Quick answer
- Contrast therapy alternates heat and cold. Research links it, and each half on its own, with real benefits.
- The strongest evidence: less muscle soreness after hard exercise, and feeling more recovered the next day.
- Promising research: blood pressure after a session, mood and alertness, relaxation, sleep and long-term heart health.
- Most studies are small and none can promise results. Check with your doctor if you have a health condition.
In this article · 10 sections
Contrast therapy means moving between heat and cold: a stretch in a sauna, a short dip in a cold plunge, a few minutes of rest, then again. People swear by it, and the research behind it is more interesting than the hype.
Here are seven benefits of contrast therapy with real studies behind them. Some studies tested contrast therapy itself. Others looked at the sauna or cold water on their own, the two halves of a contrast session. We say which is which and link every study, so you can read it yourself.
1. Less muscle soreness after hard exercise
This is the best-studied benefit. When researchers pooled 13 studies, people who alternated hot and cold water after hard exercise had less muscle soreness than people who just rested, at every point measured over four days, and they lost less strength too (Bieuzen et al., PLoS One, 2013). A bigger 2018 review of 99 studies found contrast water therapy among the recovery methods that reduced soreness (Dupuy et al., Frontiers in Physiology, 2018).
2. Feeling recovered sooner
How recovered you feel matters as much as any lab test. A 2022 review of 52 studies found that cold-water immersion after high-intensity exercise improved muscle soreness, muscle power and how recovered people felt a day later (Moore et al., Sports Medicine, 2022). The heat half helps too: basketball players who sat in an infrared sauna for 20 minutes after a hard strength session reported less soreness and felt more recovered than when they rested normally (Ahokas et al., Biology of Sport, 2023).
3. Lower blood pressure after a session
The heat half shows up in blood pressure research. In a 2018 study of 102 adults with at least one heart risk factor, a single 30-minute sauna session was followed by lower average systolic blood pressure (137 down to 130) and less arterial stiffness, a common marker of blood vessel health. Systolic pressure was still lower after 30 minutes of rest (Laukkanen et al., Journal of Human Hypertension, 2018).
4. Long-term heart health research
The most famous sauna study followed 2,315 Finnish men for about 20 years. Those who used a sauna 4 to 7 times a week had lower rates of fatal heart disease, and of death from any cause, than men who went once a week (Laukkanen et al., JAMA Internal Medicine, 2015). It's an observational link, not proof that the sauna caused it, and it was traditional Finnish saunas. For the wider picture, a 2018 review in Mayo Clinic Proceedings pulls the evidence together (Laukkanen et al., Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 2018).
5. A lift in mood and alertness
The cold half is where the mood boost lives. In a 2023 brain-imaging study, people who spent 5 minutes in cold water said they felt more active, alert, attentive, proud and inspired afterwards, and less distressed and nervous (Yankouskaya et al., Biology, 2023). If you've ever stepped out of a cold plunge grinning, that's the feeling.
6. Relaxation and stress relief
Relaxation is one of the most common reasons people use a sauna at all. In a global survey of 482 regular sauna users, relaxation and stress reduction were among the main reasons they went, and people who went 5 to 15 times a month scored slightly higher on mental well-being than those who went less often (Hussain et al., Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 2019). A systematic review of 40 clinical studies concluded that regular dry sauna bathing has potential health benefits, while calling for larger, better studies (Hussain and Cohen, Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2018).
7. Better sleep, by many people's account
In that same global survey, 83.5% of respondents said sauna use helped their sleep (Hussain et al., Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 2019). Researchers have a likely explanation for why heat before bed helps: warming up encourages your core temperature to drop afterwards, which is part of how the body settles into sleep. A review of 17 studies found that a warm bath or shower 1 to 2 hours before bed, for as little as 10 minutes, helped people fall asleep faster (Haghayegh et al., Sleep Medicine Reviews, 2019). That was warm water rather than a sauna, so treat it as a clue, not a promise.
How to stack the benefits in one session
You don't have to pick one benefit. A single session can cover most of them:
- Heat first, 10 to 15 minutes. Settle in and let the sweat start.
- Cold, 30 seconds to 2 minutes. Step in steadily and breathe out slowly.
- Rest, 2 or 3 minutes. Sit, sip water, let your breathing settle.
- Repeat two or three times, then shower.
