That's intriguing research about how heat improves performance. I wanted to ask if you had some thoughts on how heat training impacts recovery. Runners regularly hear about the benefits of ice baths after hard efforts, so would high heat hinder that process?
Heat can definitely be a great recovery tool; I wrote about some ways it can help with pain/muscle soreness for the WSJ last month: https://www.wsj.com/articles/heating-pads-should-give-you-more-than-heat-11674749331 Heat would not hinder recovery in any way, unless your core temperature is too high from your workout and you immediately sit in a bath/sauna (that would put you at risk for heat illness). Re: ice baths, there's some research (https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/japplphysiol.00127.2019) that shows cold-water immersion following resistance training could actually inhibit muscle growth, and some coaches warn against ice baths in order for runners to get the most adaptations from training stress. But cold water immersion can reduce pain for up to four days post-exercise, so it depends what your goal is. I tend to opt for heat over cold therapy.
Thanks for the additional articles - I'll check them out! I can see how heat might need to be carefully managed in summer runs if you're finishing under hot, humid conditions. Personally, I prefer heat over cold as well. I don't know how runners sit in ice baths, or, for that matter, how people can handle polar plunges!
That's intriguing research about how heat improves performance. I wanted to ask if you had some thoughts on how heat training impacts recovery. Runners regularly hear about the benefits of ice baths after hard efforts, so would high heat hinder that process?
Heat can definitely be a great recovery tool; I wrote about some ways it can help with pain/muscle soreness for the WSJ last month: https://www.wsj.com/articles/heating-pads-should-give-you-more-than-heat-11674749331 Heat would not hinder recovery in any way, unless your core temperature is too high from your workout and you immediately sit in a bath/sauna (that would put you at risk for heat illness). Re: ice baths, there's some research (https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/japplphysiol.00127.2019) that shows cold-water immersion following resistance training could actually inhibit muscle growth, and some coaches warn against ice baths in order for runners to get the most adaptations from training stress. But cold water immersion can reduce pain for up to four days post-exercise, so it depends what your goal is. I tend to opt for heat over cold therapy.
Thanks for the additional articles - I'll check them out! I can see how heat might need to be carefully managed in summer runs if you're finishing under hot, humid conditions. Personally, I prefer heat over cold as well. I don't know how runners sit in ice baths, or, for that matter, how people can handle polar plunges!