Do You Work out? Here Are 5 Amazing Reasons Why You Should Be Using an Infrared Sauna
Every athlete knows that giving their body and mind a chance to recover and re-energize is crucial to achieving great results, and you do not have to be a pro to uphold this rule. Even if you regularly work out for recreational purposes, you need to know how to preserve your musculoskeletal health in the right way.
While nothing can replace consultations with your doctor, there are some ways to improve your workout at home. Besides using proper exercise equipment, infrared saunas may be a useful tool to keep your body in great shape and enhance your workout plan. These personal devices bring all the infrared therapy benefits directly to your home and allow you to enjoy all their positive effects whenever you feel like it.
Other than being comfortable, infrared sessions can have important medical properties that will help you maintain a healthy body before, during and after your exercise regime [1]. With that in mind, take a look at these 5 amazing reasons why you should include an infrared sauna in your workout.
1. Pain Management
Soreness normally occurs after a workout and it is an unavoidable companion of both amateur and professional athletes. This type of pain appears when you push your muscles more than they are used to during exercise. It will happen when you first start working out and continues to occur when you increase intensity, duration or introduce a new program in your exercise plan.
Medically speaking, workout causes micro-tears inside the muscle tissue, leading to inflammation of that area, swelling and pain. The affected area becomes more sensitive to touch and especially to movement, which can affect your workout schedule and intensity from then on. If you are preparing for a big event, like a marathon, you need to be in top shape every day to train your body for the upcoming strain. Thankfully, infrared therapy can help to reduce this condition known as delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). If used immediately after a workout, infrared therapy can ameliorate the symptoms of DOMS more efficiently than a warm-up exercise [2].
Another type of pain that may occur when working out are joint, back and neck aches. While these types of conditions require medical consultations before anything else and to see whether a person should continue to work out, infrared saunas can also help. Infrared therapy has a known relief effect on chronic back pain and can even reduce it by 50% [3]. Regardless, if you feel this type of pain after a workout, take a break and visit your doctor's office to see what kind of injury it may be and whether you should continue to exercise.
2. Improves Healing
If you sustained an injury during a workout or had to undergo surgical intervention, the recovery process may put a stop to your physical activity plans. These types of injuries need time to heal, which can greatly cost someone who is building their stamina and mass. Infrared therapy had some promising results in speeding up healing and shortening the recovery period for nerves [4] and muscles [5].
Spending time in the infrared sauna can stimulate the natural healing mechanisms inside the body. This happens because infrared light penetrates the skin and increases circulation [6], bringing more oxygen and nutrients to the injured tissue, and reduces inflammation by increasing lymphatic drainage [7].
3. Increases Endurance
Simply put, endurance is the ability of your muscles to perform repetitive motions without getting tired. Every time you flex your muscles, you put a strain on them that, if too great, can undermine your physical performance. Endurance is vital to the performance of everyday activities, like walking, jumping or, lifting a leg or arm. But if you want to be a better athlete, you must slowly build your endurance with regular exercise, dedication and patience to withstand bigger physical challenges.
Combining your workout with infrared therapy can help you build up muscle endurance faster without harming your health. If you use an infrared sauna before a workout, you can increase your endurance and enhance your performance [8]. Infrared saunas also provides pain management and improved recovery after injury or strenuous workout sessions safely and comfortably.
4. Mind Relaxation
All athletes use relaxation techniques to manage their anxiety, emotions and their physical symptoms. Their restlessness comes from expectations they set before themselves, as well as those arising from the events they are training for. Even those working out for the pure joy of staying fit and healthy are overwhelmed by demanding exercise plans. Without proper rest, their performance may suffer and the stress can cause them to doubt themselves and lose confidence.
Regular use of infrared saunas can help both the body and mind to relax in various ways. The heating of the body with infrared light is comfortable and soothing for the muscles [9]. This creates a perfect environment for meditation and some much earned “me-time”. Some infrared saunas are specially intended for this purpose, like the ProSeries 200 Full Spectrum infrared sauna that has premium Bluetooth speakers so you can play relaxing music or listen to an audiobook [10].
5. Full Body Detox
Besides injury, exhaustion, and psychological barriers, you also have to think about eating right and respecting a healthy lifestyle. The foods you eat and the habits you adopt are mostly in your control, but being exposed to pollutants and toxins from the environment is not. To help out kidneys and liver to eliminate these harmful elements from the body, athletes can use infrared saunas to sweat some of them out [11].
