When anything starts getting that much hype, you know the backlash is coming. But a new paper published in the International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance takes things a step further, suggesting that post-exercise sauna exposure can actually hurt your recovery and subsequent performance.
They recruited 20 swimmers and triathletes, all competing at the national level or higher, to do a two-part protocol. In the afternoon of day one, they swam a performance test—4 x 50 meters all-out with 30 seconds of rest—then did a regular hard workout followed by one of two recovery protocols. The next morning, they swam the 4 x 50m test again.
They did this two-day protocol twice, in randomized order, once with a post-workout sauna and the other time with a placebo recovery. The sauna was 3 x 8-minute bouts at to degrees Fahrenheit 80 to 85 degrees C and 10 percent humidity, with five minutes at room temperature between bouts. The placebo involved sitting passively for 35 minutes while applying a special recovery oil which was really just plain massage oil to their bodies. Here are the overall and individual results for total swimming time in the performance test, showing that times were a bit slower after the sauna and similar or perhaps quicker after the placebo.
Many gyms include a sauna or even offer his and her saunas. Are sauna rooms just a nice gym perk, or do they offer health benefits? Heat therapies have been associated with health and wellness for thousands of years. Long before barbells, treadmills, and fitness gyms came onto the scene, ancient Greeks, Romans, and Mayans were soothing their muscles in sweat lodges and other sauna precursors.
Our ancestors were onto something. It may help you become fitter and healthier. The heat and dry air of the sauna will cause you to sweat heavily as your body attempts to cool itself down.
In fact, you can lose around a pint of sweat in a relatively short amount of time, according to Medical News Today. Your heart rate will also increase as your blood vessels widen. A tough workout can cause muscle soreness over the next few days. While there are several great ways to reduce delayed onset muscle soreness DOMS , saunas can also help.
Saunas increase circulation, which brings more oxygen-rich blood to your depleted muscles and can help improve your muscle recovery. Applying heat is a great way to help your muscles relax and relieve tension. Note: One of the best things you can do to protect your heart health is to engage in regular cardiovascular exercise as long as you have the green light from your doctor. Do sauna benefits include weight loss? That might be helpful if you need to weigh in for a boxing match, but not if you want to lower your overall body fat.
The jury is still out on whether saunas can help you shed real pounds. Some sources call it a myth, while others, like the authors of this study out of Binghamton University, found a connection between increasing core body temperature and losing body fat.
Spending time in the sauna is often enjoyable, relaxing, and even meditative. As the tension in your muscles relaxes, you may find your stress ebbing away. Chronic stress has been connected to a whole host of negative physical, emotional, and psychological symptoms, so any stress-relieving activities can help protect your overall health and well-being. Some people and institutions believe that spending time in a sauna room can help detoxify your body.
The thinking goes that copious sweating will release toxins in your body, such as metals, alcohol, and nicotine. The truth is that while sweating may play a small role in helping to remove contaminants from the body, the real detoxifiers in your body are your liver, kidneys, and lungs.
However, it can be dangerous to visit the sauna before your workout. Sweating during your workout helps cool you down, but it also helps release toxins in your body. You can prolong the benefits of sweating well past your gym session by sweating it out in a sauna. This helps remove harmful elements such as toxic metals, alcohol, nicotine, and more. By purging your body of these toxins , you are more likely to feel better post-workout.
For many, weight loss is a big goal for putting together an exercise plan. Luckily, there are many sauna weight loss studies showing the correlation between sauna use and losing weight. Saunas boost your cardiovascular, immune, and lymphatic systems to help detox the body. Additionally, infrared heat can slightly increase human growth hormone HGH production and lower cortisol levels to promote more weight loss.
Overall, sitting in a sauna can help boost muscle recovery, improve well-being, and decrease body fat — all things helpful in a weight loss journey.
Plan to stay in the sauna no longer than 20 minutes to avoid over-exerting your body. If you have never used a sauna before or are new to the practice, start with smaller intervals of time. Look out for signs such as lightheadedness, dizziness, and headaches, as they might be signs that you are dehydrated or overheating.
Once you leave the gym, continue to keep activity light. Mild exercise like walking or swimming can increase blood circulation to your muscles to aid recovery, but more activity can disrupt the recovery process. At the end of the day, to reap all the benefits of sauna after a workout, be sure to get plenty of rest and stay hydrated!
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