First Ice Bath

I decided that tonight was the night for my first ever ICE BATH.  I've heard about it.  I've read about it.  I've been told that I should do it but I have never (until now) done it.  Woooo Wee!  I didn't know what I was missing out on.  
I figured that with the pain I've been feeling in my IT band, the soreness from rolling and new stretching, the intense (and awesome) spin class tonight, and an hour of yoga, now would be a good night to test the waters of the ice bath.  
I thought that I'd try to visualize warm thoughts so that this whole ice bath thing might be a bit easier.  So I dressed in my swimsuit, put some shades on, grabbed my beach towel, and told myself I was someplace warm with the sun, sand, and warm water. Okay, really the suit just made it more fun for my girls who were watching and it allowed me to take pictures and a video to capture the moment. The glasses and towel just added a nice touch to the suit.  
Here's my "right before entering the water" picture.  My face says it all...this is scary stuff!  I mean I don't like cold water.  It takes me 15 minutes just to get in the darn pool at the gym.  

My 5 year old cinematographer captured the first attempts of an ICE Bath for this athlete.  What a milestone in my running life.  





I did finally adjust to the torture of sitting in ice.  I could barely walk when I got out because my feet were numb.  Now I'm sitting in my fleece pants with my robe and slippers while writing this blog, watching some mindless t.v and sipping this:

Have you ever had an ice bath?  


How often do you take ice baths?  


What do you do to pass the time when you take an ice bath ...you know, how do you make it more bearable?  

Amanda