Hello! I hope you all are doing great. Today we will understand the benefits of cold plunge. Before proceeding further, understand the cold plunge. A cold plunge, also known as cold water immersion, is when you fully submerge your body up to your neck in the water below 15 deg C. this practice of cold water immersion is becoming an increasingly popular form of cold water therapy because of the tremendous health benefits of cold plunge. Historically, various cultures have used cold water as a cryotherapeutic practice for thousands of years. Let’s take a look at the benefits of cold plunge.
What Are The Benefits Of Cold Plunge?
Here is a list showing you some potential health benefits of cold plunge or cold water immersion.
- It Enhances Recovery From Exercise
- May Reduce Pain
- It may Improve Blood Circulation
- May Boost Your Mood
- Build Resilience
- Reduce Inflammation
- Leads To Weight Loss
- Lessons Muscles Aches
- Boosts Immune System
- Reduce Stress
Benefits Of Cold Plunge
Let’s have a detailed discussion over the above-mentioned benefits of a cold plunge.
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It Enhances Recovery From Exercise
The benefits of cold plunge after workout helps you enhance recovery from exercise. Therefore, many professional and everyday athletes, working with licensed trainers or healthcare professionals, used cold water immersion. There has been some evidence that cold-water therapy reduces delayed onset muscle soreness after exercise.
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May Reduce Pain
The benefits of cold plunge bath may help you by reducing your muscle pain. What causes pain? So, inflammation in the body is the main cause of body pain, so if you reduce inflammation, you may be able to reduce overall pain. Contrast water therapy, which means alternating between hot and cold water may be especially helpful.
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It may Improve Blood Circulation
The benefits of cold plunge everyday are, they may improve your blood circulation. The circulatory system pumps blood to the lungs to transfer oxygen via the heart to the rest of the body. The better your heart and blood vessels can perform these functions, the better they will be able to rid your body of waste.
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May Boost Your Mood
The benefits of cold plunge after sauna may boost your mood. Submerging into a cold plunge tub can make your body with increased dopamine concentration by 250%. Dopamine is a hormone, which is known as the “feel-good” because of the key role it plays in regulating mood, per the Cleveland Clinic. Dopamine boosts your mental state at the moment, and it also helps with mental acuity and alertness throughout the day.
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Build Resilience
The benefits of cold plunge and sauna may build resilience in you. Because regularly challenging your body to withstand cold temperatures may help you build resilience within yourself, or the ability to handle other stressful situations when they arise. Exposure to cold water triggers the release of hormones like adrenaline, noradrenaline, and epinephrine.
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Reduce Inflammation
Inflammation in the body is the main cause of your body’s pain. Putting an ice pack on affected or injured muscles reduces swelling and inflammation, similarly submerging in cold water has an effect on the entire body. It can also alleviate pain in people with other underlying conditions.
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Leads To Weight Loss
If you are obsessed with thoughts of being overweight then you can try cold water therapy called cold plunge, it will help you to lose some extra pounds. Cold water immersion causes the hormones Irisin and FGF to be released, burning fat tissues and leading to weight loss. So, for weight loss, how long to cold plunge? Well, you should take a cold plunge for three to five minutes.
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Lessens Muscles Aches
2 minute cold plunge benefits will reduce your muscle aches. A study found that the Coldwater immersion enhanced muscle recovery in volleyball players who practiced cold water immersion over 16 days. Athletes who immersed their bodies in cold water reported less muscle soreness after exercising than those who didn’t.
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Boosts Immune System
The benefits of cold plunge pool will boost your immune system. How often to cold plunge? So, you can take two to four cold plunges in one week. A study found that those who showered with cold water produced higher white blood cell counts than those who didn’t.
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Reduce Stress
The benefits of cold plunge therapy are to reduce stress and anxiety. Cold water stimulates the vagus nerve, which lowers the heart rate and reduces stress hormones in the body. In addition, hydrotherapy or cold water exposure treatment such as ice baths increases the production of mood-elevating hormones and neurotransmitters, including beta-endorphin and dopamine.
Below are some cold plunge risks.
Side Effects Of Cold Plunge
The side effects of cold plunge are,
- Risks of an icy plunge
- Hypothermia
- Frostbite
- Heart attack
- Heart arrhythmia
- The rapid increase in breathing
- Increase in blood pressure
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FAQ
What Does A Cold Plunge Do For Your Body?
Being immersed in cold water stimulates leukocytes, the white blood cells that help fight off sicknesses. It also causes the lymphatic system to contract, forcing fluid through the lymph nodes. This process aids in detoxing the body and strengthening your immune system.
How Long Should You Stay In Cold Plunge?
The target time of a cold plunge is three minutes. This is why you should build up to a 5-minute cold shower in the weeks preceding your plunge. Three minutes is also long enough to tap into the most desirable cold-immersion benefits, such as improved blood sugar regulation and fat burning.
Is A 2 Minute Cold Plunge Good?
It’s a perfect practice for mindfulness and being present in your life. All of the benefits of taking cold plunges point to tremendous benefits for your mind, body, and performance. With the addition of just a 2-minute daily routine, you can have all of the benefits described.
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Should You Shower After Cold Plunge?
#4 Don’t: Be quick to have a warm bath or warm shower soon after your cold session. Contrast therapy has its benefits, but it’s better to allow your body to raise its temperature naturally and gradually. The immediate switch from cold to hot and vice versa could also pose a possible shock on the body.
Conclusion
By reading this article you have understood what are the benefits of a cold plunge in detail. Do you know? The main idea behind cold water therapy is, by willingly exposing your body to the stress of the cold, you can regulate your nervous system and learn how to better manage stress. The human body’s response to the cold is similar to how we respond to other stressors in life. This includes reactions such as elevated heart rate, feelings of panic, body contractions, and shallow breathing. In simple words, intentionally subjecting ourselves to distress helps us cope with stress better thats one of the best benefits of cold plunge.