Ice Baths

Agreed.

Agreed.
 
What's the thought on this? 

What's the thought on this? I've heard it has something to do with closing up the tears in muscle fibers, but I'm personally a fan of "Leg Drainers" and a hot bath soak. Am I doing it wrong? I did this right after my half on Sunday and was ready to run by Tuesday, not sore at all. If an ice bath means I'm ready to rock the next day after a long run, I'll do it!

-Jonny
 
I don't have a lot of

I don't have a lot of experience with ice baths so this is all new to me. Although, I have heard from many people how its best for recovery after a grueling workout. A friend of mine had climbed Whitney with very little training and dunked himself into a tub of ice water afterwards - swears by it. Today was my second time icing then hopping into the shower. First day, I don't know. I was able to get up like normal the next day. But, "long run" for me right now is a 2.8-ish mile with a decent hill climb. We'll see what tomorrow morning is like, any better than what I have been experiencing with the morning stiffness and I'll say it's working.



L
 
Yeah, keep me posted and I'll

Yeah, keep me posted and I'll see what I can dig up too! I have 2 halvs and a lot of training miles between now and my full in June! I'm gonna use anything I can to make it easier, more efficient, less painfull...

-Jonny
 
If i do a long run then i

If i do a long run then i often jump into an ice bath, well kneel to protect my more sensitive bits from such torture. There is a two minute period of pain, after that it's like sitting in a luke warm bath.

Some people also say that having ice baths can reduce muscle fitness, after all much of muscle fitness is only repaired trauma. Ice baths reduce the trauma, ergo loss of potential fitness.
 
You can get the same effects

You can get the same effects of an ice bath if you live near the west coast; just walk into the water.
 
I prefer hot water

I prefer hot water soacks myslef and I too want to know what "Leg Drainers" are. Today if possible.
 
LOL!  Sorry...finally got a

LOL! Sorry...finally got a job and it is REAAAAALLY cutting into my net surfing time!!

I got leg drainers off the Active.com site. They e-mail me tips and tricks to running every week. Basically, you lay on your back and prop your feet up on a wall at an upward angle for 4-6min. It's supposed to aid in the draining of tired blood from your legs as fresh blood pumps in. I usually just slide down in the tub and prop them up for 5 min or so, then soak and repeat. It seems to help.

-Jonny
 
Ok, I've done the ice bath

Ok, I've done the ice bath thing a handful of times, or so, now. I'm not seeing any change in how I feel in the morning. I still get up to stiff, tender feet that goes away within 5 minutes of being up. However, I recently developed some arch pain :( and have continued with the dreaded ice bath. What I see as the benefit of the ice bath is for the rest of the day I don't ache as much after I've pushed myself but I don't see the benefit extending to the next morning. This arch pain, I'm curious if it's a phase too? Knowing your feet are getting used to functioning barefoot and developing muscles long under used, I've seen something written somewhere (here?) about the change that happens in your arch after being barefoot for sometime. It's that or my form sucks when coming down the big hill. :-/



Laura
 
I think arch aches happen

I think arch aches happen from time to time regardless, especially in the first few months. Oh, and I dont do ice baths... But I do take really cold showers.
 
Chaserwilliams wrote:I think

Chaserwilliams said:
I think arch aches happen from time to time regardless, especially in the first few months. Oh, and I dont do ice baths... But I do take really cold showers.



Wimp..is all I have to say.
 
Here's my experience, and

Here's my experience, and maybe someone might find it a good idea:

After my race last Sunday (15K of trail) my legs and feet were beat up but not actually injured. I went to the lake right there and waded out to mid thigh depth and stood there until I knew my muscles were thoroughly cooled - i was just on the verge of teeth chattering. The water temp was about 45F and felt really cold to me. For the rest of the day my legs and feet felt fine. Better than after any race longer than a 5K in my memory.

I realize that I'm a sample of one, but at least it seems to be a positive effect. Anyone else?
 
I've found ice baths to be

I've found ice baths to be great during marathon training, makes me feel like I've got a new new pair of legs — well almost.

However, I'm not so sure that the actual benefits are as valuable as they feel.

It's suggested that although ice baths lessen the pain caused by muscle damage, they don't actually decrease the damage and that masking the pain in this way is similar to taking anti inflammatory pills, i.e. allowing us to continue training at a level that might be counterproductive. Seemingly there's still much to be discovered about this.

On the other side of the coin is this strategy. I reckon it could be a bit extreme myself and would take a bit of convincing.
 
During marathon training, at

During marathon training, at any mileage over 15 I would soak my feet/calves in a 5gal bucket of ice water. I'd start by cooling my feet then add more water to cool my lower then middle leg.

Not exactly sure how well it worked (placebo effect?), but it sure did feel good in the Texas heat we had this summer and I had no issues after the long runs! Ice baths? Excellent conditioning? Or, less impact due to being barefoot?
 
pilotrunner wrote:During

pilotrunner said:
During marathon training, at any mileage over 15 I would soak my feet/calves in a 5gal bucket of ice water. I'd start by cooling my feet then add more water to cool my lower then middle leg.

Not exactly sure how well it worked (placebo effect?), but it sure did feel good in the Texas heat we had this summer and I had no issues after the long runs! Ice baths? Excellent conditioning? Or, less impact due to being barefoot?



I would sit in a chair with my feet on an ice pack after some of my runs! I actually burned the bottoms of my feet one day when I tried to run at 11am! Not smart when you're hitting tripple digits!! Pilot, you running the Rock on Sunday?

-Jonny
 
I have never felt enough pain

I have never felt enough pain in my legs to put the boys in ice. I prefer heat though. My parents have a jacuzzi tub I'll be hitting up after the marathon this weekend.