Saunas, especially Infrared Saunas are getting extremely popular due to the huge number of health benefits that they can provide and because they feel great.
However, there is a massive lack of understanding about what settings to use when in the Sauna. I’m often left baffled when I hear some of my patients or other people in the clinic proudly telling me they can sit in the sauna at 70ºc for 40 minutes as if there is some unspoken competition I don’t know about.
DON’T BE A SAUNA HERO!
Let me provide you with some insight into the different protocols or settings you can use to ensure you maximise your time in the sauna. This will allow you to receive the most benefits!
1.) DETOX. (TEMP 45º – 55º degrees celsius) (TIME 40-60mins)
90% of the time when I use the Sauna I use these settings.
• Having a low temperature setting is the ONLY way you can detoxify your body when in a sauna.
• At a lower temperature (approx between 45-55º) your body produces an “oily beady” sweat which is wildly different to the sweat we produce when we are in a hot sauna or exercise hard.
• This oily beady sweat is produced by sebaceous sweat glands and is the only gland that can remove toxins directly out of the body.
• This is the setting for you if you are looking for an overall improvement in health, better looking skin, better immune system and overall wellbeing.
2.) ATHLETIC RECOVERY. (TEMP 55º – 65º degrees celsius) (TIME 20-30mins MAX)
• There is good evidence that Infrared Saunas can help improve athletic recovery.
• Hotter saunas for a shorter period of time can be a good way to help speed up the recovery time during big training blocks and weeks.
• Going hotter stimulates a huge amount of blood flow bringing oxygen and healing properties to muscle tissue. This also removed a lot of the metabolic waste from high volumes or loads of training.
PLEASE NOTE: If you feel the necessity to go hotter because you can’t sweat: get your thyroid checked, do more saunas to open up your detox pathways, or improve your fitness levels.
Early sweating is a great sign of fitness, having your skin detox pathway open, having a healthy functioning thyroid and overall good health.
Dr. Harrison Stone
