Cryotherapy in Manchester

At The Manchester Institute of Health and Performance, we are home to three state-of-the-art cryotherapy pods. From reducing muscle soreness, fatigue and swelling, to aiding in the recovery of soft-tissue injuries, our state-of-the-art cryotherapy pods will help get you back to full strength, fast.

What is Cryotherapy?

Cryotherapy is a recovery technique that can improve circulation, ease muscle soreness and fatigue, and reduce swelling. It involves standing inside a sealed chamber cooled down to -140⁰C.

Cryotherapy sessions are typically used by athletes (both professional and recreational) and individuals as a part of their recovery work post-competition and also by those that are suffering from injuries (e.g. soft tissue injury).

Exposure to the cold air causes vasoconstriction, which is the narrowing of blood vessels in the body. As you exit the chamber, your body warms back up again and vasodilation occurs, which is the widening of blood vessels in the body. This process causes an increase in blood circulation, promoting the natural healing of the body.

Benefits of Cryotherapy

• Increased blood flow to reduce inflammation
• Increased blood flows also creates healing agents to promote recovery
• Improve circulation
• Ease muscle soreness and fatigue
• Reduce swelling
• Help to clear away waste products

What to expect from your session

A typical cryotherapy session lasts 15 minutes, with the actual treatment lasting 2–3 minutes. Before the session you’ll complete a screening questionnaire and have your resting blood pressure measured.

You’ll enter the pod wearing shorts, thermal socks, thermal slippers, thermal gloves, and a thermal headband (with females additionally wearing a sports bra). You then remain standing with your head above the cold air. The session can be terminated at any time, or after a maximum of 2–3 minutes.

What to bring

• Sports shorts (plus sports bra if female) with no metal parts (e.g. zips, underwiring)
• Towel
• Any medication that may be needed due to allergies or exercise (e.g. EpiPen or inhaler)