Cold-water immersion and other forms of cryotherapy: physiological changes potentially affecting recovery from high-intensity exercise

Abstract

High-intensity exercise is associated with mechanical and/or metabolic stresses that lead to reduced performance capacity of skeletal muscle, soreness and inflammation. Cold-water immersion and other forms of cryotherapy are commonly used following a high-intensity bout of exercise to speed recovery. Cryotherapy in its various forms has been used in this capacity for a number of years; however, the mechanisms underlying its recovery effects post-exercise remain elusive. The fundamental change induced by cold therapy is a reduction in tissue temperature, which subsequently exerts local effects on blood flow, cell swelling and metabolism and neural conductance velocity. Systemically, cold therapy causes core temperature reduction and cardiovascular and endocrine changes. A major hindrance to defining guidelines for best practice for the use of the various forms of cryotherapy is an incongruity between mechanistic studies investigating these physiological changes induced by cold and applied studies investigating the functional effects of cold for recovery from high-intensity exercise. When possible, studies investigating the functional recovery effects of cold therapy for recovery from exercise should concomitantly measure intramuscular temperature and relevant temperature-dependent physiological changes induced by this type of recovery strategy. This review will discuss the acute physiological changes induced by various cryotherapy modalities that may affect recovery in the hours to days (<5 days) that follow high-intensity exercise.

The Effectiveness of Whole Body Cryotherapy Compared to Cold Water Immersion: Implications for Sport and Exercise Recovery

“…However, the reduction of tissue temperature is a key component during recovery as it is a limiting factor for many pathways causing secondary damage (White & Wells, 2013;Bleakley & Davison, 2010). The decreased tissue temperature causes a lower nerve conduction velocity, limiting spasms and pain sensations, and vasoconstriction leading to decreased swelling and inflammatory signaling (White & Wells, 2013). Body cooling for recovery occurs at three levels: superficial, deep muscular, and core.…”

“…To do so, several markers of physiological Flourishing Creativity & Literacy changes associated with common theories of sport recovery were chosen for comparison (White & Wells, 2013). These include tissue temperature reduction, markers of muscle damage, markers of inflammation, and parasympathetic reactivation.…”

On the effect of thermal agents in the response of the brachial biceps at different contraction levels

“…Thus, cooling may have an analgesic effect before motor neurons are significantly affected, allowing for mobility with minimal pain sensation. It is therefore important to consider the effects of reducing muscle temperature when interpreting performance outcomes or using cold between consecutive exercise bouts, as the muscle may still be at sub-physiological temperature (White and Wells, 2013).…”

Efeito Da Imersão Em Água Fria Sobre a Recuperação Pós-Esforço Em Atletas De Jiu-Jitsu

“…[17][18][19][20][21][22] Desta forma, uma possível explicação para a queda de desempenho da força estática e não da força dinâmica, pode estar associada a reduzida capacidade de realizar trabalho estático nos atletas investigados em comparação aos trabalhos de Fonseca et al 7 e Santos et al 9 Nesses estudos, o tempo médio de trabalho estático foi cerca de 20 segundos superior ao apresentado na presente investigação.…”

“…[7][8][9] No presente estudo, os resultados do KGST não demonstraram diferenças estatísticas entre os grupos experimentais (IAF versus CON) Um fator que possivelmente influencia a capacidade de trabalho muscular durante o teste KGST é a eficiência neuromuscular e condicionamento físico do atleta para uma determinada tarefa. [17][18][19][20][21][22] Desta forma, uma possível explicação para a queda de desempenho da força estática e não da força dinâmica, pode estar associada a reduzida capacidade de realizar trabalho estático nos atletas investigados em comparação aos trabalhos de Fonseca et al 7 e Santos et al 9 Nesses estudos, o tempo médio de trabalho estático foi cerca de 20 segundos superior ao apresentado na presente investigação.Os resultados da literatura acerca da IAF e a recuperação muscular pós-esforço ainda permanecem controversos. Semelhante à outras intervenções, 23-30 o presente estudo também verificou que a IAF não influenciou nenhum parâmetro estudado (CQ, KGST e parâmetros isocinéticos).…”