ABOUT CRYOTHERAPY
What is Cryotherapy?
The Cryotherapy unit is similar to an upright tanning bed. Your body, from the neck down, experiences the chill while the face and head remains unaffected. The experience is holistic and non-invasive, chilling the body's skin surface for 2-3 minutes by the use of Nitrogen mist. It is unmatched in the world of holistic cold therapy.
What does cold therapy do and why should I consider it?
-
It increases Norepinephrine (NE). NE is a neurotransmitter, which has a profound effect on vigilance, attention span, and mood. NE also aids in the body's ability to decrease inflammation and pain associated with inflammatory diseases.
-
Cold Shock Proteins, the brain's repairmen, are shown to be elevated up to 3 days after exposure to the cold. These proteins may pose as significant puzzle pieces in combatting cellular degeneration and aging.
-
Improves the immune function by increasing your immune cells. Regular cold exposure has been shown to increase white blood cell count (active in killing cancer cells) and other beneficial immune cells.
-
It increases antioxidant activity! Cold exposure has been shown to activate invaluable naturally occurring genetic oxidizing systems in our bodies, which have been shown to be more powerful than supplemental antioxidants.
-
Increases metabolism by forcing the body to produce heat or Thermogenesis, resulting in holistic calorie burn.
More About Cryo and What to Expect
What do I wear?
Dry clothes must be worn for Cryotherapy, and underwear or athletic attire is acceptable for both men and women. A changing area is provided in both the mobile unit and office location. We provide robes, socks, shoes and gloves for your convenience. As mentioned above, the therapy must be administered when the client is COMPLETELY dry, so be careful coming straight from a hard, sweaty training session. Once complete, you can dress and continue your daily activity in a matter of minutes, or hit that second training session of the day!
How many treatments will I need?
This is dependent on the condition you're treating. With chronic conditions, we recommend starting with five to ten treatments in close succession (every other day to once every two days) to maximize results. Once progress begins, fewer treatments spaced further apart are recommended to maintain and improve your results.
How It Works
The Cryotherapy experience is achieved by rapidly lowering the body’s surface skin temperature for 2-3 minutes. This occurs through the use of dry nitrogen mist, which gently surrounds the body.
During this process, thermoreceptors in the skin send signals to the brain to release endorphins and beneficial biochemicals. The mind is tricked into producing a fight or flight response. This sends the blood to the core, warms the blood, and in the process supercharges the blood with anti-inflammatory proteins, muscular enzymes, and higher levels of oxygen. The vessels and capillaries in the skin undergo a period of vasoconstriction followed by an immediate vasodilation upon exiting the Cryotherapy machine. This process increases the body's natural break down of toxins and flushes them out through these vessels. The body is therefore forced into activating its own natural healing abilities. As a result, Whole Body Cryotherapy is very effective for athletic recovery, muscle repair, reduction of chronic pain and inflammation, and skin health improvement through increased collagen production.
The History of Cryotherapy
The word “Cryotherapy” stems from the greek words “Cryo” for cold, and “Therapeia” for cure. Cold therapy has been recommended by physicians and athletic trainers for decades to combat swelling and inflammation. The medical community has documented the benefits the cold provides and it's many therapeutic uses. From local cold therapy for treating sprains and post surgical procedures to modern day whole body cryotherapy, the benefits cannot be refuted.
Modern whole body cryotherapy began in Japan in 1978 by Dr. Yamaguchi. He applied short durations (two to three minutes) of cold air treatments to the surface of the skin to treat pain and inflammation associated with his rheumatoid arthritis patients. He discovered that by rapidly decreasing the temperature of the outer layer of skin he could induce an immediate release of hormones - specifically endorphins (feel good) and adrenaline (increased energy). These hormones significantly reduced the patient’s sensitivity to pain naturally, no medication needed.
Upon further study, he and his associates concluded that the rapid short term chilling of the surface of the skin with cold air is more beneficial to the whole body than the gradual cooling of an ice bath. The cooling process of whole body cryotherapy affects 98% of the body's nerve endings at the skin's surface. Simply put, the holistic benefits you receive from whole body cryotherapy cannot be matched with ice baths or any other cold treatment.
His studies showed that whole body cryotherapy affects the body on three levels:
Biochemical – the Circulatory System Energy – the Energy Meridians Neurological – the Nervous System.
Whole body cryotherapy has been researched and refined in Asia and Europe for the last 39 years. There are numerous positive clinical studies that support the use of Cryotherapy.
Click above "Learn More" for related content and "Watch to Learn More" for our YouTube playlist!