Does taking a cold shower after exercise increase fat burning?

Many people hesitate between cold shower after exercise or hot water. They don't know which one is the most beneficial, but there are many hypotheses about this; For example, taking a cold shower after exercise helps the body recover and lose weight and burn more fat.

On the other hand, some people believe that taking a cold shower has some side effects and we should not take a cold shower after training. In your opinion, which one of these hypotheses is correct and will a cold shower after training work at all? In this article about vitamin, we will clarify this issue.

Should we take a cold or warm shower after exercise?

Hot shower or cold shower after exercise, each one has special features that we should pay attention to and then make the best choice.

Cold shower

A cold shower after exercise acts as a shock to the body. Cold water causes the body temperature to drop, and as a result, blood is directed to the vital organs. The contraction of blood vessels increases the blood pressure and the tissue temperature drops. This will prevent inflammation and reduce local pain. People with high blood pressure should not take cold showers.

Hot shower

Although a cold water shower works faster in reducing body inflammation, if you take a hot water shower for a long time after exercise, it will be more effective in reducing pain and will increase tissue flexibility and blood flow.
A hot shower causes blood vessels to dilate and increase blood flow. As a result, lactic acid is dispersed in the muscles and pain is felt less after training.
There is evidence that a hot shower will increase growth hormone and reduce stress.
tip: Warm water does not mean very hot water; The water should be only slightly warmer than the environment.

as a result :

For normal soreness after exercise, a warm shower is better; But, to remove the damage and inflammation, ice compress or cold water shower is recommended.

The benefits of a cold shower after exercise

After the training session, be sure to take a shower. Not showering after training may cause various problems for you (including skin problems and boredom) and also prevent your body from recovering. If this bath is with cold water, it will have very beneficial effects for your soul and body. In the following, we will tell you some benefits of taking a cold shower after exercise.

1. Reduction of muscle inflammation and better recovery

Cold water is known as a natural way to reduce muscle inflammation after sports activity. Cold water helps to close blood vessels and reduce blood pressure in the vessels, thereby reducing muscle inflammation, lactic acid (which is produced during exercise) is removed, and as a result, pain and swelling after exercise are greatly reduced.

2. Increase heart health

A cold shower lowers your core body temperature, which makes your heart work harder to pump blood around your body faster. This improves your blood circulation and helps prevent cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack, angina and stroke. Cold water shower is even effective in increasing metabolism.

3. Reduce stress and anxiety

Cold water can help control stress and anxiety. Research has shown that cold water can affect the nervous system and calm you down; but how? Cold water increases the production of norepinephrine and dopamine, and even endorphins, hormones that stimulate your nervous system and cause happiness, excitement and pleasure!

4. More mental awareness and concentration

Mental awareness is an important aspect of sports life; It means to have a good focus, control your emotions and think about the solution and improvement of the negative points without stress. When you shower with cold water, you create this focus and awareness; Because you have to endure the cold water and fight with this stress!

5. Skin rehydration after sweating

After sweating a lot during exercise, it is normal for the body and skin to lose water and become dry. Also, sweat dries up on your skin, which is not hygienic and can damage your skin. But a quick shower with cold water can restore your skin's natural moisture, and cold water is better here than hot water.

Hot water dries the sebum layer of the skin, which is responsible for moisturizing and protecting the body and hair. Cold water shower does not dry this skin layer; Therefore, the skin maintains its natural hydration.

6. Strengthen the immune system

Exercise itself strengthens your immune system, but so does cold water! Scientific studies have shown that cold showers can increase the number of white blood cells in the body. We all know that the function of white blood cells is to strengthen the immune system and keep the body healthy.

7. Mood improvement

As we said, a cold shower can reduce stress and anxiety. This will improve our mood and mood.

In addition, a cold shower after exercise is more useful for refreshing; Because it causes a shock in the body and our body starts breathing deeply to warm itself. Therefore, we will receive more oxygen and heart rate and blood supply in the body will increase and we will feel more energetic.

Myths about cold showers after exercise

There are conflicting opinions and beliefs about taking a cold shower after exercise. Some people recommend cold water shower for some reasons and on the other hand, some people are against it. There are several common misconceptions regarding this topic. We will discuss them below.

