How effective are ice baths for recovery?

Welcome to Part 2 of the recovery series.

Last week I did a brief overview of compression clothing; what it is, and how it can help your recovery post-exercise.

This week we will be diving into Ice Baths. Well, not only ice baths (which can also be known as cold water immersion as you don’t necessarily need ice) but also contrast bathing, and cryotherapy.

Ice baths have been popular for a while now, and they continue to be popular because:

A)     They can help aid recovery

B)     They look pretty badass

As much as I’d love to continue this article by writing about ways to make yourself look tough in front of your buddies after a hard workout, I should probably concentrate on point A.

First, what are the differences between each of them? Ice bathing/cold water immersion is essentially what it says on the tin – a bath in a tub full of cold water and ice, ordinarily at a temperature between 8 and 10 degrees Celsius¹. It is suggested that you should be submerged up to your neck to get full effect, and remain in the water for a minimum of 5 minutes². 

Contrast bathing is slightly different; during this you would jump between two baths, or one bath and one shower, the first being cold (as above) the second being warm – around 40 degrees celsius¹, alternating between each every couple of minutes for a total of around 10 minutes. 

Cryotherapy is easiest to do using chambers, where you stand in a cylindrical tube that decreases temperature to around -100 degrees Celsius. This to me sounds simply horrific, but the effects are meant to be excellent and you don’t need to be exposed for as long, only remaining in the chamber for up to 3 minutes³.

So let’s get started by understanding the theory behind diving into a load of ice. The benefits of doing so include less muscular inflammation, lowered rate of chemical reactions in the tissue and improved waste product removal.

Going into greater detail on each of these:
Reduced muscular inflammation – Potentially as a result of the waste product removal, the reduced inflammation then allows for improved blood flow and greater range of movement through muscle action and also through joints⁴.

Lowered rate of chemical reactions in the tissue – Decreasing the temperature in the muscle can lead to a reduced amount of waste product being created⁵. It can help to return the body to its normal resting state (homeostasis) which will then regulate the way the body functions.
Improved waste product removal – This happens by rapid closing and opening of veins and capillaries, which then assists blood flow towards the heart (whose job it then is to disperse the waste from the blood)¹.

So after treating yourself to some time in the cold you should feel less muscle soreness and less stiffness, and feel your body get back to the way it normally is. This will let you train sooner, and potentially more often if you use these regularly.

There you have it – a brief outline of ice bathing, what it is, and how it can help. Hopefully it was nice and easy to understand so you can take this information and use it yourselves to help your own recovery regimen.

Next week I’ll be writing some information on massage and self myo-fascial release (SMR) as a recovery method. So make sure to share this article around, and check back again in a week’s time to see the next instalment in the recovery series.

Thanks for reading,

Rob Nitman. BSc. ASCC.

References:

1.     Gill, N.D., Beaven, C.M. & Cook, C. (2006) Effectiveness of post-match recovery strategies in rugby players. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 40(3).

2.     http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/news/20120214/ice-baths-for-sore-muscles-can-work - accessed 04/01/2015

3.     http://cryoclinics.co.uk/what-is-whole-body-cryotherapy/the-technology/ - accessed 04/01/2015

4.     Burke, D.G., Holt, L.E., Rasmussen, R., Mackinnon, N.C., Vossen, J.F. & Pelhame, T.W. (2001) Effects of hot or cold water immersion and modified proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation flexibility exercise on hamstring length. Journal of Athletic Training, 36 (1).

5.     http://web.stanford.edu/group/journal/cgi-bin/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Tenforde_NatSci_2003.pdf - accessed 04/01/2015

Higgins, T.R., Heazlewood, T. & Climstein, M. (2011) A Random Control Trial of Contrast Baths and Ice Baths for Recovery during Competition in U/20 Rugby Union. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 25(4).