How to Use a Sauna Suit
Sauna suits are an up-and-coming trend that promise to help users lose weight and purify their bodies by sweating out toxins and free radicals. The suits are generally made out of a non-breathable material such as PVC and restrict the body's ability to cool itself by keeping sweat from evaporating. While sauna suits can be remarkable tools when used properly, improper use can lead to injury, illness, or even death.
Put on tight-fitting undergarments and a t-shirt before you put on your sauna suit. This will help you to feel more comfortable inside of the sauna suit and also keep the material of the suit from chaffing against your skin.
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Put on your sauna suit, making sure to tighten any applicable bands around your ankles or wrists for optimal insulation. Remember that any opening will let in cool air, releasing your body heat, and allowing your sweat to evaporate. This will defeat the purpose of the sauna suit.
Drink plenty of cold water while you're in the sauna suit (at least one 8 oz. glass for every 15 minutes you're in the suit). While wearing a sauna suit you will lose sweat at a prodigious rate and will need to replace that lost moisture by drinking water.
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Relax in your sauna suit for up to 30 minutes, enjoying the relaxing warmth and the feeling of sweating out any impurities from your system.
Remove the sauna suit, when done, while standing in your shower or bathtub. This will prevent any accumulated sweat that pours out of the suit as you take it off from making a mess in your home.
Tips
Make sure that you pick out the right sauna suit. The sauna suit you pick out should be roomy enough to allow you free range of motion (slightly roomier than your normal clothing), but tight enough to offer good insulation of your body heat.
Warnings
Remember, the majority of weight you lose while wearing a sauna suit is simply water weight. You should not attempt to use a sauna suit to accelerate fat burning because it simply won't work and can be dangerous. Don't wear your sauna suit while exercising (as this may cause an unsafe rise in your body temperature), and don't wear a sauna suit for longer than 30 minutes each day. Consult a medical professional before using a sauna suit to find out if you're healthy enough to use one.
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References
- Beever, R. (2010). Do Far-infrared Saunas Have Cardiovascular Benefits in People with Type 2 Diabetes? Canadian Journal of Diabetes, 34(2), 113–118. doi:10.1016/s1499-2671(10)42007-9
- Beever R. (2009). Far-infrared saunas for treatment of cardiovascular risk factors: summary of published evidence. Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien, 55(7), 691–696. PMID: 19602651
- Crinnion WJ. (2011). Sauna as a valuable clinical tool for cardiovascular, autoimmune, toxicant-induced and other chronic health problems. Environmental Medicine.
- Dean, W. (1981). Effect of sweating. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, 246(6), 623–623
- Imamura, M., Biro, S., & Kihara, T. (2002). Repeated thermal therapy improves impaired vascular endothelial function in patients with coronary risk factors. ACC Current Journal Review, 11(2), 32. doi:10.1016/s1062-1458(02)00539-1
- Joy Hussain and Marc Cohen, “Clinical Effects of Regular Dry Sauna Bathing: A Systematic Review,” Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, vol. 2018, Article ID 1857413, 30 pages, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/1857413
- Kunutsor, S. K., Laukkanen, T., & Laukkanen, J. A. (2017). Sauna bathing reduces the risk of respiratory diseases: a long-term prospective cohort study. European Journal of Epidemiology, 32(12), 1107–1111. doi:10.1007/s10654-017-0311-6
- Laukkanen, J. A., Laukkanen, T., & Kunutsor, S. K. (2018). Cardiovascular and Other Health Benefits of Sauna Bathing: A Review of the Evidence. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 93(8), 1111–1121. doi:10.1016/j.mayocp.2018.04.008
- Laukkanen, T., Khan, H., Zaccardi, F., & Laukkanen, J. A. (2015). Association Between Sauna Bathing and Fatal Cardiovascular and All-Cause Mortality Events. JAMA Internal Medicine, 175(4), 542. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2014.8187
- Margaret E. Sears, Kathleen J. Kerr, and Riina I. Bray, “Arsenic, Cadmium, Lead, and Mercury in Sweat: A Systematic Review,” Journal of Environmental and Public Health, vol. 2012, Article ID 184745, 10 pages, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1155/2012/184745.
- Mero, A., Tornberg, J., Mäntykoski, M., & Puurtinen, R. (2015). Effects of far-infrared sauna bathing on recovery from strength and endurance training sessions in men. SpringerPlus, 4, 321. doi:10.1186/s40064-015-1093-5
- Oosterveld, F. G. J., Rasker, J. J., Floors, M., Landkroon, R., van Rennes, B., Zwijnenberg, J., … Koel, G. J. (2008). Infrared sauna in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis. Clinical Rheumatology, 28(1), 29–34. doi:10.1007/s10067-008-0977-y
- Shui, S., Wang, X., Chiang, J. Y., & Zheng, L. (2015). Far-infrared therapy for cardiovascular, autoimmune, and other chronic health problems: A systematic review. Experimental Biology and Medicine, 240(10), 1257–1265. doi:10.1177/1535370215573391
- Soejima, Y., Munemoto, T., Masuda, A., Uwatoko, Y., Miyata, M., & Tei, C. (2015). Effects of Waon Therapy on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Pilot Study. Internal Medicine, 54(3), 333–338. doi:10.2169/internalmedicine.54.3042
- Stephen J. Genuis, Sanjay Beesoon, Detlef Birkholz, and Rebecca A. Lobo, “Human Excretion of Bisphenol A: Blood, Urine, and Sweat (BUS) Study,” Journal of Environmental and Public Health, vol. 2012, Article ID 185731, 10 pages, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1155/2012/185731.
Tips
- Make sure that you pick out the right sauna suit. The sauna suit you pick out should be roomy enough to allow you free range of motion (slightly roomier than your normal clothing), but tight enough to offer good insulation of your body heat.
Warnings
- Remember, the majority of weight you lose while wearing a sauna suit is simply water weight. You should not attempt to use a sauna suit to accelerate fat burning because it simply won't work and can be dangerous. Don't wear your sauna suit while exercising (as this may cause an unsafe rise in your body temperature), and don't wear a sauna suit for longer than 30 minutes each day. Consult a medical professional before using a sauna suit to find out if you're healthy enough to use one.
Writer Bio
A legal clerk and law school student at The Thomas M. Cooley School of Law who lives in southeastern Michigan and holds a bachelor's degree in English from Western Michigan University. Geoffrey has over a decade of experience working as a freelance writer and has completed hundreds of articles during that time.