Sauna correctly: You should pay attention to this in the sauna

Taking a sauna has many positive effects on your health and well-being. We’ll tell you how the best sauna session works and what you should pay attention to.

In many countries, taking a sauna is part of everyday life – especially in Finland, where the popular sweat room originated. For many people, sauna sessions are only for the cold season. But sweating doesn’t just bring benefits in winter. However, there are a few things to consider when taking a sauna if you want it to be effective and relaxing.

This is how a sauna affects your body

Regular sauna visits have many advantages:

• Vascular training: If you go to the sauna regularly, you train your blood vessels. This allows them to adapt much better to different temperatures by expanding or contracting more quickly.

• Increased metabolism: Your body has to compensate for the temperature differences that affect it. When you take a sauna, you sweat to cool it down. The fluid comes directly from your tissue and is carried via the bloodstream to the sweat glands. This thickens your blood for a short time. Your body compensates for this by drawing water from the spaces between your cells. Metabolic end products are stored there, which you then excrete through sweating.

• Hardening: If you go to the sauna regularly, your immune system will be strengthened and your body will be less susceptible to colds and other infections. The increase in temperature causes your body to activate defense cells.

• Relaxation: A sauna is (if you do it right) pure relaxation – for your muscles and your psyche. The relaxing effect on the psyche can be increased even further using different aromas or lighting effects.

• Skin cleansing: Sauna cleanses your skin from the inside out – dead skin cells are removed and your skin is very receptive to care products. New cell formation is actively stimulated and your skin becomes rosy, fresh and soft. Tip: The cuticle layer of the hair also opens. Therefore, after the sauna is the best time to pamper your hair with natural care.

• Muscle regeneration: The autonomic nervous system also takes part in a sauna session. This means that both the heart rate and the breathing rate increase and thus increase the body’s ability to regenerate. The heat relaxes the muscles and relieves tension, which benefits regeneration.

Take a sauna properly: Here’s how it works

It is best to go to the sauna in the following order:

1. Drink enough before you visit the sauna. Your body loses up to 1.5 liters of sweat when you take a sauna. Your last meal should have been a few hours ago. You can take fresh fruit and vegetables with you as a healthy snack in between meals. If you go to the sauna after exercise, wait until your heart rate returns to normal.
2. First, shower and cleanse your body with a mild, natural soap. Then dry yourself well.
3. Maybe do a warm foot bath or a rising foot bath. If you go to the sauna with cold feet or other cold body parts, it takes longer for your body to warm up and sweat.
4. Lie on the top or middle bench in the sauna for eight to 15 minutes. This means your body heats up more evenly than if your head and feet are at different heights. Always lie on a large towel and make sure that no sweat drips onto the wood. If you don’t take a sauna regularly or it gets too warm for you, you can use the lower bench. Sit for the last two minutes before leaving the sauna. This is easier on your circulation than getting up straight from lying down, which could cause dizziness.
5. The sauna is followed by the air shower. Go outside for some fresh air and walk around. Breathe deeply for a few minutes. You shouldn’t sit down now, otherwise your circulation could slow down.
6. Now cool yourself down with cold water. To do this, either use a Kneipp hose or go briefly into the cold plunge pool. If you choose the plunge pool, take a quick cold shower beforehand to rinse off the sweat.
7. Now do a lukewarm foot bath that will regulate your body temperature again.

8. Relax in the sauna relaxation room for 20-30 minutes.

9. Repeat these steps a maximum of three times.

One or two sauna sessions per week are enough for you to benefit permanently from the positive effects of the sauna.

Do you have problems with dizziness when taking a sauna? To avoid this, find a place on the lowest benches at the end of the sauna session. It’s cooler there because the warm air rises. Then you should sit upright and move your legs slowly. However, if you feel dizzy while using the sauna, ask for help if necessary and leave the sauna as quickly as possible. To stabilize circulation, the legs can be rubbed with cold water in the direction of the heart.

Take a sauna regularly

If you want to integrate sauna sessions into your everyday life, you have various options. If you have a thermal bath or indoor swimming pool with a sauna nearby, you can get a ten-ticket card or maybe even a monthly subscription if these offers are available.

You can also ask your friends or family whether anyone has a sauna and whether you can use it from time to time. This way you can plan a great evening or weekend break with friends and you can chat in the sauna without disturbing other sauna goers.

And if you have the space and the financial means, you can also get your own sauna. Then you can also invite friends and family to have a sauna. There are many different types and you can even buy them online from Obi, Hagebau or Otto. You can find practical and beautiful accessories for your sauna sessions at Avocadostore, for example.

Do I sweat more with an infusion?

Many saunas offer infusions. A sauna master comes into the sauna and pours infusion water from a sauna bucket onto the hot stones of the oven. Infusion concentrates, which consist of essential oils, are usually added to the infusion water. Depending on the infusion, the aroma can be either stimulating or calming.

If you want to take part in an infusion, go into the sauna five minutes before the infusion begins to sweat a little. Before the infusion begins, the sauna master opens the door again and lets in fresh air. The actual infusion takes six to eight minutes. The sauna master pours the infusion water onto the hot stones with a sauna spoon and then waves the water vapor through the sauna with a towel. The process is usually repeated three times.

During the infusion, the humidity in the room increases from around ten to up to 30 percent. This means you feel an additional, strong heat stimulus. The moist air condenses on your skin and even blocks sweating for a short time – so you heat up even more inside. The subsequent cooling phase is even more important after an infusion!

Important: If you suffer from high blood pressure, heart or venous diseases or are pregnant, seek medical advice before taking a sauna.