If you’ve ever suffered from muscle soreness, there’s a good chance you’ve alleviated the pain with an Epsom salt bath. You may have even tried doing a home cold plunge as well. But could you get even better results by combining these two treatments? And are there additional benefits beyond soothing muscle soreness? Let’s cover the numerous ways you could improve your health and wellness using Epsom salt ice baths.
Are there Real Benefits to Taking an Epsom Salt Bath?
Epsom salt’s scientific name is actually magnesium sulfate. Although there isn’t much strong research to back up how effective Epsom salts are, many folks claim to get relief for multiple aches and ailments by soaking in an Epsom salt bath.
Proponents of Epsom salt baths believe that the magnesium transfers through the skin to reduce swelling and relieve muscle soreness and stiff joints. It’s also believed that Epsom salts can be an effective treatment for skin, reducing irritation and itching.
One thing is for sure—Epsom salt baths are relaxing and soothing. While the health benefits of a soak in Epsom salt-infused water haven’t been proven scientifically yet, almost anyone that’s tried it swears by this home remedy. At the end of the day, the downsides of using Epsom salts in a bath are few.
What are the Benefits of Taking Ice Baths?
Enhanced Muscle Recovery
When you’re training for a big event or simply for peak performance, you need rapid recovery. One of the primary benefits of taking an ice bath is reducing the time it takes to recover from strenuous workouts and muscle fatigue. When you need the fastest recovery times, there are few things better than taking ice baths!
Reduce Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness
Immersion in ice water triggers the blood vessels to constrict everywhere in the body. Following workouts, muscles and joints often swell, causing stiffness and pain. Plunging into ice-cold water quickly reduces this swelling, helping prevent delayed onset muscle soreness after hard workouts.
Faster Cool-Downs After Hot Workouts
The fastest way to drop your body temperature back down after exercising in the hot sun is by plunging into an ice bath. When you have a RENU cold plunge tub at home, you’re able to enjoy instant cool-downs anytime!
Support Mental Health
Research studies have started to find links between taking ice baths and a reduction in depression symptoms. As part of a solid mental health program, cold plunges serve as effective compliments to prescription medications when lifting moods is the goal.
Because cold tub therapy triggers the body to produce a flood of mood-elevating neurotransmitters, cold plunges ease tension and stress to produce a feeling of serenity. One study found that only four months of cold water swimming resulted in subjects feeling more energetic and positive than those who hadn’t exposed themselves to the cold.
Sleep More Soundly
Ice bath therapy can help reduce aches and pains everywhere in the body, helping you more comfortably fall asleep and stay asleep. Some people even combine ice baths with hot sauna sessions.
Reduce the Risk of Injury
Both ice baths and Epsom salt baths have been used to treat injuries along with joint and muscle swelling for decades now. Similar to the RICE method (Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation), ice bath therapy can deliver the same benefits, but for your entire body.
Because exposure to cold causes blood vessels to constrict, taking an ice bath reduces swelling, pain, and muscle soreness. Additionally, ice bath therapy can help slow the nervous system’s transmission of pain signals, muting the perception of pain.
Preparedness for Your Next Workout
Part of how your body prepares itself for your next workout is by flushing the toxins out of your muscle tissue. This task is the lymphatic system's job, and one of the primary benefits of cold water immersion therapy is that it helps improve the function of this system.
Bolster Your Body’s Immune System
Another benefit of ice baths triggering the lymphatic system function is that it supports the immune system. Since bacteria and bodily toxins are flushed away by the lymphatic system, microbes and cell waste are prevented from building up, keeping your body healthier.
What Happens if You Add Epsom Salt to an Ice Bath?
Epsom Salt Ice Bath
We’ve established there are benefits of using Epsom salts, but most people associate this therapy with soaking their feet in a tub of warm water. What about the clear benefits of ice baths? One way people seeking muscle recovery, reduced stress, and even improved brain function can get results is by combining these two therapies.
In addition to the numerous benefits of ice baths, Epsom salts deliver the added benefits of magnesium. This added ingredient could enhance the overall outcomes received and improve the total effectiveness of taking ice baths.
Does Epsom Salt Damage Cold Plunge Tubs?
Epsom Salt in Ice Bath
The technical name for Epsom salt is magnesium sulfate, which is far different from table salt, which is sodium or potassium chloride. It’s especially different from salt used for snow treatment. The most important differentiation here is that Epsom salt doesn’t have chlorine in it, which can be corrosive.
When it comes to the corrosive power of salt, ions run the show. Corrosion doesn't come from exposure to positively charged ions, like sodium, potassium, iron, or magnesium. It comes from negatively charged ions, like chlorine. With Epsom salt, the negative ion is sulfate, not chlorine, so the corrosiveness of sulfate is far less than that of chlorine.
All of this means that adding Epsom salts to the water in your RENU Therapy cold plunge tub is not harmful to the equipment or to your skin. Just always remember not to add chlorine-based salts, or you could wind up dissolving away the finish on the internal components.
Why Choose a RENU Ice Bath Tub?
RENU Therapy makes cold plunge tanks 100% in the USA by hand. Each tank comes with an industry-leading warranty, and our team goes the extra mile to ensure 100% customer satisfaction! Select from multiple tank styles to easily match the vibe of your home.
Our cold water therapy tubs feature a world-class design that infuses beauty wherever they're placed. Contact RENU Therapy today!
