Should You Take a Hot or Cold Shower After a Workout?

You finish a great gym session and are ready to hit the showers, but should you take a hot or cold shower after a workout? Cold water can reduce muscle soreness and inflammation, but hot water after exercise might improve your physical performance the next day.

What Happens When You Take a Cold Shower?

Taking a cold shower—or even a cold plunge—right after you exercise can decrease your muscle soreness and fatigue, research shows.

That’s likely because cold water has been shown to reduce creatine kinase and lactate—two substances that build up in your muscles after exercise and contribute to delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), the aching feeling you can get after an intense workout.

There’s limited evidence that cold water immersion can have other benefits for your health, including:

Some people also find that cold showers are invigorating, or feel great after the sweaty heat of an intense workout. 

What Happens When You Take a Hot Shower?

When you immerse your body in hot water (or step into a hot shower), you increase blood flow to your muscles. Some research suggests that this could improve your performance later on, including the same day or the next day.

If you’re wrapping up training before a race or major event, it might be a great idea to step into a hot shower. In addition, many people find hot showers soothing and relaxing, which can provide mental health benefits in addition to physical benefits. 

How hot do you have to get? Research looked at a water temperature of 104 degrees Fahrenheit. Never step into a shower that’s painfully hot.

Is a Hot Shower or Cold Shower Better?

Generally, a cold shower is a great option post-workout to reduce muscle soreness the next day. However, a hot shower may be better in certain circumstances. Choose a hot shower if:

• You have a competition the next day.
• You’re doing multiple gym sessions in one day and want to maximize performance.

If you just want to reduce your muscle soreness and feel refreshed after your workout, a cold shower will work just fine.

How to Optimize Your Post-Workout Routine

Choosing a hot or cold shower is just one part of creating a post-workout routine that will leave you feeling great. In addition, you should:

• Cool down properly by engaging in lower-intensity activity for several minutes after a workout.
• Hydrate to replenish the water lost through sweat and allow optimal muscle recovery.
• Consume protein and consider supplements like creatine that can aid recovery.
• Get plenty of sleep to allow your muscles to recover and rebuild.