Ice Baths for Recovery

[ByronKelly]

How cold should and ice bath be?
I took one tonight using only cold tap water and i went numb. I assume that is normal? I live in Canada and its winter so perhaps the water is colder than usual.
But, think of all the "images" of ice baths....tubs full of water and ice. That must be too cold?

[hansomreiste]

Very good question, I am also looking forward to hear more about this. Well as a person who burns the place while taking a bath, I think I will never manage to have an "ice bath" but maybe I can give it a try after a few drinks. This is the only way.

[GableGrip]

I hit our ice bath (waist down) after every training (Australian Rules Football) as it's legs-intensive and I need to recover fast for a legs hypertrophy day each week.

10-12 degrees Celsius (~50 Fahrenheit) is a good temp to work within. 5-10 minutes of submersion should be sufficient.

DO NOT immediately take a warm shower after using the bath. Let your body reheat itself naturally, as the slow warming is part of the key to aided recovery. If it's winter and you're struggling to reheat, then drink a hot cup of tea.

[ByronKelly]

I just put on heavy sweat pants and go to bed haha.
Warm up just fine as i sleep.

Ill have to get a thermometer and check the water temp. I went numb around 7 minutes into the bath (12min total) so maybe its a good temp,maybe its a tad cold.
But i def dont need to add ice.

[The Running Man]

I live in Calgary too (and Phoenix), and the water that comes out of the tap is definitely cold enough to get the desired effect. In Phoenix, however, the water comes out at about room temperature. Generally speaking, people drastically overestimate how cold water needs to be. You don't need buckets of ice floating in the tub.

Also, it's worth considering that a lot of the more recent research shows that chronic use of ice baths slows the recovery process down. While you might "feel" better, you're not getting better. I still think there's some CNS benefit to it, especially in between competitions, so I save them for those times.

[JaxJags]

I usually take a 10-15 minute ice baths at around 40-45 degrees F.

[krakkerz]

I know they're well used, but I've never been able to manage to take an ice bath. Besides, I don't want the old knob to look any smaller than it already does.

[GableGrip]

I know they're well used, but I've never been able to manage to take an ice bath. Besides, I don't want the old knob to look any smaller than it already does.

I look forward to them after we've been training in +35ºC heat. Not so much in the middle of an Adelaide winter though!

[KGD54]

Our athletic trainers perfer the water to be around 50 degrees, i usually made mine around 45. 15 minutes in 50 degrees, 12 minutes in 45 degrees. Also as mentioned earlier do NOT take a hot shower after your ice bath, just throw on some sweats and wait at least 3 hours. I usually waited about an hour then did a cold shower, cold showers don't really bother me but most people hate them.
Ice baths help the recovery process so much, also happy to see athletes use them!

[krakkerz]

I look forward to them after we've been training in +35ºC heat. Not so much in the middle of an Adelaide winter though!

We're training in that at the moment. I still can't bring myself to get in one. The boys have enough trouble convincing me to go to the pool. And that's kept at a steady 24 degrees.

[ByronKelly]

We're training in that at the moment. I still can't bring myself to get in one. The boys have enough trouble convincing me to go to the pool. And that's kept at a steady 24 degrees.

Suck it up. It is not that bad.

[krakkerz]

Quick point that may have been missed. The temperatures mentioned by GableGrip and myself are Celsius. The 35 degrees he refers to for training is around 95+F