It is quite commonly stated that ice baths reduce lactic acid but this is not the case. Lactic acid, or lactate, occurs when the body gets into an oxygen debt situation i.e. is functioning anaerobically. When the level of activity ceases, or reduces sufficiently, in simple terms the body can acquire surplus oxygen, which is used to convert the lactic acid back to its normal pyruvate / pyruvic acid state.

According to Gregory Dupont, who presented at the FIFA sponsored Sports Injury Summit held at Wembley in 2013 the main precursor of injury is fatigue. Further research investigated the common strategies for aiding recovery, minimising fatigue and, thereby, lowering the risk of injury.

The conclusion was good diet, good sleep, hydration [all lifestyle factors] plus cold water immersion were the main scientifically proven methods of aiding recovery and minimising fatigue.

The other side of the coin is performance and here we find that fatigue inhibits performance. So if we can manage fatigue by improving fitness and aiding recovery the outcome is improved performance and lowered risk of injury.

The primary purpose of an ice bath is to aid recovery and reduce the level of DOMS [delayed onset muscle soreness].

The mechanisms include aiding normalisation of body temperature, flushing out muscles due to constriction of blood vessels & compression through hydrostatic temperature, a decrease in metabolic activity, balancing of the sympathetic & parasympathetic systems and a reduction in muscle damage.

Athletes report feeling more energised at the following training session and report reduced muscle soreness enabling them to train more effectively.

The other commonly reported consequence is that fatigue is reduced and fatigue is the main precursor of injury [Gregory Dupont et al]. Therefore, using an ice bath reduces fatigue and lowers the risk of injury.

The therapeutic effect is a factor of temperature and time. The colder it is, and the more penetrating that cold, then less time is required to cool the tissue to a therapeutic level.

Traditional ice baths consisted of adding ice to water and depending on the amount of ice versus the amount of water these ice baths could be as high as 10 or 12C [50 – 55F]. In these circumstances, the recommended dosage varied from 10 to 15 or even 20 minutes.

With modern digitally controlled ice baths, or CryoSpas, which chill by conduction and convection [i.e. the jets are creating a ‘wind chill’ effect], the average treatment time is typically 3 to 6 minutes.