Why We Don’t Recommend Ice

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At Physio Solutions, you’ll notice something a little different: we don’t use or promote ice for injuries or post-operative care. This surprises a lot of people (we get questioned about it all the time!), so we created this page to explain why—and to give you the science behind the choice.

 

So… what’s the deal with ice?

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Let’s start with acute injuries—the brand-new sprains, strains, and post-surgical tissues that are trying to heal.

Most of us reach for ice automatically because we’ve been told it reduces inflammation, and therefore must help recovery. But here’s the twist:
Inflammation is the body’s built-in healing system. It brings blood flow, repair cells, oxygen, and nutrients to the injured tissue. So if your body is in the middle of repairing something, why would we want to slow down or block that process?

Think of an injury like a car accident on the highway. Your blood vessels are the roads, and your repair cells are the emergency responders trying to reach the scene.

• Ice = roadblocks and traffic jams. Help can’t get in, and waste products can’t get out.

• Heat = open, flowing traffic. The support team gets where it needs to go—and can leave again when the job’s done.

When we look at it this way, heat often makes a lot more sense than ice for encouraging the body to do what it’s already trying to do.

 

What about chronic pain?

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Chronic pain gets lumped under the label “inflammation,” but in reality it’s usually much more complex than that. Most chronic pain areas are:

• tight

• guarded

• not moving well

• and often under-supplied with blood flow

When you put ice on a tense area, your body tends to tense even more—everything clenches up. Heat, on the other hand, helps:

• tissues relax

• blood vessels open

• fresh oxygen gets in

• muscles feel softer and safer

And for most people, it simply feels better.

If you’re curious about the science behind chronic pain, you’ll find more information in our Resources links.

 

Don’t just take our word for it

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We didn’t invent this idea. There’s growing research calling for a cultural shift away from routine icing, especially when healing and tissue repair are the goal. The articles linked on our Resources page break this down beautifully—they’re worth a look if you want a deeper dive.

Our priority is simple: we want you healing, moving, and recovering as efficiently as possible. And for most people, that means choosing heat over ice.

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