CONTRAST HYDROTHERAPY

Contrast Hydrotherapy alternates hot and cold water applications to a local area to increase circulation and healing.  In the initial phases of an injury or an inflammatory condition, you want to use longer amounts of cold, and shorter amounts of hot.  As an injury heals, you want to use more hot and less cold to tonify the muscles.  The example below is a general treatment.
3 minutes Hot:  30 seconds Cold:  3 times

Equipment:
1 Hand Towel - for cold water (large enough to cover are with 1-2 thicknesses of towel)
1 Bath Towel - for hot water ( large enough to cover area with 2-4 thicknesses of towel)
1 One quart pot or kettle to heat hot water
2 Basins - could be two sinks, buckets, footbath pails, large bowls etc....

Set Up:
1.    Prepare one basin with hot water as hot as you can stand it and place bath towel into it.  You may need to have extra hot water to add to basin during treatment, so have kettle prepared with hot water.
2.    Prepare second basin with cold water and add at least one tray of ice cubes to it.  Place hand towel into the the cold water.

Procedure:
1.    Take bath towel from hot basin, wring it out, and place it on the affected area for 3 minutes.
2.    After 3 minutes remove hot towel, wring out cold towel and place on affected area for 30 seconds.
3.    Remove cold towel after 30 seconds.  This is one cycle.
4.    Repeat cycle two more times.
5.    Three full cycles is one treatment.  Always end with cold.

After 3rd cycle, wipe dry.  You have completed a full treatment.

Repeat full treatment ________ times per day.