Saunas are amazing and we’ve previously covered the many mental and physical benefits of spending time in one.
If you’re thinking about getting more restorative, satisfying heat exposure into your life, today we cover all the questions you might have about making sauna a regular ritual.
How to choose a sauna
Should I go Finnish or infrared?
Saunas are divided into two types: Finnish or infrared. Both make you hot and sweaty, but you do it in different ways.
Finnish saunas. This is a traditional sauna. A Finnish sauna uses a heater (wood or electric) to heat the air in a wood-lined room or barrel. The air temperature in traditional Finnish saunas ranges from 160 to 220 degrees Fahrenheit, with a typical temperature of 190-200. Superheated air is what heats your body through the process of conduction.
Most of the studies that have been done on sauna benefits have been done using Finnish saunas.
Infrared saunas. Instead of heating the air in the room to warm your body, infrared saunas use near and far radiant heat waves to heat your body directly. Kind of like cooking in a microwave oven. This may sound questionable, but the waves are safe and won’t give you cancer or turn you into a mutant. Because infrared saunas can heat your body directly, they don’t need to heat the room as hot as a Finnish sauna to get warm and sweaty. Infrared saunas are not as hot as Finnish saunas, but you still get similar benefits.
The type of sauna you go with is a matter of personal preference and budget. Infrared saunas are cheaper and require less energy and a smaller footprint (people put them in bedrooms/garages/basements) than Finnish saunas. If you also don’t like the feeling of super hot air you get in a Finnish sauna, then infrared might be the right choice for you.
If you have the room and the budget and want the traditional sauna experience, then I would recommend Finnish style as the way to go. I don’t think the benefits of sauna sessions come solely from the heat alone. it’s not like popping a supplement. On the contrary, I would venture to say that its wholesome action comes from the fusion of heat itself and ritual from it. There’s something about the feel and smell of wood, being able to pour water on the rocks to create a cloud of steam and the hot, hot air. You feel good, man.
The other nice thing about Finnish saunas is that they can be quite large and you can put them outside. My sauna from almost heaven it can comfortably seat six adults and resides in the backyard. It’s nice to have a ‘third space’ apart from the house, to get some fresh air as you walk to and from it and to be able to see a little nature outside its glass door.
Where can I find/buy a sauna?
Saunas are available in gyms, wellness centers and tanning salons.
If you are interested in purchasing your own, you can get saunas directly from sauna manufacturers, as well as Amazon and even Costco.
If you’re looking for a reasonably priced Finnish sauna, check out Almost Heaven. As just mentioned, that’s where I got mine. Be sure to check their website regularly. they often have sales.
How to sauna
Precautions with the sauna
Before we get into the sauna, it’s worth stressing that sauna heat acts as a physiological stressor and you should take precautions before using one if:
You have heart problems. As mentioned in our previous article, sauna sessions give your cardiovascular system a workout. If you have heart problems, talk to your doctor before using the sauna.
Take prescription drugs. Some medications do not mix well with heat exposure. If you are taking any prescription medications, talk to your doctor before using a sauna.
You have certain skin conditions. A sauna can be good for the skin as it increases blood flow and circulation, bringing more nutrients to the skin. But it can be bad for the skin if you have certain conditions.
The hot air in the sauna can aggravate skin problems such as eczema and rosacea. For eczema sufferers, the addition of steam can alleviate it and some claim that using an infrared sauna can actually aid the treaty.
While you may have heard that a sauna is good for acne because it opens up your pores, the resulting heat, steam, and sweat can actually clog those pores and make breakouts worse, especially if you have a type of acne that involves inflammation, like cystic acne. If you’re acne-prone and still want to take a sauna, make sure to wash your face right after to get rid of any residue.
Are you worried about your fertility? As explained in our article on male fertility, the reason the testicles are outside the body is to keep them cool. The sperm count decreases as the temperature increases. Sitting in a sauna heats your testicles, reducing sperm count and motility.
These effects are not permanent and are quickly reversible. You just need to stop using the sauna for a while.
If you are trying for children, consider giving up the sauna. Try a cold shower.
How hot should a sauna be?
