have lots of cold blood in,
and if that all disappears back to your heart quickly,
that can cause significant problems.
So, we need to warm you up slowly and gradually.
ROSS: Please make no mistakes. It's a brutal swim.
You’re gonna be gasping for air into a headwind.
It’s literally coming straight down the barrel.
-CHRIS: Hmm. -So, you’re gonna be pushing off there,
gasp reflex, going,
"Oh, good God, what’s going on?" So, if all of a sudden if I say,
"Now, you’re coming out." Believe us. It'll be for your own safety.
If you overegg this, if you push yourself beyond the point
at which you should be coming out, there is a real risk you could die.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
Yep.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
-ROSS: From here. Yeah. -CHRIS: Here? Right.
ROSS: That's where we switch it on now, okay?
CHRIS: I mean, even having all these things in place
and having the people around.
I'm really nervous.
(EXHALES HEAVILY)
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: There is a whole lot of weather coming
and, you know, it’s quite choppy and windy.
(EXHALES DEEPLY)
CHRIS: It's absolutely freezing cold.
You know, the reality is really kicking in.
Two minutes. Two minutes!
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING)
ROSS: I just want controlled and calm aggression.
So, when you go in, you’re just so confident in every single one
of your strokes. Overcoming that gasp reflex.
There you go, there you go. (CHUCKLES) There you go, there you go, there you go.
Let’s go. Come on!
-LIMA: Yeah, mate. (CHEERS) -LUKE: Yes, Chris.
LIAM: The weather is getting worse by the second.
LUKE: Yeah.
Yeah. That wind just picked up another ten knots.
-Yes! It's getting wild. -It literally is.
CHRIS: My brothers are there. They’re cheering me on.
So, I kinda got to do it.
LUKE: Getting quite nervous now actually.
-Heart rate's definitely coming up. -Suspense... is terrifying.
CHRIS: But the biggest motivation of all...
is that this isn’t a battle against the cold...
it’s a chance to fight back against death and disease.
A battle against what time can do to me.
ROSS: Focus on your breathing and your physiology will follow!
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
(EXHALES HEAVILY)
Here he goes!
CHRIS: That instant shock is just so intense.
It’s far colder than anything that’s gone before.
All I’m thinking is, "Get this over with as quickly as possible."
And I just take off.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)
-LIAM: Almost there, mate! -Go on, Christo!
MICK: Come on, mate!
LIAM: He’s doing really well. He’s keeping a good pace.
-MICK: Yeah. -LUKE: Ah, he’s killing it.
CHRIS: But after ten strokes,
it burns, it hurts. My head's thumping.
My body is screaming, "This is crazy. What are you doing?"
Good, Chris. Let's go! Let's go! Breathe!
Come on! One arm after the other. Just focus on that.
One arm after the other.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: And then the worst ice cream headache starts kicking in,
and I’m starting to really feel the cold.
-MICK: He’s slowing down. -LIAM: Oh, no!
LUKE: Oh, come on, keep going.
CHRIS: Then all of a sudden, my arms and legs feel like lead balloons.
I’m completely off in my balance. And I just feel paralyzed.
ROSS: Chris, come on! Stay with me. Focus!
There's sort of two voices that were very intense and loud.
One was just saying to me, "You’re gonna die."
-Let’s go, mate! -Come on.
CHRIS: But the other voice is saying...
-"No way!" -ROSS: Come on, Chris. Go!
And all of a sudden, you discover different parts of yourself.
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING)
CHRIS: So, I block everything else out and I'm telling myself...
"Just get out of here."
(TRANSCENDENTAL MUSIC PLAYING)
Nice, nice! Let's go, big man. Let's go!
-Go! Go! Head down! -Yeah, mate! Head down!
-LUKE: Oh, that's the spirit! -(ALL CHEER)
ROSS: Mind over matter. Mind over matter. Turn it into a fight.
(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING)
Last ten. Last ten! Finish this. Finish!
-ROSS: Yes! Yes! -(ALL CHEERING)
-ROSS: Yes, big guy! -(ALL CHEER)
(LIAM WHISTLES)
Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! You are an animal.
-LUKE: Yes, Christo! -Yeah, boy!
-(CHRIS GROANING, PANTING) -Yeah, yeah. Up you come, mate. Well done.
-(CHRIS GRUNTS) -(ROSS CHUCKLES)
Get here, get here, get here, get here, get here, get here, get here, get here.
(EXHALES HEAVILY)
ROSS: Wrap it round so we can-- Turn around, turn around.
-Oh, I'm so dizzy. -ROSS: Get in, get in.
(EXHALES DEEPLY)
ROSS: Yeah, we got gloves? Have we got some gloves?
Get down, get down. Come on. Sit there, sit there.
-(GROANS) -ROSS: Sit there, sit there, sit there,
sit there, sit there, sit there.
CHRIS: I’ve never felt like that before, physically and emotionally so challenging
in such a short, concentrated period of time.
(SOFT MUSIC PLAYING)
-(EXHALES, GROANS) -ROSS: Yes! Yes!
And it’s an experience that will stay with me forever.
You did absolutely everything that I told you to do.
You did it, and then some.
-(EXHALES, GROANS) -(CHUCKLES)
CHRIS: And it did make me think how comfortable
we’ve all become, in this day and age,
and that we’re far more capable of doing things
that we think are impossible.
LIAM: Chris, the cameras weren’t rolling. We need one more take, mate.
-(ROSS LAUGHS) -I am never doing that again!
-(ALL LAUGH) -LUKE: We forgot to load the film.
(ALL CHEERING)
CHRIS: You know, we have an opportunity to live longer, better.
ROSS: Group hug, group hug!
-Yeah! -ROSS: You made it!
(ALL CHEER)
CHRIS: Challenging my body with extreme temperatures...
could help me get there.
-They’re gonna defrost me now. -LUKE: Yeah.
-Yeah. -LIAM: Yeah.
CHRIS: I know my body can cope with it,
and I am confident it's working its magic deep within my cells.
ROSS: We'll see you in the Caribbean.
-I’m wintered. I’m wintered. I'm adapted. -LIAM: Fully wintered.
-You're fully wintered. Yes! -(CHUCKLES)
-MICK: What a time. -LIAM: Good job, mate.
-LUKE: What a time to be alive. -LIAM: Yeah, boy.
And the cold never bothered me anyway.
(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING)
MALE VOICE: Oh, my God. There you go.
(GRUNTS)
(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING)
(GROANS, GRUNTS)
(CHUCKLING)
(UPBEAT MUSIC CONCLUDES)