Showering in cold water constricts and narrows the blood vessels around the heart, too. This means that “the heart has to work a little harder to keep blood flowing through the body”, says Kerry. Over time, this can “improve your circulation and overall health” – but you’ll have to make the icy showers a habit in order to reap this benefit.

There aren’t just physical benefits to taking cold showers. Emma points to studies (such as this one from the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine) that show “that cold showers trigger the release of mood-boosting neurotransmitters”. This will leave you feeling “energised, alert, and in a better mood” – something that Alice can attest to, having been taking cold showers every day for a month now.

But Alice also recommends not diving right in at the deep end when you’re first trying it out. She suggests “starting with 20 to 30 seconds at the end of your normal showers”, and then working your way up to doing the full thing.

These are the benefits of having a cold shower post-workout