Support Your Fitness Routine with an At-Home Sauna

With 2020 off to a great start, it is time to focus on keeping your New Year’s resolutions. Whether you are looking to lose a few pounds, run a 5km or simply get more active, the New Year is a great time to reinvest in your health and wellbeing. The holidays can be a stressful time filled with decadent foods and overeating and many people want to start the new year off right with a fitness routine and a healthier diet. No matter what your goals may be, an at-home sauna can help you meet your health and wellness goals in 2020. In this blog post, we will discuss the benefits provided by an at-home sauna to help you become a happier and healthier version of yourself this year. An at-home sauna can improve both performance and recovery and there is no better time than now to begin achieving your fitness goals.

Better Performance Using a Sauna Before a Workout

            Prior to your workout, relaxing in a sauna can help you loosen your muscles in preparation for the hard work ahead. Although this should not replace your regular warm-up, spending 10-30 minutes in a sauna before your regular warm-up can help ease muscle tension. This can help you gradually progress into static and dynamic stretches before an easy cardio warm-up such as jogging or cycling. Collectively, this comprehensive warm-up routine can help you prevent athletic injuries by ensuring your body is warm before a workout. Many studies have demonstrated that the best way to prevent athletic injury long-term is to always warm-up for at least 10 minutes before a workout.

Enhanced Recovery Using a Sauna Post-Workout

            Following a workout, recovering in a sauna promotes circulation and relieves muscle aches and pains. Research has found that recovering in a sauna after a workout can also help improve endurance and can be beneficial for marathon runners, triathletes or other athletes looking to improve their long-term performance. Your resting heart rate is higher in a sauna due to the heat, allowing you to extend your workout into your sauna time and help improve performance in hot weather or at high altitude.

Relaxing in a sauna after a grueling workout can also help ease the mind and body, reducing stress and improving sleep. For any athlete, a good night’s rest is one of the most important components of a training plan. By unwinding in a sauna after a workout, you can improve your body’s physical and mental recovery to help you reach your goals faster. It is also a great opportunity to reflect on your workout and identify places where you could improve next time.               

How to Safely Support Workouts with a Sauna

            One of the most important parts of incorporating an at-home sauna into your fitness routine is to listen to your body. The high temperatures of a sauna can help you relax and relieve pain, but they can also cause dehydration if you don’t appropriately hydrate. Always make sure that you drink plenty of water before and after your time in the sauna. It is also important to pay attention to how your body is feeling and leave the sauna if you start to feel fatigued or dizzy. If you are feeling too hot or inflamed after a workout, you can always postpone your after-workout sauna until you have cooled down and are feeling better. By ensuring that you drink lots of water and listen closely to your body, you’ll be able to maximize the benefits of your at-home sauna for both your athletic and personal wellbeing.

            Of note, it is also important to remove jewelry or glasses when enjoying a sauna. Metal will heat up in the hot temperatures and necklaces, earrings, glasses’ rims, etc. can irritate the skin. Simply remove any metal before entering the sauna and you can enjoy the heat in peace.

            This year invest in your fitness goals by installing an at-home sauna. At SaunaFin, we provide a wide range of prefab and sauna kits for both indoor and outdoor use. Our diverse sauna models can be installed in your home or cottage and range in size to fit anywhere from 2-10 individuals. SaunaFin delivers and installs at-home saunas throughout Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area and we ship our kits throughout Canada and the USA. Our expert team is experienced when it comes to at-home sauna purchase and installation and are always happy to answer any questions you may have. For more information, contact our team today at 905-738-2486.