The workout recovery techniques backed by science—and the ones that are just hype - Medical Xpress

Finishing a tough workout always feels good. That is, until a few hours later when those uncomfortable muscle aches start setting in. This discomfort can linger for days – making easy, everyday tasks a challenge. In search of relief, some recreational gym-goers are adopting the kind of recovery techniques once reserved for elite athletes. Social media and professional sport have helped popularize everything from ice baths and compression garments to massage and recovery supplements.

Taking a nice hot bath at the end of a long day is a wonderful way to unwind, but the end results can go way beyond simple relaxation. In fact, the health benefits of sustained immersion in hot water can be truly surprising, and new research has just uncovered another remarkable effect of a good hot soak. In a study published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology, researchers found soaking in hot water for 30 minutes can trigger dramatic changes in the blood vessels beneath your skin, in some respects exceeding the effects produced by moderate exercise. The hot water immersion even lowered people's blood pressure more than 30 minutes of moderate-intensity cycling. It's worth noting this was only a small experiment, and nobody's suggesting people should give up exercise to instead take more hot baths. But for people who may be unable to exercise, hot water immersion, or other forms of what's known as passive heat therapy, may be an important way of getting some of the same health benefits that exercise can provide. The health benefits of sustained immersion in hot water can be truly surprising.

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory researcher Isaiah Santistevan led the development of three-dimensional simulations exploring how a nuclear device could deflect or disrupt an asteroid threatening Earth. Credit: Blaise Douros/LLNL Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) researchers are developing three-dimensional simulations to examine how a nuclear device could be used to deflect or potentially disrupt an asteroid threatening Earth.