Researchers haven’t established an exact temperature and time to optimize the benefits of sauna sessions, but generally you want them to be fairly warm and moderately long (more on that below).
Studies that have been done on the health-promoting effects of sauna sessions have often put the temperature for participants at around 180-200 degrees Fahrenheit. My usual sauna temperature is 210.
If I’m going to have a long bull session with my friends, I’ll start with the temperature at 130 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s more like a sweat lodge experience than a sauna. Low and slow. When the night is over, we finish with 10-15 minutes in the sauna at 210 degrees.
For infrared saunas, shoot to heat the air between 175 and 195 degrees.
How long should a sauna session last?
20-30 minutes is the traditional sauna duration for Finnish saunas, and most of the studies mentioned in our previous article had participants sit in the sauna for at least 20 minutes.
But the length of your session will really depend on the temperature you set: if it’s high, a shorter session of 15-20 minutes will do the trick. If the temperature is low, you can go much further. On my sauna nights with friends, we cooked slowly but comfortably in the sauna at 130 degrees for 90 minutes.
If you use an infrared sauna in this 175 to 195 degree range, 20 minutes is all you need to get warm and sweaty.
You can break up your sauna sessions with cool down breaks. When my pool is open during the spring, summer and early fall, I alternate my sauna sessions with jumping in the water. During the winter, I step out of the sauna and walk around in the cold for a few minutes before returning.
During your sessions, the point is to just listen to your body: first you’ll feel warm, and then hot, and then hot and a little uncomfortable (but in a satisfying way). . . and then eventually you get past just being kind of uncomfortable feeling like, “Okay, this is too much, I’m done.” This is the time to either take a break, cool off before taking another dose of heat, or just call it a session. Listen to your body!
How often should I sauna?
You could sauna every day if you want.
But keep in mind that, again, the sauna is a stressor for your body. There is a balance you have to walk. In the right dose, sauna sessions can help you recover from life and workouts. Too much though, and they can really increase your fatigue. You can reap the benefits of a sauna with just two 20-minute sessions a week. Experiment to see what works for you and again, listen to your body. Once you tune in, you can actually feel your body “craving” a sauna session, or conversely saying, “Now is not the time.”
When should I take a sauna?
You can take a sauna whenever you want, but if you have a fitness program you follow, you should avoid taking the sauna right before your workout. Not to beat a dead horse here, but remember, heat is a stressor. Stressing your body with heat before stressing your body with exercise is a recipe for poor performance. If you exercise regularly, try to do your sauna sessions on rest/recovery days or right after your workout.
What should I do in the sauna?
I’ve seen people bring their phone into the sauna to listen to music or a podcast, but the heat isn’t good for your phone and sauna sessions are the perfect time to disconnect from your technology and all the annoying distractions in your life. Let the sauna be your sanctuary.
You might consider bringing a paperback into the sauna, but your focus/high-level thinking skills will decrease as your body heats up and your heart rate increases. Plus, your hands will sweat too much to hold a book.
You can do light stretches and body weight exercises if space allows. Your muscles will feel nice and relaxed and supple. But keep in mind that your body is already taxed by the heat, so any kind of movement will require much more effort than usual. relax and listen to your body.
In general, I suggest just doing in the sauna what traditional saunas have long done: nothing. Just sit there. Or lie down if you have the room (you’ll find it’s warmer when you sit down as the warm air rises). Let your mind go. Do some reflection while your thinking is still sharp. meditate when your mind starts to go blank. Just be.
What are some sauna etiquette rules I should know?
We have a whole article on this topic!
What should I do after the sauna?
During your sauna session, you’ll lose a lot of water through your sweat—up to four cups during a twenty-minute session! Be sure to hydrate with plenty of water afterward. Supplement with electrolytes as needed.
You’ll be incredibly sweaty afterwards, so you’ll probably want to take a shower. a cold will feel great (and be much more tolerable than usual)!
With 4,000 articles deep in our archives, we decided to repost a classic piece every Sunday to help our younger readers discover some of the best, evergreen gems from the past. This article was originally published in February 2021.
This article was originally published on The Art of Manliness.
