{"id":836427,"date":"2026-07-31T21:11:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-31T21:11:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/836427\/"},"modified":"2026-07-31T21:11:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-31T21:11:11","slug":"ice-bath-recovery-fan-of-ice-baths-you-may-be-making-a-key-mistake-in-your-recovery-session","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/836427\/","title":{"rendered":"Ice bath recovery: Fan of ice baths? You may be making a key mistake in your recovery session"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ice baths<\/a> are one of those concepts that spring to mind when the topic of \u2018wellness\u2019 arises \u2013 alongside trends like infrared sauna and lymphatic drainage<\/a>.<\/p>\n

If you haven\u2019t tried the cold plunge<\/a> yourself, you\u2019re likely familiar with the sight of people sitting stoically in huge tubs of iced water, via your social feeds, at the gym or even on your nearest beach.<\/p>\n

\"Stock<\/p>\n

There\u2019s an element of cold water immersion that experts no longer recommend.\u00a0iStock<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no denying the popularity of the practice \u2013 some devotees are even DIY-ing it at home using wheelie bins \u2013 but there\u2019s an element of the cold plunge experts have changed their tune on, and it\u2019s all in the timing.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe might have got a little carried away about how beneficial ice baths were,\u201d physiotherapist Tim Dettmann explained on Today. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey make you feel good, and give you a little bit of adrenaline and some endorphins. But one of the mistakes we definitely made is recommending people hop into ice baths after they\u2019ve … done a big ride or run or a gym workout.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese days we don\u2019t [suggest it], because … it slows down your protein synthesis.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among elite athletes, cold water immersion<\/a> has become a recovery habit \u2013 you might have glimpsed behind-the-scenes footage of footballers sitting in ice baths after their games. <\/p>\n

However, Dettmann says there\u2019s even been a shift away from the practice in the professional sporting world.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s probably not as many ice baths in professional sport as you think,\u201d he said.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

\u201cIf [athletes are] playing two days in a row they will [take an ice bath] because it\u2019ll lower inflammation. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut quite often now, elite sportspeople \u2026 they\u2019ll hop straight into a sauna afterwards to try and improve their gains.\u201d<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t the only word of caution experts have issued around the cold plunge practice.<\/p>\n

The University of New South Wales\u2019 Samuel Cornell and Michael Tipton previously outlined some of the health risks of ice baths<\/a> for certain people, and when not used correctly.<\/p>\n

Immersion in cold water (below 15\u00b0C) triggers a physiological response called cold shock, which can affect one\u2019s heart rate, breathing and blood pressure.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe body isn\u2019t designed to endure freezing water for extended periods,\u201d they wrote, saying even young, healthy people \u201ccan be caught off-guard\u201d by the impacts.<\/p>\n

\"Stock<\/p>\n

\u201cWe might have got a little carried away about how beneficial ice baths were,\u201d physiotherapist Tim Dettmann said.\u00a0iStock<\/p>\n

Spending too long in ice-cold water can lead to hypothermia, and in some cases \u2018cold shock\u2019 can lead to a heart attack or stroke, particular for people with undiagnosed conditions impacting the heart, blood vessels and brain.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven after you get out, your core temperature can continue to fall \u2013 a phenomenon known as afterdrop. So you can encounter problems, such as collapse, even after leaving the water,\u201d Cornell and Tipton wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cCold exposure can also cause long-term damage to nerves and blood vessels in the hands and feet, known as non-freezing cold injury. This is more likely if someone spends an extended period immersed in cold water.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ice baths are one of those concepts that spring to mind when the topic of \u2018wellness\u2019 arises \u2013…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":836428,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[64,63,105],"class_list":["post-836427","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/836427","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=836427"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/836427\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/836428"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=836427"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=836427"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=836427"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}