If you’ve scrolled through TikTok or Instagram over the last couple of years, you’ve most likely seen people plunging themselves into cold water. Even though the thought of a cold water bath may feel a bit crazy, there’s plenty of research proving how beneficial it is. Evidence surrounding cold water therapy tends to focus on pain management, muscle injury recovery, mood, and general recovery. If we’ve already captured your interest, continue reading to find out why cold therapy is worth trying and how to get started.
How Does Cold Water Therapy Work?
Exposure to cold water causes vasoconstriction (narrowing blood vessels), which forces blood to flush the organs including the lungs, brain, and heart. When blood concentrates around the organs, it gets a healthy dose of nutrients and oxygen.
When the bath comes to an end, the constricted blood vessels expand (vasodilation), which allows the nutrient and oxygen-rich blood to reach other parts of the body. This action helps to remove lactic acid and other bodily waste, and it also alleviates inflammation.
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Different Types of Cold Therapy
There are a few different types of cold therapy to try, but the most common is cold water immersion (cold plunges). As the name suggests, this involves submerging the body in cold water up to the neck. Ice baths have become popular because it’s easier to control the temperature of the water.
A cold plunge can be done at home in a quality ice bath tub or in a specialist clinic. Alternatively, if you live in a cold location, you may find a suitable body of water to wade through. The length of a cold plunge depends on tolerance and temperature, but more on that later.
Benefits of Cold Therapy
The most widely associated benefit of cold water therapy is alleviating muscle pain. In particular, cold therapy has been proven to be effective when treating delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS). According to a study in the International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, cold water plunges are much more effective than entire-body cryotherapy when it comes to reducing muscle soreness.
Cold therapy has also been linked to improvements in mood. For example, various research studies have found that cold water therapy boosted dopamine levels by 250%. Considering this neurotransmitter has a crucial role to play in relation to feeling positive, it goes without saying that such an increase in numbers would lead to heightened mood.
How to Get Started with Cold Therapy
When you’re starting with cold therapy, plunging into an ice-filled bath or a freezing lake will likely be too much to handle. Therefore, it’s important to expose your body gradually to get used to the sensation.
To start with, it’s recommended to run a bath at around 65°F and continue to do this until the body gets over the shock. Instead of sitting for a whole 10 minutes, it’s a good idea to start with two and work your way up gradually. If submerging your body up to the neck is too long, you can target areas of the body where pain is present.
Potential Risks to Be Aware Of
All good things come with risks, and cold therapy is no different. Plunging into cold water will put stress on the cardiovascular system (heart, vessels, lymph system, and blood). With this in mind, people with blood pressure, heart, or other cardiovascular conditions should steer clear of cold therapy. Additionally, hyperthermia becomes a real risk when submerged in water, so it’s important to be mindful and aware of time/temperature.
Cold therapy can be truly exhilarating and refreshing, but it has to be approached with care to avoid causing damage to the body.
