Home Sauna: What You Need to Know?

When you're looking into owning a home sauna, the choice may seem daunting at first. Do you go with a traditional sauna or an infrared sauna? What about a steam sauna or dry sauna? And will you want it to be an indoor sauna or an outdoor sauna?

Many factors play into the decision process, including energy efficiency, available space, and the level of convenience the sauna experience provides. Whether you want a sauna with built-in speakers or one of the more traditional saunas available, you'll find the top tips for making your decision in this article.

What Health Benefits Can a Home Sauna Provide?

To get started, let's look into the reasons why you might want to get a home sauna for yourself or even the whole family.

The reasons you want a sauna may vary, but the beauty is that whatever your motivation, you'll derive some significant health benefits. What are they?

Home Saunas Boost Blood Circulation

Quickly switching from extremely hot to cold conditions sends a signal for your body to increase blood flow. This results in your circulatory system switching from a dilated to constricted state, improving vascular and cardiac health.

Home Saunas Remove Toxins and Lactic Acid Buildup

Your body is always producing natural toxins that circulate around. And if you engage in regular hard exercise, you might often suffer from a lactic acid build-up in your muscles. All of this can add up to reduced performance and muscle pain that's so bad you have to skip workouts.

Normally, reducing lactic acid buildup requires rest, drinking plenty of water, or taking a magnesium supplement. While these are all still smart measures regardless, saunas deliver similar benefits.

There's also strong research showing that contrast therapy, which adds a cold plunge after the hot sauna session, further helps decrease lactic acid buildup, making it even easier to recover from soreness and fatigue post-exercise.

Home Saunas Increase Energy Levels and Reduce Fatigue

Home saunas can also help you reduce fatigue and increase your energy levels after exercise. A report from Insider Inc., says a study made in 2017 found that alternating between a hot sauna and cold plunge helped team sports players recover from fatigue within 24 hours to 48 hours after their game.

Interestingly, it was found that ice bath sessions alone didn’t have the same effect. To get the most from ice baths, adding in a hot sauna is essential.

Home Saunas Help Reduce Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness

Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) makes it so much harder to stay on track with your exercise routine. When soreness from intense workouts lingers for multiple days, it can hurt your sports performance and increase your injury risk.

In numerous studies, it's been found that using a hot sauna as part of contrast therapy lessens the effects of DOMS and reduces its occurrence in athletes.

Home Saunas Help Reduce Pain and Inflammation

Spending time in hot saunas can also help reduce painful inflammation, which is a common issue for those experiencing muscle soreness or sports injuries regularly. When joints and muscles swell from being overworked, spending time in a hot sauna can help.

Home Saunas Could Lower the Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia

One landmark study on home sauna use found that there's a strong link between long-term mental health and hot sauna sessions.

The 20-year, 2,300 participant study by Dr. Jari Laukkanen and his colleagues at the University of Eastern Finland found that routine sauna use resulted in a measurably lower risk for developing both Alzheimer's disease and Dementia.

What to Consider When Shopping for a Home Sauna?

What are the things sauna shoppers should consider to ensure they'll pick the right sauna for the long-term? Numerous factors are involved, so be sure to run down this checklist of sauna features that will impact your everyday experience.

Infrared Sauna or Steam Sauna?

Steam saunas can prove effective, and are commonly used as outdoor saunas due to the humidity they produce. Many traditional Finnish saunas are steam saunas. But for those that want to have their sauna inside, an infrared sauna is ideal.

Indoor saunas use heating elements rather than sauna rocks and water to produce heat. These infrared heaters using infrared light deliver heat therapy without the humidity.

Indoor Sauna or Outdoor Sauna?

If you want your sauna experience to involve the great outdoors, you'll need to be sure the sauna you're considering can be used as an outdoor sauna. The same holds true for indoor saunas, as not all can be used inside. Think about the space you have along with power connections too, as these can impact which way you'll need to go.

What's the Energy Efficiency of the Sauna?

Check the energy ratings of the infrared saunas you're looking at to get an idea of which one will be the most efficient. Many outdoor saunas lack the efficiency you may require, so choose one with quality insulation and strong infrared heat that can withstand outdoor use in the wintertime.

Get Even More from a Home Sauna with Contrast Therapy

One way to achieve even bigger improvements in post-exercise recovery is contrast therapy. This method uses hot saunas with ice baths to deliver a wide range of health benefits. Practitioners also report experiencing an elevated mood and improved cognition following contrast therapy sessions.

Whether you own an ice bath already, how can you leverage your home sauna with cold water to reap the rewards of contrast therapy?

Why Add Contrast Therapy to a Traditional Sauna Session?

Sports training experts recommend contrast therapy after intense workouts to reduce post-workout soreness and inflammation. Research suggests that contrast therapy is more beneficial than traditional sauna sessions alone, and the same holds true for ice bath therapy.

The combination of heat and cold therapies unlocks an extra degree of benefit that's just not possible with only one methodology. The good news is that contrast therapy is simple and fast when you combine a RENU Therapy sauna and cold plunge tub.

How Do You Set Up a Home Sauna for Contrast Therapy?

First, you'll need to get your home sauna heated up. Traditional steam saunas can take a while and involve lots of work pouring water over sauna rocks to create steam and produce heat.

Conversely, infrared saunas remove this work by providing simple digital controls to adjust the temperature inside. For example, the infrared saunas from RENU Therapy allow you to adjust your sauna temperature to between 150°F to 195°F. Ideally, you'll have your home sauna placed directly next to your cold plunge so you can make a quick transition from one to the other.

Next, set your cold plunge to between 39°F to 55°F, and have a towel and warm clothing ready for when you get out of the tub.

Now sit inside the sauna for as long as twenty minutes. After that, quickly get out and jump into your cold plunge tank for a maximum of ten minutes. Most people find that three minutes to five minutes is an optimal amount of time though.

How Often Should You Perform Contrast Therapy?

If it's making you feel better rather than a battle to fight, contrast therapy can be performed every day. It's especially good post-exercise. Strong evidence suggests that more consistent and frequent contrast therapy delivers the best long-term benefits.

Numerous studies have also found significant differences between people who only do contrast therapy randomly and people who average a minimum of four days per week.

Discover the Benefits of an Infrared Home Sauna

Call RENU Therapy today to discover how you can get free curb side delivery and an easy setup of your contrast therapy system in your home.

Be sure to check out our 5% Discount for a Hot Sauna and Cold Plunge Combo! And when you prefer dunking in hot water instead of sitting in a dry sauna, check out our RENU Therapy Japanese Hot Soak Tubs!

To learn more about our premium-quality products, fill out our online form or contact us at 714-617-2007 at RENU Therapy today