Cold water: good for muscles?

Are you wincing watching this? No need to go and find an ice hole, but immersion in cold water is sometimes used with the aim of preventing or treating muscle soreness after exercise. Does it work? A Cochrane review found:

• weak evidence suggesting that cold-water immersion reduces muscle soreness immediately after exercise and at 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours compared with rest or no treatment
• its safety is unknown
• the best method of cold water immersion is unknown

Evidently Cochrane has been shortlisted as one of the top 10 health organization blogs in the UK Blog Awards 2015! Do explore the site – we hope there are blogs here to interest everyone. You can also follow us – and talk to us – on Twitter @ukcochranecentr and @SarahChapman30

Links:

Bleakley C, McDonough S, Gardner E, Baxter GDavid, Hopkins JTy, Davison GW. Cold-water immersion (cryotherapy) for preventing and treating muscle soreness after exercise. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2012, Issue 2. Art. No.: CD008262. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD008262.pub2 – See more at: http://summaries.cochrane.org/CD008262/MUSKINJ_cold-water-immersion-for-preventing-and-treating-muscle-soreness-after-exercise#sthash.N3SdS2tE.dpuf