October
17Saturday · 2026Only 1 place leftBook at Dankjewellness →
Ice & Breath · Leiden
Meet
the edge.
Not to conquer the cold. To learn how to breathe when your body asks you to run.
Upcoming dates below10:00–12:00Dankjewellness, Leiden
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Upcoming sessions
Choose your
Saturday.
Every session runs from 10:00–12:00 at Dankjewellness in Leiden.
November
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- 01 · GatherArrive
- 02 · BreatheBuild
- 03 · HeatSoften
- 04 · ColdChoose
- 05 · ReturnLand
The ritual
Two hours.
Five thresholds.
One journey.
Ice & Breath is built as one continuous arc. We do not drop you into cold and ask you to endure it. First you understand the method. Then breath and music create movement. Heat teaches you to soften under intensity. Cold makes the response unmistakable.
Throughout the session, the instruction is an invitation. Your own pace remains the most important one.
What to expect
From arrival
to return.
Gather
Arrive
We meet around the fire—or inside the tent when the weather turns. You hear what the session holds, learn the breathing method and share who you are, why you came and what you want to bring into the day.
Breathe
Build
Five guided rounds of roughly twelve minutes. The music and breathing rise together, followed by an exhale retention and time to integrate what you have just experienced.
Heat
Soften
After changing, we enter a fifteen-minute musical sauna aufguss. Nothing to achieve here: breathe in through the nose, out through the mouth and let the exhale grow longer.
Cold
Choose
One by one, with personal guidance, you enter the ice bath for thirty seconds to a maximum of two minutes. The time is a ceiling, never a target. A milder plunge is a valid alternative when appropriate.
Return
Land
After the cold, we use a horse stance to warm the body gradually. Then the group returns to the circle, shares what happened and continues the day in its own time.
Try the rhythm
Let the exhale
make more space.
This 4-in / 6-out demonstration uses the same connected pattern as the live session, only at a slower pace. “Connected” means the inhale flows directly into the exhale, and the exhale into the next inhale—without a pause at the top or bottom.
Guided by RommertA 4–6 breathing demonstration
0:000:30
Read the breathing cue
A gentle 30-second rhythm: inhale through the nose for four counts, then exhale through the mouth for six. Keep the breath comfortable; normal breathing is always an option.
What your body is doing
First breath.
Then cold.
01 · Breath
What happens while you breathe
Continuous rhythm
The breath keeps moving: inhale becomes exhale, exhale becomes inhale. Removing both pauses is what makes the pattern connected; the 4-in / 6-out audio teaches that same connection at a calm pace.
Changing ventilation
As the live rounds become deeper or faster, ventilation can rise and carbon dioxide can fall. Tingling, light-headedness or other strong sensations can occur, which is why the practice is guided and you can slow down or stop.
Integration
Exhale retentions and quiet integration separate the active rounds. The purpose is not to chase intensity, but to return to normal breathing and notice what is present before the next part begins.
02 · Cold
What happens when you enter the ice bath
Cold shock
Sudden cooling of the skin can trigger an involuntary gasp and faster breathing, while heart rate and blood pressure may rise. That first wave is why you enter step by step, with personal guidance.
Staying responsive
There is no breath retention in the water. You keep breathing, stay in contact with the guidance and leave when the exposure is no longer appropriate. Thirty seconds is enough; two minutes is a ceiling, never a target.
Possible habituation
Research suggests that parts of the cold-shock response can become less pronounced after repeated immersions for some people. Responses vary, and this is not a promise of better health, immunity or emotional regulation.
Popular voices such as Andrew Huberman and Joe Rogan have helped bring deliberate heat and cold into public conversation. Our safety and physiology copy follows research and professional advice—not celebrity endorsement.
You never enter alone
The cold is
not a contest.
The first wave can feel loud. I stay beside you, bring your attention back to the breath and decide with you when enough is enough.
“In my experience, after the first wave of sensation settles, staying longer can easily shift from practising presence toward proving something.”— Rommert
The sound of the journey
Music is not
the background.
It is the route.
A spoken opening lets the body arrive. Then rhythm and breath rise together, reach an arc and make space for integration. This is one journey prepared for Ice & Breath.
Open the playlist on Spotify ↗
Why here
The polder
changes the pace.
Dankjewellness is not simply the address. Fire, open air, a dedicated sauna and controlled cold make the transitions part of the experience. Small scale keeps the guidance personal; nature gives the nervous system fewer things to perform for.
Once or often?
Come once for
the experience.
Return for the practice.
The first session introduces you to your response. Coming back gives you another opportunity to notice it sooner and practise how you meet it. That is the intention of the practice—not a guaranteed therapeutic outcome.
Choice before challenge
Your wellbeing
sets the limit.
Connected breathing, sauna and immersion are three independent choices. Taking part in one never means consenting to the others. You can slow down, rest or stop at any moment, and I may end an exposure early.
Intensive breathing and retentions happen supervised, seated or lying down—never in water or in the sauna. Two minutes in cold water is a ceiling, not a target. A milder plunge is an option only when cold immersion is otherwise appropriate for you.
If you are pregnant, have a relevant heart, blood-pressure, heart-rhythm, fainting, neurological, respiratory or psychiatric condition, are recovering from surgery or injury, are acutely unwell or are unsure about heat, cold or breath retention: contact me and consult the clinician who knows your history before booking.
Ice & Breath is for participants aged 18 and over. For step-free access, changing facilities or individual adjustments, please check with us before booking. This information is educational and does not replace individual medical advice.
Usually the first Saturday · 10:00–12:00
Your breath
goes with you.
Current dates, availability and any schedule exceptions are managed by Dankjewellness.