Certain toxins, like lead and mercury, can present a cardiovascular risk, leading to arterial damage and high blood pressure [12] [13]. Both these conditions pose a serious problem for exercising successfully, even as an amateur athlete. Sweating inside an infrared sauna can somewhat lower the toxins accumulated in your body, which you were exposed to through cosmetic products, some types of food, medicines and levels of pollution in your neighborhood [14]. Infrared therapy can help you live the healthiest way possible by allowing you to cleanse your skin from impurities and preventing them from attacking your body.
At The End Of The Day
Working out is a choice that can lead to improved quality of life. Just combining your exercise with the appropriate diet can give you the best results, but you can also enhance them with infrared therapy. Now available as an in-home option, personal infrared saunas offer all the benefits you are used to at the spa or gym, only in your bathroom, bedroom or anywhere indoors you see fit to install it. Stick to your workout routine, but adding an infrared sauna can give you the physical and psychological support you need to reach extraordinary results.
Resources:
[1] Shang-Ru Tsai, Ph.D., Michael R Hamblin, Ph.D. (2017). “Biological effects and medical applications of infrared radiation.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, National Center for Biotechnology Information, May 2017, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5505738/.
[2] Ayoola Aiyegbusi, et al. (2016). “A comparative study of the effects of infrared radiation and warm-up exercises in the management of DOMS.” researchgate.net, ResearchGate, January 2016, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/299654167_A_comparative_study_of_the_effects_of_infrared_radiation_and_warm-up_exercises_in_the_management_of_DOMS.
[3] George D Gale, et al. (2006). “Infrared therapy for chronic low back pain: A randomized, controlled trial.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, National Center for Biotechnology Information, 2006, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2539004/.
[4] Rochkind S, et al. (2007). “Efficacy of 780-nm laser phototherapy on peripheral nerve regeneration after neurotube reconstruction procedure (double-blind randomized study).” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, National Center for Biotechnology Information, June 2007, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17603852.
[5] Silveira PC, et al. (2009). “Evaluation of mitochondrial respiratory chain activity in muscle healing by low-level laser therapy.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, National Center for Biotechnology Information, May 2009, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19232497.
[6] Shanshan Shui, et al. (2015). “Far-infrared therapy for cardiovascular, autoimmune, and other chronic health problems: A systematic review.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, National Center for Biotechnology Information, October 2015, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4935255/.
[7] Ke Li, et al. (2017). “Efficacy and safety of far infrared radiation in lymphedema treatment: clinical evaluation and laboratory analysis” researchgate.net, ResearchGate, January 2017, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/312959124_Efficacy_and_safety_of_far_infrared_radiation_in_lymphedema_treatment_clinical_evaluation_and_laboratory_analysis.
[8] Leal Junior EC, et al. (2010). “Effects of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) in the development of exercise-induced skeletal muscle fatigue and changes in biochemical markers related to postexercise recovery.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, National Center for Biotechnology Information, August 2010, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20436237.
[9] Mero, Antti, et al. (2015). “Effects of far-infrared sauna bathing on recovery from strength and endurance training sessions in men.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, National Center for Biotechnology Information, July 2015, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4493260/.
[10] Jiexiu Zhao, et al. (2012). “Red Light and the Sleep Quality and Endurance Performance of Chinese Female Basketball Players.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, National Center for Biotechnology Information, November–December 2012, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3499892/.
[11] Genuis, Stephen J, et al. (2010). “Blood, Urine, and Sweat (BUS) Study: Monitoring and Elimination of Bioaccumulated Toxic Elements.” link.springer.com, Springer Nature, Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, November 2010, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00244-010-9611-5.
[12] Navas-Acien, Ana, et al. (2006). “Lead Exposure and Cardiovascular Disease—A Systematic Review.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, National Center for Biotechnology Information, December 2006, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1849948/.
[13] Genchi, Giuseppe, et al. (2017). “Mercury Exposure and Heart Diseases.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, National Center for Biotechnology Information, January 2017, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5295325/.
[14] Sears, Margaret E, et al. (2012). “Arsenic, Cadmium, Lead, and Mercury in Sweat: A Systematic Review.” hindawi.com, Journal of Environmental and Public Health, February 2012, https://www.hindawi.com/journals/jeph/2012/184745/.