1. Increasing fat burning with cold shower?

This myth, i.e. burning fat and losing weight due to a cold shower after exercise, is definitely related to the brown fat in the human body. According to this principle, the main function of white fat is to store calories for the future and brown fat is to help maintain body temperature by burning fat.

When you take a cold shower, brown fats are stimulated and try to raise the body's metabolism, but we must say that unfortunately this effect is not enough to cause slimming and weight loss. Note that showering with cold water will also increase your appetite!

Truth: If you want to lose weight, you should spend at least a few hours a day under the cold shower; Of course, it also depends on your genetics; So don't waste your time. We don't have any other way to lose weight other than the right way.

2. Cold shower and increase testosterone production?

These days, many people suggest that showering with cold water is the best method for hormone therapy and treatment of hormonal disorders. They believe that the sex glands will work better in these conditions and at low temperature. Some bodybuilders believe that by taking a cold shower after training, they can increase their body's testosterone and experience better muscle growth as a result.

But still, it cannot be said that showering with cold water after training can reduce the temperature of the glands inside the body and affect their performance to such an extent. If there is any effect, it is definitely minor due to the greater contact of water with the head, shoulders and chest.

Truth: There is no arguable evidence about the effect of cold showers on increasing the secretion of testosterone in the body.

3. Staying in an ice bath to speed up muscle recovery?

An ice bath can reduce muscle pain and increase recovery, but going into a tub of cold water for 10 minutes will not have the same effect. According to a research conducted on the effect of cold water shower after exercise, it was found that showering twice a day with ice water for 10 minutes will reduce your volume drastically. This is most likely because cold water suppresses the signaling of molecules responsible for gaining muscle mass.

Truth: Showering with ice water for 10 minutes after exercise will reduce muscle pain, but it will also prevent muscle growth and increase your physical strength. A cold shower after exercise will not have much effect on the mentioned cases.

4. Take a cold shower for fun to boost your immune system?

Statistics show that most swimmers and athletes in winter sports have a high level of antioxidants in their blood and are less likely to suffer from seasonal diseases than other people. Another study also showed that sitting in cold water for one hour, three times a week, will increase white blood cells.

But exposing ourselves to water or cold air and ice and being sure that we will not get sick again does not seem very logical, but this work increases the secretion of some chemicals in the body and reduces the possibility of contracting infectious diseases. . It should be noted that in order to see the effect of this work, this method must be followed in the long term.

Truth: To strengthen the immune system, you should take a cold shower (below zero degrees) several times a week for 30 to 60 minutes to strengthen your immune system. Otherwise, taking a shower with cold water, even recreationally, has no special effect on the body's immune system.

5. Cold shower to prevent acne and blackheads?

This myth is related to the health of skin and hair with a cold shower. It is believed that a cold water shower closes the pores of the skin surface and prevents the occurrence of acne and blackheads; In addition, showering with cold water helps preserve the natural oils on the surface of the skin and hair and will keep them fresh, fresh and shiny.

Well, now it's time to go to the studies and see which of the mentioned cases is true. The first studies showed that the size of the pores of the skin depends on the age, genetics and race of each person, and there will not be much work to change the size of the skin pores forever. Also, as people age, their skin pores become more open over time, and showering with cold water will definitely not have a wonderful effect on the skin of the elderly.

Of course, many studies have shown that cold water will improve the health of the skin and hair; But, not by changing the size of the skin pores, but by increasing the blood flow, such improvement will happen under the skin of your face.

Truth: Unfortunately, there is no solid evidence to confirm that taking a cold shower after exercise improves the quality of your skin and hair.

Important points about cold showers

After any exercise that raises your heart rate and makes you sweat, you should shower. Regarding the cold water shower after exercise, it is better to know and follow these tips.

• The first point: Cold water shower after exercise does not mean very cold water! Rather, what is meant by cold water is a temperature of about 25 degrees Celsius.

• The second point: Showering time should not be immediately after training, but it is better to be about 30 minutes after finishing your training session. Taking a shower, whether with cold or warm water, is a very good habit for athletes, which is recommended to everyone.

final word

Taking a cold shower after exercise is a habit of many athletes and has several advantages. In this article, we explained in detail the benefits of cold water shower in bodybuilding and sports and explained the various beliefs and studies done about cold water shower.

Source: muscleforlife – honehealth