Local cooling with ice massage improves 4-km running time trial performance in a normothermic environment

In the last decades, with advance in exercise physiology and technology research, new strategies to prevent fatigue and increase performance has been development. Ice massage, a cooling strategy, has received notable attention. It was suggested that when it is applied in the skin provides a lower nerve sensory velocity conduction reducing the afferent feedback and promoting an efficient analgesic effect, which might reduce perceived effort and pain during open-loop exercise in a hot environment, but it effects on closed-loop exercise in a normothermic environment is unknown. As exercise-induced pain and exertion may, also, explain exercise tolerance and performance in a closed-loop exercise in a normothermic environment, we investigated in the present study the effect of ice massage on a 4-km running time trial in a normothermic environment. We, also, explored the effect of ice-massage on perceived effort and pain responses.
We demonstrated for the first time that ice massage before exercise decreased time to complete a 4-km running time trial in a normothermic environment. This reduced time to complete time trial was accompanied by a low perceived pain and a same perceived effort, which suggested that higher velocities was found at same effort. These findings open the possibility to apply ice massage in a practical sport environment to improve endurance performance.

近几十年来，随着运动生理学（exercise physiology）与技术研究的进展，预防疲劳、提升运动表现的新型策略相继问世。冰敷按摩（Ice Massage）作为一种冷疗策略，受到了广泛关注。已有研究表明，将其施用于皮肤时，可降低神经感觉传导速度，减少传入反馈并发挥高效镇痛作用，这或可降低热环境下开环运动（open-loop exercise）中的自觉用力程度与疼痛感，但常温环境（normothermic environment）下闭环运动（closed-loop exercise）中的作用效果仍未明确。鉴于运动诱导的疼痛与用力感知同样可以解释常温环境下闭环运动的运动耐力与表现，本研究探讨了冰敷按摩对常温环境下4公里跑步计时赛（time trial）的影响，并同时探究了其对自觉用力程度（perceived effort）与疼痛反应的作用。
本研究首次证实，运动前进行冰敷按摩可缩短常温环境下4公里跑步计时赛的完成时长。该计时赛完成时长的缩短伴随自觉疼痛程度（perceived pain）降低，且自觉用力程度保持不变，这表明在相同用力水平下，受试者的运动速度有所提升。本研究结果为在实际运动场景中应用冰敷按摩以提升耐力表现提供了可行思路。