Brain Freeze

Cryotherapy heals your body by “freezing” it in a metal tank. Science says otherwise.

- Meagan Drillinger

ALONG WITH STRETCHING and foam rolling post-workout, how about spending three minutes sealed in a freezing tank to relieve pain, speed up recovery, and increase your metabolic rate? That’s allegedly what whole-body cryotherapy (WBC) will do. The new trend is being touted as an alternative to the universally dreaded and nut shrinking ice baths as a recovery and performance enhancer. The gist? The body is enveloped in a tube that pumps air cooled by liquid nitrogen between -184° and -292° F., tricking the brain into “fight or flight” mode to draw all the blood out of the extremities to the core. Afterward, the blood rushes back to the extremities and brain, releasing endorphins and triggering a state of euphoria.

Does it work? I went to KryoLife in New York City and met with its co-founder Eduardo Bohórquez-Barona to find out.

“Cryotherapy may seem bizarre because the U.S. medical culture is skeptical about it. But from what we see with our clients and from the research in Europe, WBC can do a lot and we hope to educate the public on the benefits,” says Bohórquez-Barona.

MORE INFO ON CRYOTHERAPY

ORIGINS

Whole-body cryotherapy was invented in Japan in 1978 as a means to reduce pain and inflammation in patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis.

The technology was then developed and studied in Europe. Today, while many athletes and gym goers swear by the physical and mental benefits of a whole-body cryotherapy session, there are few scientific studies that back up it up.

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