The only natural thing to do after a long training session is a warm, relaxing shower that makes you almost fall asleep. Warm showers have proved to promote many health benefits. Starting from an increased blood flow, soothing your tired and sored muscles and making you relax faster.
But, have you ever though you might get much more benefits as an athlete if you turn the faucet to cold while showering? If you haven’t heard about cryotherapy before, then, it’s time to learn all about it.
Also referred as the Scottish Shower, turning the water temperature down to the freezing cold especially during the last part of your shower routine, might be the boost your body has been needed to better perform. Taking cold local baths requires lot of courage. That is why, in order to make this experience an easy one for you, we have brought a list with some of the main scientific-proved benefits of cold showers or even better, local baths so you can faster convince yourself into taking them.
The cold bath benefits
Before arriving at the actual benefits, is best for you to first know why does the cold water works. You see, when the water temperature is low, the tissue and blood vessels temperature drops as well. One of the main reasons experts recommend athletes to use an ice pack immediately after each training session is because it helps prevent any type of swelling or bruising caused by the waste of build-up fluid in your body and especially muscles.
Cold water can also make your nerve’s ending numb and instantly relief your pain. When takin cold showers or even local baths, after each training routine, your heart rate will drop and on the other hand, your blood circulation will be increased by minimizing inflammation and eventually, helping the recovery process be faster.
One of the main issues cold showers can prevent or treat is the delayed-onset muscle soreness. This type of issue usually occurs and appears after two to four days since the last time you worked out. There is a study indicated that when more than 360 people that took a cold shower after their resistance training routine (cycling, running, swimming etc.), were much more able in experiencing less injuries and other muscle and bone-related issues than the ones who didn’t.
Other benefits to know about cold showers…
- Cold showers, especially when taken during the morning hours, increase alertness
- They also have the ability to refine your hair and skin
- Cold showers, when taken at least after two hours since the last meal, improve your immunity and Circulation
- They strongly stimulate Weight Loss by making your body require more energy to beat the cold
- They significantly speed up muscle soreness and also recovery
- Cold showers reduce stress levels
- They do also relieve Depression
- They help you build a stronger will Power
- Cold showers increase your testosterone level
- They also boost fertility
- They are also able to drain your lymphatic system
