You may have seen sauna suits in various places over the last few years. For people seeking affordable saunas, it’s an immediate go-to and very attractive to them. After all, it’s small and easily transportable. Even Britney Spears was spotted a few years ago wearing a sauna suit. Naturally, you may think you can achieve the benefits of an infrared sauna without actually owning a sauna – wrong! Here’s why purchasing a sauna suit is a bad idea and why it has absolutely nothing to do with a real sauna.
Sauna suits are made from waterproof fabric, like PVC, and are designed specifically to keep in moisture and heat. Who wears sauna suits? Competitive athletes in sports like boxers, MMA, and wrestling who have to make a certain weight in order to be allowed to fight and who have to work to remain in a designated weight class. In a sense, wearing a sauna suit for these athletes provides them with a tool to lose as much weight as possible in a very fast way. Although one doesn’t keep off the weight, it’s one of several methods these athletes use to squeeze in on weight.
A lot of non-competitive athletes have come to wearing sauna suits for when they work out, go running, or walking, believing it can help them cut weight in the same way. This is incredibly dangerous. If one doesn’t have a basic knowledge of how saunas work or the principles of an infrared sauna, it’s not about losing weight in an unhealthy way – it’s about improving health. Sauna suits lock all the heat and moisture in, in an uncontrolled environment. This isn’t the right way to lose weight and furthermore, it could lead to potentially fatal results for a wearer.
The sweat which normally would evaporate does not because it’s trapped inside a suit. Body temperature elevates and remains elevated because of this, leading to more sweating. So you end up losing a lot of water weight which will be regained as soon as you hydrate. What you’re putting your body through is essentially extreme dehydration in an uncontrolled way. So risks like dizziness, fainting, and shortness of breath increase. Someone who does this regularly or who is prone to kidney damage can even experience organ failure from this.
In a sauna, you are in and out. Your body is sweating but it’s also getting the release of stepping outside of that and cooling off. In a sauna suit, you’re sweating and sweating and sweating. You’re putting yourself at risk of heat stroke and possibly death, under certain conditions. In extremely hot conditions or while performing exercise, you’re only causing your body to work harder and in an unsafe, unhealthy way. For the short-term weight loss which is unsustainable, sauna suits aren’t worth it.
Do you want to lose weight the right way? Adjust your nutrition and take in less calories while supplying your body with healthy foods that allow it to rebuild. Join a gym or exercise program and get your body moving. Jump into a real sauna which will help to increase circulation, flush out toxins, and promote weight loss in a safe way. THAT’s how you do it. Through regular sauna sessions and healthy eating, you may be surprised at what you can accomplish.