The act of “snow rolling” (i.e. rolling in the snow with little or no clothing after a hot tub or sauna and then returning to the original heat source) has a long, rich history. The practice is perhaps oldest and most popular in Finland, a culture that spends a great deal of time in household saunas. According to Finnish health practitioners, snow rolling can cause an extreme release of endorphins in the body, invigorate the system, and increase overall circulation.

Always up for a little adventure, we thought we’d give this crazy Finnish tradition a try. Last night, we cranked up the heat on our cabin’s hot tub to max and – one at a time – subjected ourselves to the burning needle-like sensation of throwing our hot and steamy naked flesh into a pile of frigid (-14C) snow. (That part wasn’t so bad actually.) What was hard was the mad dash from the snow to the hot tub inside, which was nearly 75 feet away. The entire time your flesh is burning senselessly and all you can think is “why? why? why? why? stupid. stupid. stupid. stupid.”

But once you’re back in the tub, after the initial shock wears off, your heart rate returns to normal and you begin to feel a surge of energy from within – the ‘get-up and go’ kind of energy. It’s a total rush. Something to experience for sure.