If you frequently suffer from muscle soreness after hard workouts, you've probably tried everything to get relief. But have you ever tried taking ice baths? While cold water immersion might seem like a tough and grueling endeavor to get into, many folks report the benefits are worth it.
Ice baths could provide you with temporary pain relief from muscle damage and lactic acid buildup. It could also help you recover faster, enabling you to maintain a more consistent workout routine. Let's look at how ice baths help get you more from intense training sessions. Here are four cold water therapy benefits after a workout.
What Is Cold Water Immersion?
Cold water immersion, sometimes referred to as cold hydrotherapy, is a type of treatment that leverages cold water temperatures for post-exercise recovery. Cold exposure has been used by trainers and pro athletes for injuries and pain relief for decades now. But more recently, more people are finding out how beneficial it is for at-home use.
Is A Cold Shower Enough?
Taking cold baths or showers might seem intense, but most of the time, tap water isn't cold enough to deliver the full effects of cold water immersion in full-fledged ice baths.
Water needs to be below 56º Fahrenheit to achieve the best outcomes after intense exercise. This is why a purpose-built cold water immersion tub is the most effective method.
Purpose-Built Ice Baths
Why buy purpose-built ice baths? There are many reasons this is helpful. First, ice baths that are made for cold therapy are deeper, enabling more of your body to gain the benefits of cold exposure. It's also more affordable over time to have one at home, rather than paying to go to a training facility to access one. Because ice baths have been known to offer numerous health benefits beyond muscle recovery, your investment earns you healthy returns.
When you want the most simple and effective option for active recovery, owning a cold water therapy tank at home is definitely worth it.
4 Cold Water Therapy Benefits After Workout
Getting the most from your workouts demands a healthy post-workout routine. One of the most effective strategies for this is taking an ice bath. Here are just 4 of the benefits of cold water immersion after a workout.
Reduction of Body Temperature
When you go out in the heat and work out hard, it can create serious cardiac stress, along with the risk of stroke. Being able to quickly reduce your core body temperature helps you avoid the dangers of a strenuous workout in the heat. This makes cold immersion at home an essential tool for enhancing recovery when you live in hot climates or simply tend to get hotter than most people.
Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness
Numerous research studies have revealed that ice baths can help reduce delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) after workouts. In a study, the effectiveness of several methods of muscle soreness recovery methods was determined.
These methods ranged from cold water immersion therapy to contrast therapy and also included massage. Each of the methods was analyzed for how much they offered relief from a variety of afflictions resulting from exercise, including delayed onset muscle soreness, perceived fatigue, muscle damage, and inflammation. The study results found that the most effective therapies for lowering inflammation post-workout were ice baths and massages.
Promotes Muscle Growth
Ice baths may also stimulate muscle cell activity, helping repair muscle fibers affected by hard workouts. By triggering increased blood flow to damaged muscles, tissue breakdown can be repaired more quickly.
Old damaged cells and lactic acid are carried away, and white blood cells rush in to work on fighting inflammation. These physiological processes help boost subsequent exercise performance.
Soothes Sore Joints
Whether your exercise includes sports or weightlifting, there's a good chance you've suffered from sore joints afterward. In just a few minutes, ice baths work to reduce inflammation in joints, providing soothing relief in no time. This is why having a cold tub waiting for you at home is one of the best ways to improve sports performance and curb the effects of exercise-induced joint swelling.
Benefit From an Ice Bath At Home Any Time
When you're seeking ways to improve your active recovery, a post-workout ice bath is a solid approach. With a cold water immersion tub at home, it's never been more simple to benefit from ice baths. Rather than dealing with bags of ice and trying to fit into small cold baths at home, consider a tub specifically made for cold hydrotherapy.
With RENU’s premium collection, you'll get full immersion in a deep ice water immersion tank that covers your entire body. Get in touch with our team to learn which ice water plunge tank is right for you.
