HEAT vs. ICE

[ScottyDoc]

HEAT vs. ICE

Ice packs and heat pads are among the most commonly used treatments in orthopedics. So which one is the right one to use for your injury, ice or heat? And how long should the ice or heat treatments last?

HEAT: Heat treatments should be used for chronic conditions to help relax and loosen tissues, and to stimulate blood flow to the area. Use heat treatments for chronic conditions, such as over-use injuries, before participating in activities. Do not use heat treatments after activity, and do not use heat after an acute injury. Heating tissues can be accomplished using a heating pad, or even a hot, wet towel. When using heat treatments, be very careful to use a moderate heat for a limited time to avoid burns (20 minutes). Never leave heating pads or towels on for extended periods of time, or while sleeping.
ICE:
Ice treatment is most commonly used for acute injuries. If you have a recent injury (within the last 48-72 hours) where swelling is a problem, you should be using ice treatment. Ice packs can help minimize swelling around the injury. Ice packs are often used after injuries, such as when a sprain/strain has occurred. Applying ice early and often (20 minutes per treatment) for the first 48-72 hours will help minimize swelling which will, in turn, help to control the pain. Ice treatments may also be used for chronic conditions, such as over-use injuries. In this case, ice the injured area after activity to help control inflammation. Never ice a chronic injury before activity (heat is protocol for that).

Application of HEAT & ICE: Application of either ice or heat should never be longer than 20 minutes to reduce risk of burning skin, as the skin can be burned/damaged from both ice and heat therapies if used improperly. Also, direct heat or cold should never be applied directly to the skin, there should always be some form of buffer between the two (towel or cloth). Also, my personal preference (what I recommend to my patients) is once an injury has gone past 72 hours and is considered a chronic injury heat and ice should be applied alternately, always ending in ice. For example, 20 minutes of heat then 20 minutes of ice, one right after the other, always ending with ice. So without getting technical, the way I look at it is the heat speeds things up and allows more blood and lymph flow to the injury, which speeds up the healing process. Ice, however, slows everything down and decreases the amount of blood and lymph in the injured area, but also decreases swelling & inflammation (responsible for pain). So think of it as a pump, heat pumps the good stuff in and ice pumps the bad stuff out before it pools and starts to swell and become inflamed. Also, as mentioned above if it is an over-use injury, heat before activity to loosen/warm muscles up and ice after activity to reduce inflammation/swelling, therefore reducing pain.

[lonewolf0420]

Good reminder.

[ScottyDoc]

Home Made Ice Pack:

OK, here is a little trick I learned and tried out the other day on how to make a good ice pack at home. I am not trying to take credit for it, I found it on another forum, but it is good and consistent with my HEAT vs. ICE post.

Ingredients:
2 Gallon size ziplock bags
rubbing alcohol
water

Fill one of the ziplock bags 1/2 way with 1/3 rubbing alcohol and 2/3’s water. Freeze and it becomes nice and slushy, won’t freeze solid, so it is excellent for hard to ice areas like shoulders, knees, elbows wrists, etc. It allows you to conform it to the area. I always put the 1st ziplock bag into a second one just to make sure there is no leakage.

Hope this Helps!

[NCAA68]

The way i learned was u ice after impact activities like running jumping generally activities that cause swelling in bursur sacs and heat after low impact strenuous activities cuz i think lactic acid thickens at cooler temps and is easier for ur body to flush... in college we had 2 whirlpools one hot and one ice and wed alternate 3 min in each for 3 sets, it was the best recovery ive ever experienced

[rankbull]

YouTube- Brock Lesnar's Trainning

Brock Lesner loves to ice down after a training session. If he does it, it's got to be good (because he has a c**k on his chest)!!

[NCAA68]

haha i like the drill and the sticks, but no one does real heavy bag work without gloves on. besides the leather burn on your knuckles you would seriously eff your wrists up

[bezoe]

Another valuable informative thread Doc! Sticky this!

[bezoe]

The way i learned was u ice after impact activities like running jumping generally activities that cause swelling in bursur sacs and heat after low impact strenuous activities cuz i think lactic acid thickens at cooler temps and is easier for ur body to flush... in college we had 2 whirlpools one hot and one ice and wed alternate 3 min in each for 3 sets, it was the best recovery ive ever experienced

Interesting tactic alternating the two... only thing is you wanna be careful using heat after a workout. It may prolong inflammation

Doc im gonna have to try that homemade ice pack... hopefully i wont need it though!

[MrKleen73]

Hot, Cold, Hot, Cold, Hot, Cold 2 minutes at each and as hot and cold as you can stand it in the shower after weight training reduces the lactic acid more. ICE is best for joints or tendons having issues.

