Water, A Player's Best Friend?

By: Andrew Barnett
Auburn University at Montgomery
Department of Communication & Dramatic Arts

Seems like athletes have found a new method of recovering from injuries and maintaining health. Not surgery, not rehab, not therapy… Water.

Yes, the simplest form of liquid there is has been credited with helping a few athletes get back to 100%. You may be thinking of drinking water to stay hydrated and not pass out in games, but it is much more than that.
Recently, Manny Pacquiao claimed that he recovered from his shoulder injury, just by swimming in the sea.
“I never saw a doctor. I never did rehab. All I did was to swim in the sea as often as I could. The salt water healed my wound,” Pacquiao said.
This surgery injury was well publicized after his disappointing fight with Floyd Mayweather back in May. It was made to seem as if this “severe” shoulder injury would knock him out of in-ring action for several months. So to read Manny claim that salt water healed his shoulder is bamboozling to say the least.
Russell Wilson has also cited water as a source of healing power. He claims that Recovery Water prevented him from getting a concussion after suffering a head injury in January’s NFC Championship game. Wilson said: “I banged my head during the Packers game in the playoffs, and the next day I was fine, it was the water.”
Recovery Water is a product that claims to improve the body’s natural restoration process. Must be some pretty strong stuff.
Many NBA fans might remember seeing Lebron James and Matthew Dellavedova taking ice baths during the NBA Finals, due to the amount of minutes they played and the toll it took on their bodies. Lebron even made a video of him taking an ice bath for therapy.
It is known that our bodies are made of 70% water so it should come as no surprise that water might heal us in some ways. However, these athletes have taken that to a whole other level. We shall see if trends like these continue.
These athletes just might be on to something.