Cold water therapy is all about immersing yourself in cold water. It is what the name implies. However, what’s interesting is that a simple cold water bath has enormous physical and mental health benefits. We are here to tell you what those benefits are and the science behind it all.
What is Cold Water Therapy?
Cold water therapy is using water that is around 15 degrees Celsius or 59 degrees Fahrenheit. This way, the water heals the body from inside and outside. Some people also like to call it cold hydrotherapy.
5 Benefits of Cold Water Therapy
Many health influencers, athletes, celebrities, trainers, and other people use cold water therapy in their routine. Every one of them will vouch for it being significantly effective in empowering mental and physical health.
In detail, cold water therapy helps in the following ways.
Boosts Immunity Against Common Symptoms
Taking a cold shower or switching from a hot to a cold shower can help your body fight against common viruses and symptoms, like cold, cough, or flu. The instant shift to cold water can give a shock which stimulates the body cells to protect better against infections and viruses.
Many studies show that cold water actually helped people get affected less and even fight off better after getting infected.
Helps Fight Depression
Although it cannot treat any medical condition, cold water can certainly give you the confidence and energy to fight off depression. A swim in the cold pool or a shower can certainly alleviate certain symptoms of anxiety and depression.
However, it may not be very effective for some people while others may get better results. A case study was conducted involving a woman with anxiety and depression problems for a long time. A weekly open water swimming trial proved to be highly effective as she was able to stop medications.
Increases Blood Flow Circulation
Cold water has the ability to put your body in survival mode as it tries to maintain the temperature. This naturally stimulates your body and increases blood flow and circulation. This makes the body distribute blood faster, providing oxygen, and helping body areas recover faster.
This method is highly effective and efficient in helping the body recover faster after exercise or heavy workouts. Moreover, making cold water baths a habit can make your circulatory system much more efficient. This is particularly helpful for people with high blood pressure or diabetes.
Improves Body Metabolism
When you take a cold shower or a cold bath, the body tries to stay warm with full effort. This consumes energy, burns a small amount of calories, and increases metabolism. As a result, it allows your vital functions to be better, including movement, breathing, and growth.
However, cold water therapy cannot replace a good healthy diet and proper exercise plan. It certainly does help improve your vitals and growth.
Strengthens and Relieves Muscles
Cold water can cause vasoconstriction, which means blood vessels tighten up. It makes blood flow to the core and vital organs and circulates oxygen and nutrients much more efficiently. Moreover, as the body heats back up, the vessels expand by vasodilation. All of this helps strengthen muscles and relieve soreness.
On top of this, cold water reduces pain by alleviating inflammation. Also, it also relieves your brain of thinking too much of pain. Therefore, your muscles heal better, your brain gets more fresh, and ultimately, your muscles get tougher.
How To Do Cold Water Therapy?
Cold water therapy is highly effective and beneficial, but only if you do it the right way. There are several ways to do so, which are as follows:
One way is to take a warm to cold shower. Start with a warm shower and then slowly turn it into a cold one.
The second way is to totally skip the warm water and directly take a cold shower. It is especially helpful after workouts.
The third method is to prepare a cold bath of around 10 – 15 degrees Celsius with ice and jump in. However, don’t stay in for more than 10 to 15 minutes.
The last method is to go for a nice swim in the cold waters. Just make sure to take the safety precautions we are about to share next.
Safety Tips For Cold Water Therapy
Consult Your Doctor
Before you put your body through anything intense, it is better to consult a professional physician or your doctor first. Immersing yourself in cold water can affect blood pressure, blood flow, and heart rate. So, if done wrong, it can certainly cause serious cardiac issues.
Therefore, it is best to discuss all the good and bad with your doctor before exposing your body to cold water.
Have Someone With You
Especially before taking a cold bath or going for a swim in open waters, it is better to have someone watching over you. The cold water can really affect your emotions and feelings, which is why ensure you have someone monitoring yourself.
Make It Short and Sweet
Whether you are taking a cold shower or a cold bath, don’t keep yourself immersed for too long. Even a few good minutes in there can help you reap all those great cold water therapy benefits.
Warm Up Afterwards
When you are taking a cold water bath, your body temperature drops. However, it keeps on dropping even when you come out of the cold water. Therefore, it is best to warm yourself up gradually and safely. You can do so by wearing gloves, drying up, wearing warm clothes, having a warm beverage, eating something, or finding a warm spot to sit out. However, just keep yourself away from hot water.
Final Takeaway
Cold water therapy is really helpful in more ways than one. Whether you just had an intense workout or a depressing moment, cold water therapy can work wonders. It will help you reduce muscle soreness, boost immunity, and just put you in an overall better mood.
Some studies and research also believe in this and have proved it multiple times in history. Just make sure to take the right precautions.