[rankbull]

haha i like the drill and the sticks, but no one does real heavy bag work without gloves on. besides the leather burn on your knuckles you would seriously eff your wrists up

Haha I didn't even notice... Even when I hit the bag with just my workout gloves on (pretty tough and give decent wrist support) I notice my knuckles will be pretty red and my wrists feel like they need to be popped back into place lol

[ScottyDoc]

Thanks for your posts guys, heat & ice contrast is good and yes it definitely will help reduce lactic acid. But... I would ice for like 15 mins right after a workout, then start the heat/ice contrast, like Bezoe said if you go directly to heat you will only prolong any possible inflammation and lifting weights does micro-tears to muscle, so there is mild inflammation, whether you can see it or feel it. Just my 2 cents on the matter! Good Luck to you all and your training!

[JohnBrinks]

YO SD! Hows the shedule these days post pre-comp phase!???

I always have a sauna after the gym to keep my skin toxin free and to make sure its breathing because the acid produced from too much protien synthesis stops your skin from breathing. Im also aware your muscles dont actually recover untill they reach normal length after a workout, So I get a good muscle tension releaver out of it too.

Also when your sweat pores open it draws toxins to the surface, but the only get expelled as your skin cools so I jump in and out of the sauna into a cold shower a coulpe of times, propper flesh burner .

[JThaR3ason]

First off, great post.

A little tip for icing; buy some paper dixie cups, the kind they use at the dentist (and jello shots for you partiers). Fill them up about 3/4 of the way w/ water. Freeze them, peel back till you have about 1/4 of the paper left to grip on. Rub the injury point, (i.e. shoulder: directly on the AC joint.) for 2-3 mins. This will provide conentrated icing to the injury point. It works very well in conjunction w/ standard icing procedures. I recently learned this technique from my physical therapist for a shoulder injury and it is a pretty awesome way to take down the swelling.
MAKE SURE YOU DONT USE LONGER THAN 3 MINUTES!!!!

btw i know this goes against the original post (never apply directly to skin). I did speak to my PT prior to posting this, and due to the short time you are applying the ice the chance of damage the skin tissue is extremely slim. And i trust him he has been doing this for 15+ years.

[ScottyDoc]

First off, great post. btw i know this goes against the original post (never apply directly to skin). I did speak to my PT prior to posting this, and due to the short time you are applying the ice the chance of damage the skin tissue is extremely slim. And i trust him he has been doing this for 15+ years.

I agree with the above information, when originally posting never directly against the skin, I was referring to when someone is icing in general for 15-20 mins, it should not be directing against the skin, but when performing an ice-massage as explained above, it is kind of hard not to do it directly against the skin, also, it is for a short time and being moved around, so not concentrated in one area for too long a period of time damage the skin, also mentioned above! Excellent idea, thank you for sharing!

ScottyDoc - AL

[ScottyDoc]

YO SD! Hows the shedule these days post pre-comp phase!???

I always have a sauna after the gym to keep my skin toxin free and to make sure its breathing because the acid produced from too much protien synthesis stops your skin from breathing. Im also aware your muscles dont actually recover untill they reach normal length after a workout, So I get a good muscle tension releaver out of it too.

Also when your sweat pores open it draws toxins to the surface, but the only get expelled as your skin cools so I jump in and out of the sauna into a cold shower a coulpe of times, propper flesh burner .

John, I am beginning to truly believe even though we are miles apart, we are truly woven from the same cloth! I too love and am a huge advocate of Saunas, also love doing the whole body contrast from hot to cold! I just wish the gym I work out at had one of those cold dips, where it is a stare case in and out with rails on the sides and keep the water at like 60 deg. F. or something like that! I 100% agree with all of what John has mentioned above and I practice it as well, thanks for that post John, it really is an excellent trick of the trade... keeps me going!

ScottyDoc - AL

[ScottyDoc]

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[trickyazn]

Great information! I'll be sure to remember this if I ever have any minor injuries (flat bb bench anyone?)

[bezoe]

Great information! I'll be sure to remember this if I ever have any minor injuries (flat bb bench anyone?)

**** flat bb bench

[ScottyDoc]

**** flat bb bench

I think I'm going to start calling you Beazto, because you are such a BEAST!

Hey but seriously, do you know the # to a good vet in your Area?

[JohnBrinks]

I think I'm going to start calling you Beazto, because you are such a BEAST!

Hey but seriously, do you know the # to a good vet in your Area?

I dont know if that was intentional,

but THATS AS FUNNY AS HELL!



beast... vet...