This was the title of an actual article I found about how in love a runner was with ice baths
Today I got to participate in one of the wonderful running activities that is quickly becoming a favorite of mine....right behind eating 7-8 servings of carbs without feeling guilty...taking a fabulous freezing ICE BATH!
I'm sure you are all thinking I've really lost my mind after reading that last sentence but let me explain...
My poor knees were angry that I took all of last week off from running and they let me know it on my five miler on Monday.....so I corrected my form to minimize the impact on my knees and then my calves and quads started to burn. When I did my sprints today, I was really sore and while I still felt good running I knew exactly what I needed when I got home....an ICE BATH! My first one of the Napa/Sonoma training season!
What does an ice bath entail you might ask?
1. Preparation
I gathered up:
-4-5 bags of ice
-Lavender oil (this is my own addition, lavender is known to reduce swelling...plus I really like the way it smells and it makes me feel like I'm in a spa instead of in an ice bath)
-My warmest sweatshirt WITH a hood, plus a towel to wrap around the top half of my body to stay semi-warm
-My handy dandy Roger Phillips CPA book because everyone knows that nothing will distract you from one type of pain like another, worse pain...and what could be worse than partnership law and studying for the CPA exam?
-My phone (this has two uses, a clock so that I stay in long enough but not too long or apparently you get hypothermia or something like that, and a phone in case Roger is not distracting enough and I need to phone a friend)
2. Will power
- I am an avid believer in ice baths and love them but that first five minutes where your entire lower half is submerged in a bath full of freezing water and ice is brutal!
What is the point?
The scientific answer is "Cryotherapy ("cold therapy") constricts blood vessels and decreases metabolic activity, which reduces swelling and tissue breakdown. Once the skin is no longer in contact with the cold source, the underlying tissues warm up, causing a return of faster blood flow, which helps return the byproducts of cellular breakdown to the lymph system for efficient recycling by the body." (find more at http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-241-285--12810-0,00.html).
My answer is that it feels so good! Granted, you have to bear a couple of minutes of pain but eventually you go numb and it's not so bad (although I did have to call Momma and Poppy K for a little moral support and distraction in my last two minutes). When you step out of the bath all of your soreness feels so much better and then you get to take a hot shower!
The next day all the soreness is gone and you are back to marathon training!
Hurrah for quick soreness relief and injury prevention!
I'm sure you are all thinking I've really lost my mind after reading that last sentence but let me explain...
My poor knees were angry that I took all of last week off from running and they let me know it on my five miler on Monday.....so I corrected my form to minimize the impact on my knees and then my calves and quads started to burn. When I did my sprints today, I was really sore and while I still felt good running I knew exactly what I needed when I got home....an ICE BATH! My first one of the Napa/Sonoma training season!
What does an ice bath entail you might ask?
1. Preparation
I gathered up:-4-5 bags of ice
-Lavender oil (this is my own addition, lavender is known to reduce swelling...plus I really like the way it smells and it makes me feel like I'm in a spa instead of in an ice bath)
-My warmest sweatshirt WITH a hood, plus a towel to wrap around the top half of my body to stay semi-warm
-My handy dandy Roger Phillips CPA book because everyone knows that nothing will distract you from one type of pain like another, worse pain...and what could be worse than partnership law and studying for the CPA exam?
-My phone (this has two uses, a clock so that I stay in long enough but not too long or apparently you get hypothermia or something like that, and a phone in case Roger is not distracting enough and I need to phone a friend)
2. Will power
- I am an avid believer in ice baths and love them but that first five minutes where your entire lower half is submerged in a bath full of freezing water and ice is brutal!
What is the point?
The scientific answer is "Cryotherapy ("cold therapy") constricts blood vessels and decreases metabolic activity, which reduces swelling and tissue breakdown. Once the skin is no longer in contact with the cold source, the underlying tissues warm up, causing a return of faster blood flow, which helps return the byproducts of cellular breakdown to the lymph system for efficient recycling by the body." (find more at http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-241-285--12810-0,00.html).
My answer is that it feels so good! Granted, you have to bear a couple of minutes of pain but eventually you go numb and it's not so bad (although I did have to call Momma and Poppy K for a little moral support and distraction in my last two minutes). When you step out of the bath all of your soreness feels so much better and then you get to take a hot shower!
The next day all the soreness is gone and you are back to marathon training!
Hurrah for quick soreness relief and injury prevention!
WOW I'm not sure that realy convinced me that this is what I want to do the next time I get a sore muscle!!! But I do know you think it's the wonderful answer so I 'll try not to judge...even though it does seem a little CRAZY!!
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