Muscle Growth and Recovery: Is It Time to Re-evaluate Ice Baths

Are you one of many who plunge into cold water after a strenuous workout to boost recovery? Recent research might make you reconsider this strategy if you’re an athlete focusing on muscle hypertrophy. A new study dives deep into the effects of cold water immersion (CWI) post-exercise and its influence on muscle growth from resistance training. The surprising finding? It might actually be inhibiting your gains.

I gotta say, as a tropical girl that loves warm beaches, ice baths have always been a ‘no’ for me, so I feel quite justified in my wimpiness right now.

Unpacking the ice bath study

The comprehensive research, conducted by a team of scientists led by Alec Piñero, Ryan Burke, and Francesca Augustin, involved a systematic review and meta-analysis of available literature. They meticulously analysed eight studies that used CWI as a post-exercise recovery strategy. The focus was on how CWI impacted muscle hypertrophy, or growth, following resistance training. Note that this particular study has not yet undergone peer-review, so the findings should be reviewed with that in mind. However, I will cite various other peer-reviewed studies below for you to make your own conclusions.

The affects of ice baths on muscle hypertrophy

The initial analysis of the study led by Pińero et al, showed strong evidence that resistance training alone contributed significantly to muscle hypertrophy. This comes as no surprise, as resistance training is known to stimulate muscle growth.

The Chilling Effect of Cold Water Immersion:

However, the waters got murkier when CWI was introduced into the equation. When combined with resistance training, CWI seemed to cause a noticeable drop in hypertrophic outcomes. Instead of the substantial muscle growth seen with resistance training alone, the results of combining it with CWI were much smaller, even approaching zero in some instances.

Comparison Between the Groups:

In a head-to-head comparison, the study found that those who participated in resistance training without CWI had greater muscle growth than those who combined resistance training with CWI. Importantly, this held true irrespective of the training status of the individuals, implying that both novice and veteran trainers might be hindering their muscle growth with post-workout cold plunges.

Although there are many benefits to cold water immersion, there is evidence that muscle hypertrophy, may not be one of them.

Conclusion:

This groundbreaking research suggests that CWI, a popular recovery strategy among many athletes and gym-goers, might not be the best friend of muscle growth. While it can offer recovery benefits, it appears that CWI could be slowing down the hypertrophic changes stimulated by resistance training. Therefore, if muscle growth is your goal, you might want to reconsider your post-workout plunge into cold water.

Keep in mind, though, that this is a single study, and more research is needed to fully understand the complex relationship between post-exercise CWI and muscle growth. It's always recommended to consult with fitness or health professionals to make informed decisions about your workout and recovery routines.

As usual, I’ll include a few resources below for you to do your own research. 

Resources

Throwing cold water on muscle growth: A systematic review with meta-analysis of the effects of post-exercise cold water immersion on resistance training-induced hypertrophy. https://doi.org/10.51224/SRXIV.301

Fyfe JJ, Broatch JR, Trewin AJ, Hanson ED, Argus CK, Garnham AP, Halson SL, Polman RC, Bishop DJ, Petersen AC. Cold water immersion attenuates anabolic signaling and skeletal muscle fiber hypertrophy, but not strength gain, following whole-body resistance training. J Appl Physiol (1985). 2019 Nov 1;127(5):1403-1418. doi: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00127.2019. Epub 2019 Sep 12. PMID: 31513450.

Esperland D, de Weerd L, Mercer JB. Health effects of voluntary exposure to cold water - a continuing subject of debate. Int J Circumpolar Health. 2022 Dec;81(1):2111789. doi: 10.1080/22423982.2022.2111789. PMID: 36137565; PMCID: PMC9518606.