A NEWBIE’S GUIDE TO ICE BATHS Your post-workout recovery plan to melt away muscle soreness

Want to shatter your PRs? Take on the ice bath challenge. Although a protein shake followed by a hot shower is a more agreeable post-workout routine, jumping into a freezing bath is key to extinguishing muscle soreness. Research published in The Journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise found taking the icy-cold plunge is more beneficial in reducing soreness while repairing small tears (microtrauma) in your muscle fibres.

However, for all their benefits, you’re on thin ice with cold therapy. Get it right and you’ll freeze out the competition. Get it wrong and you’ll give a performance that's even worse than Schwarzenegger’s Mr. Freeze!

How often and when should you take the cold plunge?

Ideally, after every training session. The reason’s simple: so whether you’ve just finished a series of sprints or a crushing CrossFit or H.I.I.T. style workout, the repetitive motion causes a build-up of toxic lactic acids. As well as repairing muscle damage, ice baths flush away these workout waste products to melt away soreness and helps to prepare you for your next session.

It's Ice to meet you

First step of any recovery bath is to get the ratio of water to ice spot-on. And fortunately for you, it’s easy to remember: 100% ice, 0% water. Why? -Simply put, the colder the tub, the better your muscle fibres will respond to treatment and the less you’ll ache tomorrow. In fact, the only thing that should break down the ice is your own body heat.

Getting (metaphorical) cold feet? No problem! Fill your first few ice baths with a mix of water and only two trays worth of cubes to build yourself up to the total ice standard. After all, submerging your legs in sub-10 degree celsius liquid (your cold tap should be seven degrees) still causes tissue under the skin to warm, hiking your blood flow and boosting muscle recovery. You’ll still feel some benefits and you should be able to work your way up to an ice-only bath in a week.

How long for?

This is an argument that hasn’t cooled among gym-goers for years, but the science speaks for itself. Exhibit A: in a study published in the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport found a 15-minute ice bath will increase your endurance by three to four minutes longer than any other duration spent in the tub.

But although it’s less time than an Archer episode, 15-minutes is a long time to have your legs submerged in ice, so don’t be worried about some premature exits. It happens to the best of us, My first time lasted maybe 45 seconds, but after bathing post-workout for one week I got up to 12 minutes.

Ice vice baby

The most common mistake of any ice bath? - Not breathing properly, some people lower themselves in and start these huge panicked inhales. This reduces the circulation of air around your body –which is the main purpose of an ice bath. So how do you keep your cool? - Slowly take air in and out to focus your mind,” Keep your thoughts on the benefits of what you’re doing and after the first minute you’ll calm down and it’ll become less painful.

Consider it your ultimate test of mind over matter.

#recovery #postworkout #DOMS #trainingtechniques