Ice baths were made popular in the last decade by Wim Hof and now innumerable athletes around the world use it for recovery purposes.

The first very well known benefit of ice bath is the ability to increase the dopamine in the brain by 2.5x the baseline amount. In contrast, chocolate only increase dopamine by 0.5x. This increase tends to last for a few hours during which time you will feel happier, calmer and more motivated.

Ice baths are also known to reduce inflammation by constricting blood vessels. This also delays the onset of muscle soreness after a workout. If you have long term injuries that tend to hurt, ice baths will help relieve that pain.

Ice baths burn calories because the body has to maintain a certain temperature. When your core body temperature gets lower than this, the body burns extra calories to return to your normal temperature. That’s why Michael Phelps has to eat so many calories everyday (around 7000) – because he is burning extra calories swimming in the cold water of the pool.

Lastly, ice bath help develop better immunity. We are fast approaching a world where new diseases are being discovered all the time. A strong immunity is essential to our well being and ice baths are able to help us achieve that.

Our fitness clubs have ice baths that are kept between 12 and 15 degree Celsius. To make the best use of them, sit in the ice baths for at least 2 minutes and let your body heat up naturally once you are done with it.