Unlocking the Benefits of Ice Baths for Athletes

While celebrities like Harry Styles and Mark Wahlberg have helped popularize cold plunging, cold water immersion and cryotherapy are not uncommon for everyday fitness enthusiasts, athletes, and weekend warriors. You may have noticed athletes jumping into ice baths (40°F-50°F) after physical activities and soaking for up to 5 minutes.

As uncomfortable as this may look, an ice bath is one of the most effective ways to recover fast and treat muscle soreness and pain sustained during strenuous activities. Cold water immersion is particularly vital for athletes, especially during intense periods of training.

While preparing for a competition, athletes undergo physical and psychological stress, which can hinder top performance. This is why it is essential to recover quickly and minimize fatigue. In this article, we’ll explore the science behind cold plunging—and how Ice Barrels are revolutionizing the way you plunge. 

What Exactly is an Ice Bath and How Does it Work? 

So, why does it seem like everyone is braving the cold water these days? And what exactly can it do for you? Let’s find out. 

Defining Cold Water Immersion (CWI)

CWI is a concept that was developed to treat microtraumas (tiny tears on muscle fibers) after exercise. These micro-tears are good; in fact, they are the reason why athletes exercise so much. Microscopic muscle damage stimulates muscle cell activity to strengthen and repair the damaged muscles.

CWI is a form of cryotherapy that requires a person to sit in extremely cold water. The first time you put your feet in an Ice Barrel of chilly water between 50°F-59°F, your breath is taken away, and if you can brave it for just 5 minutes, the effects will continue to take your breath away in all the right ways.

The Science: What Happens to Your Body in the Cold?

As you experience the polar plunge, your body adapts to the cold in stages, and in each stage, different effects begin to work through your body. 

First, there’s that cold shock response—the sharp gasp when you dip into the ice, the spike in your heart rate and blood pressure, and the release of hormones like endorphins, the body’s natural “feel-good” chemicals. You’ll likely feel more alert, and increased feelings of mental clarity, right away. 

Next, your blood vessels will begin to narrow through a process called vasoconstriction. Your blood vessels narrow, which reduces your overall blood flow and redirects the flow to the parts of your body experiencing cold. Your body’s tissue temp will begin to drop during this stage, too. It’s possible also that you’ll experience metabolic changes during dips in an ice bath. 

Finally, as you exit the ice bath, your body will begin the process of vasodilation, which is when your blood vessels expand again and your circulation increases. You may feel a warming, tingling sensation throughout the body as your blood starts pumping quickly to warm yourself up. This process helps improve your overall blood flow and circulation, which can contribute to inflammation reduction and pain relief in sore muscles, which is a large factor in why athletes are drawn to CWI as a recovery tool. 

The Big Chill: Unpacking the Benefits of Ice Baths for Athletes

While there is evidence that ice bathing can have benefits for recovery, the overall science and research is still somewhat mixed. For example, a study done in 2017 questioned the overall effectiveness of cold plunging, but a 2022 Sports Medicine review supported ice baths as a form of HIIT recovery. While we can lay out the science of ice bathing, it will ultimately be up to you, your body, and your journey to wellbeing to determine whether cold plunge therapy is right for you. 

Speeding Up Recovery and Reducing Muscle Soreness (DOMS)

Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, or shortened to just DOMS, sets in 12-72 hours after an intense workout, and can significantly disrupt your training regimen, especially if you are an athlete preparing for an event or trying to stick to a set workout schedule. 

But ice can help. Similarly to how one might ice a sore muscle or injury, full-body submersion in an Ice Barrel can give you the perceived effect of pain relief due to the numbing sensation of cold throughout the body. But beyond just the perception of pain relief, as your body rewarms, it can flush toxins out of your system, and the improved circulation effects of vasodilation and vasoconstriction can help reduce inflammation in sore and strained muscles. 

Fighting Inflammation: Acute Relief vs. Long-Term Adaptation

Speaking of inflammation, if you’re looking for inflammation relief as one of the benefits of ice baths for athletes, the name of the game becomes balance. Studies have shown that CWI may initially increase inflammation as an adaptive stress response to the sudden temperature shift. Because of this, repeated use of an ice bath, particularly after strength training, may actually hinder muscle growth and strength gains. 

However, when used strategically as a tool for acute recovery in the short-term, it can be a powerful ally when doing intense bouts of training for short periods of time or in preparation for competitions. 

