Research
Energy balance
Pre-cooling via cold water immersion improves endurance performance in hot environments by reducing heat stress and delaying thermally induced fatigue.
If you are competing in endurance events in hot weather, use cold water immersion (15-30 minutes) before the event to improve your performance by up to 6.6%. This strategy is less effective for short sprints.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Research provides strong support for the positive effects of precooling, specifically its ability to reduce perceived heat stress and improve subsequent athletic performance. Pre-cooling has a larger effect on performance in hot (+6.6%) than in moderate temperatures (+1.4%).
Why this rating
Cites systematic analysis and meta-analysis (Bongers, Ross, Tyler, Wegmann).
Source
The Properties of Water and their Applications for Training
Lorena Torres-Ronda et al. · Journal of Human Kinetics · 2014
DOI 10.2478/hukin-2014-0129
narrative_reviewCited 178×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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- Aquatic plyometric training produces maximum force and muscle power equivalent to dry land training while significantly reducing vertical impact forces and joint loading.Good
- Cold water immersion (CWI) post-exercise reduces perceived muscle soreness and accelerates recovery compared to passive rest or active recovery, though it may temporarily impair high-intensity performance if used immediately before subsequent intense bouts.Good
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