Saunas in North America pull from native traditions, Finnish influence, and designs and cultures from all over the world ranging from the Middle East to Northern Europe. Infrared saunas in commercial settings such as gyms, hotels, spas, and corporate buildings have proven to be beneficial at providing health benefits widely recognized by mental health professionals and physicians. If you’ve never enjoyed a session in an infrared sauna, here are eight reasons to try it.

Endurance

If you’re an athlete, you can improve your performance or endurance through a sauna. This is because exposure to high heat increases the body’s heat tolerance. In endurance sports, this means you feel less fatigue and can maintain energy over an extended period of time.

Look younger

An infrared sauna makes a person happy in many ways. They often come away healthier, energized, and feeling so much better. Another way a sauna helps is by making a person look younger. As we sweat, we get rid of old dead skin cells, the heat moisturizes the skin, and lastly, sitting in a sauna improves blood flow. It’s no miracle-worker and isn’t an anti-aging cure but in time, after a few weeks likely, you may see a difference in the glow and elasticity of the skin.

Weight loss

‘Sexy’ comes in many sizes but let’s face it, weight loss and weight control’s a challenge for a lot of us. To keep your numbers in a healthy range, an infrared sauna session lasting 20 minutes is everything you need to burn calories and speed up metabolism.

Have you ever looked around your sauna and found that you just haven’t been content – this probably means it’s time for an upgrade. Even if your sauna’s still looking mighty fine and you’re enjoying your time with it, if you feel like something’s off or you’re just plain not happy with your sauna, consider it a time for some changes in layout and design. If you haven’t renovated in a little bit, here are some tell-tale signs that now might be your opportunity to do a little switching up.

Stuff’s breaking or falling apart

If you have purchased a low quality, cheap infrared sauna, in time you may see things start to break or fall apart. If there’s wear and tear, stuff chipping, grout accumulating, stuff’s cracking, and/or if there’s moisture problems, letting these things go on only means they’re going to get worse. A lot of homeowners with a sauna installed may choose to do their own repairs. This will likely void any warranty on their home sauna space though. Also, small issues lead to bigger problems. This is almost always the case, sometimes resulting in a safety hazard.

Your needs for the sauna are changing

Maybe you bought your sauna when you were living on your own. If you want to bring in a girlfriend or partner, have a family now, or want to add new features or make adjustments, renovating a sauna may be a necessary upgrade. For some, they want to make it bigger so it doesn’t feel so cramped. Others will want extra features to accommodate the needs of other people you intend to use it with. You may want to move your sauna to a different space. There are many reasons to upgrade a sauna, all based around your intentions, preference, and needs.

Hormones are the body’s messengers. They are produced by glands and organs, carried into our bloodstreams and then, circulated throughout our bodies. Tissues are equipped with the appropriate hormone receptors then receive the message and produce the desired response.

What can happen in some of us are what’s called hormone imbalances. The general symptoms are feeling unwell, shaken, and/or in a negative mindset. There are all sorts of hormone imbalances, including with stress, the thyroid, and sexually with estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone. Would you be able to recognize a stress hormone imbalance if you had one? Hormone imbalances like these are known as ‘adrenal fatigue’.

The adrenal glands produce and regulate the stress hormone cortisol, among other things including neurotransmitters and blood pressure regulating hormones. When a person has acute or chronic stress, cortisol imbalances appear. Over time, this can cause the body all sorts of negative reactions.

Understandably, we all get stressed from time to time. Some of us work long hours, have busy social lives, are always on-the-go, use coffee to keep us awake, and work hard to satisfy our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual goals. The more stress we put on our bodies, the more we engage in a ‘fight or flight’ response. This means our bodies produce more cortisol as a mechanism of survival.

A sauna in the summer may seem counterintuitive. It may sound like a bizarre suggestion but saunas, even on a hot day, can help to cool off and cool down the body in a number of ways.

On some days, mid-July up through to early September, it can be up to 40 degrees outside in some parts of the country. Naturally, you want to find some relief from the blistering heat. So go for a sauna. The high temperatures of a sauna work to adjust the body’s perception of heat and temperature, in a single session. How this works is simple.

When the body’s put under high temperatures, it’s under what’s called heat stress. This creates reactions in the body, several of them in fact. After you come out of a sauna, you may think of it as being plunged right back into heat but guess what actually happens? Suddenly that hot summer heat doesn’t feel so overwhelming. This is because the body’s already adjusted to a higher temperature. The heat stress in a sauna produces several positive results, this just being one. You could actually end up feeling colder, in addition to being less stressed. You’ll feel utterly refreshed!

