The benefits of an ice bath after exercise
Did you know that a plunge in the ice bath after a workout can have numerous health benefits?
You might think that hopping in an ice bath after a workout is only for professional athletes. But an ice bath can have benefits for everyone keen to improve their fitness. Find out why taking the plunge could send your training surging to new heights.
What is an ice bath?
An ice bath involves submerging your body – or just parts of it – into a cold-water bath with a temperature of approximately 10-15°C.
It’s also known as cold water immersion or cold water therapy, and is a form of cryotherapy – in other words, using cold temperatures for therapeutic benefit.
Cold water immersion has been used for many years by athletes in a bid to help reduce inflammation, speed up recovery and improve performance. Recently, their popularity has increased massively across the fitness community as people who train at all levels try to tap into their benefits.
What are the benefits of an ice bath?
There’s still quite limited high-quality research into ice bath benefits, and much of what we know is anecdotal. But then again, with top athletes like Andy Murray, Usain Bolt and Jessica Ennis-Hill raving about the power of a post-training sesh cold plunge, who are we to argue?
And the evidence base is growing. In 2012, the Cochrane Collaboration analysed the results of 17 studies looking at the benefits of an ice bath after physical exertion. It found that the evidence points to cold-water immersion effectively reducing DOMS and soreness after exercise, as well as reducing fatigue in some cases too.
And, a meta analysis of 99 studies in 2018 found that cold water immersion had a significant effect on DOMS and perceived fatigue.
So how does it work?
Ice baths are thought to help with DOMS and recovery by reducing exercise-induced inflammation in the body. When you sit in chilly water, your blood vessels constrict, and then when you get out, they dilate – aka open up again. This process of blood vessels constricting and dilating helps to flush away metabolic waste that’s built up from your tough workout.
Plus, increased blood flow helps speed up the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to your cells, which helps the body recover.
The benefits of an ice bath might well go further than physical recovery as well. There’s no denying that sinking your body into a tub of cold water requires a certain amount of grit, but once the initial discomfort passes, most people find the experience energising and invigorating.
Cold water immersion also involves exposing your body to new stresses and stimulants. This could help you become more resilient and ready for future challenges, whether that’s lifting new weights in the gym, or hiking up a mountain.
How to take an ice bath
The sooner you jump in the ice bath after your workout, before the healing processes get underway, the more likely it is you’ll see benefits from the experience.
But before you sprint from squat rack to plunge pool, take just a moment to remember that cold water immersion might not be suitable for everyone. If you have high blood pressure or any sort of cardiovascular condition, check in with your doctor before taking the plunge.
The optimum amount of time to spend in the water to reap the benefits of an ice bath will depend on your goals, your experience of cold water exposure – and your personal tolerance levels. Anything up to 15 minutes is recommended – any more and you risk hypothermia – but you can feel the benefits after a much shorter time. Shoot for two minutes as a starting point, and work your way up gradually.
It’s also fine to build up to full-body submersion. Some people like to start with just their lower legs in the bath, and gradually dunking the rest of the body. For others, an all-or-nothing approach is the only way.
Whatever your plunging method, the sudden cold water immersion will be a shock to your system – you might find that it takes your breath away. But the first few seconds are the toughest, so try to breathe through the discomfort. You might find you love it.
And when it comes to creating the ice bath itself, well, you don’t need to worry. Because at Ellie’s Gym, you have a professional standard ice bath upstairs in the spa, ready and waiting for you after your workout. All you have to do is work up the nerve to get in.