Wellness trend beloved by athletes and biohackers may actually do more harm than good: study

A study suggests that cold-water treatments after exercise may slow muscle recovery, despite their popularity among athletes and biohackers. In the trial, people who took a cold plunge regained slightly less strength and had signs of muscle damage for longer than those given heat or no treatment.

The researchers tested 40 participants after leg extensions reduced their maximum quadriceps strength by 36%. Over three days, strength recovered to 82% in the cold-water group, compared with 88 to 89% in the other groups; muscle-damage markers also remained elevated after three days for those who took a cold soak. None of the treatments reduced soreness over that period, though cold water briefly eased reported pain after one day. An expert said cold therapy may still help during repeated activity in hot conditions or events requiring rapid recovery.