#360fit: Arabian Gulf League side Al Shabab embrace cryotherapy

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  • Al Shabab's GCC Champions League winning side use cryotherapy.

    Perennial-overachievers Al Shabab went through a deep freeze last season to fire up their push for glory, embracing cryotherapy to valuable effect.

    The Hawks are one of the least-well-resourced Arabian Gulf League outfits, their budget dwarfed by traditional heavyweights such as Al Ain, Al Jazira, Al Ahli and Al Nasr.

    To compete, the forward-thinking Maktoum Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Stadium-outfit are open minded about any possible approach.

    Aware of two late-season collapses in a row when increased fixture demands took the most out of a small-but-talented squad, Shabab’s head of rehabilitation Philippe Chomier turned to Dubai’s CRYO-Health in April.

    The company have been operating out of Jumeirah Emirates Towers for two years, using low-temperature treatments of up to -140°C to boost recovery.

    The impact was startling, Shabab lifting the GCC Club Cup and returning to the hallowed AFC Champions League following a third-placed top-flight finish while successfully navigating 14 fixtures in the final two months of 2014/15. 

    “We make the most of certain areas – treatment, exercises and recovery,” the Frenchman told Sport360, who has been working at Shabab for seven years.

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    “The other clubs focus on buying players, we focus on having our players doing their 100-per-cent best.

    “It is very different to just buying a new player when the current one does not perform to their best. 

    “We had such a tight schedule in the final months, playing every three days in the Arabian Gulf League, GCC Club Cup and President’s Cup. CRYO was so helpful for us to put all the chances on our side.

    “In the past seven years, we have been consistent in being in the semi-finals of the cups. The difference this season is that with this improvement in terms of recovery, it allowed us to play to our best in every competition.

    “We got knocked out on penalties in the President’s Cup semi-final to Al Nasr. That happened three days after we lifted the GCC Club Cup on penalties. 

    “It was so tough playing those games in such a short period, we were so worried. It was very helpful for us to use cryotherapy.” 

    The Shabab players endured three-minute sessions in the whole body cryo chamber, liquid nitrogen dropping the temperature to well below freezing.

    CRYO-Health uses this gas to cool their clients. The drop produces a rush of adrenaline, helping the body to re-activate and release hormones such as pain-relieving endorphins. This helps recovery, lowers lactic acid, reduces inflammation and improves sleep.

    Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and the squad of all-conquering Bayern Munich have embraced it. With this in mind, Shabab’s senior players such as Chile playmaker Carlos Villanueva, Uzbekistan defensive midfielder Azizbek Haydarov and goalkeeper Salem Abdulla all used CRYO-Health’s cutting-edge facilities.

    With such positive results and feedback, Chomier declared cryotherapy will continue to be used throughout the 2015/16 campaign.

    He said: “The feedback from the players was that it was very cold and the immediate effect after the session was really good. There was some pain relief, they were more relaxed and the biggest effect was that the more sessions we had the better the results were. 

    “Every day we took a blood sample from the players to test fatigue and we saw this decreased. 

    “Coach Caio Junior at the beginning was aware of being careful of introducing something new, especially because of the psychological effect at the end of the season. We started with the players who wanted to try it, having seen Cristiano Ronaldo and the Bayern Munich squad use it.

    “When everyone saw the results, we soon had 10 or more players for every session. “We will definitely continue using cryotherapy next season. We want to start using it better, such as directly after a game to improve sleep. “We will use it for injuries, as players who have them can recover faster.”

    CRYO-Health’s reputation for aiding sports stars is well-established, visiting Formula One drivers, horse racing jockeys and tennis players also seeking out the company’s service.

    “Cryotherapy is the most-cutting-edge piece of technology for recovery,” CRYO-Health general manager Ali Omar said. “The season is long in football, it is a rigorous schedule. Some teams play up to three times a week.

    “That is very intense on the body, when it comes to the muscles, joints and inflammation. What cryotherapy does is to offer the best way to recover very quickly.”

    A single treatment of whole body cryotherapy costs Dh400, while other treatments range from Dh275 to Dh650. Cryo-Health’s locations are in Jumeirah Emirates Towers and Dubai Ladies Club.

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