By Haley Lerner
Cold therapy, or cryotherapy, is one of the coolest (pun intended) fitness trend going on right now. Cold therapy is when you apply something frozen or cold to an area of your body to treat pain. There are various methods of cold therapy, such as icepacks, ice massage, whirlpools, ice baths or coolant sprays. We’ve got some reasons why cold therapy is one of the best ways for managing pain.
Check out our fitness tips on why cold therapy is a great pain management option for you!
1. Pain relief: Cold therapy is a great pain relief option instead of pain relievers. Cryotherapy can reduce swelling and sensitivity to pain. Cold therapy is very useful directly following an injury, as it constricts blood vessels to reduce blood flow to the area, limiting inflammation and muscle spasms.
2. Burn fat: By exposing yourself to the cold, you activate brown adipose tissue, or BAT. BAT helps produce energy and oxidize fat in muscle tissue. By using cold to activate BAT, your body generates heat, raises your metabolism and burns off fat.
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3. Be more alert:Nothing wakes you up more than a cold shower. Cryotherapy can be a great option to help you focus and stimulate your mind to be more awake during the day.
4. Better your mood: Some studies show that cold therapy can actually increase your mood. Since there are a high density of cold receptors in the skin, a cold shower can actually send a huge amount of electrical impulses from peripheral nerve endings to the brain. This can then result in an anti-depressive effect.
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5. Increased immunity: Cold therapy can apparently help your immune system, as thermal stimulus to cold gives your body an increased tolerance to stress on your body. So, your body is better equipped to handle any diseases thrown at it.
Have any more reasons why to try cold therapy? Comment below!
