Hey Charlottesville! We’re Rivanna Cryotherapy Recovery Center (RCRC) here to introduce what we’re up to in town. Our center offers whole body and precision cryotherapy treatments, as well as the NormaTec compression recovery system, kinesiology taping, and athletic sports massages. We also offer Cryo Thermo Impact treatments to rejuvenate the face and body.
Discover our offerings and ways to engage your body to recover faster and stay injury free this season. So what is cryotherapy anyway?
“Cryo” simply means cold: it’s not a new word, and no, we didn’t invent cold therapy. Cryotherapy has been used for ages in different forms: exposure to frigid air, cold water immersion, or application of ice to sore muscles. You may have seen cryotherapy being used by elite athletes or celebrities: yet more and more cryotherapy centers have been popping up for personal use.
How does cryotherapy work?
In today’s world, it’s hard to distinguish what is all hype, and what is actually science. It’s easy to jump on any trend that claims to make us feel good, but you have to use caution and logic.
Although Cryotherapy can be used to refer to any kind of cold exposure technique, at RCRC, we use the term to refer to our nitrogen based whole body cryotherapy sauna or our precision cryotherapy unit, another cool tool that targets a focused area.
Before, athletes would jump into an ice bath for an hour to help improve muscle recovery, boost metabolism, and increase endurance. With our whole body cryotherapy sauna, you’re only exposed to extreme cold for 3 minutes MAX. When you step into the sauna, nitrogen vapor fills the chamber from the shoulders down to give you all the benefits and more than an ice bath would!
Our whole body cryotherapy sauna is the only UL listed unit on the market. It is the safest and most effective way to experience the benefits of cryotherapy.
Why should you start using cryotherapy?
In short, cryotherapy works wonders for curbing pain and inflammation. It works similarly to how ice does when you apply ice to sore muscles and swollen tissues: the cold constricts blood vessels and reduces blood flow to the area to allow pain/swelling/inflammation to decrease. Vasoconstriction also moves lymph: lymph is how the body recycles metabolic waste.
However, our nitrogen based cryotherapy is more effective than ice. Our sessions are shorter and more comfortable. The extremely cold temperatures stimulate the body’s natural healing response, causing the body to produce anti-inflammatory cytokines and release endorphins. When vasodilation occurs as you quickly warm up, nutrient and oxygen rich blood returns to the constricted areas. But cryotherapy offers so many more benefits that we just need to share!
Reduces pain and inflammation
Decreases muscle soreness
Increases recovery/endurance
Boosts collagen production (the protein behind strong cartilage, connective tissue, skin & hair)
Increases metabolism
Induces a happier mood and better sleep
So how can you capitalize on all these great benefits? We’re happy to give you a tour and talk to you more about how cryotherapy works.
Ready to join? We suggest beginning your recovery routine with 1-2 sessions a week to start seeing amazing results for your body. Book online (click here) or give us a call to reserve your first session.
