A new study suggests that cold water plunges may not be as effective for muscle recovery in women as many people believe.
The research, conducted by Vanessa Wellauer and her team at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland, was published in PLOS One.
It aimed to find out whether immersing in cold or hot water after intense exercise would help speed up muscle recovery in women.
When we push our muscles through intense workouts, especially with new or unfamiliar routines, it can cause tiny tears in the muscle fibers.
This damage triggers inflammation, which can lead to muscle soreness and slower recovery.
Cold and hot water immersions have long been thought to help with this process—cold water is believed to reduce inflammation, while hot water is thought to relax muscles and improve blood flow.
However, evidence for these benefits has been inconsistent, and very few studies have specifically examined the effects on women.
To explore this, the researchers recruited 30 women for a randomized clinical trial. Each participant performed the same demanding workout routine: five sets of 20 drop-jumps from a 0.6-meter-high box.
After the workout, the women were randomly assigned to one of three groups: one group did not immerse in water at all, another group submerged themselves up to their chest in cold water, and the third group did the same in hot water.
They stayed in the water for 10 minutes immediately after exercise and repeated the process two hours later.
The researchers measured several factors to gauge recovery, including swelling of the knee extensor muscles, muscle soreness, serum creatine kinase levels (which indicate muscle damage), and the participants’ ability to perform voluntary muscle contractions.
These measurements were taken before the exercise and again at 24, 48, and 72 hours after the workout.
The results were surprising.
Despite differences in how their bodies reacted to the water—those who used cold water had lower muscle oxygen levels shortly after the workout, while those in hot water had higher core body temperatures—neither type of water immersion improved muscle recovery compared to those who skipped the water plunges altogether.
The researchers found no significant difference in swelling, soreness, muscle strength, or levels of muscle damage between the groups.
These findings challenge the common belief that cold or hot water plunges can speed up recovery for women.
Wellauer and her team noted that the study highlights the complex relationship between how the body responds to water immersion and actual recovery outcomes.
They suggest that more research is needed to understand these connections better, particularly in women, since most previous studies have focused primarily on men.
The authors also believe that future research could explore different types of exercise routines that are more representative of real-world workouts and competitions.
For now, the study suggests that for women, neither cold nor hot water plunges seem to offer the quick recovery boost that many athletes might expect.
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