Supporting Consistent Training and Performance

Ice baths can play a pretty big role in supporting consistency in your training routine and improving your overall performance. Here are just a few of the impacts you may notice:

• Reduced Fatigue: Ice baths help the central nervous system recover, which can improve sleep quality and reduce overall feelings of fatigue. That feeling of “freshness” after a good night’s sleep can help improve quality in future training sessions. 
• Maintaining Intensity: By managing symptoms of soreness and fatigue between sessions, you may find yourself able to maintain higher training intensity or session duration over time. 
• Heat Management: Cooling your body before a strenuous workout can lower your core body temperature, boosting your performance in heat. This is especially vital when treating and preventing symptoms of heat stroke. A 15-year study conducted on marathon runners in Massachusetts showed ice baths as a method for treating heat stroke had a 100% survival rate. 
• Performance Edge: While the science on this is somewhat debated, there is some evidence that points to improved reaction times and more alertness in the body after an ice bath, which can improve your performance. 

Boosting Mental resilience and Mood

Ice baths don’t just come with benefits for your body—they can improve the mind, too.

• Stress Adaptation: When you expose your body to a sudden extreme temperature shift, it can stimulate the vagus nerve, and trigger an adrenaline response. Over time, training this nerve and adapting to the discomfort of the cold can improve mental toughness, which can be applicable both in sports, and in life. 
• Mood Lift: Vital chemicals that help regulate mood, such as endorphins and dopamine, are released during a cold plunge. These chemicals in the brain can improve your mood, reduce anxiety, and improve symptoms of stress. 
• Improve Focus: Taking the plunge requires a deep focus—it demands your attention and presence as you brave the cold. You may find you have an increased sense of clarity after regular dips in an ice bath. 

Other Potential Benefits (Immunity and Circulation)

Still not convinced you should add ice baths into your training regimen? Here are two more ways taking the plunge can change the game for athletes:

• Immunity: While more research is needed, there is some preliminary evidence demonstrating that your immunity may be boosted through cold plunges. A study noted by the Mayo Clinic found that individuals who participated in a cold shower study had 29% fewer sick days.
• Circulation: Through a process called vasodilation and vasoconstriction, your blood vessels can expand and contract during the cooling and warming process. This can lead to improved circulatory efficiency.  

Is it Safe? Understanding the Risks and Precautions

While ice baths can be beneficial for most individuals regardless of age or athletic ability, you should always consult your doctor before adding anything new into your daily routine. Additionally, those with cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, circulatory issues, diabetes, cold sensitivity, neuropathy, or young children may all have additional risks associated with ice baths and should exercise caution. 

If you’re hoping to avoid any potential dangers, cold shock is one of the big things to watch out for. Shocking your body with a sudden extreme temperature change can cause gasping, increase your drowning risk, and may cause cardiac stress. Additionally, if one spends too much time in the ice bath, nerve issues, hypothermia, skin issues and, on rare occasions, even frostbite can occur. 

For these reasons, it’s vital to always put safety first. Start slowly, and introduce ice bathing to your routine periodically, slowly working your way up to multiple times a week or even daily, increasing the temperature and duration in the bath steadily. You should never take an ice bath alone, especially when outdoors, and always use a timer (never stay in an ice bath beyond 15 minutes). 

Keep warm gear ready and available for you to slowly warm your body back up after your bath (thermals and comfortable warm clothing are a great place to start, don’t immediately hop in a hot shower), and above all else: Listen to your body. If your body is telling you it’s time to get out, don’t delay or try to force yourself to endure longer. 

How to Take an Ice Bath Effectively, Your Step-by-Step Guide

The good news is that you do not need to hire a therapist or wait till winter to jump into a 50-degree lake in order to reap the benefits mentioned above. Here’s how you can set up an ice-cold bath using the Ice Barrel. If this is your first time, we advise that you start off slowly.

Setting Up Your Ice Bath

Determine the best location for your tub—somewhere safe, stable, and weight-supporting. You can use a standard tub, or a dedicated plunge barrel like Ice Barrel, which can give you more thorough body coverage in an optimized seated position.

Then, you’ll need the essentials. You’ve got your tub, but now you need the ice, the water, a thermometer, and a timer. You should aim for your ice bath to be between 50-59°F, and you can use the thermometer to confirm the temperature. 

If you’re a beginner, you should start at a warmer temp to be safe, but if you’re an old pro and are looking for ways to upgrade your cold plunge routine, try the Ice Barrel Chiller. Its accompanying app lets you control the temperature of your plunge from your mobile device, and it’s equipped with state-of-the-art sensor technology for constant monitoring and optimization potential. 

