Compression vs. Ice: Which Is Better?

Currently, I have several athletes in the middle of their respective seasons dealing with the bumps and bruises that come with competition.

Swelling, tendon/joint pain and bone bruises are quite common for knees, hips, ankles and shoulders.

Often we see most athletes treat these ailments with ice to relieve pain and reduce swelling.

While there is a time and a place for ice, I urge most of the my athletes to rely more on compression as their primary recovery modality and here’s why:

• Compression promotes extra blood flow to affected areas.

• Increased blood flow moves out waste product and reduces fluid buildup/stiffness.

• Compression provides extra stability for joints.

• Compression generally offers a high level of pain relief.

• Compression helps eliminate excessive inflammation around an affected area.

Meanwhile, ice actually slows down blood flow, which can affect the removal of waste product and promote fluid buildup. And in some cases it can be too effective at reducing swelling.

It is important to remember that an inflammatory response is something we want in order to promote healing. Obviously we want to manage excessive inflammation but we do not want to eliminate it entirely.

Thus, for long-term healing and proper management of swelling/inflammation, compression is far superior to ice.

However, if there is a quick turnaround between competitions and an athlete gets significant pain relief from ice, it can be a viable option.

Be mindful of this when determining your options for recovery. Typically compression is better.