Disclaimer: theshowerguide.com is supported by its audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Saunas have been used to cleanse and purify the skin for centuries. These days, they’re also a popular way to unwind and detoxify the body. While you relax in an infrared sauna, your body perspires from the heat, and your heart rate increases. This results in a number of health benefits, including weight loss.
Table of Contents
Infrared Saunas And Weight Loss
Many manufacturers claim the weight loss benefits of infrared saunas. Most of them cite a study claiming that just half an hour of relaxing in the sauna can help you burn up to 600 calories. The claim seems quite attractive, doesn’t it? How else can you burn 600 calories by just sitting back and relaxing? Even with active workouts, such as running or swimming, you’d burn only half of that number of calories.
After a session of infrared sauna relaxation, you will lose some weight. However, that weight loss will be due to perspiration. Infrared saunas use warm, dry heat at a low temperature that generates great perspiration of the body. So the weight you lose is just a considerable amount of fluid. The heat doesn’t decrease the number of cells in your body. You should regain most of the weight as soon as you’ll rehydrate yourself.
But there’re many other benefits to infrared saunas. One of the main ones is detoxification. As you sweat in the sauna and then shower, it will wash out unwanted and harmful toxins in your body. The advantage of infrared saunas over the traditional ones is also that they promote more profuse amounts of perspiration, which results in a greater number of toxins getting flushed out.
Saunas are also a great way to relax the muscles. The increased body temperature improves circulation and stimulates blood flow, which helps repair damaged and aching muscles and joints. Many athletes regularly use saunas to ease muscle stiffness and help recovery from injury.
Infrared saunas can also help you feel and look younger. As we’ve already mentioned, heat stimulates the body’s circulation and blood flow and by this flushing away damaging toxins from the skin. Additionally, sauna sessions can increase the production of collagen, which is known to improve the overall appearance of the skin.
Bottom Line
Infrared saunas have many great benefits. A few treatments can leave you feeling relaxed, feeling healthier, and looking better. However, if you would like to use an infrared sauna for weight loss, we would recommend using it only as part of an overall weight loss program, including healthy eating and exercise. On its own, it will not give you significant weight loss results. You will lose some weight short term, but most of it will be water. As soon as you’ll start rehydrating your body with fluids, most of the weight will be back.