Though we usually associate weakened immune systems with winter, a boost in summer’s a welcomed experience. Combine a sauna with ice right after and this give the immune system a jolt. A plunge into a chilled pool or even just rubbing ice on your skin can be enough to get benefits. The immune system reaction comes from the fact that the body core temperatures increases by 1.5 degrees when you go through a sauna. This stimulates the immune system in a very natural way to fight and kill pathogens, without the use of any antibiotics, medications, or anything else.

Both hot and cold relieve pain and sore muscles but which one is better? Athletes run into this question all the time. They overdo it the day before at the gym and wake up the next morning thinking what the heck happened! Or maybe it’s after a long day’s work shift and your muscles ache. Do you throw on some ice or a heat pad – well, the answer lies here in this article. Here’s the key differences between cold therapy and heat therapy, and why you may want to keep a steam room or sauna close.

Cold therapy

Cold therapy is also known as ‘cryotherapy’. Cold reduces blood flow to an injury. As blood’s directed away, this can affect the severity of pain in an area. Inflammation, swelling, and tissue damage are all reduced. Cold seems particularly useful in treating swollen or inflamed joints. There’s certainly a reason to use it on occasion. While it has its’ place, cold does not compare with steam room sore muscle therapy. Here’s why.

Heat therapy

Heat therapy dilates the blood vessels and promotes blood flow – the exact opposite of cold. Heat helps to open up sore muscles and relax them, which is why so many athletes use steam rooms, saunas, and other forms of heat therapy to help them along. As circulation improves, oxygen and nutrients are carried to the muscle more efficiently. At the same time, lactic acid drains which helps the muscle to heal.

Worldwide, 1.13 billion people have what’s called hypertension, otherwise known as high blood pressure. There are medications you can take to lower it, although they come with their risks. Lifestyle and diet changes in some can help, certainly. One of the most effective high blood pressure cures is a steam room.

When you have high blood pressure, the pressure of the blood against your arteries gets to be higher than normal. Many will reduce their salt intake, stop smoking, and reduce alcohol consumption, and while these things work, for some, they are too difficult to do or don’t work as well as hoped.

Make no mistake, high blood pressure doesn’t seem overly serious but it is. High blood pressure’s known as ‘the silent killer’ because symptoms are often easy to miss. Headaches, nausea, increased heart rate, blurred vision, and breathlessness are all symptoms. Left untreated and you’re on the fast-track to a heart attack, stroke, kidney issues, blood clotting, memory disorders, and/or eye disorders.

So how does a steam room help high blood pressure? A steam room isn’t a definite cure but studies have shown it can reduce the risk of elevated blood pressure. In fact, in some men, it’s been shown to reduce high blood pressure and its risks by as much as 50% in individuals who use steam rooms 4-7 times a week. The study this was pulled from was a 22-year undertaking, demonstrating clear and undisputable benefits procured from steam room exposure.

Create your own home spa experience, using a sauna as a focal point. How does your own personal sanctuary sound – it’s more than possible with the right accessories and design. An inviting personal refuge for just you and no one else. Transform a sauna and everything around it into a retreat you’ll want to make use of every day of the work week. Here are a few recommendations and sauna spa design trends to consider when you’re installing your own personal sauna room.

Less is more

There’s a lot of really, really cool sauna products and accessories you can put in a heat therapy room. That said, you don’t want to just pile on. Choose wisely. You don’t want a busy sauna. You want a room that’s simple, minimalist, and that communicates calmness. A zen-like atmosphere is only achievable when the space is decluttered. Consider what you really, really need and abandon anything that doesn’t hit the spot.

Flexibility

Although this is all for you, if you intend to re-sell at any point, you may want to factor in some flexibility. Design to suit your mood and lifestyle but leave opportunity to make adjustments. Even you may decide to move some things around and change designs, at which time you’ll be thankful you incorporated some flexibility in your sauna.

Every athlete has to have a certain level of skill, dedication, and focus to be able to accomplish what they set out to do. Even the most cautious, well-trained athletes still experience injury. It’s almost an inevitability. Athletes are prone to injury. When that injury hits, you need to have a recovery plan mapped out to keep you in shape as best as can be, to rest, and to give you the tools you need to jump back into action within a reasonable time frame.

