For more than 2,000 years, people have taken advantage of the benefits of sauna bathing. They surely enjoyed the experience, though of course they didn’t have the science to explain why.
But today, we do. So we can understand not only the wonderful things about sauna bathing, but what makes it great. Isn’t science amazing?
- Reduce Stress – Stress can negatively affect your health. Thankfully, your sauna can help relieve it. The heat relaxes your muscles, improves circulation and releases endorphins – those “feel good” chemicals that kick stress relief into high gear.
- Soothe Muscles and Joints – Those same endorphins can help ease muscle and joint pain. Plus, the increased body temperature you experience in a sauna increases your circulation, speeding up the healing process. In fact, athletes often use saunas to soothe their muscles following a workout.
- Flush toxins – The deep sweating promoted by a sauna bath can help reduce toxins including copper, nickel, lead, zinc, mercury and chemicals that are absorbed into your body simply by your daily interactions with your environment.
- Cleanse the Skin – Deep sweating doesn’t just flush toxins, it flushes our dead skin cells and bacteria. Studies have shown that clearing the pores in this fashion improves capillary circulation and helps your skin look softer.
- Sleep Deeper – Body temperatures rise in the evening and fall at bedtime, telling your body it’s time for sleep. A calming 20 minute sauna bath an hour or two before bed can help enhance this rise-and-fall, preparing your body for a deep, restful sleep.
- Stay Social – A private sauna is the perfect place for quiet conversation with those you care about most. And we all know how important quality social relationships are to human well-being.
- Boost Cardiovascular Performance – Every time you quickly change from the hot sauna (allowing your core temperature to rise) to a cool temperature, your heart rate increases up to 60 percent. That’s close to what you experience during moderate exercise.
- Burn Calories – A sauna isn’t a miracle calorie burning tool. But if you’re working to lose weight, it can definitely be a tool in your toolbelt. When you sweat in a sauna, you can burn nearly 300 calories.
- Fight Illness – The heat and steam in a sauna makes your body ramp up production of white blood cells, which helps your body fight off illness. Want an added bonus? The steam can help ease congestion when you’re feeling poorly.
Even though these are great reasons to enjoy your sauna, don’t lose sight of what kept people coming back all those years ago. It just feels good. And if you don’t have a sauna – what are you waiting for? Come see us today!