Both hot and cold hydrotherapy are safe and supportive ways to exercise, recover, and improve mobility. Unlike land-based activities, your body is held and protected by the buoyancy of the surrounding water.
Hot water immersion therapy can improve blood flow, loosen stiff muscles, and calm the nervous system. Cold water immersion can reduce inflammation, relieve stress, and improve metabolism, brain focus, and mood.
A combination of both treatments (called ‘contrast therapy’) can work well for people of all ages and abilities.
As you read through this article and watch our physio recommendations, you’ll discover the best combination of hot and cold water therapy for your body.
Hot water immersion therapy is simply exercise and movement in a warm body of water that provides assistance and support for your muscles. You can find a local pool that offers aqua exercise, or you might find a backyard swim spa or plunge pool more convenient.
Cold water or ice bath therapy can be as simple as jumping into the ocean, but an ice bath is an easy backyard option if you don’t live on the coast.
Contrast therapy is when you create rapid changes in your body temperature which boosts your circulatory system as you alternate between hot and cold water.
Hydrotherapy dates back to ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Roman times, when Roman baths were enjoyed as therapeutic treatments.Cultures around the world have used cold water therapy for thousands of years. It was used in ancient Greece for therapeutic and relaxation purposes and even to help treat a fever.
Hot water immersion therapy can have many positive effects on your body, beyond just a relaxing massage.
High temperatures in a warm tub or sauna cause your blood vessels to dilate, which helps alleviate high blood pressure.
Walking, exercising or swimming against the jets of a swim spa can also provide a cardio workout to train and improve your heart health.
Warm water and jet massage stimulate blood flow to tense muscles and stiff joints, which can help ease pain in areas like your lower back, neck, and shoulders.
Staying mobile and flexible is a good way to reduce pain and stiffness in your body, so gentle movement and stretching within the pool area of a swim spa or larger spa pool will provide relief, especially as you’re also supported by the buoyancy of the water.
Warm baths and hot showers have been shown to relax the body and help induce sleep. Similarly, a warm hydrotherapy spa before bed helps with sleep due to the increase in temperature that helps relax the body while you are in the water.
The jet massage and turbulence of the water also stimulate the release of endorphins, which can relieve stress and enhance your mood to prepare your mind and body for a restful night's sleep, providing a natural cure for insomnia.
Even if you don’t head to bed after your spa, you will still enjoy the lasting benefit of spas' mood-enhancing qualities. A hot tub soak can provide relief from fatigue and anxiety, as endorphins are released to assist in elevating your mood.
More recently, many people who benefit from hot water therapy have found that immersion in cold or ice water provides additional benefits.
There’s also a selection of people who swear by a daily ‘cold plunge’ in the ocean, shower or an ice bath in the backyard.
Benefits begin with regular cold plunge immersion as part of your daily lifestyle.
Cold water immersion therapy is gaining in popularity right now, and it’s not hard to see why, with this long list of benefits…
mySpaICE is purpose-built for ice bath therapy. You can now experience all the benefits of ice bath therapy as well as our trusted warm water therapy in our new ice bath model.
Recover and revive with the power of cold water immersion every day.
Many of our customers have already welcomed a Sapphire Spa into their daily lifestyle and are finding that hot and cold water therapy is helping in various ways.
Many people's evening routines include an hour in the gym. Some facilities have a spa for post-workout recovery, but many people push through their exercise regime just in time to head home to cook dinner, feed the cat, and go to bed.
Imagine if you had a hydrotherapy spa at home for a post-workout massage to reduce muscle soreness and improve sleep patterns to recover rapidly, ready for the next full day.
You could also consider mySpaICE, purpose-built for ice bath therapy which is ready to use 24/7 without the need to buy bags of ice or empty from use the day before
Soothe your senses with an hour or more in this remarkable spa, myRelaxation, with multiple pumps and 81 hydro jet system.
mySwimgym is our most popular swim spa because of how many powerful jets we’ve incorporated into the lay-back seating.
This spa will leave you feeling refreshed and revitalised with jets from your toes to your aching shoulders and every muscle in between.
Especially as people look for more natural ways to improve their health, many elderly people suffering from arthritis find that the warm water of their spa relieves joint pain and stiffness.
Together with movement, supported by the buoyancy of the water, the warm water and also jet massage will help improve blood flow, soothe inflammation and loosen muscles by reducing tension in ligaments around joints.
myDualzone is the ideal solution for anyone wanting to benefit from hydro jet massage and movement within the pool area of a larger swim spa.
The twin pool spaces can be heated to different temperatures, allowing you to hold a higher temperature in the spa end for relaxing, therapeutic massage and maybe a cooler temperature in the swim pool end for plunge and exercise
Just like exercise, the warm water and massage of a spa can release endorphins within your body to improve your mood.
Especially with a spa available in your own backyard, you will find it easier to stay motivated to add this activity to your daily routine.
Whether you have someone to share this spa with or not, myPartner will deliver the ultimate massage from head to toe.
Sapphire Spas plunge pools offer a year-round alternative to traditional swimming pools. With efficient heating systems, you can keep the pool warm in winter and cool it down in summer. Additionally, including swim jets allows for light exercise or fun water play for kids.
Proper exposure to the cold starts a cascade of health benefits, including the buildup of brown adipose tissue and resultant fat loss, reduced inflammation that facilitates a fortified immune system, balanced hormone levels, improved sleep quality, and the production of endorphins - the feel-good chemicals in the brain that naturally elevate your mood.
You may like to learn more about cold therapy from Wim Hof ‘The Ice Man’ himself and give it a go, guided by his You Tube videos.....
Click here for some motivation to get you into a cold shower
Cold Shower vs Ice Bath : Which one is better?
Learn more about The Wim Hof Method : https://www.wimhofmethod.com/
We invited Brad from Physio Works in Pakenham to suggest some activities that many of you could do in our myWorkout5.0m swim spa which would be a beneficial addition to anyone’s health and wellness routine.
Your browser does not support the video tag.
Brad is used to working with clients in a hydrotherapy pool so he adapted the exercises to the jetted swim spa with ease.
Hopefully by now you’ve seen the benefits that warm water hydrotherapy can offer, from muscle recovery to rehabilitation and even reduced inflammation and greater range of movement. This can also be used in conjunction with cold water immersion therapy in our ice bath to improve your overall health.
With the largest retail showroom network in Australia, it’s easy to find a local store and choose your perfect hydrotherapy spa. Otherwise, you can book a virtual consultation.
