What kind of shower to take after workout ? Hot or Cold

[Ragmaala]

I was just wondering which one is better .

I searched online, but there are different opinions, with benefits of both hot & cold. constriction vs dilation, relaxing vs recovery, immune boost vs lactic acid removal.

What are your guys experiences from more of a holistic perspective, with body-mind connection ?

Thanks

[CdnSikhGirl]

From a practical point of view hot water gets rid of all the yucky sweat better :) but colder yes does wake u up and invigorate so why not start out hot then switch? Lol

[Lucky]

Both.

As you are aware, heat causes vasodilation and cold causes vasoconstriction.

 After a workout, muscles are tighter, pumped and have gone through a series of contractions.  A series of events unfold from these contractions which leads to many chemicals being produced and especially lactic acid.    I have had it explained to me as if to think of the internal blood muscle differently to  the blood that bathes the external muscle. Therefore, the internal part of the muscle draws in as much blood and nurtrients for the contractions, but it can end up pooling in there and causing stiffness later on.   In effect, the blood bathing the external  body of muscle will be less mobile and of a lower volume.  This is why your biceps end up looking and feeling pumped after workout.  ...with all this in mind, it makes sense to get some vasodilation to prevent stiffness and cramps... so you would use "heat".  However, too much dilation can lead to more loss of sweat and salts, so many people recommend to do a quick switch to cold and get the vasoconstriction. This way none of your body parts will be deprived of any nutrients and you will feel stimulated and more alive.  But the biggest reason for me to do this hot-cold is because it is activates and energizes your subtle-etheric body and helps get your prana flowing. Remember that prana/chi is not air/oxygen, but it is the sukham life-force. You will also understand why many Sikhs recommend a cold shower at amrit vela. I believe you get the same effect if you have a warm shower and then in the last minute or so turn the dial to cooler and colder. I usually get out of the shower after being exposed to it's coldest setting for the last 30 seconds or to the point where I get the shift in my breathing pattern.

 

[samurai]

After a workout i would recommend a cold shower it helps with muscle recovery and soreness. But it does depend on the individual as some say cold showers not cold enough to give you benefits of an ice bath.. I would say just experiment, that is what i did and be aware of the difference if any between cold and hot showers. Only so much reading we can do..trial and error veereh. :)

Generally speaking from my experience cold showers has helped me in many ways. I used to take cold showers everyday and the immediate difference i felt in myself was more awareness, higher concentration, more vibrant mood, better posture, brighter/glow in face and overall 'feel good factor' . Another thing it helped me out with was my hay fever, i no longer need to take tablets or nasal spray in summer. when i went back to warm/hot showers i felt the opposite. Not dramatically but very much noticeable. Also a big difference is that with warm/hot showers the natural oils in hair are washed away leaving it dry where as with cold showers the hair stays moist. I now have warm showers everyday but have cold showers in the evening every other day, reason i stopped cold showers is because it is really difficult getting out of bed in winter and turning that cold tap on..lol.

i would highly recommend cold showers, just be sensible in terms of your environment and more importantly your health (if you have any health issues consult doctor before taking cold showers). If you decide to take it everyday i would advise to gradually introduce your body to it, ie start warm slowly finish cold. 

But in summer i stick to cold showers..This is just my opinion on cold showers from my experience.

Keep us updated if you decide to go ahead with cold showers...you may want to wait for weather to get warmer depending on where you are from.. Im from uk so winter is not that bad plus when i take cold showers i will not leave the house within the next hour of taking it but places like us and canada can be very cold this time of the year..

 

Good luck!!

[dalsingh101]

These days I always use a warm shower first (to soap up and clean myself), then end on a cold one for a few minutes.

[GurpreetKaur]

I thought the whole city ran outta water. Two times I heard from baba ji. Maybe it's just gurughar. 

[Ragmaala]

1 hour ago, GurpreetKaur said:

I thought the whole city ran outta water. Two times I heard from baba ji. Maybe it's just gurughar. 

haha I think it was just the gurughar

[Ragmaala]

7 hours ago, Lucky said:

 But the biggest reason for me to do this hot-cold is because it is activates and energizes your subtle-etheric body and helps get your prana flowing. Remember that prana/chi is not air/oxygen, but it is the sukham life-force. You will also understand why many Sikhs recommend a cold shower at amrit vela. I believe you get the same effect if you have a warm shower and then in the last minute or so turn the dial to cooler and colder. I usually get out of the shower after being exposed to it's coldest setting for the last 30 seconds or to the point where I get the shift in my breathing pattern.

 

Thanks veerji, got it . No one explains about prana on web. :)

So in mornings I find cooler is better for me, and after workouts  I will do warm & then cold.

[Ragmaala]

5 hours ago, samurai said:

After a workout i would recommend a cold shower it helps with muscle recovery and soreness. But it does depend on the individual as some say cold showers not cold enough to give you benefits of an ice bath.. I would say just experiment, that is what i did and be aware of the difference if any between cold and hot showers. Only so much reading we can do..trial and error veereh. :)

Generally speaking from my experience cold showers has helped me in many ways. I used to take cold showers everyday and the immediate difference i felt in myself was more awareness, higher concentration, more vibrant mood, better posture, brighter/glow in face and overall 'feel good factor' . Another thing it helped me out with was my hay fever, i no longer need to take tablets or nasal spray in summer. when i went back to warm/hot showers i felt the opposite. Not dramatically but very much noticeable. Also a big difference is that with warm/hot showers the natural oils in hair are washed away leaving it dry where as with cold showers the hair stays moist. I now have warm showers everyday but have cold showers in the evening every other day, reason i stopped cold showers is because it is really difficult getting out of bed in winter and turning that cold tap on..lol.

i would highly recommend cold showers, just be sensible in terms of your environment and more importantly your health (if you have any health issues consult doctor before taking cold showers). If you decide to take it everyday i would advise to gradually introduce your body to it, ie start warm slowly finish cold. 

But in summer i stick to cold showers..This is just my opinion on cold showers from my experience.

Keep us updated if you decide to go ahead with cold showers...you may want to wait for weather to get warmer depending on where you are from.. Im from uk so winter is not that bad plus when i take cold showers i will not leave the house within the next hour of taking it but places like us and canada can be very cold this time of the year..

 

Good luck!!

Thanks bhaji, I have also been doing Cold showers on & off for long time and have seen similar benefits like you. Today was -10 degrees celsius here. But hme environments are heated so all good.

[Singh123456777]

Cold water is your friend. I have been using cold water for 2 years now in summer and winter. It really does wonders. 

[dalsingh101]

I tend to go for solely cold showers in summer.