Whether you are a sportsman or a martial artist, you are prone to common sports injuries such as neck and shoulder pain, muscle-tendon injuries, and upper leg pain. Thus, to maintain your peak performance you may consider cryotherapy to treat the injuries in a cryogenic chamber for athletes or a cryosauna. Even the taekwondo
legendary Steven Lopez uses this elite sports therapy to:
• Repair injured body tissues faster
• Accelerate healing process
• Get refreshed naturally
Today, cryotherapy has become popular in various countries, and more accessible to the public as more medical practitioners and spas owners open up more cryogenic
chambers or cryosaunas. Unlike most sport injury treatments whose impact don’t last, cyotherapy gives sustainable results for muscle-tendon injuries and has no side effects.
However, choosing the best cryotherapy service provider can be a daunting task because they differ. Apart from the quality of service provided, the main difference
between cryotherapy centers is the kind of equipment used. Although there is a plethora of cryotherapy devices, applications, and instruments, there are two common types of equipment for this purpose including the cryogenic chamber for athletes and cryosauna.
While they are made to achieve the same purpose, that is, cold therapy, they are a bit different. So, what’s the difference between the two?
Croygenic Chamber for Athletes vs Crosauna – Which is the Best?
Cryogenic Chamber
A cryogenic chamber for athletes is a walk-in chamber almost similar to a standard heated sauna, although it has cold air instead of hot. It is designed to burst liquid
nitrogen after every thirty seconds or more lowering the temperatures to -150°C (-238°F) once your whole body is submerged for two to four minutes.
The chilly gas surrounds your whole body, which makes your blood to move away from your arms and legs to the core to protect and warm crucial organs from freezing. As a result, you get into survival mode, and your blood becomes filled with oxygen.
Immediately you step out of the chamber; your blood rushes to your limbs giving you warmth with a tingling sensation, thus, relieving neck and shoulder pain.
Unlike the cryosauna, a cryochamber can accommodate four people at a go, and you are required to wear undergarments, shoes, gloves, socks, earmuffs, headband, and
respiratory mask during the session. This is because these body parts are susceptible to frostbite.
Cryosauna
On the other hand, a cryosauna is like a stand-up bed also referred to as partial body cryotherapy because the patient’s head is exposed out of the metallic device. Unlike the cryo-chamber, a cryosauna is designed to accommodate one person at a time whereby the cold nitrogen surrounds the body from the neck downwards. However, it still stimulates your entire body to respond to the cold giving you a whole body cryotherapy experience.
Which one should you choose?
Privacy
No matter the type of elite sports therapy you are undertaking, privacy is of utmost importance. As stated earlier, when you are in a cryosauna unit, it’s only your head that gets exposed while the rest of the body is hidden. On the other hand, when in a cryogenic chamber for athletes, the cryotech can see your entire body. So, if you need
privacy during your cryotherapy sessions for comfort, then you can choose the cryosauna. But if you don’t mind about the privacy, then the cryochamber can be your
best fit.
Temperatures
A Cryosauna is colder than a cryo-chamber. First, the temperatures in a cryogenic chamber for athletes can go down to about -82 degrees Celcius (-180 degrees Fahrenheit), while the cryosauna’s can drop to -184C (-300F).
Second, a cryogenic chamber for athletes is large and can allow more than one person, while the cryosauna has a smaller space and can only accommodate one person. This may seem like an added advantage when using the cryochamber for shoulder injury since you can get in with a friend. However, when two or more people are emitting huge amounts of heat, the room temperature falls significantly, making it less useful. It may not sound serious, but when it comes to freezing temperatures, a small amount of heat can cause a drastic change in temperature.
Cost
Since the cryochamber equipment is more expensive than the cryosauna, the cryosauna sessions are cheaper than the cryogenic chamber. Check out our price list to see just how affordable our cryosauna packages are! For a limited time only, you can also get your very first session for only $40 CDN. Book your intro session here.
Safety
Both cryosauna and cryogenic chamber for athletes have an inbuilt safety mechanism to prevent freezing of the body tissues, oxygen deficiency risks as well as the inability to move.
For example, a standard cryochamber has wooden protection shields to prevent direct contact with the door, cold walls, and heat exchangers.
Both cryogenic chamber for athletes and cryosauna have no direct outflow of the nitrogen gas to the patient’s direction to prevent an increased transfer of heat.
Moreover, the cryosauna such as the one we use at our Cryotherapy Toronto center features an unlocking door so that the user can open any time. It also comes with a heated ventilation system designed to reduce the amount of moisture inside and to emit used up nitrogen air.
So, which cryotherapy equipment should you choose?
Whether you are in taekwondo vs. Muay Thai, choose one that fits into your budget, meets your sports injuries needs, and one that makes you feel comfortable. When it
comes to the overall effect of the whole body cryotherapy, both choices are perfect. It’s a matter of personal preference!
Sources
1. https://www.shape.com/fitness/trends/what-is- cryotherapy-treatment- recovery
2. https://icehousecryotherapy.com/cryosauna-vs- cryochamber/
3. https://blog.paleohacks.com/cryotherapy/#