Back in high school whenever I had some sort of injury the first thing we did was ice it. Then, after a few days there'd be the dreaded ice bath and warm bath alternating plunges. The theory behind this process seems simple enough and even makes logical sense; the ice bath slows swelling and the contrasting warm water helps to speed up blood flow and speed recovery of damaged muscle and tissue.
I have pretty much always sworn by this treatment. I've told plenty of friends to do this for various injuries, but, to be honest, I've also always wondered why I never read anything proving it's scientific merit. I always assumed there was nothing circulating because it was such an old method that it was simply accepted as effective.
Today, upon reading this article my mind has been changed. The reason there was no scientific evidence floating around about the effectiveness of ice baths was because nobody had really done the study. As complex as our training systems can be and as much as science has told us about how the body works under loads, it's fascinating to me that there are still basic ideas being tested.
I'm not sure this article is telling us that ice in general is overrated to help with injury. But I'm also not sure if it isn't saying that either. As someone who "used" to swear by the ice/heat method I can tell you that my elbow in high school seemed to bounce back much faster while using it.
Was it mental? Did my elbow recover quicker because I expected it to? If so, is that enough to justify using an ice bath or some other form of recovery that may not be scientifically sound but sure does make you feel better? That's probably a question more for sports psychology than exercise physiology and is not what I'd like to specialize in. But, it is an interesting idea!
One things for sure, under no circumstance will you see me climbing into a bathtub filled with cold water and ice EVER again! That is a miserable experience I now have justification to avoid!
No comments:
Post a Comment