The ice hack diet is a weight loss strategy based on the idea that cold exposure speeds metabolism and helps burn calories. However, research doesn’t necessarily suggest that it supports weight loss.

Your metabolism is the rate at which your body uses and stores energy at the cellular and systemic (whole-body) levels. Speeding up your metabolism is often associated with weight loss. After all, burning more energy than you consume is the mantra of most weight management programs.

Many gimmicks and fad diets, including the ice hack diet, claim to boost metabolism, but research suggests cold exposure, like that in certain variations of the ice hack diet, may work. However, how it translates into pounds lost remains unknown, and individual results may vary.

Keep reading to learn about the theory behind this fad diet and how it might work.

The ice hack diet is a weight loss framework that focuses on cooling your body temperature to burn more calories. It involves adding ice to your diet, drinking cold liquids like smoothies, and consuming only cold foods.

Some people who take the ice hack diet to the extreme may pair food choices with cold temperature exposure. This involves:

  • ice baths
  • cold showers
  • applying ice packs throughout the day

The goal of the ice hack diet is to make yourself cold, either from the inside out with food or from the outside with environmental exposure.

Being cold puts your body in what’s known as cold-induced thermogenesis, a physiological state in which your metabolism naturally increases to keep you warm.

Supporters of the ice hack diet believe this increase in metabolism, paired with standard caloric deficits, can increase weight loss.

What’s included in the ice hack diet recipe?

In its fad version, the ice hack diet primarily promotes the consumption of cold beverages, foods, and ice. Anything goes, as long as it is cold and within your caloric allowance. You’re allowed as much ice as you want between meals and snacks.

As a relatively new diet, no research proves that the ice hack diet works for weight loss.

Like any diet, the ice hack diet may lead to weight loss naturally if you’re on a caloric deficit (taking in less energy than you’re burning).

The ice hack diet also involves consuming ice, which means you’re increasing your daily water intake. Consuming more water, particularly before meals, can help maintain the feeling of fullness, which might make you less likely to experience cravings or overeat at mealtimes.

A small 2022 study found that cold foods are less likely to cause high insulin levels than hot foods. Over time, high insulin levels can lead to insulin resistance, a condition linked with obesity and type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance happens when the body is less able to use insulin to break down glucose.

According to another 2022 study, drinking water rather than hot beverages is associated with weight loss. However, the researchers note that hot drinks like coffee and tea are usually consumed with caloric sweeteners and calorie-containing milk or alternatives. More research is needed to single out the effects of temperature while controlling the other variables.

Ultimately, however, the temperature of your food is unlikely to be a primary factor in weight loss success. While your body increases metabolism to keep you warm, cold foods can’t make you cold enough long enough to affect body weight significantly.

Although cold foods alone might not be enough for metabolic benefits, environmental cold exposure in more advanced versions of the ice hack diet may be helpful.

Taking cold showers, sitting in ice baths, and standing outside in cold air may have some benefits.

In theory, regularly exposing your body to cold water or air could boost your metabolism enough to encourage weight loss over time. Unlike eating cold foods, environmental cold exposure affects the whole body, resulting in whole-body activation.

According to a 2022 review, acute, regular cold exposure increases energy burn by activating and promoting the production of brown adipose tissue in the body.

Brown adipose tissue, a darker type of body fat, plays a key role in thermogenesis, your body’s heat production without shivering when cold. This brown fat has a higher rate of nutrient consumption and energy burn, meaning it burns calories.

According to a 2020 analysis, brown adipose tissue levels are lower in people who are overweight or have obesity.

The benefits of cold exposure for weight loss may extend beyond metabolism. A 2022 review on cold water immersion notes that limited research suggests cold exposure may increase brown adipose tissue and reduce insulin resistance. The authors also note that cold water immersion may provide other health benefits, including increased tolerance to stress and lowered cardiovascular disease risk.

However, most studies included in the review were small and included only healthy subjects. More research is needed to determine whether cold water immersion could benefit weight loss.

Cold exposure may not be safe for certain people. It’s best to avoid it if you:

  • have a heart condition
  • are pregnant
  • have other underlying medical conditions

Eating cold food isn’t automatically bad for you, but regularly eating only cold food may complicate conditions related to gastric emptying, or how quickly food moves through your digestive system. Cold foods may decrease stomach contractions in some people.

This could worsen conditions like gastroparesis, which occurs when the stomach takes too long to empty after eating.

The American Heart Association (AHA) also cautions against spontaneous cold plunges without weeks to months of preparation to acclimate the body to the shock. Jumping into extremely cold water can cause cold shock, a survival response that causes rapid breathing, increased heart rate, and elevated blood pressure.

Cold shock can be exceptionally hazardous. It can cause an involuntary gasp reflex, which may lead to drowning. In people with existing cardiovascular conditions, it could cause life threatening complications.

Keeping these tips in mind can help you start cold exposure safely:

  • Wrap all ice packs in a towel instead of applying them directly to your skin.
  • Keep exposure times short, and gradually build up your tolerance.
  • Start in the shower, where you can control the water temperature.
  • In ice baths, wear protective layers on your vulnerable extremities, like your hands and feet.
  • Be mindful of your exposure temperature in relation to frostbite and hypothermia onset (the colder it is, the faster these conditions set in).
  • Familiarize yourself with the warning signs of hypothermia and frostbite.
  • Never do a cold plunge, such as the polar plunge, when you are alone.

While there isn’t much research on the ice hack diet for weight loss, researchers generally agree that eating plans that are sustainable long term are more likely to result in weight loss and weight management.

Some long-term eating plans with research behind them to support overall health benefits, including weight management, include the:

What these eating plans all have in common is a focus on eating a wide variety of nutrient-rich foods, such as:

They also limit:

The ice hack diet promotes the consumption of cold foods, icy drinks, and plenty of ice as a snack. While it takes its concept from the physiological process of cold-induced thermogenesis, eating cold foods alone likely won’t significantly affect your metabolism.

Adding cold environmental exposure to the ice hack diet may bring more benefits. Regular cold exposure may boost your body’s energy burn by promoting and activating brown adipose tissue.

Due to potentially serious health risks associated with the extreme cold, it’s important to consult your doctor before starting a cold exposure practice.