5 .
The heat or ice debate.
I get this question quite a bit. Often people gravitate to whatever they generally prefer, but here are a few tips to guide your use of heat or ice. Any new injury that you would consider a sprain or strain from overusing your muscles, will probably respond best to ice or a cold pack for the first 48-72 hours. You will also lean towards ice for anything you would consider to be a tendinitis or bursitis condition to help reduce the inflammation. 10-12 minutes with a thin layer between your skin and the ice is sufficient. One final pearl of wisdom, if you are experiencing tension headaches, try a cold pack directly at the base of your skull while lying on your back and relaxing. Even if the head hurts more to the sides or front, icing at the base of your skull can help tremendously. I know it’s cold, but it’s for your own good and usually it feels better after enduring the first minute or two. Heat is best used for stiff joints and sore / stiff muscles. Morning neck stiffness, and stiff achy muscles in the top of your shoulder are a great excuse to treat yourself to some heat around the neck and shoulders for 10-15 minutes. Heat is best followed by some gentle range of motion or stretching exercises to maximize the benefit.
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