The Plunge Duration and Technique

As you enter your ice bath, make sure your movements are slow and deliberate to avoid cold shock. Start with your lower body, and slowly progress up as you cover yourself in the ice water. Ice Barrel’s upright design makes this process natural, comfortable, and allows you to maximize the benefits of a full-body plunge. If you’re a beginner, start by spending about 2-5 minutes in the ice bath, and work your way up to the full 5 minutes over time. But even if you’ve been cold plunging for a long time and consider yourself a seasoned ice bather, you should never go beyond 15 minutes in an ice bath. 

As you plunge, keep your breathing slow and even in controlled breaths. And while hopping in the ice bath soon after a workout is ideal for recovery benefits, especially as an athlete, consider your overall training goals, such as strategically using it to avoid losing strength gains, to develop a routine that works for you.

Post-Bath Routine

Exit the bath carefully and dry yourself off. While you may be tempted to hop immediately into a nice, hot shower to warm yourself up, you should always be sure to warm yourself up gradually to avoid shocking your body with abrupt temperature changes. Natural heat such as your home’s heat, or outdoor sunlight, and dry clothing are best. Avoid immediate extreme heat such as hot showers or hot tubs. 

Making Cold Plunges Easier and More Effective: Why Choose an Ice Barrel?

While a DIY ice bath may seem more cost-effective in the short-term, they can be a hassle, and their design doesn’t always lead to the most effective recovery. That’s why Ice Barrel was designed to give you the most optimal experience possible, with financing opportunities available to make it accessible to anyone looking to improve their lives through cold plunging. 

Here are a few other key advantages of the Ice Barrel:

• Ease and Consistency: The Ice Barrel is only 55 pounds when empty so it can be easily moved and transported, and only requires 5 cubic feet of space capable of holding 750 pounds. It can be set up in your yard, home gym, or even on an apartment balcony.
• Optimal Experience: Ice Barrel’s upright position allows for maximum exposure and in the most natural position for your body. 
• Durability and Safety: The thick, impact and puncture resistant walls of Ice Barrels are made from recycled materials, making them extremely durable yet lightweight, and our confidence in their durability is guaranteed by their lifetime warranty. 
• Cleanliness: Ice Barrels are non-porous and made from medical-grade materials, meaning it won’t soak up oils from the body, toxins, or other contaminants.
• Value and Ethics: Ice Barrel is committed to using recycled materials in the barrel design, as well as making all Ice Barrels recyclable at the end of their usable life. Ice Barrels are also made in the USA.

Optimizing Performance: Ice Baths Within a Complete Recovery Strategy

While ice baths can certainly make a difference in your recovery routine, they are only part of the picture for peak performance and recovery. As Dr. Jagim noted in this Mayo Clinic article, ice baths function as a sort of “garnish” for your overall workout and recovery routine. While ice baths can be a great addition, you should focus on exercise, diet, and other factors first.

However, cold water immersion can complement many recovery methods, which can lead to overall performance improvements, including:

• Active Recovery: Cold water plunging can reduce inflammation and improve muscle recovery.
• Cooldowns/Stretching: Taking a plung after cooldowns and stretches can help soothe tired muscles.
• Mobility/Massage: Massage therapy and cold plunging used in tandem can improve mobility.
• Nutrition and Hydration: Maintaining a balanced diet and staying hydrated are vital to a good workout routine, and when paired with ice bathing, recovery times may improve. 
• Sleep: Ice baths can help improve sleep and feelings of alertness, which are crucial for adaptation and performance readiness.

The Final Verdict: Are Ice Baths a Performance Enhancer for Athletes?

Ice bathing can help reduce soreness, manage fatigue, and improve overall mental resilience, all of which can contribute to better performance. However, there are potential downsides, especially if you are looking for pure strength goals in your workout regimen. 

Ultimately, using ice baths to improve your workout and recovery routines are strategic. It isn’t a magic, fix-all solution, but rather an important tool you can add to your training arsenal. The value depends on the athlete, the sport, the timing, and the individual goals of each athlete. Listen to your body’s response, and find a balance that works right for you. 

Ice Barrel makes strategic implementation easier and more consistent, supporting overall recovery and performance goals. 

Conclusion

Ice baths can be a valuable tool supporting athletic recovery and performance when used wisely and when considering the overall ability, goals, and strengths of each athlete on an individual, case-by-case basis. Ultimately, it’s up to you to implement cold water immersion strategically based on your own individual needs. But, if you’re ready to take the plunge, Ice Barrel offers a premium, convenient way to leverage cold water immersion for your athletic goals.

Ready to take your recovery and performance to the next level? Shop barrels and experience the Ice Barrel difference.