An infrared sauna helps athletic injuries by giving your body the equivalent of a moderate cardiovascular workout just by having you sit there. It speeds up circulation through the body, releases tension from the muscle, and encourages a steady flow of oxygen and nutrients throughout your system. When you experience an injury as an athlete, the best recovery is to be passionate about healing instead of focusing on not being able to pursue your passion.

First things first, before jumping into any sauna, straighten your mindset. You’ve experienced a bump in the road. That’s all an injury is. Though negativity, sadness, and anger are common, to keep these feelings in you benefits nothing and no one. An athlete that’s able to put these thoughts behind them, move forward in a positive way, and zero in on rest, recovery, and rehabilitation, these are the people who move past injury.

The morning’s a very important time of day. It’s the moments after we wake up that ultimately decide a lot about what our outlook on the day ahead is going to be. Do you want to start off energized or is it a typical slow start – no worries, we’ve been there! Waking up isn’t easy, particularly after a late night.

A lot of people wake up early and plan a morning ritual around a sauna. This isn’t a bad idea, easing a person into their day and starting it off with some pleasure before we delve into work, worries, and all that nasty stuff! Your day to day living’s got to have some balance to it, if you’re hoping to last the distance. Here are some morning sauna rituals to get you off on the right foot!

No rush

Wake up earlier than you have to so that you don’t need to rush. You can move at your leisure, enjoy the serenity and calm, and gently open your eyes to the day ahead.

Hydrate

After you wake, you’ve essentially been fasting for the entire time you were sleeping. Hydrate immediately so that you’ve got some sweat to push out. We recommend a big bottle of water with half of a freshly squeeze lemon and a pinch of maple syrup for something delicious to sip on.

A sauna’s simplest definition is “a room designed as a place to experience heat sessions”. This opens the door way up to get creative with how these rooms look, operate, and feel. Scouring the world, you can find some truly weird, odd, and quirkily placed saunas. Here are the most bizarre saunas in the world, each one stranger than the next.

Helsinki, Finland’s Hockey Stadium Sauna

In Canada, we love watching some hockey. It’s just our culture here. In Finland, they also have some love for the iciest sport out there. In Helsinki, you can watch a hockey game from a seat in a traditional sauna. Seating up to 20 people, it’s one of the more expensive saunas on our list available for roughly $3,000 to rent for a single night.

Sandhornoya, Norway’s Public Sauna

Outside seemingly in the middle of the wilderness is the world’s largest public sauna. In Norway, hundreds of people come every year to partake in this beautiful outdoor setting. Nestled in the forest near water, this strange sauna remains ready and open to the public.

Saunas have come a long way in the past few decades. We’ve moved away from traditional saunas to advanced infrared heat therapy systems. This has happened for many reasons, predominantly because of the health benefits associated with infrared technology. This isn’t the only reason however. The history of infrared technology says a lot about why it came to be the go-to for saunas.

Infrared heat is essentially infrared light. Infrared light has a longer wavelength than the longest wavelength visible to the human eye. In fact, over 75 percent of the sun’s rays are infrared. This heat’s taken in and radiated through the body. Centuries ago, we began to understand the temperatures that exist in color. It was previously thought red was the longest wavelength that existed. Over time however, it was discovered there was much more to temperature in color. Energy given off of what was found to be infrared light wasn’t visible but could be seen with certain cameras.

Fast forward to the twentieth century, and we began to see infrared heat included in various appliances. Infrared, after all, is radiant heat. In medical facilities, it began to be tested and also used for healing and to assist with injury recovery. Infrared has gone on to evolve into a phenomenon. It is used today in everything from toaster ovens to space heaters, grills, and more. How it found its way into saunas has to do with demand. People wanted saunas in their homes and in their gyms, hotels, medical facilities, spas, and elsewhere. A traditional sauna however is more expensive, sometimes difficult to install, and costs a lot to operate. Comparatively, infrared’s much cheaper, easier to install, and easier to maintain in general.

In a recent interview, Jennifer Aniston shared a beauty secret both her and her Friends co-star Courtney Cox use. We’re of course talking about infrared saunas. Although some may think it strange, infrared heat therapy rooms and devices have been around and used for years by Hollywood A-listers to keep themselves looking fabulous. Here’s a little bit more about how they work.

