P90X Reviews: A Complete Review on the P90X Workout System

You’ve certainly seen the scenes in movies or documentaries about professional athletes where the athletes take a bath in ice after a workout or athletic event. If you’re doing an extreme home workout like P90X, there could be benefit to you as well in icing down muscle groups (or for that matter your entire body) after your workout. But why would you want to subject yourself to the discomfort of cold ice water or ice after you’ve just worked out and are already most likely in some pain? Here are the reasons that a post-workout ice down session is a good idea when doing extreme home fitness.

Why Does Ice Therapy Work?

What research implies is that intense exercise like that included in P90X will cause tiny tears in muscle fibers (technically called microtrauma). Those tiny tears are a good thing because they stimulate muscle cell activity that ultimately repairs and builds muscle, but it also creates, as we all know, muscle pain and soreness that can occur twenty-four to seventy-two hours after exercise. The theory (which is backed up by research) is that ice water or ice treatments will constrict blood vessels (which flushes waste like lactic acid from the torn muscles), slow down metabolic activity and reduce swelling around the torn tissues. Then, after the ice bath or ice treatment, when your body re-warms itself, circulation will increase in speed and you’ll heal more quickly.

How Cold and for How Long?

Unfortunately, there’s not much conclusive research about how cold your water should be and for how long you should stay in. It’s generally accepted that between twelve and fifteen degrees Celsius for five to ten minutes is sufficient, but every body is different.

Other Recovery Advice

No matter how you look at it, you’ll need to factor in recovery elements to your P90X program. After a big workout, consider P90X Results and Recovery Formula to make sure you’re putting the nutrients that you need to rebuild those microtraumas in your muscles. If you’re not a fan of a recovery drink, try some whey protein, which digests quickly so that the protein is available to your body for muscle rebuilding quickly. Another trick if you do want to ice is to use packs of frozen peas because they form to the body part that you’re icing easily!

Everybody needs to experiment to find their best recovery process. Try some cold ice water or icing techniques and see if they work for you. You may find that the end result is a greatly improved workout pattern!