The Effect of Cold Water Immersion on Recovery and Performance in NCAA Division I Athletes
NCT Number: NCT06565468
Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING
Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
Phases: NA
Conditions: Recovery, Physiological|Athletic Performance
Interventions: DEVICE: Cold water immersion pool.
Sponsor: University of California, Los Angeles
Collaborators: WHOOP Inc.
Sex: ALL
Age: ADULT, OLDER_ADULT
Enrollment: 150
Study Design: Allocation: RANDOMIZED|Intervention Model: CROSSOVER|Masking: NONE|Primary Purpose: SUPPORTIVE_CARE
Start Date: 2024-09-15
Completion Date: 2025-08-31
Locations: UCLA Orthopedics, Los Angeles, California, 90095, United States

Summary:
In this study, the investigators will examine the effect of cold-water immersion (CWI) on objective and subjective recovery metrics, as well as simple performance metrics, in National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) Division I Men's and Women's Volleyball players, Men's Football players, and Men's and Women's Cross Country runners. This is a cohort cross-over study that will take place over the course of four weeks during an intensive training cycle. Participants will wear a WHOOP monitoring device on their wrists at all times during the study period. The two-week intervention will consist of ten minutes of CWI to take place within one hour of the completion of the last training session of the day. The target water temperature will be 55 degrees Fahrenheit, and each participant will complete five sessions of CWI per week (for a total of ten sessions over the two-week intervention phase). Objective recovery measures will include heart rate variability, resting heart rate, total sleep time, slow wave sleep time, sleep consistency, blood oxygenation, and nocturnal skin temperature, all of which will be collected continuously by the WHOOP monitoring device. Subjective recovery measures will include three surveys to be completed daily, including the Likert Scale of Muscle Soreness, the Total Quality Recovery Scale, and the Single-Item Sleep Questionnaire. Performance measures will include a counter-movement jump to be completed two times per week, an isometric mid-thigh pull to be completed once per week, and a drop jump to be completed once per week. These outcome measures will similarly be collected during the two-week control period, during which participants will not have access to CWI following training sessions.

Primary Outcome Measures: Heart-rate variability, As measured by WHOOP 4.0 wrist device, Four week time period
Secondary Outcome Measures: Resting heart rate, As measured by WHOOP 4.0 wrist device, Four week time period|Total Sleep Time, As measured by WHOOP 4.0 wrist device, Four week time period|Slow Wave Sleep Time, As measured by WHOOP 4.0 wrist device, Four week time period|Sleep Consistency, As measured by WHOOP 4.0 wrist device, Four week time period|Blood Oxygenation, As measured by WHOOP 4.0 wrist device, Four week time period|Nocturnal Skin Temperature, As measured by WHOOP 4.0 wrist device, Four week time period|Likert Scale of Muscle Soreness, Survey, Four week time period|Total Quality Recovery Scale, Survey, Four week time period|Single Item Sleep Questionnaire, Survey, Four week time period|Counter Movement Jump, Performance Metric, Four week time period|Isometric Mid-Thigh Pull, Performance Metric, Four week time period|Drop Jump, Performance Metric, Four week time period