Infrared saunas are essentially a room wherein targeted infrared rays heat up our bodies from inside out. This sort of targeted heat is more efficient than a traditional sauna and allows for the benefits of heat without having to turn up the temperature beyond where one is comfortable. Hollywood actors and celebrities have been turned on to infrared saunas for its many health benefits including the fact that it can make a person’s skin appear younger. How a sauna accomplishes this is through the magic of sweating.

Chances are if you look at your skin and examine it closely, you may have blackheads, imperfections, and maybe even a pimple here and there. A lot of this is caused by oils and dirt being caught in our skin. As we sweat, our pores sort of dislodge a lot of this resulting in a clean appearance and smoother skin. At the same time these toxins are being pushed out, our skin’s moisture levels are increasing and in this sense, the infrared sauna is becoming an exfoliator. As one does this 4-7 times a week, you’re continually refining and rejuvenating the skin which ultimately results in a ‘young look’.

A lot of us use a sauna to support our health and fitness levels. Like anything though, we can sabotage ourselves when we aren’t making the choices day-to-day to maintain our health. A perfect example is when someone goes to the gym and does a wonderfully powerful 60-minute lifting sessions, burning calories to no end. Then, they go get a double cheeseburger at McDonald’s. All the work they put in ends up being almost for nothing.

If you want to really feel the full impact of those sauna health benefits, you’ve got to pair it with proper nutrition. Let’s be clear on what we mean exactly by a ‘healthy diet’. If you’re someone who doesn’t eat the healthiest, you may notice a few things. A lot of us not-so-healthy eaters typically eat a lot of processed foods and not whole foods. Cereal is largely processed and stripped of a lot of its nutritional value, outside of cooked quinoa or steel cut oats. Juice boxes are usually pure sugar. Fruit-flavored yogurt is also packed with sugar. These are things to avoid. They’re simple steps to take to cut down on the harm that sugar brings to the body.

It’s not always as easy as to say less sugar and less processed foods though. Even some people who think they’re eating healthy can be deceived by the quality of product being served to them. Whole grain breads or whole grain pastas are often processed with white flour and other ingredients. Unless you’re buying fully organic, you are running the risk of preservatives in it or components which aren’t easily digested by the body.

Saunas are a lot of fun. They’re a place to go de-stress, sweat, de-tension our muscles, and of course relax. We don’t often think about the serious health complications or issues in our bodies that we may not even know are going on.

Our livers and kidneys are important to our bodies. If they’re not functioning their best, it can produce symptoms that we may interpret to be without cause. High blood pressure is one such example.

Can saunas help cleanse the kidneys or liver – well, some would say yes and others would disagree. Here’s why.

A major benefit to a sauna is detoxification. When we detoxify, this takes off some stress from the kidneys and liver who are working hard to process the toxins in our bodies. Instead of eliminating toxins through these organs, they come through the skin. There are doctors who will argue sauna sessions 2-3 times a week will help ease one’s workload on the kidneys and liver, and can be recommended for those suffering from kidney or liver disease.

Now let’s look at symptoms that may occur when a liver or the kidneys aren’t functioning well. If there’s an issue with your liver, you may have high blood pressure, headaches that worsen with stress, insomnia, red eyes, tremors, weak joints, spasms, and more. Alcohol, spicy foods, greasy processed foods, or stress can worsen these symptoms.

Anxiety disorders are very common among today’s generations. For some, all it presents as is worrying and doesn’t really affect a person’s life beyond this. For others, it can progress to phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder, and panic attacks. You likely know a lot of people who are struggling with anxiety right now in their personal lives. In fact, anxiety affects up to 90% of the population at least once over the course of their lives.

If you subscribe to the notion that anxiety as well as other mental health struggles are related to imbalances in the mind, there are ways to help remedy this. Thankfully, there are a number of things which can work to either reduce anxiety or resolve it completely. Anxiety is physical symptoms manifesting from emotions and imbalances, in the same way anger raises blood pressure, sadness induces fatigue, fear affects our kidneys, and more. Here are 7 ways to help anxiety.

Acupuncture

Acupuncture, in some patients, has been shown to reduce panic attacks, calm the mind, and help the body re-balance itself. If you’re not fearful of needles, you may wish to consider some acupuncture. There are both mental and physical benefits to the popular traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).

Looking for a new sauna? Every day, we hear from homeowners looking for a sauna room. Whether it’s purchasing your first infrared sauna for the home or replacing an older model, mistakes can be made.

