Are Ice Baths Actually Good For You?
Friday, October 18, 2024
Ice baths are a health and wellness “trend” in the news and on your feeds – you’ve probably heard celebrities talk about using them for rejuvenation and muscular relief, maybe even your friends! If you have ever wondered about the benefits of a post-workout ice bath, we’re here to share the current evidence.
The popular idea is that ice baths limit short-term exercise-induced reductions in exercise performance, and accelerate recovery of muscle strength, muscle soreness, inflammation and fatigue following an exercise session. The problem is that the quality of evidence on “cold water immersion”(‘CWI’) is mixed.
What is the science behind ice bath?
Research does suggest that CWI might indeed have positive benefits. These include:
- Slight improvements in muscle soreness and feelings of recovery 24 hours after an intense exercise session; in other words, it might make you feel good, feel better, which shouldn’t be underestimated!
- CWI may reduce creatine kinase levels, that is, it might bring down the enzyme that signals damage or degeneration in muscles.
- CWI may affect hypertrophy post-resistance training, that is, it might lead to increase in muscle mass.
However, the research does suggest that there's no significant impact on strength or endurance performance recovery when compared to passive recovery, meaning if you’re trying to accelerate recovery of muscle strength and fatigue, you are actually no better off using ice baths than using a simple period of rest.
We also found it interesting that the temperature and duration of the bath don't seem to be major factors; as long as it is 15°C or less and soon after exercise you’ll see those potential effects.
So, is it worth it? CWI might make you feel better, but its impact on performance recovery varies. It could be beneficial for some training populations! If you’re into it and it works for you, we’re happy for you! Do it with open eyes.
Chat with us about your experience next time you’re in the clinic.
Sources:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35157264/ Moore E, Fuller JT, Buckley JD, Saunders S, Halson SL, Broatch JR, Bellenger CR. Impact of Cold-Water Immersion Compared with Passive Recovery Following a Single Bout of Strenuous Exercise on Athletic Performance in Physically Active Participants: A Systematic Review with Meta-analysis and Meta-regression. Sports Med. 2022 Jul;52(7):1667-1688. doi: 10.1007/s40279-022-01644-9. Epub 2022 Feb 14. PMID: 35157264; PMCID: PMC9213381.
https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/japplphysiol.00127.2019
Cold water immersion attenuates anabolic signaling and skeletal muscle fiber hypertrophy, but not strength gain, following whole-body resistance training
Jackson J. Fyfe, James R. Broatch, Adam J. Trewin, Erik D. Hanson, Christos K. Argus, Andrew P. Garnham, Shona L. Halson, Remco C. Polman, David J. Bishop, and Aaron C. Petersen
Journal of Applied Physiology 2019 127:5, 1403-1418
