year before, however, a Cochrane review – considered the
gold standard in healthcare evidence – concluded there was
insufficient evidence to support its use to relieve muscle
soreness after exercise. Massage and foam rolling didn’t get
the thumbs up from Aschwanden either, and the science on
them is mixed. There were, in fact, few treatments that could
be solidly recommended from the popular commercial aids
that the American investigated.
FEEL-GOOD EFFECT
Yet many recovery devices can make you feel good and
create the idea of actively accelerating the process of physical
repair. A lot of the research also refers to reductions in the
‘perception of fatigue’, which isn’t hugely scientific but can
make a big difference to recovery and performance. Even
Aschwanden, despite getting so much negative feedback
on the efficacy of many recovery aids, ended up adopting
the method of ‘floating’, which uses Epsom salts to give
buoyancy in an enclosed pool of water.
“I expected to hate it and only did it in service of thebook,” Aschwanden says of the recovery ‘modality’ that is
often accompanied by unproven claims. “It was kind of forced
meditation for people who can’t meditate, and that’s me!”
Dr Shona Halson, one of Australia’s leading performancerecovery experts, is among many who have pointed out
that the body doesn’t differentiate between physical and
psychological stress. She produced an academic journal paper
in 2013 with Dr David Martin, who subsequently became
director of sports performance and research for NBA team
Philadelphia 76ers, that argued in favour of harnessing the
placebo effect.
But not everybody is a fan of exploiting belief andexpectations for recovery. Steven Fawcett was the first British
man to make it to the CrossFit Games in 2015, and he
advocates sporting simplicity. “There are a lot of gimmicks
out there, and a lot of expensive devices,” he says. “You
probably get the same results from just working at a low
effort on a bike after a workout. If you don’t have your
nutrition or sleep dialled in, the other
options are pointless.”SUPPLEMENT DANGERS
Phil Hurst, a psychology lecturer at
Canterbury Christ Church University,
isn’t a fan either. Ten years ago he
was a talented under-20s 1500m and
3000m runner who was swayed by
the aids used or endorsed by athletes
he looked up to. His belief in things
like Power Balance bands and beetroot
juice (which now has some scientific
grounding) didn’t do the trick, though,
and he associates the bands with a poor
performance at an important meet.
Hurst may be a non-responder, or
maybe his belief wasn’t strong enough,
but it led to much of the work he’s
done in his academic career. “If you’re
an athlete and you really believe in
something, you are going to get the most out of it,” says the retired runner who
represented Britain in 2015. “But there are risks.”
Experiencing the ‘nocebo effect’ – the negative ‘twin’ of the placebo effect – is
a consideration. It also works on expectations and could harm performance by
amplifying doubts and anxiety, adding to soreness or even inducing headaches or
upset stomachs. In recovery, the latter two effects are more likely to be linked to
some form of supplement taking than using a device and Hurst, who is also a UK
Athletics anti-doping educator, warns against potential ‘gateway’ dangers.
“You might start with a sports drink, then maybe caffeine, sodium
bicarbonate,” he says. “Once you’re done with the benefits of that you might
think, What else can I start taking? And maybe be tempted by anabolic steroids
or testosterone.”
The exact ingredients of many supplements are hard to be sure of, because of
production standards and outsourcing, and the things that have been found in
them – from testosterone to rodent faeces, according to Hurst – are frightening.
Financial and time costs of potentially ineffective placebos should also be
considered, and being mis-sold a product can be troubling. “If there’s no harm
associated with the product, it’s probably OK to use it,” says Beedie. “If there’s the
slightest risk of harm – unless there’s a good mechanism identified and credible
proof – you shouldn’t use it. Irrespective of belief.”“Ice baths,
made popular
in recent years
by top-level
sports stars,
may only
be working
through the
placebo effect”