Run's done, calves are humming, and you nip into the chemist on the way home. Whole shelf of muscle gels. Cooling, warming, and a couple that say dual-action, which sounds clever and tells you nothing.
Not one of them explains which one you actually want. So you grab the one with the nicest box, or whatever's on offer, and hope.
Sometimes that works out! Mostly it's a guess.
There's an easier way to pick, and it really only comes down to two things. How does the muscle feel right now? And when did you train?
Cooling: what it feels like
Cold. Obviously. But not ice pack cold, it's that sharp, minty, menthol kind that makes you suck a breath in through your teeth. The first minute can be a lot, especially on the backs of your legs. Give it a minute. It backs off. What's left is this fresh, tingly feeling that hangs about for ages after.
Who's it for, then? When a muscle feels hot and worked. Straight after a session is the obvious one. Leg day, or ninety minutes of five a side on a 3G pitch, and your thighs feel like somebody switched them on and walked off. Cooling takes the edge off that hot, busy feeling. Nice way to finish.
It's good for the day or two after a hard workout too, when everything's still a bit warm and overcooked. Sit down, stand up, and your quads have opinions about it. Some cold on them before bed feels great.
Also, on a warm evening, cold just wins. Nobody wants a hot gel on a July night in a flat with no air con.
Worth saying: the cold is a sensation. Nice, yes. Soothing, definitely. But all it's really there for is to make the walk back to the car feel a bit less grim. Nothing medical.
Warming: what it feels like
Slower. Rub it in and for a bit nothing much happens. Then over a few minutes the heat creeps up. It shouldn't burn. It's more like leaning your back against a radiator on a winter afternoon, and it lasts, which is a big part of why people like it.
This is the before-training one. Cold Saturday, parkrun, hamstrings like old elastic. A bit of warmth rubbed in while you lace up helps you feel looser and ready to go. It won't do your warm-up for you, mind. You still have to do your leg swings in the car park with everyone else.
Cold mornings in general, really. Or the stiff neck you get from eight hours hunched over a laptop. Or the lower back that tightens up after a day on your feet, or a long drive up the M6. Heat on a stiff back just feels right, and most people know that without anyone telling them.
And then there's the dull ache. Not the fresh, hot feeling right after, but the one that shows up a couple of days later and hangs about. Your legs aren't sore exactly, they're heavy, and tight every time you take the stairs. For that, a lot of people would rather have warmth.
Dual-action, cold then warm
Biofrost Active Dual-Action Gel does both. Cold going on, so you get the fresh hit first, then as it settles it turns warm and that comforting heat stays with you for a good while.
Why bother? Couple of reasons. Some people just can't decide. Their legs feel hot and worked but also tight, and they don't fancy standing in the aisle weighing it up. Others like the feel of both and would rather have one tube in the gym bag than two. It's handy at home as well, when it's one person's post-run calves and someone else's desk-job back out of the same tube.
If you're only going to keep one tube in the house, this is probably the one I'd keep. It covers more of the situations above than either of the others does on its own.
Now. The garlic.
Biofrost Active has garlic extract in it. It's on the label, plain as day, and it catches almost everyone off guard when they read the back. Cue mild panic about turning up to work smelling like a pizza takeaway.
You won't! Nobody at work is going to ask what you had for tea. It's one of the ingredients, that's all, and it makes for decent pub trivia.
The rule of thumb
If you remember one bit of this, make it this bit:
Fresh, hot, worked muscle, straight after effort: go cooling.
Stiff, tight or cold, before effort or a few days later: go warming.
Can't decide, or you want both: go dual-action.
Here's how that plays out. Saturday morning, ten minutes after a long run, calves hot and buzzing? Cooling. Sunday afternoon, same legs, now heavy and stiff every time you go up the stairs? Warming. Same run, same legs, different day, different tube. It really is mostly about timing.
Whichever you go for, use a small amount and rub it into the skin over the muscle until it's gone, not left sitting there shiny on top. More gel isn't more comfort. It's just sticky leggings.
Wash your hands after. Properly. These are for external use only and you do not want them anywhere near your eyes (ask anyone who's taken their contact lenses out straight after using one, they'll tell you). Not on broken skin either, so no cuts or grazes. And read the pack, because the directions on the tube are the ones that count, not a blog post.
When it's not a gel job
These are for everyday muscle comfort. Tired legs, stiff back, the general ache of having done something hard. That's what they're for.
Not everything, though. Swollen? Badly painful? Felt or heard a pop? Or it just isn't settling after a few days? Put the tube down and go and see a doctor or a physio. Rubbing gel on something that needs looking at just means you find out later what's actually wrong.
Loads of people who train ignore this, right up until they can't. Don't be the one at five a side who strapped it, carried on for six weeks and still can't work out why it isn't right.
Which one's yours?
Cold for fresh and hot, warm for stiff and tight, both if you can't make your mind up.
We make two at Maxim Sports. Biofrost Relief Gel is the cooling one. Biofrost Active Dual-Action Gel is the one that starts cold and goes warm. You rub either of them into the skin over the muscle. Directions are on the pack. Train a lot, or sit at a desk all day? Chuck one in your bag. You'll use it.
Go with whatever your legs are telling you today. Then get back out there.