Heat vs. Ice

HEAT OR ICE?

Hot tub or ice bath?

On a topic like this, there will be differing opinions and bias. I believe both have a place in fitness and performance. Most of us are more than happy to get into a hot tub, but refuse to get in an ice bath. I personally fall into this camp. Am I leaving potential adaptations and progress on the table because I’ll be uncomfortable for a few minutes?

Let's start with heat. It almost always “feels” better. Think about sunshine, sauna, or a hot tub. Does heat only help us feel relaxed? Or is there more to it?

There are many physiological benefits to heat therapy such as increased blood flow. Blood brings in nutrients and flushes out metabolites. Heat therapy can improve recovery time and has very few downsides (in moderation). I recommend heat therapy when the goal is long term adaptations, especially hypertrophy.

Cold therapy is the other side of the equation. It does not feel good and is not relaxing, it actually causes a release of hormones that make you feel alert and awake. Ice may not improve “true recovery” time, especially for hypertrophy. Where cold therapy works wonders is during periods of time where performance is more important than adaptations. Think about baseball players trying to feel better between games, or fighters trying to reduce inflammation during a fight. Cold therapy, when used improperly (directly after a workout), will likely reduce some of the adaptations (specifically hypertrophy), but it has less of a negative impact on skill acquisition and is absolutely helpful after hard compact sports (football).

So, ice, or heat? Both are good when used properly. My favorite way to think about it is to determine the preferred outcome. If acute performance is the goal, then ice may be good. If chronic improvements and adaptation is the goal, then heat may be good.