COLD PLUNGE

Cold water immersion is an excellent way to reduce inflammation, recover quicker from high-intensity workouts, better manage stress and anxiety, become more resilient and much more.

Ice Bath Benefits

While the thought of deliberately exposing your entire body to freezing-cold temperatures might sound counter-intuitive, cold exposure (also known as cold therapy) has several scientifically-validated health benefits that include increasing your energy levels, boosting your immune system, and making you more resilient to cold temperatures and other stressors.

1. IMPROVES LYMPHATIC CIRCULATION

The lymphatic system is a network of vessels that run throughout the body, clearing out waste, bacteria and microbes from your cells. The lymphatic system essentially helps your body cleanse itself.

Look at the lymphatic system to answer the question of “Are Ice Baths good for you?” Unlike your blood, which is constantly pumped through your body by the heart, your lymph fluid doesn’t have a central pump. Instead, your lymphatic system relies on muscle contraction to pump the lymph fluid through the vessels. So if you don’t exercise or your lymphatic system itself becomes slow or inefficient, the fluid stagnates and toxins build up, manifesting in colds, joint pain, infection and even disease.

Cold water immersion causes your lymph vessels to contract, forcing your lymphatic system to pump lymph fluids throughout your body, flushing the waste out of the area. One of the many cold shower benefits is that they trigger the immune system’s white blood cells, prompting them to attack and destroy any unwanted substance in the fluid. It’s sort of a domino effect – the cold water affects the lymphatic system, which in turn affects the immune system, which ultimately keeps you feeling happy and healthy.

2. IMPROVES CARDIOVASCULAR CIRCULATION

When we think about Ice Bath benefits, we rarely think about cardiovascular circulation – but it’s one of the most critical components to our overall health and well-being. Poor cardiovascular circulation compromises blood flow, thus stressing the heart. This can ultimately lead to health problems like fatigue, headaches, high blood pressure, muscle cramping or even heart attack and stroke.

By improving circulation, we can improve heart health, enhance mental performance, boost the immune system, speed metabolism and develop more strength and energy to live our lives the way we want.

Exercise and diet are two well-known factors in better cardiovascular circulation. But among the benefits of Ice Baths is the stimulation of blood flow. When you immerse your body in cold water, the blood rushes to surround your vital organs. Your heart is then forced to pump more efficiently, pushing blood through all your vessels and supplying every part of your body with the oxygen and nutrients it needs. Doing this on a routine basis can help promote healthy blood circulation and a healthy body.

3. REDUCES INFLAMMATION

Do Ice Bath benefits extend to your fitness routine? Absolutely. Have you ever participated in a high-intensity workout and woken up sore the next morning? How about doing a new type of physical activity that left your muscles throbbing? This physical discomfort is known as delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), and it can be so painful that those afflicted instantly reach for the anti-inflammatory meds to soothe their pain. All too often, people can’t take the pain that comes with this new or increased movement, and they use it as an excuse to stop their workout routine either temporarily or, in extreme cases, entirely.

The pain of DOMS can be explained this way: any activity that pushes your muscles beyond the limits they are accustomed to – even common household chores, if you’re largely sedentary – can lead to microscopic tears in the fibers and inflammation in the tissue. The tears and inflammation are the cause of the pain you’re feeling.

4. BOOSTS HAPPINESS LEVELS

Feeling down or having trouble managing stress? It may seem like a superficial fix, but Ice Baths benefit your sense of well-being by boosting your mood. A 2007 research study found that Ice Baths can help treat depression symptoms, and if used on a routine basis alongside lifestyle adjustments, can complement the effects of prescription medications in lifting moods.

This is due to the stimulation of the dopaminergic transmission in the mesocorticolimbic and nigrostriatal pathway. In plain English, the cold water triggers a flood of mood-boosting neurotransmitters, which make you feel happy. A separate study that analyzed the effects of regular winter swimming on the mood of swimmers showed that after four months of routine cold water swimming, the subjects felt more energetic and active than the control group.

So the next time you find yourself in a depressed state, consider that you can enjoy Ice Bath benefits in an ocean, a lake or a cold rinse at home. You may just find that water can play a vital role in keeping your body and your mind happy.

5. AIDS WEIGHT LOSS EFFORTS

Are Ice Baths good for you when you want to lose weight and keep it off? When practiced routinely, cold water immersion can boost your metabolism. Not only does cold water force your body to work harder to keep you warm – burning calories in the process – it also has an unexpected impact on the type of fat we produce.

According to a 2009 study, researchers found that Ice Bath benefits weight loss by promoting healthy brown fat, which is the good fat our bodies generate to keep us warm. Brown fat is activated when exposed to extreme cold, and helps eliminate white fat, which is the body fat that piles up around our waistlines and thighs when we consume too many calories.

Ice Baths are extremely affordable at BodyGarage Dayton compared to if you tried to fill your tub at home with ice. This is the way our staff took Ice Baths for years before buying the unity that is in the Garage today. It took at least 10 large bags of ice at $3.49 to $4.00 per bag.

At BodyGarage individual Ice Baths can be purchased for $15.00 per session or $50.00 per month, when added to a monthly membership. Monthly Members can Plunge 3 times per week when adding this service to their membership. This approach makes each session $3.85 per session when done 3 times per week.

Call BodyGarage Dayton to get started today. Life is too short not to enjoy it.