02 Apr How Infrared Sauna Accelerates Muscle Recovery After Workouts
We’ve all had a rigorous workout that made us feel alive yet sore and fatigued at the same time. That’s one good workout. However, the issue arises the next day when your muscles are in too much pain. Muscle recovery takes time and the healing process renders you incapable of working out as hard again for some time. If you’re looking for a method to speed up your muscle recovery process, infrared saunas are a promising option. This form of treatment has been gaining major attention as it offers a new and non-invasive way to alleviate pain, reduce inflammation, and promote faster healing. By using heat in a unique way, infrared saunas help improve blood circulation and muscle relaxation, creating an ideal environment for recovery. Let’s find out more about it in this blog post.
What Is Infrared Sauna Therapy?
Infrared saunas share the same approach as traditional saunas, using heat to facilitate muscle recovery, but it goes about it in a different way. Instead of warming up the air around an individual, an infrared light is used and shone directly upon the body to provide it with heat. This way, the heat doesn’t just stay at surface level but penetrates deep, going beyond the skin and targeting muscles and tissues, thus accelerating the healing process. Infrared saunas have gained popularity in cities such as New York, London, Berlin, etc. Infrared sauna in Melbourne is especially popular among fitness enthusiasts and athletes dealing with muscle soreness or joint pain.
Infrared Sauna: Boosting Your Post-Workout Recovery
Studies have shown that infrared sauna therapy can reduce muscle soreness and improve overall recovery after intense physical activity by facilitating muscle circulation and metabolism. How it works is that when you spend time in an infrared sauna, your body’s temperature rises, which dilates the blood vessels and improves blood circulation. In every animal’s body, including humans, blood flow carries necessary nutrients, along with oxygen, to muscle tissues. The easier blood can flow, the more oxygen and nutrients reach the muscle tissues and the quicker the healing process.
Furthermore, infrared saunas may also oassist in flushing out any toxins from your body by promoting sweat. Through sweat, the body can excrete metabolic waste such as lactic acid, which tends to build up during exercise and is the culprit behind that burning sensation in muscles.
Overall, this gives a boost to the recovery process, so athletes have to wait less time between workouts and stay on top of their fitness goals.
When You Should Avoid Infrared Sauna Therapy
The numerous benefits of infrared saunas can be enjoyed by the majority of individuals, but there are certain times when it isn’t the best option. Here’s when you should skip the sauna and maybe talk to a doctor instead:
- During Pregnancy: It is a good idea to stay away from saunas in general during pregnancy, as it can be risky for both you and the baby.
- Heart or Blood Pressure Issues: If you suffer from heart problems or high blood pressure, the heat might not react the way it’s intended to. It might just end up raising your heart rate and blood pressure, which obviously isn’t ideal.
- During Sickness: If you’re dealing with an infection or illness, it is probably best to skip the sauna as the heat can end up dehydrating you or make you feel worse.
- Skin Problems: If you’ve got skin conditions like eczema, psoriasis, or open wounds, infrared heat might irritate your skin even more. Check in with a healthcare professional before using the sauna.
- If You’re Dehydrated: Saunas make you sweat, and if you’re already low on fluids, that can lead to dehydration. Make sure you drink enough water beforehand!
Just remember, it’s always a good idea to listen to your body and talk to a healthcare provider if you’re not sure whether a sauna is right for you.
Traditional Sauna vs Infrared
Within a traditional sauna bathing experience, a heater is used to warm the air with temperatures varying between 70°C and 100°C, with the option to increase humidity by pouring water over hot stones. This certainly produces a more vivid experience and helps with muscle recovery, relaxation, and possibly even cardiac health. However, the absorption process is limited; there is no penetration to the deeper layers of the muscle, and sessions last about 10–20 minutes only.
On the other hand, infrared saunas, from a reputable clinic like Fresh Treatment, use infrared panels to emit light that directly heats the body and bypasses the need to heat the surrounding air. They operate at much lower temperatures, which makes them much more gentle and tolerable, allowing sessions to last longer. This method is believed to penetrate deeper into the tissues, potentially offering benefits like improved circulation and muscle relaxation, while also being more energy-efficient due to the direct heating process.
Conclusion
Muscle recovery is necessary, yet it so often feels like a waste. That sentiment is incorrect—muscle recovery is a must for healthy development, but many athletes and even regular people suffering from some sort of pain wish for a method that facilitates muscle recovery. Infrared saunas present themselves as a solution.
Editor’s note: Please consult your personal health care provider before utilizing traditional or infrared saunas.
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Last Updated on April 2, 2025 by Marie Benz MD FAAD