Cold plunge or a hot bath: Which has more benefits?
After working out, ice baths are popular, especially with influencers.
A report presented Thursday at the 2024 Integrative Physiology of Exercise Conference in University Park, Pennsylvania, however, indicates that recreational athletes perform better when they soak in a hot tub as opposed to a cold one, particularly if there are breaks in their workouts, like halftime in football and soccer.
The study's lead author, Mamoru Tsuyuki, a master's student in sports and health science at Ritsumeikan University in Shiga, Japan, stated that intense exercise damages muscle fibers and that hot water can improve blood flow, allowing the muscles to mend and grow stronger.
Additionally, Tsuyuki told NBC News in a Zoom call that raising muscle temperature would aid increase power output. Heat works be...