Something we all need as ice bath users, whether it’s summer or winter is an ice bath thermometer, having this device will tell us exactly how cold our ice bath is.
The concept of a thermometer is simple, it just measures temperature. But we’ll go into some of the important reasons as to why you should know the temperature of your ice bath. We’ll also recommend various ice bath thermometer products which each have their unique benefits.
Why is ice bath temperature important?
Here are some reasons why the temperature of an ice bath is important, and why you should know the temperature.
If the ice bath isn’t cold enough, then you may not experience many of the benefits that an ice bath can bring. Most people recommend starting around 15°C if you are a beginner but if you find this too easy then you may want to go colder. We can increase the amount of brown fat in our body by going as cold as we can handle without shivering. For the experienced users, they might do as low as 7°C.
Make sure the water is not dangerously cold
Although we’re only in the ice bath for a matter of minutes, the lower we get, the more risk of cold shock having a greater impact. It’s important especially if you are a beginner to have someone watch over you during your practice.
What defines a dangerously cold temperature? This is largely subjective and can be variable depending on how the person is feeling. But I would say anything under 7°C should be handled with caution.
Challenge yourself
On the flip side, if you want to be able to challenge yourself and see progression in this area, then you will want to know exactly how much colder you are going. An ice bath thermometer is the perfect tool to measure this progression.
Confidence in optimum temperature
With an ice bath thermometer, we know exactly what temperature we’re getting into so we can verify that this temperature is optimum for what we’re trying to achieve. This is especially important if it’s hot out and we’ve added a bunch of ice to try and bring the water temperature down.
Recommended Products
Here are some recommended ice bath thermometer products for varying needs.
Traditional floating thermometer
Pros
- Traditional and reliable method of measuring temperature
- No batteries required
Cons
- Requires opening lid to fetch thermometer reading
- Not the pretty modern choice
Bluetooth floating thermometer
Pros
- No need to stand in the cold to read the temperature
- Temperature trend charts (2 years of data storage!)
- Bluetooth 30 metre range with Smart App integration
- Waterproof of course
Cons
- Expensive compared to the alternatives
- Batteries required (2x AAA)
Digital thermometer with probe
Pros
- Read temperature quickly without having to open the ice bath lid
- Waterproof probe
- Long 100cm cable
Cons
- You’ll have to fit the display somewhere on the outside of your ice bath which is a minor inconvenience
- The minimum working temperature is 0 ° C
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