Just like you would if you were buying a new washer and dryer, or an oven or refrigerator, any appliance like this that you purchase for your home is going to have a fair price tag to it and serious consideration must be given as to what’s the right model for you to take.

The excitement of buying a sauna can be exhilarating, leading you to make a decision possibly uninformed. Be sure to take your time and consider different models. Here are the top 4 critical mistakes made when choosing a sauna to install in your home.

Assembly

When you buy an infrared sauna, you’re tasked with setting it up. Though you’re given instruction, should there be a missing piece or if it’s a low quality model, the assembly infrastructure may betray you. A badly built sauna unfortunately may mean heat isn’t held well and/or long-term difficulties you encounter down the line. Some of the places to be wary of include the exterior buckles, magnets, and side clasps.

The best time to exercise, have a coffee, meditate, or watch a movie can have a tremendous effect on your body. It’s long been believed, including in Traditional Chinese Medicine theory, that every organ or internal system is most active for a specific two-hour period in any given 24-hour day.

According to these Eastern theories, there is a ‘best time’ to rest, sleep, meditate, and sauna for our body. Thankfully, in support of these theories, we know a lot more about science these days than we did thousands of years ago. There’s a lot of real data supporting the ‘best time’ theory. For this reason, we thought it’d be interesting to explore these different times. For passionate infrared sauna and steam room goers, this may be information worth retaining.

The stomach

The stomach is most active between 7 am and 9 am which probably makes sense. After all, as human beings, we’ve trained ourselves that this is when we eat breakfast. In a way, breakfast feeds us for the day ahead. It’s also the meal we eat after sleep which is a period of fasting. For these reasons, this is stomach time and the best time to get food in your body.

The sauna’s a great home accessory, becoming ever more popular among homeowners interested in adding more value to their properly. Newly-constructed homes and properties undergoing major renovations are bringing in saunas in greater numbers than ever before.

Not all saunas are equal though, with some having a less than stellar design and made from materials which aren’t built to last. To get the most from your money, you’ve got to know what to look for. Saunas are an excellent home investment, when you have the right product. They minimize what you could spend on spa treatments and leave you with your own personal oasis. Here’s a few elements you can use to be a smart shopper.

Type of wood

First and foremost, the type of wood you select for your home sauna is key. There are plenty of woods to choose from, including cedar which has a distinctive scent. If you don’t enjoy a strong cedar smell, you may alternatively choose another wood type such as hemlock.

We look to Finland for a lot of inspiration when it comes to saunas. The European nation is, for all sakes and purposes, the birthplace of the modern day sauna with 10,000 years of history behind it. To this day, Finland’s saunas can get very wild in design, even going so far as to produce a sauna on a Ferris wheel! Here are some of our favourite designs and where to find them.

Kesan Floating Sauna

Cruise between Finland and Sweden on this absolutely gorgeous special sauna boat. A small wooden raft, you can jump into the water whenever you want to cool down. For another boat sauna, there’s also the Sauna Shop which floats across pre-designated tours like wine tastings, fishing, and photography cruises.

Ice Igloo Sauna

In Pyhapiilo, the lake is frozen over and the landscape’s snow. Across the forest, there are small igloo saunas lined up. Blocks of ice help to keep the heat which might seem counterintuitive but it works! The steam sauna effects relax the muscles and you can enjoy some additional spa treatments if need be.

People who use a sauna live longer. Why is this the case? Well, we don’t quite know for sure although there are a number of health benefits associated to its name. Needless to say, to live longer from sauna use isn’t a rumour. It’s a scientifically verified fact. Here’s where the current research stands.

A lot of current research around a sauna’s effect on life span is centered around a Finnish study published assessing 2,000 middle-aged males who used saunas to varying degrees. Men who engaged in sauna use 2-3 times a week saw their risk of death from a heart attack reduce by 22 percent. Alternatively, the risk of death related to a heart attack or cardiac event among men who used saunas 4-7 times a week was 66 percent lower than the average male – even better! Who knew 20 minutes a day in a sauna could be so effective?

Scientists searching for why this is the case found that high temperatures and humidity had physiological changes in the cardiovascular system. In addition, sauna heat therapy has been shown to improve the function of blood vessels and lower blood pressure in individuals who are experiencing hypertension. All in all, what we know is a sauna or steam room has the ability to improve a body’s internal systems’ efficiency. It’s adding strength by improving our ability to breathe, circulate blood, and be healthy.