Do you wish you could work out longer?
Do stiff muscles and sore joints keep you from reaching your full potential?
Do you ever wonder how high-end athletes get their endurance so high?
The secret might actually be sauna use.
Read on to learn how to use a sauna correctly; if you do it right, you’ll feel stronger and your workouts will last significantly longer.
What Saunas Do
A sauna is an enclosed chamber heat by a pile of rocks.
As the rocks cool down, they fill the room with a strong, dry heat.
Exposure to this environment causes blood to rush to the surface of your skin; you’ll sweat more, your muscles will relax, and your heart rate will increase.
Saunas have a surprising number of health benefits.
People who visit saunas have a lower risk of heart disease and tend to live longer overall.
The heat can reduce inflammation, lessen arthritis symptoms, and generally help the sauna goer find a state of physical wellness.
Frequent sauna use might even be able to reduce the risk of mental illness.
With all of these health benefits, it’s no wonder that most gyms, spas, and rec centers feature a sauna.
Don’t confuse a sauna with a steam room; although the two are similar, steam rooms produce a moist heat and might have different health effects.
Can Saunas Improve Your Performance?
When sauna use is combined with normal exercise, the health benefits are greatly multiplied.
Using a sauna regularly might significantly improve your performance during workouts.
The heat of a sauna causes your body to react like you’ve been working out.
It warms up your muscles, increases your heart rate, and causes you to sweat like you just finished a heavy round of cardio.
If you use a sauna before or after workout, you can take advantage of these benefits to get specific results.
When used frequently and over time, a sauna will improve your body’s general tolerance.
You’ll be able to run longer and handle dehydration better during intense exercise.
The heat from the sauna resets your body’s internal temperature threshold; after continuous use, hot temperatures simply won’t feel as drastic.
To get the greatest benefits, plan on hitting the sauna at least four times a week.
Decide whether to use it before or after your workout based on the specific effects that you’re hoping to recieve.
Using the Sauna Before a Workout
A pre-workout sauna session is a good way to warm up your muscles.
5 to 10 minutes in the sauna will increase your heart rate and relax your muscles; you can then transition smoothly into your normal workout exercises.
The heat in a sauna creates an extremely dehydrating environment.
You don’t want to be dehydrated during your workout, so drink plenty of water both before and after your sauna trip.
Pay attention to how you feel, and leave the sauna before you start to feel tired.
Don’t stay in the sauna for more than 20 minutes; you don’t want to be exhausted before your workout begins.
Remember that a sauna warm-up doesn’t replace your normal warm-up cycle.
You still need to stretch and work up to the full-intensity parts of your exercise regime.
Take advantage of your freshly loosened muscles to develop a healthy and safe workout pace.
Using the Sauna After a Workout
After a workout might be the very best time to use a sauna.
Try to get to the sauna within half an hour of your workout session to achieve the maximum results.
Your body is slightly dehydrated after a workout, and you have a lower blood volume.
The sauna will move your blood to the surface and cause you to start sweating.
With less blood to go around, your kidneys will start to produce additional proteins and plasma to increase your blood volume.
Don’t drink any water between the end of the workout and the start of your sauna session.
After you use the sauna, re-hydrate slowly; if you flood your body with water, you won’t produce the needed plasma.
You won’t feel many immediate effects from this post-workout sauna experience.
However, in the long run, you’ll have a higher plasma volume and will perform better in your regular workout activities.
Runners who used the sauna at least four time a week have shown a significant increase in endurance and speed.
You have to use the sauna regularly to achieve these effects.
Plan to use the sauna every day for an entire week; after that point, you’ll start to notice a significant improvement in your overall endurance.
Sauna Safety Tips
The smartest atheletes combine sauna use with regular exercise and safe practices.
Sauna use mimics the effects of exercising, so you should consider it a part of your workout routine.
If you plan to use the sauna, work out slightly less; you don’t want to be over-exhausted.
Start your sauna experience with 5 to 10 minute sessions.
You can slowly increase the length of your sessions, but never stay in for more than 30 minutes.
Even if your time isn’t up, you should always leave the sauna once you start to feel tired or lightheaded.
If you’re new to the sauna, try taking breaks. Start with 5 minutes in and 1 minute out; next, stay in for 10 minutes, then take another break.
Repeat this until your heat endurance has increased.
Bring someone with you into the sauna whenever possible.
If you stay in a hot environment for too long, you could fall unconscious; make sure someone knows where you went and how long you plant to be in there.
Remember to drink water after using the sauna.
Producing all of that sweat will inevitably result in dehydration.
Never take a cold shower right after using a sauna; sudden changes in heat will make you feel extremely lightheaded.
If you really want a cold shower, start with warmer water, and slowly decrease the heat.
Whether you like to use the sauna before or after workout, you’ll be amazed at this heat chamber’s effects on your body.
Take it slow, and enjoy the warmth; saunas are all about relaxation.