I tried whole body cryotherapy and I loved it
The growing trend has found a new fan
Cryotherapy is cool. Although the treatment has not yet been approved by the FDA, the growing popularity of the minimally invasive procedure is making it’s way through the ranks of celebrities, athletes and chronic pain sufferers alike.
I’d seen enough re-runs of Austin Powers to know I had to try it. But first, I had to get the facts, and make sure I wasn’t going to be shot into space to orbit in a Big Boy statue.
How did cryotherapy begin?
The treatment was invented by Japanese rheumatologist Toshima Yamaguchi in 1978 when he discovered that subjecting the body to extreme cold helped rheumatoid arthritis patients move better and feel less pain for up to four hours post treatment.
However, cold therapy dates way back to ancient times when the Greeks promoted cold baths as a tonic and the Romans held court in their frigidariums.
What is cryotherapy?
Cryotherapy is essentially the process of using cold temperatures for health benefits, or in this case freezing temperatures that can fall to below 200F.
The session takes 3 minutes during which you enter a chamber wearing nothing but your skivvies and thick socks and gloves that are provided to protect your hands and feet.
Most cryosaunas use liquid nitrogen, lowering the skin temperature to about 30 to 50 degrees F during the session duration. While your skin drops in temperature it sends messages to your brain and stimulates regulatory functions in your body assisting areas that might not be working to their fullest potential. Your fight or flight response is triggered, and once you step out you feel a warmth radiating outward from your core as the blood vessels increase in size flooding oxygenated, nutrient-rich, anti-inflammatory blood throughout the body.
Who else has tried cryotherapy?
Jessica Alba, Jennifer Anniston, Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, Tim Ferris and Tony Robbins are just some of the few names touting the treatment to their followers.
Traction for the treatment started in the USA after Mark Cuban purchased chambers for the Mavericks. In 2011 they won the championship and the correlation between cryo and winning was born.
What are the benefits of cryotherapy?
A myriad of benefits has been attributed to the treatment but without adequate research the jury is still out. Some touted benefits include:
- Faster muscle recovery
- Decrease in inflammation
- Increased athletic performance
- Reduction of chronic pain and fatigue
- Weight loss
- Increased collagen production
- Better sleep
The benefits outweighed my fear of freeze and I made an appointment at the Cryozone in Santa Monica shortly after my deep dive into the world of cryo.
When I arrived for my session the tech checked my blood pressure and gave me the all clear for treatment. Having a high sensitivity to cold, I was really nervous about my ability to stay in the chamber for the full 3 minute duration. However, 3 minutes passed in no time and the tech kept my mind off the cold by chatting me up and telling me about his experiences with cryotherapy. He mentioned that most people see benefits after repeated sessions, and it can take as many as 7 before you see the full effects. At this point my time was up and the adrenaline rush that was setting in was enough to convince me to come back for more. I made an appointment for the next morning and went home to see what the after effects would be.
The adrenaline rush I felt was similar to that of an intense workout and once I warmed up I felt famished. Dinner time was just around the corner, but I felt 10x hungrier than usual. In my research on cryotherapy, I had learned that a session is reported to burn between 500–800 calories as your body exerts a lot of energy to keep up it’s temperatures. My intense hunger could be a testament of this claim. While I don’t struggle with sleep or fatigue, I fell asleep 2 hours early that night and felt like I had the best rest I had in a while.
The next morning, I had to see how an early cryo session would compare to the previous evening. I skipped my ritual cup of coffee and went straight to the Cryozone before heading in to the office. The 10 minute in and out of cryotherapy and lack of a need for a shower after makes it convenient at any time of the day.
While in the chamber I spoke to the technician about her experience with cryotherapy and the experience of those that came in regularly. She let me know that the range of clients vary from those that are healthy and looking for an athletic boost to those that suffer from chronic conditions and use cryotherapy to manage pain and inflammation in their life. In fact, she let me know she had a client who suffered from really bad arthritis for years before trying cryo. After starting daily session he was able to regain his lifestyle and even make it to the gym every day after a treatment. She beamed telling me the story and let me know that she loved what she did because she saw first hand the positive effects that helping with treatment was having on the lives of others.
I didn’t need research to feel the positive effects myself. I left my session feeling elated and ready to tackle everything the day threw at me. At work, I fell into my flow state easily and skipped the cup of coffee I was looking forward to before I went in to my session. It felt like my body had gotten a re-boot and while I was thirstier and hungrier than usual, I took the opportunity to fuel my body with all the nutrients it was craving throughout the day.
In the end, the only thing keeping me from daily cryotherapy sessions might be the price tag. With a single session coming in between $40–$75 it is not for every wallet. It’s recommended that at least 7 consecutive sessions be completed monthly in order to see benefits, but I felt the small differences after just 1.
