Scientists believe earthing – a practice which involves the skin touching either grass, sand, a river, lake or sea - could help you recover from injury and fight illness.
A study in 2010 found that a group suffering with DOMS – delayed onset of muscle soreness – after exercise – who routinely came into contact with the Earth for a week, recovered more quickly compared to a group who didn’t.
Experts believe the gentle negative charge emitted by the Earth’s surface could help to tackle free radicals – molecules which destroy the healthy cells in the body and lead to illness.
Sports chiropractor Jeff Spencer, who has worked in football, basketball and Formula One, said: “I’ve consistently found that earthing offers recovery benefits above and beyond techniques such as icing. Pain relief is often 40-50% greater with the athletes I work with.”
A further study saw 30 patients with sleep issues and muscle and joint soreness report a significant improvement in their symptoms, having each slept on an earthed mattress for a one-month period.
Former Aston Villa director of performance, Mike Watts, who now works for American sportswear Under Armour, is interested to see what impact further studies could have on football.
“I actually think there’s some interesting thoughts and ideas around holistic type stuff like earthing – walking barefoot on rocks and having contact with the ground,” he said.
“Recovery is often psychological. The big thing is getting a player to buy in to what they’re doing. Normally, I like foam rolling before and after training and matches – cold water immersion and ice baths are also good.
"A lot of players will ignore suggestions about recovery techniques, so you have to provide them with enough variety so they’ll at least do one. If you can teach them the benefits of earthing, you could have some success.”
