Why you should try ice baths and water therapy after running

The importance of sleep

Sleep is when your body recovers. Whether you’ve had a tough training session, a hard day at work, or both, a good night’s sleep works wonders for helping your body to recover. Good sleep was one of the most common recovery methods our athletes mentioned, highlighting that good recovery is an important focus for the very best runners out there.

Active recovery

Recovery day doesn’t mean that you need to sit on the sofa all day. Active recovery was another common thing our athletes mentioned, with almost all incorporating some form of active recovery into their training plan:

• “I have 1 day active recovery, or full rest if it’s a hard week with lots of intensity”
• “Personally I don’t like to stay still so I always prefer to do something, maybe simple and easy, like a walk with the dog and headphones, but still move!”
• “Sleeping 8 hours, eating something after training, recovery runs”
• “Very easy run, swimming, rest day.”

Planning one day a week where you don’t run but instead go for a walk, take a swim, do some yoga, or even spend time gardening, can help to keep your muscles flexible and reduce soreness. You might also want to consider adding in a recovery run after your long run or particularly hard sessions. These are short runs at an easy pace that can help to loosen up the body and increase blood flow after a long or hard run.

Rest day

It’s recommended that you take at least one full rest day per week. They can reduce stress on your body, and help to reduce the risk of injury. We know as runners that it can sometimes be difficult to force yourself to rest – but trust us, it’s worth it. Proper rest and running recovery is a key part of running, so try to enjoy the downtime!

What are the benefits of an ice bath?

There is a reason why many athletes and runners take ice baths after running. Following a long run out on the road or trail, it is widely accepted that ice baths can have multiple advantages for both the mind and body. Here are just a few of the reasons why ice baths are good for you.

Helps to reduce muscle strains and pains

Sitting in an ice bath following a run or any strenuous exercise helps to slow blood flow and relieve some of the soreness and swelling of your muscles that you may experience. However, this will only work for soothing the slight post effects and aches of a run and will not be beneficial if you have picked up a genuine running injury.

Improves running recovery

One of the most important questions runners have is how they recover from their runs. There are many tips to help with running recovery from dietary to post-run stretches. Immersion in cold water after a run can help you recover because it reduces muscle inflammation and promotes your body's recovery.

What is cold water therapy and what are the benefits?

Cold water therapy is just like an ice bath, but you have more control on the water temperature you immerse yourself in. You could go for a swim outdoors or just run a cold shower.

The cold water immersion benefits are largely the same as an ice bath. They will help your blood vessels constrict so that your circulation speeds up. Whilst another benefit is that lactic acid that has built up during your run can be flushed out.

How long should you stay in an ice bath?

The amount of time you will want to spend in an ice bath will probably be determined by how often you have experienced them. If you are new to ice baths or cold-water therapy, you will have to build up your endurance to the cold temperatures.

Typically, your ice bath will be below 15°C and therefore you should be cautious of staying immersed in the cold for too long. A period of between 5-10 minutes will be sufficient to feel the benefits, although you should leave the ice bath straight away if it is feeling too uncomfortable for you.

You should also be sure to be prepared for when you have finished your ice bath. Make sure you exit carefully to avoid slipping and have a dry towel on hand to help ease your body temperature back to normal levels. You should be careful not to reheat your body too quickly as this can be dangerous, and instead opt for a gradual approach to regaining heat into your body.

Are there any downsides to ice baths?

While there are cold water therapy benefits, it’s important to be aware of both the ice bath after running pros and cons. So what are the downsides?

The biggest one is probably the fact that, yes, ice baths can be uncomfortable. They can be challenging to sit through, especially if you’re new to it!

As mentioned above, it’s also important to make sure that you warm up gradually after your ice bath. It can be tempting to jump straight into a hot shower, but instead it’s better to steadily warm up with lots of layers and a hot drink.

There is also mixed evidence around the advantages of cold baths and whether they actually help recovery. One study compared ice baths with simply doing a gentle warm down, and they concluded that cold water immersion is no more effective than active recovery for reducing inflammation or cellular stress in muscles after a bout of resistance exercise.