CRYO RECOVERY

The Many Benefits of Cryotherapy

By Kristina Charles

There’s a cooler way to recover from injuries and sore muscles.

Higginbotham Chiropractic Plus is the Cryotherapy & Rapid Recovery Center, serving UL and LSU athletics. Higginbotham Chiropractic is locally owned and operated by Dr. William “Bill” S. Higginbotham, B.S., D.C., and has served the Acadiana area for over 16 years and he has practiced chiropathy for over 20 years. “Cryotherapy is the best anti-inflammatory there is, great for workout soreness and injuries,” said Higginbotham.

Cryotherapy is an increasingly popular trend for athletics, injured patients, and anyone with tissue damage or joint pain. The process exposes the body to extremely cold air for a short period of time (maximum of 3 minutes), causing blood to be shunned to the core, where it saturates the organs.

The long-standing chiropractor worked in massage therapy for quite a while but found Cryotherapy has been the most effective. “For 3-minutes, nothing’s better!” said Higginbotham.

There are plenty of perks of Cryotherapy. The sessions increase the metabolism to overcome cold exposure, which leads to weight loss and the reduction of cellulite. Per 3-minute session it can burn 400-800 calories, increase energy, increase collagen for tighter skin and build stronger, fuller hair and nails.

The sessions are recommended for those who suffer from dermatitis, psoriasis and eczema as it decreases skin blemishes and scars. Other positive effects of Cryotherapy is that it can help treat depression and mood disorders as it floods the brain with fresh oxygen.

“A cold pack and 58 degree water cause constriction and there’s certainly a benefit to that. This is a whole different animal,” says Dr. Higginbotham. Cryotherapy decreases muscle soreness, pain, inflammation and fatigue. It increases energy, improves muscle strength, and joint function, accelerates muscle recovery while decreasing injury recovery time and boosts lymph draining and blood circulations. All things any athlete wants to hear! Athletes could be treated before or after games and practices.

Owner of Chi Fitness of Baton Rouge, Coach Chi, refers to Dr. Higginbotham as “one of the best in the world...I bring out all of my athletes; like (former LSU football players to current NFL players) Leonard Fournette, Derrius Guice, Nick Brossette and half the LSU team or (those) who play sports. Many athletes I train attended ULL. Jonathan Stove (former Ragin Cajuns Basketball), Frank Bartley (former Ragin Cajuns Basketball) come here for not only what Dr. Higginbotham does psychically, and how he adjusts them but for the cryo.” said Chi.

Cryotherapy has helped recover those who aren’t collegiate or professional athletes, but your everyday sufferer of arthritis, osteoporosis, chronic pain syndrome or those who have a weakened immune system.

I actually bit the proverbial bullet and tried the cryotherapy chamber. My experience is as follows: I had been a tad under the weather for a few days prior, with a bit of congestion. I changed into a robe, long socks, gloves and slippers. I entered the Cryosauna, removed my robe, and stood in the ice-cold machine for 3-minutes! The temperature began to drop. For the first minute, it dropped to approximately -151 degrees. It felt as if I walked into a freezer without any clothes on. As the temperature dropped to a chilling -252 degrees, I began to feel the blood in my legs begin to shun to my core. It felt as though my legs went to sleep, but the minute it was completed, my body felt warm and refreshed. I noticed my nose congestion eased, my legs appeared more toned and honestly, my skin has been glowing ever since. I would recommend anyone to visit the “coolest” spot in town!

Kristina Charles is a student at Loyola University of New Orleans studying Mass Communications and Journalism. She's small town girl from Baldwin, La residing in Lafayette, La and aspires to live out her dream in New York City. She's been a fashion enthusiast since she made Barbie Doll clothes out of $.99 stockings. She enjoys fashion, lifestyle writing, adventure and cheesecake.