Then tune the finish to your goal. End cold if you want that alert feeling for the rest of the day. End warm in the evening if sleep is the priority. And if you're lifting for size and strength, a 12-week study found regular cold water right after strength training led to smaller gains (Roberts et al., The Journal of Physiology, 2015), so save the plunge for your other days.
The fair summary of the research: strongest for soreness and recovery, promising for blood pressure, mood and sleep, and still young overall. That's why we say "linked with" and "may help" rather than "will."
Why a private suite makes it easier to keep up
The long-term studies above looked at people who went often, so the trick is making it easy to repeat. That's where a private suite helps. Book online, let yourself in, and the sauna, the plunge and the shower are all yours for 25, 55 or 85 minutes. No line for the plunge, no strangers on the bench, and nobody watching you gasp. Bring a friend if you like: add a guest when you book.
How to try it
Book 55 minutes. Start with 10 to 15 minutes of heat, try about 30 seconds of cold, rest for a few minutes, and repeat once or twice. Here's what happens on your first visit, step by step. If you're pregnant, have a heart condition or any medical concern, talk to your doctor before you start.
Questions people ask.
What are the benefits of contrast therapy?
The strongest research shows less muscle soreness after hard exercise and feeling more recovered the next day. Promising research also links sauna and cold water with lower blood pressure after a session, better mood and alertness, relaxation and sleep. Most studies are small, so results vary from person to person.
Is contrast therapy backed by science?
Partly, and the evidence is growing. A review of 13 studies found contrast water therapy eased muscle soreness compared with rest (Bieuzen et al., PLoS One, 2013). Other benefits come from studies of the sauna or cold water on their own. It isn't a treatment for any condition.
How often should you do contrast therapy?
There's no single answer. The long-term sauna research looked at people who went several times a week, and many people start with one or two sessions a week and build from there. If you have a health condition, check with your doctor first.
Do I have to use the cold plunge?
No. Some people stick to the sauna, and some dip in for 30 seconds at the very end. It's your suite, so it's your call.
Is contrast therapy safe?
In a survey of 482 regular sauna users, the side effects people reported were mostly minor, like dizziness and dehydration (Hussain et al., Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 2019). Heat and cold are still real stress on the body: if you're pregnant, have a heart condition or any medical concern, talk to your doctor first.
Sources
- Bieuzen F, Bleakley CM, Costello JT. Contrast water therapy and exercise induced muscle damage: a systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS One, 2013.
- Dupuy O, Douzi W, Theurot D, Bosquet L, Dugué B. An evidence-based approach for choosing post-exercise recovery techniques to reduce markers of muscle damage, soreness, fatigue, and inflammation: a systematic review with meta-analysis. Frontiers in Physiology, 2018.
- Moore E, Fuller JT, Buckley JD, et al. Impact of cold-water immersion compared with passive recovery following a single bout of strenuous exercise on athletic performance in physically active participants: a systematic review with meta-analysis and meta-regression. Sports Medicine, 2022.
- Ahokas EK, Ihalainen JK, Hanstock HG, Savolainen E, Kyröläinen H. A post-exercise infrared sauna session improves recovery of neuromuscular performance and muscle soreness after resistance exercise training. Biology of Sport, 2023.
- Laukkanen T, Kunutsor SK, Zaccardi F, et al. Acute effects of sauna bathing on cardiovascular function. Journal of Human Hypertension, 2018.
- Laukkanen T, Khan H, Zaccardi F, Laukkanen JA. Association between sauna bathing and fatal cardiovascular and all-cause mortality events. JAMA Internal Medicine, 2015.
- Laukkanen JA, Laukkanen T, Kunutsor SK. Cardiovascular and other health benefits of sauna bathing: a review of the evidence. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 2018.
- Yankouskaya A, Williamson R, Stacey C, Totman JJ, Massey H. Short-term head-out whole-body cold-water immersion facilitates positive affect and increases interaction between large-scale brain networks. Biology, 2023.
- Hussain JN, Greaves RF, Cohen MM. A hot topic for health: results of the Global Sauna Survey. Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 2019.
- Hussain J, Cohen M. Clinical effects of regular dry sauna bathing: a systematic review. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2018.
- Haghayegh S, Khoshnevis S, Smolensky MH, Diller KR, Castriotta RJ. Before-bedtime passive body heating by warm shower or bath to improve sleep: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 2019.
- Roberts LA, Raastad T, Markworth JF, et al. Post-exercise cold water immersion attenuates acute anabolic signalling and long-term adaptations in muscle to strength training. The Journal of Physiology, 2015.
