This subject has come up in several threads/forums recently. IMO and I have been guilty of the same, icing, ice boots, cold hosing, poultice, wrapping, use of liniments etc. is practiced not because we know the “medical science”, reasons for doing it. We do it because either that is what we were taught and or that is what we have seen done by those we feel know more than we do. The “pros” always do it so it must be right.
The majority of my life has been centered around working with, training Thoroughbred racehorses, flat and steeplechase. When you are a kid in a racing family one of your first jobs is the boring task of cold water hosing, holding a horse in ice boots or ice buckets, etc. We did this without question and later learned this was done to reduce exercise induced swelling. Which it does do.
But, that is old school “sports therapy” not based on current research but more like a holdover from years past that has been passed down for generations. To be clear there is a time and reason for, icing, cold water hosing and of course poultice.
But research suggests, strongly suggests that it should not be done as a matter of course every time a horse is exercised, worked with. Even after competition. In fact it can be counterproductive if not done correctly.
The following are a couple of quotes on the subject. “Human” based but it applies to horses also.
“Recovery is key to preparing the body for the next workout. This includes restoring the calories expended and rehydrating, as well as ensuring adequate sleep before the next workout. A hard workout will create inflammation because it is the body’s way of starting the healing process for the micro-injured area. Jumping in an ice bath will stop inflammation but also postpone the healing process”
“I normally tell my athletes to use both ice and heat — two cycles of 10 minutes of ice, alternated with two cycles of 10 minutes of heat. Ice slows blood flow and heat has the opposite effect, increasing blood flow. The increase in blood flow helps to flush out the byproducts created by the workout, and the ice helps to reduce inflammation.”
“During a hard workout, blood rushes to your muscles, carrying oxygen and the needed energy to complete the workout. After a hard workout, muscles are inflamed and you have countless micro-tears in your muscles. You want to flush out all the waste that is the byproduct of this process”
[I]The cooling part of this process doesn’t need to be an ice bath; 65 to 75 degrees is fine. The cold water reduces the blood flow to the muscles and reduces the inflammation while still allowing for waste products to be flushed. Athletes experience less post-workout soreness after a cool bath."
“In physical therapy, the use of ice has been long-standing. Post-injury, the standard has been RICE: rest, ice, compression and elevation. What caused me to change was that the relevant research really did not support RICE, especially rest and ice.[/I]”
“We know movement is good. No longer do we recommend bed rest for back pain, or staying in bed after surgery. In fact, we recommend the opposite. Whether it is post-whiplash or post-knee replacement, we know that appropriate movement is good. It brings nutrition to the joints, which maintains range of motion and health in the area.”
[I]"Ice also is discouraged mainly because it stops the body’s natural path toward healing. The body has three stages of healing: (1) inflammation (2) repair and (3) remodel. Without inflammation, we do not proceed to the other stages of healing. So the use of ice to control inflammation makes no sense. Why stop the first stage of healing?
The same thing goes for taking non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen. Because they block the inflammatory [/I]cycle, they can limit the body’s natural process of healing itself."
"There are always exceptions. People are going to have pain, and ice makes them feel better. Ice can be good for muscles in spasm, or even as a security blanket, if someone has done it all his life.
Pain is usually a sign from the body that something is amiss. You can exercise through slight pain, say zero to three on a scale of 10, as long as it is stable. Pain above those levels usually results in compensations that lead to other problems."
“If someone is taking care of himself, with regular stretching and appropriate strengthening, a hard workout is no big thing. In the clinic, I usually see people injured when their bodies are not prepared for the stress of training, Take care of the body and it will take care of itself. Humans did quite well for thousands of years without ice or heat, just the natural healing process, which included lots of movement.”
The following quote I think is important to understand. There is a big difference between exercised induced “swelling” experienced working with a FIT horse and swelling from an “acute injury”. The horse rapping itself, a jump rail, soft tissue, tendon, ligament over exertion cause by the horse not being fit enough for what is being asked. “Joint issues”, small chips, poor or deteriorating cartilage, stress fractures just to name a few. A tendon on the “come” will look fine/normal after icing, cold water hosing, wrapping. It will “feel” fine to the “average” hand.
No disrespect intended, but years of working with a few horses especially with horses that have not been in serious competition training. Not having dealt with lots of horses who have ended up with a “tendon” does not make for an “experienced hand or eye”. It takes a LOT of experience to pick up on something before it becomes “acute”. Even the best of them get it wrong from time to time.
“The body’s natural response to an acute injury is inflammation, to protect the injured area. So to reduce the pain and swelling, I would recommend ice during the first 24 hours. After that, though, it’s time to find the cause of the injury and see a sports therapist. I wouldn’t recommend trying to run through an acute sports injury by just icing after each run. You need to find the cause of the injury”
Having worked with/around some Eventer, H/J people on my farm and “around” others barn. IMO most don’t really go about getting their horses “fit” in the right way. Flat work is all well and good, jump schooling the same. A bit of cantering and trotting around the ring.
But IMO and experience there is no way of getting a horse properly fit without taking the horse out of the ring several times a week and galloping them. The same that is done with racehorses. A fit horse will have no trouble galloping 1 1/2, 2 miles plus. Regardless of the discipline they are being used for. Being able to turn the horse out after a good work out is KEY also.
I also suggest understanding “lactic acid” build up, lactate being the proper term. Proper training/conditioning with this in mind will go a long way as part of the horse’s and the rider’s ability to perform at peak levels.
That’s the long of it. Me I do not ice, hose, poultice as a “matter of course”, routine. To each their own on this. But the “science” is pretty strong as to way it is counterproductive. I have only touched on the subject.
Please excuse any typos, spelling, grammar etc. that I didn’t pick up on before posting. The edit feature isn’t working at this time. And I never seem to pick up on them no matter how many times I re-read until after posting
