To ice or not to ice?

So, as you all know by now, I dance. I dance a lot. And, part of dancing this much comes with sore and pulled muscles.

One of the things that I've heard that can help ease and prevent sore muscles is to ice before you even get to the studio and start dancing. Since I know that you need to warm up you msucles, it did seem an odd idea to ice your muscles to start with. So, being as curious as I am and not wanting to tear a muscle or tendon unnecessarily, I did a little research into pre-icing and found some pretty information.

I do read Pointe on a fairly regular basis and came across this bit of information from Vicky Valet's blog, featured on Pointe.

"A recent study at the University of Ulster and the University of Limerick showed that icing actually reduces muscle strength, bodily awareness and agility for 15 to 20 minutes afterwards. This is because the cold temperature slows nerve impulses, which prevents muscles and tendons from working together. The study also found that icing right before class or rehearsal could make a dancer more likely to get injured. If their muscles are numb, dancers might push themselves right past their limits and into an injury. Don’t write off icing all together—it’s still a great way to relieve pain if done after stepping off the marley for the day."

In laymans terms, icing is good after an intense workout if your muscles are in a bit of pain, but dangerous prior. And really, this all makes sense and I'm glad I looked into it before I actually started trying it.